Classroom of the future
Studies made easy for the bright minds
SCIENTIFIC AND technological developments are getting well reflected in several spheres, including education. Computers and connectivity to information through the Internet are resulting in radical changes in both teaching and learning methodologies and have paved the way for the "digital class,'' the classroom of the future. The first steps in this direction have been taken already by many educational institutions and universities in the country, including the Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum.
Teaching methods, over a period of time, have changed — from the traditional gurukula system to the "blackboards'' in a classroom and further to the use of "OHP'' (Over Head Projector) in an Audio-Visual Room. With the growing awareness and acceptance of computers and Information Technology, the contemporary generation is poised to experience and adopt more advanced teaching methods.
A VTU faculty points out to three basic steps in electronically enhancing the teaching abilities of lecturers: presenting information, sharing information and monitoring students' comprehension.
With the use of computers, teachers can design their classes in a structured manner. They can use photographs and video & audio clips to enrich their lectures. Files can be stored in computers for future reference. Using multimedia projectors and speakers, the display on the computer screen can be enlarged so that a large group of students can be addressed.
In sharing information, instead of using a writing board to annotate, an Interactive Electromagnetic Monitor can be used to write real time on any template from a website to PC applications such as MS Word, MS Excel and MS PowerPoint. The teachers can use readymade templates such as a blackboard, whiteboard, manuscript papers and graph sheets. They can use various colours and various thickness of pen strokes for annotation. Keystrokes and mouse clicks can be followed by the students while the teacher is delivering the lecture. Using the electromagnetic pen, the teacher can navigate the lecture by writing on the interactive computer screen. The voice of the teacher could also be recorded for further reference.
The sequence of strokes along with the voice can be recorded as a file for archives. Being a compressed file, it can be easily mailed as an attachment to all the students.
Interactivity
To increase interactivity and enhance the learning experience, a classroom management software can be used. It gives the tutor complete control over the lecture. The teacher can choose to display a lesson on all the students' PCs as all the systems will be on a local network. To increase attentiveness in the class, the teacher can block the mouse and keyboard of the students; and can distribute assignments instantly.
The teacher can supervise a group of students as mosaic and double click on his/her screen to enlarge any one of the student's monitor to see the progress.
If the progress of the student calls for an exhibit, the teacher can have it displayed on the large screen for the rest of the class to view. The teacher can provide pre-created objective tests at the end of the lecture to summarise and ascertain the students' understanding of the lecture. The result of the test can be immediately viewed as a bar graph or a pie chart for instant analysis. The classroom software can go one step further, shutting down all the systems.
With the advent of satellite communication for education, digital classrooms can be grouped together for distance education. A lecture can be delivered to a group of classrooms spread across various locations and the learning experience can be interactive with considerable savings in time and cost.
VIJAYKUMAR PATIL
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