Past, present, & Future of Technology in Education - CXtec Blog

Almost everyone would agree with the quote above. If the quote is indeed true, then education is incredibly important.

The key components of education are the tools and technology we use to help others learn. These technology tools have come a long way and continue to improve every day. Let’s take a look at where our education technology used to be, where it is today, and where it is headed.

Technology in Education: The Past

Let’s hop in the Delorean and go back to see what kinds of technology used to be available to us for education in the past. We won’t go back to the days of stone tools, cave drawings, or papyrus. Instead, let’s just go back into the 20th century.

Here are some of the key technologies that made education work in the 20^th century:

• Fountain pens
• Pencils
• Markers
• Chalk boards and erasers
• 3-ring binders
• Folders
• Ditto machines
• Filmstrip machines (Beep!)
• Physical filing cabinets
• Overhead projectors with transparent slides
• Early computers (remember the floppy disk?)

Technology in Education: The Present

If you were to plot a graph line of technology in education from the time of the first small computer labs in most high schools to the present day, you would see a steep climb upward.

The days of Trapper Keepers being cool education gear are long gone. Okay, not really. The Trapper Keeper will always be cool with us. (Geek out - history of the Trapper Keeper)

The point is that technology is being used in a variety of creative and effective ways. For instance, just look at Khan Academy, the non-profit educational website dedicated to providing a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere.

Technology is playing an increasingly large role in education. There are two major needs to be met.

1. Using technology to help improve the learning experience for students.

2. Getting students prepared to use technology to better navigate the world.

Here are some technologies that you will see in education these days.

• Modern computers
• Electronic files and storage
• Computer networks
• Major role of the Internet
• Major role of email
• The Cloud, including Google Apps for education
• Smart boards
• Teleconferencing
• Unified communications
• Mobile devices and tablets

Technology in Education: The Future

Just imagine where technology will take us in the future. You can imagine how information technology in education will change the learning experience. It’s a good bet you will see technology streamlining and improving interfaces. If we have smart boards, the Internet, and cloud today, what will we have in 25 years?

Another thing we might see is better information integration. Better collection and access to important information could help customize the education experience for individual students.

Accessing and viewing information through more mediums is something else that the future may bring. You have heard that there are all kinds of learning styles. Having a variety of high-quality mediums, including interactive mediums, may help students learn new concepts better.

There’s a chance in the next 25-50 years we will see the classroom change in big ways, much like the difference between present day and the 20^th century.

It’s exciting to think about all of the possibilities. What will the future of education technology be? Only time will tell.