How Technology Helps Us Study

A modern educational sector is represented not only by a huge variety of online courses, but also newly appeared technologies at schools, home education, and mobile learning. The only teachers by vocation will be able to withstand a tech-competition. Because, it is still impossible to imagine a technology, capable of replacing a true talent and creativity.

Today's Internet environment provides a huge amount of information, incomprehensible to human processing. More than a thousand books and millions of articles are published every year. From all this informational variety we need to extract something useful. The future technologies ease this process for us.

University professors and school teachers should not only accept the use of devices in class, but support the implementation of gadgets in daily learning process. Meanwhile, smartphones and tablets can become helpers in obtaining knowledge. Thus, almost three-quarters of English teenagers aged 16-18 years use mobile devices at the lesson to access educational resources. So what is a purpose of gadgets in the educational system.

On the one hand, smartphones and tablets are the undeletable part of a modern teenager’s life. Children simultaneously live in two worlds: real and virtual, even during the lessons. With this in mind, the effective learning formats, connected with gadgets have already been developed.
Among such formats are:

BYOD (Bring Your Own Device): Students are encouraged to use their gadget in class to find information, watch a documental video.

Pros of the format: Pupils receive information in a casual form for them (through video, articles, chats) and learn more willingly. They are more confident in managing their own education and outside the class.

"Flipped Classroom": The study of new program material and a doing of home tasks takes place in the opposite sequence of the standard lesson. At home, At home, children look through the theoretical resources offered by their teacher. During the lesson, practical tasks are done.

Pros of the format: This technology gives an ability to communicate in the classroom more and to work in the group. Sick pupils easily join in the study: the video lecture contains all the necessary information on the topic. In addition, you can always return to such a resource on the eve of exams.

E-learning: This is not a separate technology, but the creation of an integrated environment, which includes learning via mobile devices (mobile learning, or m-learning) and training based on Internet technologies (web-based training, WBT).

Pros of the format: You can learn remotely: consult and get grades. If you have forgotten any information, you can verify it through the web, or if your written task can’t be ready till the deadline, EssayVikings will help you. Also, you can have a self-education experience, for example, through open online courses - MOOCs.

Among other pros of use of technology in education are:

Availability of training. Thanks to the Internet, almost any information became available. Online learning gives an opportunity to listen to courses of the best universities in the world for free or for little money. A couple of years ago, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology posted all the materials on their site and gave the public access to them. In light of the studying at this university costs more than $ 40,000 per year, it is worthwhile to thank modern technology for such a gift.

Languages. The role of foreign languages is too high nowadays. And to improve their level of speaking, a lot of people choose technology as a teacher. The availability of information from around the world has a positive impact on the understanding of foreign languages. In addition, it is quite easy now to find a native-speaking tutor from any part of the world. Or even to learn free by the principle of language exchange, chatting on Skype with an Englishman who dreams of learning Russian.

Professional communities. Find the answer to any question about studying at specialized forums. There are communities of mathematicians, programmers, and even gamers. Thus, through various sites, forums and communities, you can get into the environment of professionals and learn from them. In addition, you can participate in solving non-standard problems, competing with colleagues and thereby increasing your professionalism.

Gadgets do not reduce their academic performance

The media suggests that gadgets distract children during their lessons, which affects their academic performance. It would seem that this is logical. However, in the study of this relationship (between the students’ achievements and the intensity of the use of devices in the class) was not found.

A ban on the tablets slows down a progress

Given the constant presence of gadgets in the lives of children, the school does not notice the useful possibilities of mobile devices. Such conservatism affects the three most important aspects of school life:

• The relations between pupils and teachers suffer, children, perceive school less and want to learn less. Bans on smartphones, in fact, demonstrate the separation of the school from reality, the reluctance to see a connection between technology and education and to conduct a dialogue with students.
• Innovations are stalled in education. Teachers, who apply new teaching technologies in the classroom, turn out to be "white crows" in the teaching staff. It is difficult for them to work.
• Education is slowly changing for the better.

At the same time, there are signs of changing the position of the school. Teachers and students often use e-mail for communication, teachers give homework, which children need to perform online or using the Internet.