As technology becomes ever more integrated into our school classes, we can’t help but wonder whether these technologies will benefit our learning experiences or create obstacles that hinder our ability to learn. There’s a risk inherent in too much dependence on technology to automate learning, yet there are systems now revolutionising the technology of education and supplementing students’ development and success, while at the same time optimising the teacher-student relationship through what is called Adaptive Learning.
It’s broadly accepted that the objective of modern education is for students to acquire skillsets that enable them to face the challenges of the real world. Where educational environments are focused on ‘book smart’ learning, for instance in teaching by rote and testing learning factually rather than as a creative process, students joining the world of work can find themselves feeling lost and failing to fulfil their potential because they did not acquire the skills of seeking and using information creatively. With that in mind, many school systems do not cater to all of their students’ needs; Adaptive Learning can solve this problem.
So what is Adaptive Learning? According to dreambox.com, “Adaptive learning is a computer-based and/or online educational system that modifies the presentation of material in response to student performance.” Basically, this means that according to how the student performs, the learning system adapts to the student’s development scale and personalises the learning process. For example, if a student is doing well in English, then the system will learn that particular student’s pattern of development and find ways to enhance his or her potential in that course even further.
‘Visual’ learners
On the other hand, if a student is struggling in Maths, for instance, then the system will learn the student’s pattern and adjust according to his or her level. In addition, in both scenarios, the system will be looking for ways in which the student learns best (some of us, for instance, are more ‘visual’ learners) and would apply it into the student’s assignments and other school work.
Nonetheless, no idea is free of its critics. In this case, there are people who state that with such technological systems, classrooms may eventually have no place for teachers. That’s a far cry from the truth. Teachers will be present in classrooms, monitoring the development of the class as a whole and yet free to spend time with each student individually. The teacher would be freed to observe each student’s progress and to focus time and resources on helping exceptional students on a one-to-one basis, channelling their time and effort where it is needed rather than focusing across the whole class. Whether the exceptional student is exceptionally good or bad, he or she could be benefiting from that 1:1 interaction a great deal more.
Expectations and outcomes
Another concern that might rise out of Adaptive Learning is that, if the learning process is personalised, then how will the students of the same class gain the same amount of knowledge and still do well, without some students falling behind? As instructed by the teacher, the system is programmed with the class’s expectations and outcomes. Since the learning is personalised, the system creates a distinctive study plan for each student to follow in order for all the students to comply with the school’s expectations and meet the course outcome in a manner that allows students to learn effectively without falling behind.
To address the question of whether such systems are benefiting our learning experiences or dehumanising them, I will leave you with this quote by the founder of analytical psychology, Carl Jung: “We cannot change anything until we accept it. Condemnation does not liberate, it oppresses.”
Saeed Bin Mohammed Al Gergawi is a specialist in future technology trends.