2. Education
2.1. EU involvement
EU started a new development program in 2014 with a goal to integrate technologies in learning process.[5] This should assist students at the higher education institutions to not only gain experience of learning set of facts, but it also focuses on their logical thinking. Currently, technology provide teachers with an opportunity to deliver lectures online enabling the professor to be in charge of monitoring the efficiency of learning online, time frame for how much the student spends time on certain exercise. It facilitates to reduce paperwork. Exercises, notes are being provided on software programs making it more accessible for students and teachers. Instead of printing out copies, with some simple steps they can upload a shared file that can be accessed by students online. This has positively impacted the EU and the world since reduced paperwork led to reduced supplies of paper. Analysing from another perspective, this leads to a safer and a stable environment.
In order to talk about efficient digitalization, the school must have the necessary equipment, trained and open teachers to less conventional, creative methods, specialists and pedagogues, to the same extent. The system also needs adequate national platforms, access to virtual libraries and open educational resources, ensuring a fair path for all pupils and students, beyond individual possibilities, residential environments, possible economic inequalities. These are essential European principles, as well as the conditions of a modern, inclusive and democratic society.
Modern education means books and computers, libraries and software, academic lectures, dialogues, seminars and webinars, face-to-face courses and lessons, distance learning, listening and interaction, IT applications, various ways to capitalize on Internet resources, information from a dynamic world , fluids that await human intelligence for creative development and reconfiguration.
Let us return, for pedagogical reflection, to the metaphorical suggestions of Alvin Toffler who warns that literacy in the 21st century means the possibility for young people to learn, to unwind and to relearn.
The major lesson that the current pandemic has conveyed is that sometimes learning, studying, our professional lives go beyond known patterns, and adaptation, alternatives must be immediately accessible to overcome the unknown and unpredictable existential. That is why digitalization, e-learning methods and the development of digital skills are becoming mandatory educational pathways that we must assume as an emergency educational policy.
2.2. Digitalisation in higher education: mapping institutional approaches for teaching and learning[6]
One of the contradictions seriously impeding the modernization of education is the discrepancy between the speed of digitalization of educational resources and the speed at which the digitalization of the educational process itself, which is still very low. The reform of education is presented in the article by the example of various forms of curricular and extracurricular activities aimed at the active use of digital educational resources.
Discussing the phenomenon of digitalization it should be noted that various analysts and forecast experts (mostly British, including Tim Berners-Lee – one of the inventors of the World Wide Web (Stuart, 2014)) consider transition of education process into digital stage as the turning point in the history of education.
The stated approach was adopted by the European Union. EU 2020 education development strategy, adopted in 2014, focuses on digital technologies. This document has as its core objective the integration of state-of-the-art IT-solutions in education institutions’ activities across EU. “DigEduPol”. The main aim is to integrate digital technologies in education process, so that they were going hand in hand both with teaching of certain subjects and with school education process in general.
2.3. Trends in education
Distance education, based on new digital technologies opportunities, is a separate issue in
terms of education digitalization trend.
Digital technologies help teachers to reduce paperwork: exercise books and reports are replaced by laptops or tablets, with all the required academic information available. Home tasks of students, except when special teacher’s references are required, can be automatically controlled by software tools.
According to scientists, very shortly digital format will eliminate the need for handwriting lectures, when each student will get all the materials and will be able to process them on a real-time basis and work interactively. All the texts will be available online and stored in a digital ‘cloud’ (Apple iCloud alternative), which will practically eliminate any negative consequences related to absence from school.
Intensive digital technologies penetration in education raises a number of practical issues.
Same like with the other innovations, the world of online technologies is associated with certain contradictions and unforeseen circumstances. For instance parents, who want their child to spend less time at the computer, should change their mind, since education process modernization presupposes the opposite.
Another issue in this context is comprehensive digitalization of human life, predicted by numerous scientists. Nowadays the ability to adapt to new technologies is a success prerequisite.
Another major tendency in education development in terms of globalization is institutional reorganization. Currently we face the stage when the tendencies of digital and online education require institutionalization in new-type educational establishments, with a simplified form of participation and presence at classes (personal presence, distant online or extra-mural offline).
Classroom activities of the future will not represent a typical picture of a teacher in front of its students, sitting at desks arranged in perfect rows. Introduction of innovation digital technologies will change not only teaching form and tools, but its environment as such.
We might state that modern educational system faces creative crisis. Classwork and lessons do not contribute to students’ personal initiatives to learn something new, establish objective connection between their knowledge and the real world, use their imagination to look for nonstandard answers to standard questions instead of using stereotypic models. Therefore the classroom of the future should not be a place of knowledge transfer, but a place of investing in the mind of students, focusing on creativity and innovation and not on repeating ready-made opinions or mechanical response to test questions. The stated approach to education will force us to reconsider curricula and integration of conceptual and actual innovations. New curricula should stipulate not only obligatory transfer of facts, but focus on students’ reaching certain objectives, namely creativity, imagination and teamwork irrespective of team members’ location. Finally, it should be noted that today’s global education has faced major transformations, caused by further integration of new digital technologies in academic activity and is actively searching for efficient implementation models, which will compromise with traditions and innovations.
2.4. Digitization and education[7]
Digitization and use of tools make learning and presentation easier, speeding up the process of solving tasks that can be solved by a greater number of students simultaneously. It also facilitates the process of examining the tasks, and it’s possible to show a video of many phenomena and processes.
- PRESCHOOL EDUCATION AND DIGITIZATION
The use of digitization and digital tools enable easier visualization and realistic view of objects and professions that are explained to children aged 1 to 7 years. The tools can provide a diverse combination of letters and numbers, more interesting and different learning of letters and mathematics, as well as show and explain phenomena in vivid way otherwise not explicable to children of that age. The job of educators working with a large number of children becomes much easier. Children aged 1 to 7 can absorb a large amount of knowledge and information. They have the ability to master up to 3 foreign languages, much easier through play and entertainment than older kids have. This results in development of more advanced, mature and intelligent children. Digitization brings accelerated development, advanced communication and progress. This does not imply spending up 6 to 8 hours with computers or on tablets in a pre-school institution.
- PRIMARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION AND DIGITIZATION
Compulsory digitization brings changes at all levels of education – to align 50% of the theoretical knowledge with 50% of the practice applicable in the environment we live in. This is closely related to the problem young people still face at primary school and that is the lack of ideas about a possible future profession. Their perceptions of occupations are not grounded in reality, information about them are not available nor presented through practice. They later make choices guided by their parents’ counsel and opinions, which often produces bad results (they leave studies or switch to another studies). This unnecessarily confuses the individual and subsequently leads to unnecessary chaos in society. It is therefore necessary to bring practice closer to children at primary schools, to organize research and classification of the types of occupations that will be needed in society of the future after educational period is finished. The next step would be the selection of children’s skills and their abilities that would enable the right choice of the profession for which they would be prepared. It is noted that this type of approach is probably more accessible in developed countries than in underdeveloped countries.
- HIGHER EDUCATION AND DIGITALIZATION
The need for research is in line with professions that will disappear in the near future. Students will not be educated for professions that in future will not be needed in society, as per the development of IT technology. Professors will not be left without their jobs because they will reorient to new subjects that they will teach or improve certain profiles in line with the development of IT technology. Again, we have the application of digital adult education. So those who have to re-qualify will go through the digital education process, but they will later apply it in their lectures, too. Digitization and use of tools make learning and presentation easier, speeding up the process of solving tasks that can be solved by a greater number of students simultaneously. It also facilitates the process of examining the tasks, and it’s possible to show a video of many phenomena and processes. Note that projects and practice must be an integral part of the 4, 5 or 6 years of education in cooperation with companies or institutions depending on which vocation the students are studying for. After finishing their education, they will have passed the training, acquired the necessary skills and are ready for the labour market.
2.5. How Technology is Shaping the Future of Education[8] –
The combination of evolving educational needs for children and a more uncertain future of work means that updating what children learn, and how they learn it, has become a crucial issue for schools and colleges—but what should be prioritized?
Classrooms 2.0
In a survey of 1,400 educators, the majority of them say they believe that classrooms of the future will be centered around self-paced and personalized learning.
This student-centric approach would allow children to choose their own pace and learning objectives based on individual interests—all of which could be guided by artificial intelligence, chatbots, and video-based learning. Sali de clasa 2.0
.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence in education typically focuses on identifying what a student does or doesn’t know, and then subsequently developing a personalized curricula for each student.
The AI-powered language learning platform Duolingo is one of the most downloaded education apps globally, with more than 50 million installs in 2018. The platform single-handedly challenges the notion of traditional learning, with a study showing that spending just 34 hours on the app equates to an entire university semester of language education.
AI-driven applications in education are still in their infancy, but success’s e-learning platform demonstrates the growth potential in the sector. Inteligență artificială
Chatbots
Chatbots are also quickly becoming a fundamental tool in next generation education. Designed to simplify the interaction between student and computer, chatbots provide a wide range of benefits, including:
- Spaced interval learning: Uses algorithms and repetition to optimize memorization
- Immediate feedback: Papers can be graded with 92% accuracy and in a faster time than teachers
- Self-paced learning: Tracks a student’s performance and guides them based on their individual needs
This innovative technology is arming educators with new strategies for more engaged learning, whilst simultaneously reducing their workload. Chatbots
Video Learning
Although video-based learning may not necessarily be considered as innovative as artificial intelligence or chatbots, 98% of educators view it as a vital component in personalized learning experiences. Most institutions report incorporating video into their curriculums in some way, but even higher demand for video-based learning may come from students in the near future.
This is due to the fact that video learning increases student satisfaction by 91%, and student achievements by 82%, which could be why educators are increasingly using video for tasks like:
- Providing material for student assignments
- Giving feedback on assignments
- Flipped instruction (blended learning) exercises
A flipped classroom overturns conventional learning by focusing on practical content that is delivered online and often outside the classroom. Învățare video
The Battle Between Traditional and Tech
Flipping classrooms is a trend that has gained momentum in recent years—and may be considered to be a radical change in how students absorb information. The relatively new model also eliminates homework, by empowering students to work collaboratively on their tasks during class time.
Although new models of learning are disrupting the status quo of traditional learning, could the increasing amount of time children spend in front of screens be detrimental?
Research has shown that children are more likely to absorb information from books rather than screens. There has also been an evident increase in low-tech or tech-free schools that believe that human interaction is paramount when it comes to keeping children engaged and excited to learn.
Creating First-Class Humans
Although we may not be in the era of iTeachers just yet, the benefits of technology as teaching aids are undeniable. However, what is more important is that these aids are used in tandem with developmental and educational psychology—ultimately keeping students rather than technology at the core of education.
The future will be about pairing the artificial intelligence of computers with the cognitive, social and emotional capabilities of humans, so that we educate first-class humans, not second-class robots”
—OECD, Trends Shaping Education report
After all, how children develop these skills is perhaps less important than their ability to navigate change, as that is the only thing that will remain constant.
Tasks
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Kagermann, H., W. Wahlster and J. Helbig, eds., 2013: Recommendations for implementing the strategic initiative Industrie 4.0. Final report of the Industrie 4.0
Working Group Heiner Lasi, Hans-Georg Kemper, Peter Fettke, Thomas Feld, Michael Hoffmann: Industry 4.0. In: Business & Information Systems Engineering 4 (6), pp. 239-242 Marr, Bernard. “Why Everyone Must Get Ready For The 4th Industrial Revolution”. Forbes. Bonner, Mike. “What is Industry 4.0 and What Does it Mean for My Manufacturing?”. Mueller, Egon; Chen, Xiao-Li; Riedel, Ralph (2017). „Challenges and Requirements for the Application of Industry 4.0: A Special Insight with the Usage of Cyber-Physical System”.
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Eremin V.V. and Kharisova E.V. (2016). MSU boarding school for gifted children is a model of learning in a changing world. Natural science education: a look into the future. Collection. Мoscow: MSU Publishing, pp. 240 Internet and education. Do Russians use the Internet for educational purposes? FOMNibus, (30 July 2015).
https://www.khanacademy.org/ Overview and Analysis of Policy Models for the Integration and Innovative Use of Digital Technologies in Education. (n. d.). https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/digitaleducation-policies Pearce N., Weller M., Scanlon E. and Kinsley S. (2011). Digital scholarship considered: how new technologies could transform academic work.
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Stuart, K. (2014). What every parent needs to know about video games: a crash course.
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- Milano M. (2019): The digital skills gap is widening fast. Here’s how to bridge it. Available at: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/03/the-digital-skills-gap-is-widening-fast-heres-how-to-bridge-it/ ↑
- Great Britain. Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (2017): The Digital Sectors – making the UK the best place to start and grow a digital business. Available at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-digital-strategy/3-the-digital-sectors-making-the-uk-the-best-place-to-start-and-grow-a-digital-business ↑
- Cisco (2016): Digitizing Higher Education. Available at: https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/assets/docs/education/digitize-your-institution.pdf ↑
- https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13538322.2019.1603611 ↑
- https://epale.ec.europa.eu/en/blog/digitization-and-education – by Ivana Jevtic ↑
- https://www.visualcapitalist.com/how-technology-is-shaping-the-future-of-education – by Katie Jones ↑