7 Educational Trends to Watch in 2019 and Beyond

2019 is set to be the year we go from Hogwarts to Ready Player One, with our approach to education. Instead of outdated libraries and textbooks the size of our heads we’re talking virtual field trips and advanced 5G technology.

All of the technological advancements that are happening in the world are directly impacting education and learning systems.

Up to 80% of Americans are feeling the positive impact of education technology.

They name their highlights to be:

• Providing learning opportunities outside of the classroom.
• Making learning more interesting.
• Allowing students to work at their own pace.
• Creating a customized learning experience.
• Allowing students to receive feedback outside of class.
• Allowing students to collaborate when they aren’t together.

So, education is becoming increasingly high tech and teachers and students are reaping the benefits. Here are seven trends to watch out for in 2019 and beyond…

1. Custom Learning Experiences

The education system is finally moving forward and realizing that not everyone learns in the same way. This is an important step forward, especially for people who find it difficult to learn in a more traditional way.

Technology advancements are paving the way forward for more custom learning experiences throughout the whole of a person’s educational life. Thanks to this, customized learning experiences for different people and abilities are starting to become a reality.

An important theme in education today is a shift from ‘teacher centered’ learning to ‘student centered’ learning. This is where students have choices in the pace, tools, learning objectives used in the classroom- all based on their skills and interests.

This is going to be achieved by embracing technologies and programs that promote this idea.

For example, developments in apps have unleashed a new way of accommodating ‘needs-based’ learning, a few examples are:

• Seesaw– a student-driven digital portfolio that documents learning with creative tools. Teachers and parents can then look at the work and leave comments and encouragement.
• Soundtrap– A cloud-based recording app that allows for collaborative, creative audio recording projects, prepping models learners for the connected world.
• ExplainEverything– An innovative online and mobile whiteboard for collaboration and learning at a difference.

2. Virtual and Augmented Learning

Virtual reality and augmented reality have really boosted online education, as well as in-class sessions.

Learners can get a fully immersive learning experience without even leaving their house. This technology is now available in many subjects and at numerous education levels.

For example, if you want to learn about space objects just by running a 3D space video on your VR headgear, floating in space while a background voice continues depicting the Milky Way in detail- you can!

Or real-time broadcasting of critical surgical operations that allow medical students to learn through a more immersive experience is also now available!

We have seen a shift to virtual field trips instead of reading from textbooks, with companies such as Discovery Education.

These programs allow students to be able to see beyond the four walls around them, they can visit an egg farm, take a tour around a NASA flight center in a science class or visit Auschwitz in a history class.

3. Re-designed Learning Spaces

Classrooms and lecture theatres in schools and universities have changed dramatically over the years- you’ll now rarely find rows of desks pointing towards the front of the room.

A student’s learning space is integral to their ability to learn, they now need to be collaboration friendly, new technology has begun to facilitate this.

Such as SMART boards instead of chalkboards and SMART desks instead of individual seating- modern learning spaces are full of integrated technology.

These days students are not only learning whilst using these things, which in itself is great. But they’re understanding how to use them, in order to achieve a specific goal, this teaches them as much as the subject itself.

Due to re-designed learning spaces, a lot more remote learning is available. 53% of students believe that remote learning is essential for a 21st-century classroom and 71% believe that remote learning allows them to take more classes.

On top of remote learning, colleges and universities are creating more informal campus learning spaces. Academic libraries are being given a massive overhaul in order to meet the requirements of their modern-day users.

The digital era brings with it, new ways of learning, now, often all users need is a device that can connect to Wi-Fi and the connection itself. So libraries have had to evolve to create an informal learning space that encourages productivity and collaborative learning.

This is because the importance of creating and collaborating 24/7, not just when a class is in session, is now being understood.

4. Cloud Technology

Educational establishments accumulate a large amount of data and information, and, in the past, this had required them to have a physical space to store it.

But not anymore! With the arrival of digital or virtual storage solutions, information is easily accessible from multiple locations. So say you’re a college that has campuses spread far and wide, your communication and efficiency can now be a lot better.

On top of space and time-saving benefits, you’ll see lower infrastructure costs. This is because it eliminates the need to purchase expensive equipment and systems, maintenance, IT upgrades consultant fees and energy consumption costs. It also helps to reduce delays as any issues related to these services are often resolved quickly.

Cloud technology also makes innovation easier, with trends coming through like on-demand cloud workstations, on-demand cloud networks and off-campus access to labs via cloud computing applications.

5. Security Technology

Although the implementation of new technology has many benefits, the amount of data generated by these new technologies poses new challenges. Many that revolve around security and privacy and data protection.

Security technology like visitor management systems are an essential tool for educational institutions- they can help handle tasks such as:

• Controlling who has access to the premises.
• Issuing ID badges.
• Vetting authorized contractors.
• Digitizing reception tasks.

Educational technology that incorporates security protocols (such as servers and IT infrastructure with built-in security features) reduces the risk of experiencing data breaches. This is now more useful than ever in the light of changes brought about by GDPR regulations.

6. 5G

In 2019 we’re set to see a US-wide rollout of 5G technology. Great news if your campus is starting to feel the strain of hundreds of connected phones and tablets!

Or even now connected watches, vending machines and so on, all thanks to IoT technology.

5G (although it’s in the early stages of implementation) is a new mobile spectrum meant to replace 4G/LTE. It’ll be more robust for connecting large numbers of devices and work equally as well outside of buildings. This is perfect for large educational campuses, where students need to be able to connect anywhere.

You’ll also hear no qualms about the speed because it’s up to 100 times faster than the average home WiFi network.  

This increase in bandwidth and connectivity will open the door to a more reliable use of existing education technology and less time waiting for your management system to update.

7. AI Driven Assessments

With the introduction of AI technology, exams and assessments can now be done using online examination systems.

These systems can provide useful insight into a student’s performance, group analysis and individual analysis for each topic or subtopic.

An assessment of the student is done using online tools and techniques, as well as being more efficient, the bias associated with manual evaluation can be eliminated.

This advance in examination techniques can be implemented by using programs such as Eklavvya.in which provides subjective exam assessments.

Features include:

• Students can write their answers using the online editor provided, for each question or exam there is a timer.
• Students are not allowed to switch to other applications during an active online exam.
• Auto-authentication of the student is done using photo capture facility.
• Online examination system can also monitor student using video streaming.

Conclusion

With exciting times ahead for the education industry, it’s time to prepare your network. D-Link has a number of solutions to help you along the way, including Nuclias, a cloud-managed network solution for remote control without the complexity and high costs.