‘Smart school’ is a concept that goes way beyond than a classroom full of notebooks, smartboards or other similar devices.
It´s one of the many practical applications of the Internet of Things (IoT). In this particular case, is a new way to think how higher education is managed to deliver a better student experience, to optimize resources and to reduce costs.
This trend – the biggest next trend, according to experts like Daniel Burrus, technology and innovation specialist – is based on the notion that everything is interconnected and technology should rise to the challenge with solutions that help people and organizations create an environment of total communication and collaboration.In higher education management, for example, the Internet of Things is about linking all the different aspects of the organization, and coordinating them in harmony, because every task is connected, from distributing a student schedule, to budgeting the maintenance of a building.
Now, how can this really help improve the performance of teachers and students in a classroom? Well, let’s see review some real cases.
Jeanette Cajide, VP of Corporate Development of Dialexa (an innovation-focused design and engineering company), explains in The Huffington Post that “digital content means easier sharing and more collaboration amongst teachers. They can build on each other's knowledge. It also means teachers can move through the material more quickly because they are not wasting time writing letter by letter on a chalkboard or whiteboard. It also means he or she can share lecture notes with students with very little effort.”
She underlines that this can actually help students to learn faster, and teachers to be able to do their job more efficiently.
“I am a notetaker, Jeanette says, I highlight, make margin notes, and like to create notecards. This is an inefficient process, but it was how I was taught to study. By using digital highlighters such as Scanmarker's Air, it could have shortened the process. This digital highlighter wirelessly transfers printed text into an application or web browser – it is 30 times faster than if Iwere to write by hand. This tool does not only apply to education; but it can also be used by lawyers, researchers, and avid readers who still like to take notes (that's me!).”
Jeanette Cajide adds that, on the other hand, “teachers work hard. Sure they get the summers off but they can put in 12 to 14 hour days during the school year. How can we help them do their job more efficiently? From designing the curriculum, to teaching, to grading papers and communicating with parents – technology will help – but only if it is made available to them. For the most part, it is still cost prohibitive but in the next five years, this will be an inevitable expense.”
Simple things also contribute to improve the way we manage higher education. Microsoft, for example, shows some of its success cases on its corporate blog.
“For Beijing Middle School, a few key improvements have made a big impact: The new system has reduced downtime by 98 percent by eliminating the lengthy delays caused when projector bulbs needed to be replaced. The previous system of visual projectors required expensive, high-pressure light bulbs that had to be replaced at least twice a year.”
“In addition, startup times are now 80 percent faster: “In the past, if a teacher were to turn on the computer, he or she would probably need to turn it on five to six minutes prior to using it in order to get it ready,” says Yingzhi Wang, senior pre-sales engineer, research and development at IGRS. “Now it only takes one minute for it to start up.”
As you can see, a smart school is more about a new form of management than just new tech devices. How is your organization doing with modern management tools? Please, let us know your experience.
Other interesting blogs:
Advantages and Disadvantages of Cloud computing in higher education
The rise of Big Data in Higher Education
Common challenges for accreditation in higher education institutions
The challenge of skill based integrated planning in higher education
The new paths for higher education