An Overview Of Learning Technology
All of us know that technology plays a vital role in the modern day life. Mankind has become dependent on technology for a number of its necessities. Technology has stood with mankind as a loyal servant in home and as a savior of lives in warlike situations, in hospitable terrains, and lethal illnesses. And herein, learning technology has emerged as a powerful learning aid to help us. With the advancement of technology and improvement of connectivity infrastructure, learning technology plays a vital role in enriching an overall learning experience for us. The history of learning technology goes back to the times of World War II. The United States Armed Forces developed the Instructional Systems Design (ISD). This system was used for effective training of a large number of personnel in a short time span because the number of instructors was low and the demand of war personnel was high.
Learning Technology is now working wonders for people. Around three decades back only the brightest and the best were able to see computers. Today every third grader knows how to effectively utilize the vast pool of information called the Internet. Learning technology does not refer to any overblown heavily technical system which requires a lot of funding. Rather things as common as television, radio and computers are also components of learning technology. The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project under the aegis of Nicholas Negroponte of MIT's Media Lab is one example where low cost laptops and wireless networks acted as an integrated learning technology solution. Negroponte estimates that once the project starts running at optimal resources, the laptop shall be priced $100. Secondly learning technology can be implemented at any level. There are instances of successful implementation of learning technology at a number of levels right from K-12 to research level education. Learning technology is all about integration of technology in the learning process. Thus learning technology becomes a catalyst for the overall learning process. Learning technology has made education a much more collaborative experience. Students can interact with each other easily and effectively. The OLPC project mentioned above has special provisions for students to communicate, interact and collaborate with each other. Learning technology has led to the development of Constructivism among students. With the advent of learning technology, education has now stepped out of the classroom and moved to the real world. Students, empowered by learning technology are not just getting education but they are developing into citizens who are informed and empowered. |