The EdTech industry has gained a lot of momentum this year when technology was the saving grace that allowed the sector to continue its operations. Thus, we will probably see a faster adoption of technology that will change the way we learn. Here are some of the future trends we can expect.
Personalization Will Rule
One of the things that are already changing in the education industry is personalization. Traditional learning methods are collective, with teachers preparing lessons for a group instead of individuals. Before technology, it was the way the sector aimed to reach more students cost-effectively. If they try to give individual attention to each student, they would have needed one teacher per two or three students.
But that is changing with artificial intelligence and digital learning platforms. Already, some online courses use AI to give a more personalized experience by changing the pace of the lessons according to the student’s learning pace. The algorithm also repeats the concepts the student has problems with.
An example of this is Querium, an AI-powered virtual tutor that helps students improve their STEM skills. It uses AI algorithms to give a personalized experience to all users. AI can also be used for grading, preparing lessons, and guiding students through different activities. In other words, AI will become the perfect assistant to all the teachers at all levels of educations to give students the individual attention that a teacher can’t.
Gamification and Edutainment
Gamification is when institutions incorporate the rewarding and level-up aspects of gaming into the learning process. The way students learn doesn’t change; what changes is the way they are rewarded for learning. Teachers can set up goals and every time a student reaches them they win points or go up a level. This method also creates healthy competition between students.
Similar to when you play a game with your friends, you want to win and have more points or complete all levels first. Gamification encourages students to reach their goals so they can level-up or earn points faster. It is common nowadays on online learning platforms and self-paced courses.
Edutainment is changing the way students learn by including entertainment resources and a game-based curriculum into the learning process. In other words, students use games to learn new things. For example, I had a math teacher in primary school that used a modified version of baseball to teach us how to multiply.
With new technologies, the introduction of gamification and edutainment will be smooth. Now, teachers don’t have to be creative to come up with these methods. Learning platforms design and analyze which of these methods are more efficient by collecting data from its students and analyzing it with AI. Overall, it brings a level of interactivity to the classroom that makes it more adaptable to the younger generations.
Need for New Careers
The world is clearly changing with the fast development of new technologies. Many professions are disappearing and being replaced with machines. Thus, the education industry should adapt to the changes and start teaching the new careers that society needs. Right now, there are many new professions that can’t be learned at universities or colleges.
Also, the curriculum at lower levels of education—like pre-school, primary, and high school—haven’t included new skills like data literacy, programming languages, or digital security. The curriculum at all levels has to change to adapt to the new needs of society. For example, one of the newest tech careers is blockchain development. This path was born with the surge of blockchain technology in the last decade.
Most of these professionals are software developers or engineers that have learned on their own by trial and error. It means that the number of blockchain developers is really low and the demand is high. That’s why the sector has to change and start adapting to our new reality by making a complete revolution on curriculums and career paths offered.
In Summary
Education is still behind compared to the rapid pace of societal change. Although this year has accelerated the adoption of new technologies in the sector, it still has a long way to go. Some of the trends we will see in the future are an increase of personalization with AI, more gamification, and edutainment. Also, we will see a shift in education options at higher levels to adapt to the new technologies that are ruling our society.