Lenovo’s Head of Emerging Technology and Solutions, Mr Hassan Baickdeli, is encouraging educators to adapt and experiment with new technologies and teaching methods to meet the evolving needs of students.
It’s never been more digital in the classroom than it is today, to be fair you could literally say the exact same thing tomorrow and you’d be 100 per cent correct. With technology reshaping the impact and overall potential of our learners and driving the expected base level of digital literacy beyond the end of students learning journey, it’s critical that we get some base foundations right and a fit for purpose learning environment is one such foundation. In this digital age, educators are tasked with driving skills they need to succeed in the rapidly changing world and digital literacy and all its elements in being able to connect, collaborate, source information, and enable things such as critical thinking start in an environment that I like to call the “connected classroom”. These are more than just classrooms with Wi-Fi, they’re a learning environment that leverages several technologies that act as the backbone to support the enhancement of student engagement, collaboration, access, experience and much more.
Having things such as 1:1 student and educator devices, solid and fast connectivity, security to ensure safety by keeping a clean digital footprint is a great way to get started. By laying that foundation you can look at incorporating a video collaboration system with an interactive touch panel, video camera, speakers, microphones (or an all-in-one bar system) and even a content capture camera that lets you turn a whiteboard into a digital annotation and marking tool. These types of setups don’t just allow you to project what’s happening in the classroom, they bring experiences to you. Working with universities who may have a specialist lecturer or professor over on the eastern seaboard and a cohort of students on the west coast, distance literally means nothing. It happened during the pandemic but with a “try and keep everything running” approach, one of the recent examples at a school we worked with a Geologist over on the east coast and a classroom on the west coast to deliver a remote lesson. When you take into consideration the importance of traditional ways of learning and tactile experientials, all that needs to be done is a bit of pre-prep to post some samples over ready for the class to begin and that’s just what we did. Over 40 minutes the Geologist was the guest educator, students had samples, the educator could point out specifics and examples of what needed to be noted, in this case we used a Logitech Reach camera that worked amazingly well, students were able to ask questions, the session was super interactive and was a resounding success.
Beyond the technology, it’s the literacy, competency and comfortability that’s going to enable the change. The classroom can be as connected as Houston but unless its effectively leveraged it will just be amazing tech that has all the potential but in reality its being underutilised. The thing I love most about my role as a technologist, beyond talking about the promise technology can bring to learning environments, is showing just how amazing it can be once embraced and sure, depending on your familiarity it may take a while to get adjusted by once you do the level you can take it to (especially with respect to where you started) is endless. Connected classrooms are in no doubt a paradigm shift from where things are in 70 per cent of classrooms in Australia today, however getting started can be done in small and incremental steps. Some things to consider in order to get your classroom started are:
- Ensuring your devices are appropriate to get things started (can be laptops, tablets or phones)
- Having a strong and solid Wi-Fi source/coverage in your classroom.
- Platforms such as MS Teams to have that initial collaborative environment and familiarity with your class
- Running some test/trial video calls to get everyone familiar, comfortable and courteous (first time is always super exciting and a tad chaotic!)
By starting your journey and incorporating these elements and into your classroom, you can create a dynamic and engaging learning environment that prepares students for what’s to come. Remember, the key to a successful connected classroom deployment is to continuously adapt and experiment with new technologies and teaching methods to meet the evolving needs of your students and ensuring that they’re as transferable as possible regardless of when they decide to complete their learning and head into their careers.
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