| | 8 April 2022HIGHERReviewIN MY OPINIONLabs across the country are testing artificial intel-ligence, virtual reality and other innovations that could improve learning and lower costs for Gener-ation Z and beyond.The higher education degree as we know it has been in the doldrums for a while. Increasingly, as jobs across both traditional and new-age industries place less emphasis on graduate programmes, online courses become easily available, and specialized short-duration certificates gain popularity, young people question the value and need for what is almost always an expensive degree.The traditional classroom-based education system needs to accept its insufficiency and join forces to refine knowledge and learning in the post COVID era. The COVID-19 pandemic is wreaking havoc globally and nothing can be done until a feasible vaccination is curated. The health crisis has demolished the link between students and the education system and brought the cycle to an abrupt halt. However, the edtech sector is regaining its powerful traction and has stirred up thoughts about the digital education system amid the pandemic. Google Trends graph for edtech queries of the past 90 days has witnessed a 60 per cent boost in the user search patterns. Furthermore, as the effects of Covid-19 accelerate ed-tech adoption, it is clear that traditional education will require a re-think. In particular, MBA programmes that were already seeing a decline in applications in many countries, now see themselves questioning the status quo.Covering any digital technology that augments or facilitates learning, the landscape of this market is vast. EdTech can comprise custom learning experiences, using gadgets and interfaces to provide learning based on need, preference, and availability. It could be the use of cloud computing, allowing students to access course files and collaborate with one another wherever they are. It could be the use of voice assistants or VR to provide more novel, immerse, or practical methods of learning. As students demand more personalized approaches to learning-- the answer lies in technology.AI learns how a student best learns most effectively, and provides tailored lessons and tests with a `personalized path to mastering each subject', by playing off individuals' strengths and weaknesses. But it also seeks to alleviate the burden of admin tasks from teachers themselves-- like marking and planning-- that swallows up teaching staff's time in and outside of school hours. Teachers can also use the program to view detailed insights on each student's performance, providing them rich information to perform better ad educators. As a result, they can spend more time on more valuable activities, such as one-to-one feedback sessions with students.Edtech platforms have mushroomed over the past three-four years with a compelling teaching system that is intuitive and rewarding. They have succeeded in jolting the audience with a diverse curation of practicable courses. Riding high on the USP of not being reliant on a physical location for existence, the outreach of these platforms is massive as they only require a computer with an Internet connection.IS ED-TECH A THREAT OR AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE TRADITIONAL SCHOOLING SYSTEM?By Pranav Raj Aggarwal, Executive Director, International School of Design (INSD)
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