Computer Technology in Education and Its Effectiveness

With the recent advancement in the education industry, the use of computers in education has become relevant. Computers play a great role in helping students learn faster and they also increase the level of creativity of students because of the endless equations they present to a student. Many schools have expanded on their use of computers by creating bigger computer labs. This is a bit expensive for most schools, so most public schools have not enjoyed the benefits of using computer technology in education. Both teachers and students use computers to complete specific tasks. For teachers, they use computers to create graphic illustrations which can help students learn easily, yet students use computers in typing of notes and reading of electronic books which can be downloaded from the internet.

However, schools and educational curriculum should not replace teachers with computers, because a computer is just a tool which can be of no function without a teachers guide. This means that we shall still need and will always need to have teachers in the classrooms, but use computers to help them do their job easily and also attract students to get involved in academic activities. The exact effectiveness of computers is not yet clear, but it can not be denied that they have simplified the way we learn. Without computers, educational facilities like ”online education or long distance learning” would be next to impossible.

Effective Use of Computer Technology in Education:

• Computer technology can be used for visual illustrations: Students can learn more when teachers teach them using visual illustrations. Now when we talk of computer technology, we cover technological tools like PC’s , smart whiteboards , iPads , Projectors , Internet and Mobile phones.  Both students and teachers can use these tools in education. For example, teachers can use smart whiteboards and projectors in visual illustrations, teachers can use PC’,s to assign work to students in the classroom , students can use iPads to read from any were or share illustration images with their peers while in the classroom. It is well known that humans learn better when images or videos are integrated with text. A teacher can derive live stream videos from the internet and use a projector and a white board to show a live example to their students while in the classroom.

Related: Use of Technology in Education

Related: Use of Technology in Schools

• Computer technology  can be used in long distance learning: Many students have used  computer technologies to learn from any were , computer gadgets like iPads can access internet from any where and they can allow students  to attend remote classes. Many universities and colleges have added online education on their curriculum and they enroll students from all parts of the world.  This has opened boundaries to so many students,   who have got the opportunity to study advanced courses which are not provided in their universities or colleges. Also adults who want to continue with education have embraced the online education system, because it allows them to learn at any time and also give them the freedom to work. For example, a person can work during day time, and attend lectures in the night while at home using a computer and the internet.

Related: 6 Uses of Information Technology in Education

• Computer technology can be used in real-time education: Unlike in the past, were examples on specific subjects would only be derived from text books, in most cases these example are out-aged so they might have worked during those days but they can not work today. So with such examples students find it very hard to relate a subject with the present situation. Computer technology has changed this. With the use of broadband internet, teachers and students can get real-time example on specific subjects. This makes learning easy because students can easily interact with those live examples, which simplifies the way they learn.