As time is progressing there is a constant need for up gradation in technologies, be it from the operating system in our phone to the software in our computer as well as the technology that is used in the classrooms. Most of the students are very comfortable
and in fact they prefer these new emerging advancements in the field of technology and information as there is more of convergence of technologies which makes the level of understanding of the student easier, participation level higher and also the concentration level increased.
There is no question in this as the students now have started opting for online education and collection of information from the net over the traditional books. This is all because of technology, but is it the same for the teachers? Is every teacher up for the fast modifying and shrinking world? Are they up for using more complex devices to simplify concepts? Can the take proper advantage of the technology provided to them?
Sadly, the answer will be no, teachers are not able to keep up the pace with the educational technology or even if they are keeping up they are not able to make proper use of this. The institutions are flooding in with devices like projectors and computers and the teachers are not able to keep pace thus entering the class unprepared and the lesson uninterrupted with the facilities available to make the class a bit more engaged and hence wasting the resources provided by the institution and the quality of lecture desired.
Can we say that this is the fault of the teachers? Are they to blame?
That also is not the case as some teachers are comfortable with technology and some are not and for them they try to teach with the best possible efficiency they can but that being said the fact cannot be ignored that the teachers should be taught technology.
In this day of modernization we cannot say that we know everything or our learning has stopped, learning is something that goes through out the life of people including teachers and they have to be taught to use technology and integrate in within their lessons during the lectures thus making the a more capable and apt teacher with higher efficiency levels making the lecture more effective and improve the retention capacity of the student.
How to teach technology to teachers?
Most of them are really set in their ways as a result teaching them will be harder as they are more rigid but if there are programs set up by the institution to help these teachers learn from either their peers or other faculties about these technologies. Classes held by some faculty to teach the others how to use the technology while teaching and help them work through with simple functions like Microsoft word and Power Point can make a world of a difference. Then later have interactive sessions amongst the faculty(to boost the confidence and comfort levels of the teachers) and then they showcase their newly acquired skills to the fellow teachers, using what they have learnt and make presentations or demo lectures and present them amongst their peers, retain their feedback and then have demo classes with the students and get their feedback as well, then well there is a slight possibility that there can be a future where teachers who are lagging behind in technology can come forward.