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The basic premise of education and learning in the classroom has always had the same principles and values; that is, a good education will lead into higher education institutions, better employment prospects and a better quality of life. What has changed over the past number of decades is how the education and learning should be delivered to students. From the chalk and blackboard days of when I was at school to the wizzy-wig of Interactive Whiteboards, learning portals and huge computer suites, the delivery of Learning has been revolutionised by Information Technology.

In order to assess the current use of technology in modern day classrooms it is always useful to assess the technology of the past. Technology in its basic form is the application of theory to physical development: electrical theory; the discovery of the Electron, led to the development of computing technology, and other products that need to use electricity to function. With this definition of technology in mind, technology has always been in existence within the classroom: it has simply been the subject of continuous improvement.

Prior to the 15th century AD, during the Dark and Middle ages before printing technology arrived, there was little means of teachers to visually represent the learning to their pupils. Learning at this point therefore adopted a very hands-on, practical approach. Topics such as Mathematics and other Sciences were out of favour; instead, young people were learning a craft: ship building, brick layering, agriculture, horticulture and fishing. The notion that education and learning were about learning and developing new ideas and concepts, as was heavily promoted during the times of Socrates' learning method, was not of any relevance in society; instead, it was replaced by a system that spoonfed children with the same information and knowledge in order to produce a workforce that suited society at the time. Essentially, children and young people were being built like machines to work in a society that provided little in the way of freedom of individual thought and analysis. Albert Einstein certainly buckled the trend by refusing to learn what was thought at the time as conventional knowledge, instead challenging common knowledge and successfully developing new knowledge famously illustrated in his Theory of Relativity.

By the middle of the Victorian times, teachers began to have the technology that allowed for a richer visual learning experience. Chalkboards had arrived and used in nearly every school, allowing the students to visualise the ideas and concepts being taught. Prior to chalkboards, students had to make do with hand-held wooden slates, upon which they would write notes, or the teacher would in some cases. The use of chalkboards freed up the teachers' time, as the teacher only had to write, for example, a math formula once and all the students would copy. Also at this time, the printed word became very popular. A couple of hundred years previous, during the 1500s, the printed word was established. Around 50 or so years later, nearly 10 million books had been printed, a large number of which were academic books. By this time, it was becoming important for people to learn how to read properly. Unfortunately, the UK, England especially, was still engulfed in a social class system. In terms of Education, this meant the rich and aristocracy could afford a decent, proper education whereas the poor had to make do with what they could get before entering the world of work.

It's interesting to note that at this point in time, it was technology that pushed education and learning back into the classroom. It wasn't a Government venture. The development of books and the chalkboard made learning more flexible and efficient, and drove the need for students to return to the classroom instead of continuously involvement with a practical learning environment. The use of the chalkboard and books were really all the technology that was in the classroom for over 100 years.

From around 1982, the penetration of technology especially computing technology was pushed greatly by the British Broadcasting Corporation's (BBC) Computer Literacy Project in which the BBC demonstrated how the versatility of a home computer would benefit the education system: the delivery of learning. The BBC Micro was released in the UK in 1981 and proved to be extremely successful in the home as well as the school, though as a home computer its popularity was eclipsed by both the Sinclair Spectrum and the Commodore 64. In educational settings, the BBC Micro was the King for much longer than it was in the home. From the early 1990s, the BBC Micro was replaced in schools and colleges with the Personal Computer, capable of presenting and handling information and data in a much faster and more effective way. The delivery of learning was further enhanced by more colourful and usable User Interfaces. Today, computers and other computing technologies such as Scanners, Printers and Photocopiers are in every educational institution up and down the country, and across the world. The children have access to these technologies as well, with adult supervision. The Internet, possibly the greatest result of the information Revolution so far, has caused for the distribution, development and access of learning materials to evolve from paper-based to digital-based. Virtual Learning Environments use Internet technology to provide 24 hour access to relevant learning materials, which have allowed children and adults alike to be able to study further outside conventional institutional hours. The learning materials on the VLE are either presentations or handouts of the issues and ideas raised during a particular lesson or materials for much deeper learning and exploration than was covered.

It is not just computer and related technologies that are used in the classroom. Mobile technologies such as Ipods and mobile phones are now becoming an integral part to the learning process. Podcasts of lectures and seminars are becoming commonplace, as is the use of text messaging as a means of the institution communicating with the students for, as examples, letting them know of a change of lecture time or any useful resources that particular students might be interested in. Lectures can be recorded or digitally video-recorded to mobile phones and be uploaded to a computer. Educational technologies, technologies that have been designed purely for educational used, are making their presence felt more especially in the form of Interactive Whiteboards, which have replaced the conventional chalk and blackboard.

Technologies never stay the same: the Internet, for example, is forever evolving into a richer educational environment, an environment that has been much enhanced recently by faster broadband technologies, which themselves are being continuously improved upon. It is safe to say that technology of some kind will always be present in the classroom as technology so effectively aids the delivery of learning, as well as the learning of the pupil. Future technologies such as Quantum Computing and the cutting-edge 3D-TV are promising an even more effective learning.

One can easily surmise that technology is extremely effective: it is, so long as it is used properly by both the student and the teacher. For technology to be effective, the teacher must be proficient in the use of relevant technology, being able to get the best out of its use and maximise its educational benefits so that the pupils can learn effectively.

Learn more about this author, Alexander Darracott.
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