When the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020, within many ways it fast forwarded the particular process of adopting technology and adapting to the new opportunities that the world of internet threw up. This subtle yet wide-spread movement was nowhere more pronounced than in the globe of education. It became apparent after the onset of the Covid-19 outbreak when educational institutions began to hold classes online. Edtech came to the forefront as there was no option other than in order to leverage technologies and thus became an enabler for the schooling sector.
The digital separate with regards to education and learning has been a hot-button topic for many years. Since 24 percent associated with Indian households were found to have access to the internet and access to training seemed limited, many felt that access to edtech was not uniform to enable all people to benefit.
However, there was clearly an upside to this digital transformation that slowly began to permeate across Of india.
By prioritising education plus exploring technological solutions, communities could, in order to an extent, create and maintain an equitable educational structure that gives students a good opportunity to succeed.
EDUCATIONAL DIGITAL DIVIDE
As the educational digital divide has such a profound effect on students’ overall growth, safety and well-being, many community and business leaders too have been exploring ways to address the problem at the local level.
In many ways, edtech has helped to ensure that the digital divide is narrowed and hence an opportunity for everyone associated with education in the particular country.
The some other major advantage of this has been that will education in India, which so far has been restricted largely in order to classrooms, offers opened up new vistas with regard to working individuals who are keen to further their careers or up skill for better job prospects.
All this particular while, they were constrained by work schedules and managing time in order to attend courses. The process of creating a level playing field in the job market provides been set in motion through edtech platforms that offer affordable and accessible options.
ELECTRONIC LEARNING ECOSYSTEM
The particular evolving electronic learning ecosystem in India has also brought within its fold the teaching community, parents and employers. There is a marked change in the way online courses are now perceived by mother and father and companies. Gone are the days of distance schooling that was frowned upon.
By 2025, according to a study, 30 per cent of Indians will become daily Internet users, while around 87 percent associated with Indian households will possess an Internet connection by 2025.
As a result, edtech will provide students and potential job seekers a shot in fulfilling their own dreams plus thereby transform the socio-economic construct from the country. The opportunity of enrolling for courses of international repute that were hitherto inaccessible, primarily due to financial barriers, has furthermore now already been lowered.
Another positive fallout of this digital transformation within the education and learning space continues to be the modification of course curriculum. Teachers and instructors are now able to keep abreast of developments taking place inside their areas of specialisation and, as the result, learning pedagogy is now seeing a drastic change.
Schools and colleges that were so far reticent about making drastic changes towards the curriculum are now taking steps to rectify this lacuna.
When the pandemic struck, there is no doubt that the electronic divide in the academic system, in particular, became stark and obvious. However, schools began leveraging digital platforms to instruct, deliver content, to communicate with the particular students plus parents.
Just like any technical solution, the features and uses vary between systems, with some being even more flexible than others. Some have choices for accessing content offline or allowing content to be downloaded. In many an instance, colleges supply devices to college students. This also made engagement with moms and dads more frequent and thereby gives them a window to look into the educational progress of their wards.
THE DEBATE
The debate on the digital separate has highlighted how this new system disproportionately impacts students hailing from the particular marginalised lessons or rural India. However, there are efforts being made by the government, non-government bodies and institutions that have come together in order to help with the adoption of edtech amongst weaker sections of society or even rural areas.
For instance, technology is being used to craft courses that can be delivered in regional languages, making it easier regarding students plus parents from rural places to grasp subjects much better. Such technology also allows curriculum to be tailored to the needs associated with students and helps monitor their progress.
While the nation has embarked on the particular transformation of the academic set upward in the country mainly because of edtech, there are several areas that will need immediate support if the digital divide within training needs in order to be bridged.
For one, widespread entry to the high-speed Internet has become imperative. Currently, the biggest barrier impacting access to education is connectivity. Nearly all policy recommendations addressing the digital divide have got focused on improving connectivity with priority.
Inequal entry to electronic devices and the lack associated with reliable, high speed Internet negatively impacts entry to opportunities, achievements plus widens the gaps in education.
A few countries have elevated high-speed broadband to the level of a Fundamental Right, as that access is crucial to almost all aspects of modern life.
Programmes addressing internet access imbalances, such as universal Wi-Fi, can improve opportunities intended for education and ensure that almost all students have got the tools to succeed.
For all this particular to happen, the particular government’s active intervention within tandem along with the private sector is essential. The gains from the edtech sector to get students in particular and society at large have been considerable, because mentioned earlier, but more needs in order to be done if we are to transform the quality associated with education inside our country.
–Article by Anand Maheshwari, Managing Director, Allen Digital Pvt. Ltd.
