Using tech in classrooms

Students of present day being digital natives, who have access to information at their finger tips, teachers and universities cannot afford to ignore ICT, writes J Meenakumari .

Today, higher education in the country is under transition from a traditional mode of teaching-learning to a technology-based process. While state-owned universities are lagging behind in the implementation of technology, the private universities in order to cope up with competition have partially adapted to the new environment. In the case of state-owned universities, the incentive for faculty members to refine the teaching-learning process through the use of technology is minimal, which in turn shapes their status-quoist attitudes.     

Altering classroom dynamics

Importantly, the use of technology alters the classroom dynamics, where the teacher tends to recede into the background. Technology resources include multi-media enabled presentation slides, videos, online course content, real-time experiments through simulation, and virtual libraries, among other resources. Collectively, this application of technology amounts to Information and Communication Technology (ICT), which is today’s buzzword in all spheres of activity from agriculture and aeronautics to manufacturing and medicine.           

For instance, presentation of slides with contents like text, background information, statistics, images and audio effects could be further enhanced with a couple of video clips for greater impact. It would convey the point with simplicity and thereby be a more effective form of communication. This would be an ideal example of ICT, which would involve a combination of computers and communication technologies that enable one to create, access, integrate, manage and evaluate information in a knowledge society.

Advantages and disadvantages

In the case of a teacher, who engages a class using ICT, the inherent advantages are many. The ability to marshal thoughts and ideas in a structured manner is possible through the use of technological applications like multi-media based presentations. The human mind has limitations to remember and recollect varied information, and technology-based education could fill this gap.  It helps individuals to gain ICT skills, confidence, and enthusiasm thereby enhances their professional stature.

While sections of the teaching community welcome technology, others tend to be equally resistant to its introduction into wider spheres of activity.  For instance, teachers who would be comfortable with the use of presentation slides may not be happy to conduct online examinations owing to basic issues such as power failure, non-availability of required hardware, software and internet connectivity that could tend to restrain its implementation.

It would be recalled that the prestigious joint entrance exam to the IITs conducted this May at one of the centers in Chennai also suffered a setback owing to power failure. Thereafter the backup power provided through the generator was also interrupted due to technical reasons. Ultimately, exam process proved to be an unpleasant experience for both the administrators and students alike for no fault of either section.    

At the next level, various technology-oriented parameters which include accessibility, availability, affordability, and adaptability would hamper technology-based teaching.  Moreover, there is a growing need for an improved level of access from different locations with uninterrupted availability of instructional components at an affordable cost.  The time and cost associated with the delivery of instructions is also vital in a technology-based teaching environment. It is also required for teachers to have clarity on the instructional needs of learners to enable improved adaptability.

Toward student-friendly approach

Despite these constraints, higher education requires adoption of technology for a student-friendly approach to teaching. For one, it dilutes the dependence of students on teachers as it provides them wider access to information resources irrespective of geographical location and is not time sensitive. 

Moreover, the use of ICT enables the student community to learn at their own pace and work on scenarios that require collaboration with other learners. The technology-based learning process provides students with a more stimulating environment which helps in the development of higher levels of learning styles. It helps students in the improvement of writing skills, conceptual understanding, data handling, and numerical analysis.

Considering that society has undergone tremendous transformation owing to the introduction of technologies like the television, computer, internet and mobile phones, among others, gives rise to a digital age.

This makes today’s students digital natives who have access to information at their finger tips, unlike earlier generations, cocooned in their geographic regions mentally and physically. Therefore the teaching community needs to undergo a paradigm shift from the ‘chalk and talk’ approach to technology-based teaching-learning processes.   As a result, universities cannot afford to avoid or ignore ICT since this could impact their sustainability in the future.

(The writer is an associate professor in the Computer Science department of Christ University, Bangalore)