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One school in Maidstone, Kent, prides itself on being very forward thinking, embracing new technologies to help teach its’ students. The New Line Academy, was rebuilt during 2009 into what it calls the classroom of the future. This almost futuristic school now comes supplied with touch screens, mood lighting and even facial recognition technology. One great feature is that the halls furniture is designed to be fully movable i.e. all the furniture is on wheels so that it can be adaptable for normal classroom teaching, presentations and workshops. In the future all classrooms may be modelled on this innovative school.

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Go to any school in Britain and students will be told to either leave their mobile phone at home or at the very least to put them away when they are in the classroom. A school in Bangladesh however has taken a different approach. They actively encourage those pupils who have mobile phones to utilise them as an aid for helping them to learn English. All they need to do is call a dedicated number and listen in. This is so far proving very popular, and a very convenient way for students to learn English as opposed to reading from a dictionary.

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Back in 2004, the Government was so impressed by the latest technology such as white boards that £50 was invested towards installing them in classrooms. Now, most schools use them. However, some critics have argued that as well as providing some much needed benefits, they may be distracting from investment in key items such as books.

The teachers also had to get used to the new technology themselves and change their lifelong teaching methods to adapt to the modern way of teaching. The new hardware and software may be more interactive for pupils but it does take time for teachers to master it.

Things can go wrong with technology as well. This can play havoc with lesson planning.

In conclusion, there are many pros and cons with the new methods and the debate will rage on. I would suggest that a happy medium can be embraced between the new technology in the classroom and good old fashioned teaching. We should not neglect reading and text books, but every investment in technology should not replace good teaching and classroom resources.

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As we conclude our thoughts on this hot topic at the moment we can see how it is fast becoming a problem in schools, leading to calls for something to be done about it.

This modern technology is very appealing to the young people of today and it is fairly easy to abuse its use. People can turn this technology into an instrument for bullying, harassment and embarrassment towards fellow pupils and teachers.

The education authorities also need to consider the theft of these devices, as well as the use of images to count as evidence in disciplinary matters. Cheating is another issue to address, as technology can be used to photograph exam papers and look answers up using the internet facility on the mobile phone.

Hopefully soon the authorities will take note and address school policies on ICT, behaviour and bullying in the near future.

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As we brought up in a previous article recently, when a teacher was filmed dancing in front of his pupils, a degree of control needs to be taken by the authorities to tackle this growing issue in schools and other education institutions.

This may be a relatively new problem but policies do need to be developed and action needs to be taken to minimise the risks of this phenomenon.

This new technology, when used irresponsibly, can put people in a compromising position. Images and videos can be sent almost instantly between mobile phones and computers. In no time, as with the case of the teacher, images and videos can appear on the internet.

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In this modern age, mobile phones can raise several significant health and safety issues in schools. Education institutions are only now starting to open their eyes to the fact that while most children use their phones responsibly, there are others who misuse them and can cause problems for staff and fellow pupils.

As the technology moves forward, more and more pupils have the latest camera phones which not only take pictures, but are also capable of recording videos.

The widespread use of the internet has only further complicated this issue as it takes no time for inappropriate content to be displayed for all the public to see.

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The BBC now has a Learning zone on its website where people of all ages can benefit from exercises and advice on different subjects, as well as information on how to find resources for further learning.

This area is not just for children and teenagers to brush up on their maths skills, but there are also sections for adult learners, parents and teachers.

You will be able to find brain training exercises and can learn about the following subjects; history, science, maths, food and catering, gardening, IT, languages, English and brush up on your basic skills.

As you can see there is something for everyone on the BBC website. Next time you are looking for something to do, why not try some of the brain tests and sharpen your mind?

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In the olden days, teachers just stood in front of the class with chalk in hand writing on a blackboard. Nowadays, with the advancement in technology we have interactive white boards (IWBs) and other new equipment to aid with learning.

These IWBs can work as an overhead projector, television, computer, DVD player and more.

Most people’s homes are filled with all the latest technology and so schools have tried to keep up. But with the problems discussed in the last few articles regarding how mobile phone technology can have adverse effects on the learning environment, the question above does need to be asked.

Are school children becoming lazy with all these gadgets? And, were the old methods of instilling discipline the best?

These are important issues to address.

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Online learning is proving to be very popular these days. With the rising costs of going to university and funding further education, it makes more sense to some people to start work and take a distance learning course.

You can gain all manner of practical and vocational skills on these courses and these cover all different types of subjects. You can now choose to study for a degree online; either full or part time. In some cases, the costs of these courses can be spread across the course and they can prove to be cheaper in the long-term with no travel costs and the higher costs of physically attending a university or secondary education institution.

Some critics have argued that online learning limits the social interaction between the learner and the classroom, but there is still one to one tuition and personal tutors to make use of and ask questions every step of the way.

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The schools and universities in the UK are risking being left behind in setting the standards for education a new report has warned. The global OECD report suggests that if the recession results in a reduced level of investment, then this may impact on the UK’s standing as having some of the best education establishments in the world.

The government has been warned that this may happen if it cuts spending on schools and universities during this period of recession. The education study has found that the UK has some of the highest drop-out rates in the world. If investment in education is reduced the UK risks being surpassed by other nations who have copied the UK’s education policies successfully.

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