Is Covid-19 Changing The Education Sector And How We Learn?
The education sector is one of the engines behind society’s development. But it has taken its time to update and adapt to the new technological developments. However, the Covid-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on the industry, and the pace of change has accelerated. Here is how the virus is changing the way we learn.
In the Short Term
The pandemic did change the education sector in the short term. Every student around the world had to make a transition into online learning. Teachers and students had no preparation whatsoever. Institutions that already had online learning platforms had to revamp them so they could manage the new demand. The ones that didn’t have any existing virtual systems had to rely on existing video conferencing and collaboration tools like Zoom and Google Classrooms.
This massive change widened the gap that already existed between underrepresented groups and the upper classes. Kids and students who don’t have access to a stable Internet connection had to interrupt their education until everything went back to normal.
Many parents also decided to get their small kids out of school because it is hard to force a four-year-old kid to take an online class. Thus, parents became the teachers and continue their children’s education on their own. It shifts the responsibility of education away from our local institutions.
In the Long Term
But this transition to online learning won’t last forever. In some countries, many schools and universities opened back up at the end of last year. But the wave of change generated by the pandemic will probably last many years. Thanks to last year, the education industry accelerated the pace at which they were adopting new technologies.
Artificial intelligence was already opening a path in the industry by making a more personalized experience possible. And with the increase in online learning, companies have collected massive amounts of data that will later produce powerful insight to generate valuable change. Here are a few of the trends that we will see in the future, thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Blended Classroom
Online learning won’t go away after the pandemic is over. At this point, it has become mainstream in society, and many people have familiarized themselves with it. It is true that on their own, online learning methods aren’t a good fit for everyone. But it can become an excellent tool to include in traditional learning.
Thus, we will probably see blended classrooms that mix online and in-person learning. This will increase accessibility like never before. Students will be able to decide if they want to take classes from home. Imagine students that live in remote locations and don’t have easy access to education. That won’t be a problem anymore. And the days you feel sick, you can access online learning and don’t miss anything.
Updated Curriculum
The pandemic highlighted the need for a new curriculum that best adapts to the new society we live in today. Traditional education has many years teaching kids the same subjects. And even though society had to change astronomically in the last few decades, the education industry hasn’t reflected that change.
For example, a world pandemic, months of lockdown, and people being affected by the virus all over generate many negative emotions. The thing is that most people don’t learn in school to manage those emotions and end up suffering from depression and anxiety. That is why the curriculum should be updated to include more soft skills like resilience and emotional intelligence.
New Career Options
Finally, the education sector should also change to include new careers that are needed in today’s labor market. For example, something that has become an increasing need is blockchain developers.
You will have a hard time finding a university or educational institution that offers this career path. Also, with the pandemic, people started using technology more than ever. Thus, tech needs will increase, and the education sector must adapt to this new future and meet this need.
In Summary
The Covid-19 pandemic has completely changed the way we learn. In the short term, it meant a massive transition to online learning for education at all levels. In the long term, it means that the sector will adopt new technologies faster, classrooms will become blended, an updated curriculum, and universities will start offering new career options. What an exciting future we have in front of us after the difficult part is over.