Teachers devote so much time and energy to their students. Even outside of the classroom, teachers need to lesson plan, grade tests, run clubs or extracurriculars, and provide extra support to their students and schools. It’s no wonder, then, that so many U.S. teachers report feeling overworked and underappreciated. But there are ways to make their lives easier while also improving the education system as a whole.
One of these ways is by implementing modern technology in the classroom. Though this may sound like additional work for teachers—having to master new devices in their spare time, figuring out how to incorporate them into their curriculums—technology should always be able to help instead of hurt. Nobody wants to add to the already-heavy burden of teachers, or to eat away at precious class time by having to troubleshoot complicated technology. But as long as the technology is high quality, accessible, and user friendly, technology can be a crucial tool to enhance teaching and learning.
Technology can help teachers facilitate an easier, more productive learning experience. Some examples of this in play are:
Technology can clearly improve learning for individual students—but it can also encourage collaboration between students and students and teachers. Through interactive websites, learning forums, and shared documents, students can better learn teamwork skills in the classroom and use other students as resources to learn, by sharing their work and ideas. Technology also makes it easier for teachers to collaborate with their students—through communication such as email, or through online activities—and also to collaborate with other teachers. Technology can be a great resource for teachers to talk to other teachers, keep up to date on the latest teaching tools, and to figure out what is working in the classroom and what isn’t.
As technology continues to grow, becoming a larger part of our daily lives, it’s important to adjust the classroom to better suit our teachers and our students. When the technology itself is up to date and user friendly, it can be an extraordinary tool to supplement teaching. In fact, according to a study by CompTIA Research, 84% of teachers reported using the Internet weekly to find engaging content to teach their students. This is because technology has the ability to offer almost unlimited resources—images, videos, games—that can engage any type of learner with any subject. And this is especially helpful given that teachers are already so overworked, and could use these resources to make their jobs a little bit easier. Providing these tools to teachers will not only help them, but will help administrators, schools, and of course, the students, improving learning and the education system as a whole.
Technology should help, not hinder, the progress made in the classroom. Learn how you can implement modern technology in your classroom with our Educational IT Services. We help educators find affordable solutions to augment teaching in their classrooms.