4 trends in educational technology deemed essential

Of all the technologies in vogue, four are indeed here to stay, and these are the ones that future teachers should focus on, according to the British daily The Guardian. Which ones do you think?

The technologies are numerous and occupy a preponderant place in the school environment. Future teachers are obviously well aware of this. But, among the technologies in force, how to distinguish those that will really stand out from the ephemeral trends? Which ones should we bet on? An article published earlier this month in the British daily The Guardian highlights four, considered essential.

According to the words put forward in this article, the online formation represents a way forward. Students now have the option of taking courses, or even entire programs, remotely. For some, this democratizes knowledge and opens up new possibilities for training and self-training. In several countries, distance education is offered not only at the secondary level, but also at the college and university level. MOOCs, these open online courses generally free and offered to everyone, are concrete examples of this. And even when students aren't officially taking an online course, they now have access to countless educational resources at their fingertips.

The use of social media, like Facebook or Twitter, remains, for various reasons, controversial in the field of education. The stakeholders who have recourse to them and who make planned use of them, however, consider that these platforms can constitute interesting and promising tools in the school environment, if only for their potential for participation and retroactivity. Currently, several teachers are using YouTube for educational purposes.

The blogs are also included in the list of four promising technologies identified in the article in question. Sites like WordPress, by allowing the sharing of documents such as assignments or instructions and the possibility of commenting on posts, are considered highly appropriate tools in the eyes of many. This type of platform also makes it possible to schedule publications in advance according to training needs, for example a reminder or instruction a few days before a course is held.

The gamification, although it is not unanimous in the education community, appears to be here to stay. The possibilities offered by different games, especially serious games, are likely to develop even further in the coming years.

While not the only ones, online training, social media, blogging and gamification are must-haves for anyone interested in education as the 21st century begins.^e century.