The Digital Push

Now we have definitely entered the era of technology-centric classrooms, where students use a variety of digital tools to gain knowledge. Schools and higher education institutes are opting for classrooms that are decked out with laptops, big interactive screens and software that drills students on every basic subject.

In conjunction with the growth of digital learning, there is growth in e-content. The e-content industry is rather asynchronous and it is also very fragmented. But the lack of synchronism and the fragmentation is a positive aspect, as they result in the creation of the widest possible range of products that can cater to all kinds of educational
needs. The rapid growth in the e-content segment is primarily being driven by innovations in content customisations and many other services like the use of simulations, etc.

As technologies and associated standards forge ahead, the concept of Wireless Campus and technology enabled sports is also gaining popularity. When an institution is seamlessly connected with high-speed broadband, students, as well as the teachers, can access educational material with relative ease. As the popular saying goes – a healthy mind resides in a healthy body. Sports are a necessary part of a child’s training, and incorporation of digital systems only serves the purpose of further enhancing the scope of sports in education.

However, the field of digital learning is also fraught with challenges for which the industry and the government institutions continue to grope for answers. Even the best e-content solution and digital learning tools will not serve the purpose of broadening the scope of education if there are technological issues like server being down or erratic power supply. For the digital education system to really take off in the country lot of new infrastructure has to be created.

We have interacted with a host of industry leaders who are providing solutions for e-content, sports and wireless campus. The interviews that we have conducted with the teachers and other senior academics read like a case study on usage of digital systems in institutes. From these stakeholders we have distilled a gamut of perspectives. The potential benefits of digital teaching tools are also linked to the tech-training of the tutor. In urban areas, majority of the institutes have access to teachers who are tech-savvy, but in rural and semi-urban areas there is a crunch of teachers with such
training.

On 23rd and 24th July 2012, we will be having The World Education Summit, at Le Méridien, New Delhi. Just like the May issue, the June issue of digitalLEARNING is also a part of the special series through which we are making an in depth coverage of the education sector in the country. Once again, I have the pleasure of inviting all of you to join the WES, where we can all be part of the discussion on the best ways by which new technologies can be used for enhancing the scope of modern education.

I would like to thank Professor S S Mantha, Chairman AICTE, who, in his position as guest editor to the entire series of issues that will be released in the run up to the World Education Summit, 2012, has been providing us with invaluable guidance.

Dr. Ravi Gupta
Editor-in-Chief
Ravi.Gupta@elets.in

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