Technology learning is already fundamental to every industry and this will only increase. We can’t ignore the way the world is going or the facts: 65% of children entering primary school today will do jobs that don’t yet exist.
At BSD Education, we believe there are three core reasons that more educators should bring technology into their subjects. This is especially true if those subjects aren’t traditionally technical. Read on for our top three!
1. It prepares students to be future-ready
For students to succeed in the future, it is critical they learn digital skills. Some schools believe that this can be done through a computing class or an after-school club. But in the real world, technology touches everything and impacts everyone.
It needs to be infused across subjects so students can make connections, follow their interests and understand how to apply technology to build solutions across contexts.
2. It increases engagement
Not only does it provide students the opportunities they need to succeed in the future, but teaching digital skills will also increase engagement with your subject. Teachers we have trained have reported that students are more engaged in classes using BSD Online and our curriculum. It can enable a more interactive learning environment and helps make the learning more authentic.
Students can struggle with the real-world context of some topics and a common question is ‘Why are we learning this?’. Allowing your students to explore, build and create with it helps to make the connection to the real world much stronger and helps to pique students’ interest.
3. It develops vital soft skills
Point 1 highlighted the importance of learning technical skills to help students succeed in the future. However, the skills developed by bringing technology learning into your subject don’t stop there. Technology learning expands the mindsets of young people by developing ‘21st-century skills. By focusing on designing real-world products, students are learning how to apply technology, developing a range of critical competencies. For example:
When creating a solution or product, students often have to work together to combine complementary skills and must always consider whether the end product is actually going to work for the end-user. Students, therefore, need to work with others to: determine who will do what; understand potential users’ requirements; request and act on feedback; and share information about what they have designed and built.
None of this can be done without communication and collaboration skills.
Creativity links to building with technology in two main ways: Creativity in problem solving and creativity in design. When solving a real-world problem, students need to think creatively about how to solve it using a technological solution. Once students have decided on the product or solution, they need to think about the best way to design it. Thinking about the end-user, they need to consider user experience and user interface – nobody wants to use a poorly design product.
Computational thinking takes complex problems and breaks them into tiny pieces, which is exactly what students have to do when they are deciding how to use technology to provide solutions. In a rapidly changing future, students will have to solve problems constantly to adapt to the world around them.
Bringing technology learning into your subject is a win-win. Your classes will be more inspiring and engaging, whilst also giving your students the skills and competencies they need to succeed in their futures.
To find out how BSD empowers all teachers to bring technology learning into their classroom and give their students the tools of tomorrow, get in touch!
