Another day at home. Homeschooling never ends for the student body. For more than a year now, home-based teaching has been taking place. On the one hand, this is a big problem, since it is difficult to regain a lack of social skills and specialist knowledge. On the other hand, luck is bad luck. Throughout Germany, Corona acts like an impetus for digitization. Schools in particular benefit from this because the digital gaps in the German school system are clear.
In the meantime, however, a lot has happened in this area. Now it’s time to hold on to it. More about the current status and the possibilities of the digital school can be found in the following article.
Digitization Is One Of The Main Problems
Germany has a digitization problem. Not just with the internet. With 0.61 devices per student, Germany is now exactly where it was three years ago. For comparison, the student body has easy access to more than twice as many devices in Luxembourg. Germany also brings up the rear in an international comparison. Behind countries like Moldova or Azerbaijan, the need to catch up is clear.
According to an infographic by Traumbeere , the biggest problems are when there is a lack of support (37%). But internet problems are also often the starting point for lack of digital strategies (31%).
It doesn’t just struggle with infrastructure and resources. School administrators also lack confidence in their specialists. Less than 44% are convinced that teachers are technically and pedagogically competent to integrate new technologies.
This Is What The School Of The Future Could Look Like
Germany plans to spend more than 5.5 billion euros on digitizing schools by 2024. Schools should gradually reopen at the same time. That means there is time and money to develop new concepts for the school of the future.
For the school of the future, distance learning is just a foretaste. Thanks to modern technology, independent learning has become easier and more fun. For example, learning materials can be worked up creatively. Researching information is also easier and more effective. In this way, children learn digital skills at an early age and know how to help themselves.
The teachers also benefit from this. Automation can save more than 13 hours per week on average. This means that more time is available for encouragement and your well-being.
Rediscover Learning Thanks To Technology
With the help of EdTech (Educational Technologies), learning should be more effective and fun. Right at the forefront: New technologies such as 3D printing or VR / AR.
Professional prototypes can be created with 3D printing. This requires mathematical and technical skills. Therefore, school projects with the 3D printer are done for science subjects.
AR or VR, on the other hand, can make things seem alive. A unique feature that especially helps in history or math. In this way, students can independently research historical monuments or understand the mathematical realities of a shape.
Innovative technologies offer unlimited possibilities and are also more fun than traditional learning. Nevertheless, technology only ever plays a supporting role. The school of the future will not only be defined by tools and devices.
The School Of The Future Is Not Just Digital
The school of the future is not just about digitization and tools. Just like books, iPad and Co. can be used as a distraction. In the end, it should be more about innovative learning concepts.
A good example of this is problem-based learning. Students deal independently with problems or tasks and present their results to the class. So they don’t just learn about the actual topic. You will learn to deal with the situation, find solutions, and research information.
In the first months of Corona, schools were mainly concerned with classwork, meetings and the like. This should be rethought. How can classes be organized smaller? Does class work make sense? These and other questions about the old-fashioned school system should be at the center of the upheaval.
Thanks to Corona, there is an opportunity to change schools actively and with commitment. Everything revolves around freedom and detachment from the teaching location.
More Freedom: Possibilities Instead Of Restrictions
In the future, traditional forms of teaching will become increasingly rare. Modern school systems give the student body more freedom in the organization of everyday life and the teaching material. In the future, students will be able to decide which tasks they will work on, how, when, and where. Digital technologies should support this.
Free Time Management In School
Everyone thinks differently. Some prefer to do tasks early in the morning. Still, others like to work in the evening. Students are no different. Even with healthy sleep, not everyone is fully operational at 8 a.m. Some show better performance and concentration at a later time.
By independently organizing their school work, children actively deal with the topics. Above all, digital infrastructures and tools such as the blackboard are very helpful. This is a computer that replaces the traditional blackboard with touch screens.
But mobile devices such as smartphones can also help to organize the work of the students more independently.
Open Spaces
The modern school is characterized by freedom and open design. Many new school models are doing away with the typical classroom. Classes become collaboration spaces with free movement.
This means that there are no longer just 30 students from one class sitting in one room. Instead, students from different classes come together and learn together. You choose where and with whom you want to know—the demotivating compulsion to be in a certain place at a certain time lapse.
Innovative technologies help to break away from the concept of the typical classroom. Online courses and digital classrooms are becoming more popular. Smartboards save space, Zoom hosts the meeting, and e-learning allows schoolwork from the sofa.
The New Role Of The Teacher
In the digital school, pedagogical skills are the most important factor. The teacher becomes a tutor. Instead of standing in front of the class and mediating, the teacher supports you in working independently.
Here, too, it is mainly about giving up responsibility. The student works out and understands the material independently. This enables them to remember what they have learned better and to apply them effectively. The teacher acts as a control here.
Thanks to such a concept and the support of technology, time is saved. This can then be reinvested individually. In this way, the teacher can support each student individually and encourage their development.
School Of The Future: Beyond Old Ways Of Thinking
There are still major gaps in the digitization of German schools. There is a lack of adequate infrastructure and financial support from the state. Without investing in expansion and schools in low-income regions, Germany will continue to be left behind in the future.
However, digitization is not the only thing that counts for the school of the future. Rethinking technology at school is important, but not everything. Well-known forms of teaching and learning concepts must be questioned. This is the only way to establish the digital school of the future.
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