Page 162 - EW December 2020

Teacher-2-Teacher

New classrooms of

the future

RAJIV BANSAL

APID TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT stim- Students are the leaders of tomorrow.
ulated by the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic
has spurred the evolution of education faster than They need to be empowered by new
Rever before. With machine learning and artificial technologies-enabled learning systems
intelligence influencing every dimension of future work-
places, it is imperative that we equip students with the that will shape them into competent,
appropriate competencies to cope with challenges of the confident and proactive adults
future. This is the motive force driving educators to ideate
and implement advanced pedagogies that will transform
K-12 education and prepare students for careers that don’t evolving, able to adapt to its surrounding environment.
exist today. The Survey of Formal Education 2021 of the AI-based solutions are hyper-personalised to students’
Unesco Institute of Statistics, an initiative aligned with the levels of knowledge and engineered to provide customised
UN Sustainable Development Goals, will soon provide us courses and evaluations to enhance their capabilities. For
with a clearer picture of what to expect in the near future. instance, a student can use AI as a virtual personal tutor
Meanwhile, let’s take a look at some new developments that that devises precise strategies to enhance understanding
will redefine education in 2021. of a particular subject. In Singapore, education institutions
The advent of integrated learning solutions. The have consistently been making use of AI technologies to
adoption of unconventional pedagogies does not warrant track students’ progress, assess shortcomings, and enable
discarding traditional curriculums. Instead, the objective them to bridge their learning gaps.
should be to upscale existing academics with innovative Constant skill-building of teachers. From Montessori
learning tools. This is best exemplified with new-age blend- to post-doctoral education, the forthcoming decade will
ed and flipped learning pedagogies that enable students to witness a paradigm shift in teaching-learning systems. To
access audio and video lectures at home, followed by active manage such pervasive transformation, it will be critical for
discussions on course material with teachers and peers in- teachers to remain abreast of changing times. She must be
side school classrooms. constantly on the lookout for acquiring new skill-sets and
Classrooms equipped with wi-fi connectivity and smart- technical knowledge to ensure that her students receive all
boards are ideal for such learning systems, where students the benefits of modern, 21st-century knowledge transmis-
can freely exchange ideas and gain deeper insight into sion and tech-enabled classrooms. Therefore, educators
subjects. Recently, as part of a pilot project of the ministry must regularly participate in workshops and training pro-
of education of the UAE, 20 schools across the emirates grammes to learn about new pedagogies, their application,
integrated VR (virtual reality) headsets into their class- digital content creation and research of novel frameworks
rooms. The objective is to enable students to experience that amplify student engagement and improve learning
and learn about places that would be difficult to visit in real outcomes.
life, including underwater exploration, space tours, or walks Progressive schools aware of the need for continuous
through historic sites. capacity building, have introduced special learning man-
Personalised learning the new norm. Integration of agement systems and training programmes to enable teach-
digital tools into teaching-learning has also conferred the ers to study new pedagogies, systems and technologies and
advantage of enabling study from any place, any time. Its teach students to utilise online and offline platforms while
value has been proven recently as the Coronavirus pandem- simultaneously enabling teachers to continue their own
ic has validated the success of virtual classrooms. Students professional development at their convenience.
continue to make the most of online and offline learning As we enter the year 2021, these trends are expected to
modules as they pursue their lessons from the safety of their set the wheels in motion for the education sector and allied
homes. industries. The emerging new world is beyond the realm of
Such personalised learning also greatly benefits students imagination and teachers have to enable children to dis-
who lag behind in certain subjects. They can now work on cover their multiple intelligences to succeed in the volatile,
their shortcomings through self-paced learning. For in- uncertain and complex world evolving rapidly. Students are
stance, a student can rewatch a video lesson any number leaders of tomorrow. They need to be empowered by new
of times to get a grasp of it. Such tech-enabled lessons have technologies-enabled learning systems that will shape them
an edge over conventional classrooms, where teachers can into competent, confident, and proactive adults ready to
give limited attention to every student. chart the course for our future.
Greater focus on Artificial Intelligence. Artificial
intelligence can be defined as an extension of human un- (Rajiv Bansal is the Mumbai-based director (operations) of Global Indian
derstanding of the world. Just like our brains, AI is self- International schools (India))

162 EDUCATIONWORLD DECEMBER 2020