8 Pieces of Technology That Will Change Education

It’s easy for most of us to appreciate the massive role that modern technology now plays in every aspect of our lives, including education. It is hard to imagine an education that doesn’t involve a heavy reliance on Google, a calculator and the projection of a computer screen at the front of the classroom. But go back just one generation to when our parents were at school and their education involved none of those things, instead working with slide-rules and chalkboards. So what might education look like for the next generation?

1. Online Textbooks
   Carrying heavy textbooks around will be a thing of the past, instead interactive versions of textbooks will be available on tablet computers. https://www.apple.com/uk/education/ipad/ibooks-textbooks/
2. Online Notebooks
   Not only textbooks, but notes will be available online in online binders like this http://www.livebinders.com/welcome/about ending the need to be constantly weighed down by heavy ringbinders
3. Electronic Highlighters
   There is even an electronic highlighter which allows users to copy highlighted text straight into a word document on their laptop, making it even easier to keep all notes online. http://www.cpen.com/
4. Free Online Courses
   In fact it may not even be necessary to travel to attend school. Particularly for University, online courses are increasing in popularity rapidly. Putting lectures online frees up time for lecturers to carry out their research and allows students to study at their convenience and to break lectures into smaller sections so that their concentration doesn’t lapse. It will not even be necessary to be part of a university or institution. Some organisations such as Khan Academy are already putting up lectures free for anyone to watch.
5. Text to Speech Technology
   A major problem faced by pupils with learning difficulties is sitting exams. It’s not very practical to try and provide every person with their own assistant to read them the exam paper, although often this is what they need. But now there is a pen which the user scans over the page and it then copies the text onto its display and reads the words out loud, with the use of headphones this will allow pupils with learning difficulties to sit their exams alongside their peers and will provide a simple, cost effective solution for schools. http://edtechnology.co.uk/Article/just_say_pen
6. Instant Feedback
   For those concerned parents, advanced technology will allow them to track their child’s progress more closely. Schools currently have the ability to send parents updates about important information via text message, but in the future parents may be able to check their child’s attendance mark and even view real-time assessment results. http://edtechnology.co.uk/Article/the-rise-of-the-e-parent
7. 3D Printers
   Arts and crafts may reach whole new levels in schools, thanks to the arrival of the 3D printer. This article discusses a pioneering project in which, using a 3D printer, children design and then create their own miniature city. http://edtechnology.co.uk/Article/kids-print-city-with-3d-tech 
8. Virtual Field-trips
   It has been shown that interactive activities, particularly field trips, better engage pupils and they learn more effectively. Virtual reality headsets could take this interactivity to a whole new level. Not only could they become a cost effective way of giving pupils at schools with limited funding the experience of interactive learning, but they also open up a whole range of experiences that would not be possible through field trips – for example, looking at different parts of the solar system up close. http://www.roadtovr.com/world-of-comenius-virtual-reality-education-biology-lesson-leap-motion-oculus-rift-dk2/