WHY WE NEED TO TEACH TECHNOLOGY IN SCHOOLS?

Meeting an educator of a famous Bangalore school,I could not but enumerate the technological influences that her school uses in effective teaching.PowerPoint presentations are encouraged to be used and teachers do not find time to look up any other tools they can use to aid teaching.Yes,technology is the need of the hour,but as Sohne rightly enumerates teachers and parents must find themselves "comfortable" with technology and become technology leaders first.It is often seen that the students are more adept at using technological gadgets,social networking and online tools.But,not all are relevant to what they must be doing.Entertainment through music/games, and networking takes up most of their time online and the majority are hooked for the greater part of their waking hours.Educators can definitely engage this interest by effectively guiding their students to use Web 2.0 tools in creating,and sharing online.Students are then better equipped for their future.

TECHNOLOGY IN CLASSROOMS

Speed, accuracy and real time interaction for teachers and students is available today either free or inexpensively, because of technology.Virtual classrooms are being setup and online tutors are being recruited from all parts of the globe. Universities are offering online courses and many are benefiting out of all this.One can learn as well as teach online today.I have come across several who tutor a particular subject that they are good at, and they also learn conversational English from another tutor.
Schools in America,are experimenting a no-books classroom environment wherein laptops are handed out for assignments in the classroom. Interactives and multimedia is increasingly being used in engaging young minds for a better understanding of subject matter.Textbooks and the need for paper and stationary items is done away with altogether.In some cases, schools are not necessary either.Students love playing video games and when provided with animated education software to complete math assignments, they are elated.Students receive laptops at the start of each day, returning them at the end.Teachers and students maintain blogs. Staff and parents chat on instant messaging software. Assignments are submitted through electronic "drop boxes" on the school's Web site.Classwork is done in Google Inc's free applications like Google Docs, or Apple's iMovie and specialized educational software like FASTT Math.
International schools in India use multimedia presentations and allow students to email their assignments. Parents are requested to follow their child's progress at the school's website.Teachers are available online 24x7 for student related queries.
Education has taken on a whole new perspective with the use of technology to reach students anywhere. It is the duty of every teacher to adapt to new applications and keep abreast of the ever changing technology. An enthusiastic teacher with a passion for use of technology in education will never be left behind.Her students will value her teaching and retain all that was taught.

BOOKS VS TECHNOLOGY

Inculcating good reading habits is always on the agenda of every educationist. During the holidays, it was always the grandparent or parent that insisted on either reading to them, or making them read or telling them stories with a moral. Amar Chitra Katha comics were a great source of inspiration to many. Mythological tales, Jataka tales, Aesop's fables, historical and moral stories from Panchatantra tales were many a child's favourite.

Children of today are most certainly different in every way. They prefer to spend all their free time playing outdoors, playing video games, chatting on the internet, or simply surfing the net. they love listening to music on the ipod. Gadgets are a way of life to these young ones. They insist they cannot survive without them! Is that true? Did we not get good grades in school when we had only a radio and no television?

An interest in reading good books should be inculcated in every child. In this age of videos, DVD's, and VCD's, it can be difficult but nonetheless worthwhile. It helps them to think creatively, aids in developing memory, imagination, empathy, etc. Educationists always vouch for audiovisual aids when it comes to teaching, but the joy of reading and understanding gives greater confidence to a child in the language he is reading. He learns new vocabulary, uses the Dictionary when necessary and is capable of speaking fluently, and can write any piece of creative writing without much assistance. In fact, he begins to revel in the fact that he can do it well. It was heart rending to note that a school in Pune had adopted he practice of reading Amar Chitra Katha comics in History class and then engaging in role play of the story that was just read. History coming alive in the classroom gives every child the chance to remember all the historical dates, names, wars, etc in the exact order as well. Hats off to the teacher who tried this as an experiment and was successful to the point of being emulated by several others across the country.

In India, every school-going child learns to master at least two languages besides English. Most urban school children speak impeccable English .They know that the gateway to a bright future lies in being able to write and speak excellent English.
Learning the English language also prepares them for a global career.

The ongoing Bangalore Book Festival is drawing lots of parents with their school and college going children to find great books for fun and learning.This is certainly testimony to the fact that parents still want their children to make reading a habit.
In this Silicon Valley of the east, children are being nurtured to be the next generation entrepreneurs, software and hardware professionals, industrialists,etc.
Yester years saw only two ambitions among children-either a doctor,or an engineer.
Today, the spectrum is wide-pilot,lawyer,astronaut,vet,dietitian,finance experts, consultant(in various fields), management gurus,restauranteurs,etc. And they are succeeding in their chosen field in various parts of the globe. Our system of education is excellent, indeed.