Technology in education: What it has been through and what now?

 

What?

              The digital age has made very steady advances since the creation of the internet in the 1960’s and even more so since the invention of the World Wide Web in 1989. That being said, though technology has been steadily progressing through the decades, digital advancements have been in overdrive since the pandemic began in 2020. With face-to-face communication being limited in almost every facet of life, like shopping, healthcare, education, and even personal relationship, people needed to adapt; More than consumers, companies needed to adapt to stay socially and economically relevant and some even found more lucrative ways of doing business. Because the world was given no warning of this, digital advances made may not have been made so soon, or even at all. This is truer for technological advances surrounding learning.

So, What?

              In the past decades, technology has been partnered in learning, both formal and informal, and for both kids and adults. Some examples of this may be online college course options for adult learners, online trainings, or collaboratively in a keyboarding class or for research in upper-level courses; However, at the turn of the pandemic, technology not only was a partner in learning, but it became the main mode of learning for lots of people, certainly in the United States. Emergency remote teaching happened abruptly, quickly and widespread in mere weeks following the start of lockdown, which involved a lot of quick learning: for students, educators, and sometimes parents. This effected many levels of learning from elementary schools to college level courses and from employment “onboarding” courses to online Redcross medication administration trainings. This also extends to non-formal education, though it may not have been deemed mandatory, it definitely expanded potential opportunities. It was vital for people to learn and adapt quickly because there was no way to accurately project when the opportunity for face-to-face learning would arise again, especially since areas were experiencing differently levels of cases and surges at different times. Participation in non-formal learning during the first year of the pandemic decreased by an estimated 18% in adults; This number likely would have been closer to zero had there not been so many opportunities for online alternatives using video chat platforms, online sharing, recording material, and substituting online activities in place of in-person programs.

Now What?

              Now the lockdown is over, but the technology advances don’t disappear; While the technology that was forged for no-contact learning was a necessity at the time, now it is a commodity that can be beneficial, especially in the adult learning space. Adult learning is reliant on learners making a choice to further their education, whether it be for potential job advancement, or bettering themselves in another facet. Access can be a deciding factor for an adult about which opportunities they choose. As educators, online forums are a way to reach a wider audience, even in hybrid opportunities and it is vital to stay relevant in technological advancement and assist the communities serve do the same.