We cannot imagine a facet of our lives today that is not influenced by technology in one way or the other. From transportation to medicine and information, almost anything you can think of is driven and influenced by modern technology for the better. For centuries, education has been a segment that has been relatively untouched by technology but now educational mobile apps are the new trends.
Our medium of instruction has been oral and our learning methodology has been primarily through reading and research. Although research and analysis were the first to be empowered by technology, the internet, and affordable computing power has brought the power of technology to the classroom.
As technology gears up to move classrooms beyond the confines of schools and universities, the internet and mobile telephony have begun to showcase their capability to reach the masses and provide quality education to those who cannot make it to school due to time, geographical or financial limitations.
As mobile phones have outnumbered computers by at least five to one, it was only a matter of time before apps began to make inroads in the field of education. A very recent example in this domain are apps like ByJu’s and Udemy. A report from Shift Learning states that mobile learning will be a $70 billion+ dollar industry by 2020. The reason for this phenomenal growth in the EdTech sector is the popularity of mobile devices and their affordability coupled with the increased availability of the internet.
The use of mobile apps in education has been successfully explored by many e-learning companies. EdTech startups the world over are increasingly using mobile apps to enhance their reach as educational mobile apps. Some benefits of using mobile apps for education include:
1. 24/7 Availability
Many individuals are unable to opt for higher education or skill enhancement programs due to time constraints. These individuals can utilize mobile apps for higher education and continuing education to ensure that they are able to enhance their knowledge and upgrade their skill set at their convenience. Apps like Udemy, Coursera, and ByJu offer the ability to take courses on-demand, making them a popular alternative to regular classrooms.
2. Interactivity
Mobile apps for education offer multimedia-rich interactive content that can help children and adults learn concepts faster and make learning fun for them. These apps also reduce boredom and can help enhance the pace of learning.
3. Specialization
Many educational mobile apps also offer specialized courses that the individual might not be able to opt for individually in a university. These courses include training for entrance exams, skill enhancement programs and corporate development programs. These are specializations that are considered an additional asset for employees.
4. Tracking the progress of learning
As mobile apps are designed from the ground up to ease learning, these apps can help individuals and teachers track the student’s learning progress and figure out gaps, if any. This also helps in fine-tuning the course material to ensure maximum retention and reduces the requirement of repetitions.
5. Systematic Learning
Mobile apps are smart and can adapt to an individual’s learning curve. Unlike schools that follow a strict syllabus, systematic learning apps broaden the student’s perspective and let them explore their interests at their own pace. Enhancing curiosity and generating excitement with gamification, educational mobile apps are a tool that educators can exploit to foster an interest in learning.
6. Customization
Mobile apps can easily be customized to meet the requirements of the learner. These apps also self-adapt by offering multiple choices so the student can choose, which helps them in learning the topics that most interest them.
7. Updates and notifications
Mobile apps can be updated on the fly, which can ensure that the latest and greatest version is always available for the learner. Always have an updated version ensures that the curriculum that the learner is receiving is the most recent one and that they are never subjected to an outdated version of their courseware. This also ensures that any important updates and notifications can be pushed to the students in real-time, making the process instantaneous and guarantee the delivery of these notifications.
8. Sustainability
As mobile apps literally eliminate the need for paper, they ensure sustainability by ensuring that everything is available with just a click. As education moves beyond the walls of a classroom, this also ensures that fewer resources are used for teaching online compared to regular classrooms where the costs of providing education can make it prohibitive for many to attend these courses.
9. Immediate assessment
Mobile apps for higher education and general mobile apps for education can ensure that students and learners complete their assignments in-app and those are assessed in real-time by the test engine in the app itself, reducing the amount of time spent by teachers evaluating the assignments or quizzes and ensuring that students get an immediate evaluation and in some cases, an evaluation along with the option to automatically re-assign courses in areas the student is lacking.
10. On-the-job learning
As courses can be needed by an organization to train their workforce, they can ensure that their employees are able to learn while they earn. With learning timelines available throughout the day and courses to enhance the skillsets available on-premise, employees can enhance their career growth while at work!
Many universities like offer an instructor-led and office mentored in-app program that is considered akin to regular university programs. These programs ensure that employees understand the effort put in by their organization in training them and help the employee create a growth path for them as they partake in their courses, helping both employee and employer gain from these apps.
Mobile apps for education and higher learning fill a much-needed gap in the process of learning. With the number of pupils, a teacher can reach at one time being limited within the confines of a university, mobile learning apps ensure that the boundaries that inhibit the reach of learning are broken and education is available for all in this new, mobile crazed world. The value of apps for education cannot be denied. As more and more learners opt for a mobile-based learning methodology, they end up benefitting from the immense capabilities of these apps that help them learn better and faster.
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