Covid-19: how tech will transform your kids' education
Summary
TLDRThe COVID-19 pandemic drastically altered education, prompting a global shift to online learning. This disruption highlighted technology's potential to transform the sector, leading to increased edtech investment and innovative tools like personalized learning apps. Despite challenges, the pandemic accelerated digital integration in education, offering new opportunities for hybrid classrooms and skill development essential for students' futures.
Takeaways
- đ« The COVID-19 pandemic caused the largest disruption to education, forcing a rapid transition to online learning for students and teachers worldwide.
- đšâđ« Teachers had to quickly adapt to new technologies for online teaching, which was challenging due to the lack of prior digitization in education.
- đ©âđ§ Parents gained a new appreciation for the challenges teachers face, as they witnessed firsthand the difficulties of remote learning management.
- đł The traditional summer camp experience evolved to include 'COVID catch-up camps' to help students recover from the learning loss experienced during the pandemic.
- đïž San Francisco provided additional summer classes for public school children, especially those from low-income families who struggled with distance learning.
- đ The pandemic accelerated the adoption of edtech, with schools rushing to provide internet access and devices to students to facilitate online learning.
- đĄ Edtech companies responded to increased demand by designing apps and software to support teachers, not replace them, and improve classroom efficiency.
- đ Investment in edtech is expected to double from $200 billion in 2019 to over $400 billion by 2025, indicating a significant shift towards digital education tools.
- đ€ Personalized learning experiences are being enabled by AI and machine learning, as seen with apps like Century, which adapt to individual student needs.
- đ The use of technology in education is not without concerns, with debates about screen time and the digital divide affecting students' access to online learning.
- đź The pandemic has sparked discussions about the future of education, with some families and schools considering the potential of long-term remote learning options.
Q & A
How did the COVID-19 pandemic impact education globally?
-The COVID-19 pandemic caused the largest disruption to education in modern history, forcing schools to close and transition to online learning, affecting 1.4 billion students across 190 countries by mid-April 2020.
What challenges did teachers face when shifting to online classes during the pandemic?
-Teachers scrambled to adapt their classes online with little notice, often lacking sufficient working computers and facing skepticism from both parents and students about the effectiveness of remote learning.
What was the 'Summer Together initiative' and why was it created?
-The 'Summer Together initiative' was created in San Francisco to provide extra summer classes for public-school children, especially those from low-income families, who struggled with distance learning due to lack of support and structure at home.
Why has the digitization of education been slow despite technological advancements in other sectors?
-Education has been slow to digitize due to resistance to change, a preference for traditional classroom settings, and the high cost of implementing new technologies that could potentially fail.
How did the pandemic influence the adoption of edtech in schools?
-The pandemic sparked a 'techceleration' in education, leading to an increased demand for edtech solutions as schools rushed to provide online learning, resulting in millions of learners receiving emergency internet access and devices.
What is the Century app and how does it assist in personalized learning?
-Century is an app that combines artificial intelligence, machine learning, neuroscience, and learning science to personalize and differentiate learning for every student, providing educators with instant insights and intervention strategies to improve student outcomes.
How does the use of avatars in teacher training at the University of Virginia benefit future educators?
-The use of avatars allows trainee teachers to practice their lessons in a low-stakes environment, receive feedback, and refine their teaching skills before working with real students.
What are the potential benefits of remote learning for students with specific needs?
-Remote learning can be beneficial for students with anxiety issues or those who prefer a one-on-one learning environment, as it can provide more personalized attention and a wider range of course offerings.
How has the pandemic affected parents' engagement with their children's education?
-The pandemic has increased parent engagement due to being at home and listening to lessons, as well as the use of technology that makes it easier for parents to stay informed about their children's progress.
What is the main barrier to the success of edtech and how can it be addressed?
-The main barrier to the success of edtech is financial, requiring investment in under-resourced schools to ensure they have proper internet access and facilities. Without this, inequities in the classroom and across schools may develop.
What role does technology play in the future of education according to the script?
-Technology is seen as playing a vital role in aiding education, with teachers recognizing the benefits of a hybrid classroom and the unique skills students can gain from using edtech that will be valuable for their future.
Outlines
đ« Disruption and Transformation in Education
The COVID-19 pandemic caused the largest disruption to education in modern history, forcing teachers to rapidly adapt to online teaching and parents to appreciate the challenges faced by educators. This upheaval led to a realization of technology's potential to revolutionize education. The script discusses the introduction of 'COVID catch-up camps' for students who struggled with online learning due to various issues, such as lack of structure and noisy environments. The pandemic also highlighted the disparities in access to technology and support for distance learning, prompting initiatives like San Francisco's 'Summer Together' to address these gaps. The script also touches on the slow digitization of education compared to other sectors and the resistance to change due to the high cost of being wrong in education.
đ Personalized Learning and EdTech Innovations
This paragraph introduces Century, an app that provides personalized learning experiences through artificial intelligence, machine learning, neuroscience, and learning science. It allows teachers to monitor student progress and intervene when necessary, reducing the time spent on administrative tasks. The app's creator, Priya Lakhani, aimed to address the one-size-fits-all approach in education and the time-consuming nature of traditional assessment methods. The paragraph also discusses the blended learning approach and the importance of technology in laying the foundation for future jobs, as well as the use of avatars in teacher training to practice and refine teaching skills in a low-stakes environment.
đ The Future of Remote Learning and EdTech
The final paragraph explores the potential long-term impact of the pandemic on education, with some parents and districts considering remote learning as a viable option even post-pandemic. It discusses the benefits some students experienced, such as reduced anxiety and increased personalization, as well as the challenges, including the digital divide and the need for financial investment in under-resourced schools. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of advanced technology in education and the potential for a hybrid classroom model, where teachers and students gain new skills that are essential for the future. It concludes by acknowledging the vital role of teachers and theèŸ ć© role technology can play in enhancing education.
Mindmap
Keywords
đĄCOVID-19 pandemic
đĄOnline learning
đĄSummer camp
đĄPersonalised learning
đĄEdtech
đĄDigital divide
đĄHybrid classroom
đĄTeacher support
đĄTechnology in education
đĄInnovation resistance
đĄVirtual public school
Highlights
The COVID-19 pandemic caused the largest disruption to education in modern history, forcing a rapid transition to online learning.
Teachers and parents alike had to adapt to new challenges, with parents gaining a deeper appreciation for the work of teachers.
The shift to online classes revealed the potential of technology to transform education, a sector critical for the world's future.
A new 'COVID catch-up camp' was introduced for students who struggled with the transition to online learning.
Students reported a chaotic experience during the pandemic, with a lack of structure and engagement in online classes.
San Francisco provided extra summer classes for public-school children, especially those from low-income families who struggled with distance learning.
The pandemic highlighted the need for support and structure at home for successful distance learning.
By mid-April 2020, over 1.4 billion students worldwide were affected by school and university closures.
The education sector has been slow to digitize, with classrooms remaining largely unchanged for decades.
The pandemic accelerated the adoption of technology in education, with millions of learners gaining emergency internet access and devices.
Edtech companies responded to increased demand by designing apps and software to support teachers.
The Century app, combining AI with learning science, offers personalized learning experiences and insights for educators.
Teachers are now able to analyze student data more effectively, reducing the time spent on administrative tasks.
The use of technology in the classroom is seen as crucial for laying the foundation for future job requirements.
Trainee teachers at the University of Virginia use avatars and simulations to practice their lessons and receive feedback.
The pandemic raised questions about the necessity of traditional classroom teaching and the potential of remote learning.
Some students and parents found remote learning beneficial, particularly for those with anxiety or other issues that made in-person learning challenging.
There is a risk that increased remote learning could widen the digital divide, especially for students without adequate resources.
For edtech to succeed, investment is needed in under-resourced schools to ensure proper internet access and facilities.
The pandemic underscored the importance of teachers and the potential of technology to aid education, suggesting a future with a hybrid classroom model.
Transcripts
For centuries, this is what school for most kids looked like
But in 2020 all that changed
The covid-19 pandemic...
...created the largest disruption to education in modern history
As teachers scrambled to get their classes online...
...and parents developed a new-found respect for their kidsâ teachers
No thatâs not a âTâ!
Thatâs an âXâ
No this is an âXâ!
But out of the disruption has come a realisation...
...of technologyâs potentialâŠ
...to transform one of the most important sectors...
...for the future of the world
Summer camp has long been a tradition for American kids
Wholesome weeks away in nature...
...to focus on sports or science...
...or even space
This summer though...
...thereâs a new camp
The covid catch-up camp...
...for students like these
When the pandemic hit, their classes switched to online
...which wasnât easy
My pandemic school year was chaotic
I could just like kind of do whatever I wanted because, like...
...the teachers couldnât see me
So, like, Iâll be eating in class, sometimes falling asleep
You know I have to share, like, the living room with my sister...
...and her class was extra loud
I did not like Zoom
Some schools in San Francisco were closed for in-person learning...
...for more than a year
And so the city decided to lay on extra summer classes...
...for all public-school children
Our children, particularly our very poor and low-income families...
...all had a very difficult time with distance learning...
...not because they didnât have the technology or the equipment...
...but because they didnât have the support to stay engaged in distance learning...
...nor the structure at home to provide that support for them
And so as a result we very quickly came together...
...and created the Summer Together initiative
Last year was a year of loss...
...and this summer we were determined for this summer to be a year of recovery
By mid-April 2020...
...1.4bn students were out of school and university across 190 countries
By the start of 2021 schools had been wholly or partly closed...
...for about two-thirds of an academic year
While office workers transitioned to remote working fairly easily...
...it was a different story in schools
Tamara Gilkes Borr is The Economistâs US policy correspondent...
...but she used to be a teacher
When I heard that schools were shutting down with maybe a day of notice...
...I just couldnât even imagine how I would have picked up the pieces so quickly...
...and continue to teach my students
We barely had enough working computers when I was a teacher
While new technologies transformed working life in many sectors...
...education has been notoriously slow to digitise
Classrooms today looked the same as they did decades ago
Even though parents often say that they want an innovative...
...new type of education for their children...
...when they walk into the classroom...
...they often want to see the things that they saw when they were children
So thereâs often pushback against a new kind of education
And there was pushback from teachers too
Many of whom were sceptical about technology...
...that didnât centre on face-to-face learning
In general, education doesnât change much...
...because thereâs a high cost to being wrong
Why change something up when the alternative could be so much worse?
But the pandemic sparked a techceleration in education...
...as schools rushed online
2.4m learners in America were given emergency internet access
The British government handed out more than 1m devices to students
Some schools even put Wi-Fi boosters on buses and drove them around towns
As demand rocketed, the edtech sector responded...
...designing apps and software to aid teachers rather than replace them
Once teachers had to suddenly become virtual...
...there was an appetite to get better technology in the classroom
And then edtech had an opportunity not only to serve those customers...
...but then they were able to get even better user data...
...and improve their products for a unique subset...
...which is teachers in the classroom
The amount of money spent on edtech globally is expected to doubleâŠ
...from almost $200bn in 2019 to more than $400bn in 2025
Okay, so today we are going to be focusing on maths...
These students are getting a personalised-learning experienceâŠ
...thanks to an app on their laptops
The software is called Century
It was created by Priya Lakhani, a former barrister turned tech entrepreneur
So Century is a blend of artificial intelligence and machine-learning technology...
...with neuroscience and learning science
The idea is that it can personalise and differentiate for every student...
...no matter what age, what course, what language
And it can then use big data analytics...
...and provide educators with instant insights, deep intervention insights...
...as to what they need to do at the point of time...
...to help to increase a studentâs outcome
On a teacher dashboard, it will allow us to see the children...
...where theyâre at, how many nuggets theyâve completed...
...and their average score
Once weâve done that, we can then go into it a bit deeper...
...and find out what the nugget is theyâre doing...
...how theyâve done on it, what questions theyâve got right...
...where theyâre struggling at, if theyâve skipped any questions
So we can really analyse that data
Priya created Century as a way of addressing the problems she saw...
...in the education sector
We were still delivering a very one-size-fits all education
Every child deserves a personalised, differentiated experience...
...but thatâs really, really difficult, nearly impossible...
...to provide in every educational setting
The second issue was that teachers spent more than half of their time...
...60% of their time micro-marking, micro-assessing...
...trying to do the admin that was related to the children...
...and not actually spending most of the time teaching
Before, we would have to spend hours and hours...
...marking. We donât have to do that now
It shows us the data and we can see whether itâs green, amber, red...
...we can see where the children are working at...
...and we can then pick up on those points to help the children
With children in Britain already spending on average...
...almost four hours a day onlineâŠ
...some may worry about increased use of technology in the classroomâŠ
...but Laurie Davis reckons itâs crucial
Although all children have a laptop, we are not on it all day everyday
We manage what we are doing and we implement it into our learning...
...in a blended-learning approach
At the end of day, every job out there now is using some sort of computer
So we need to lay those foundations...
And if that is how AI develops to give those children a better future...
...then Iâm excited about that journey
Tech is also being used in an attempt to revolutionise how teachers teach
So today, you are going to be talking with a group of five students...
These trainees at the University of Virginia are practising their lessons...
...not on children...
...but on avatars
When youâre a teacher, the first time is really high stakes
Youâre working with real kids and you donât often get a second chance...
...to explain a complicated maths concept
And so what these simulations help us do...
...is give our beginning teachers the chance to actually practise that...
...and then do it again once theyâve gotten feedback
I saw you use a lot of talk moves, in probing the studentsâ thinking...
...and this is a pretty advanced kind of discussion skill
The software is designed by tech company Mursion
Behind the scenes a digital puppetmaster plays the role of the children
Thatâs a good question...
...Um, you know what, Iâm going to say Fruit Loops...
...Iâd eat Fruit Loops everyday
But the developers of the software hope that in future...
...the avatars can be programmed to think for themselves
The pandemic has also raised questions...
...about whether children need to be taught in a classroom at all
For twins, Julia and Colin MeCey...
...technology has helped give them an altogether different learning experience
They attend a virtual public school...
Are you taking British and world literature?
...which provides them with the equipment they need to learn remotely
So Iâm taking a fine arts course, so in my box I have...
...clay and some paintbrushes and then some acrylic coloured paint
Julia moved to full-time remote-learning during the pandemic...
...but Colin was a trailblazer, switching to e-education in 2019
The environment of a one-on-one in comparison to one-on-30...
...is just a lot nicer
I have a lot more contact with my teachers and...
...the classes that are offered is just so much more...
...than what is offered at normal public school...
...like computer science for example
Iâve been able to take more classes that interest me
I think my grades have been better...
...so I probably will have a better chance of getting into my dream colleges
A recent survey found that nearly a third of American parents...
...say itâs likely their child will continue with remote-learning indefinitely
Itâs unclear to what extent fear of covid has influenced this decision
But roughly 20% of districts in America...
...are planning to offer some form of virtual learning even after the pandemic
We can all agree that most students do better when theyâre in the classroom...
...but for some students, having to do school remotely was a positive
Some students have anxiety issues...
...and it was easier to work from home, for example
For Dad, Mike, the technology also allows him to keep better tabs...
...on his kidsâ progress
Then you actually start on Wednesday normal classes?
During the pandemic...
...many teachers told me that this is the first time...
...theyâve seen so much parent engagement
And a lot of that is because parents are home listening to the lessons...
...but also because they are engaging technology...
...that makes it easier for parents to be up to speed
Not all students can afford the space and internet connection...
...needed to study online...
...which means increased use of remote-learning...
...risks widening the digital divide
Ultimately the barrier to success for all edtech...
...not just e-education, is financial
For edtech to be successful...
...there needs to be investment in the schools that currently are under-resourced
There needs to be a push to make sure that these schools...
...have the proper internet access, the facilities...
...and everything else they need to be able to properly function with edtech
If that doesnât happen, then we will see...
...inequities develop in the classroom and across schools...
The technology that education deserves...
...should be technology that is as advanced, if not more advanced...
...than the technology that is applied to the banking sector
And if you want that sort of technology in the education sector...
...then youâre going to have to create a model that investors have an appetite for
The pandemic has made clear the vital role played by teachers
For many students the best place to learn is in the classroom
But technology can and will play a vital role in aiding education
Teachers are seeing the benefit of being able to have a hybrid classroom
And most importantly, theyâre seeing the skills their students are gaining...
...that they wouldnât have had otherwise...
...and these are skills that I think we all agree these students will need for the future
If you are interested in learning more about covid and education...
...click on the link
Thank you for watching. And please donât forget to subscribe
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