Matt Glotzbach, CEO of a learning technology company in Silicon Valley and most importantly a father to two school going daughters is of the opinion that technology in itself cannot “fix” what’s wrong with the education system in USA. A tablet, Chromebook or the some popular latest social learning app isn’t the solution to more complex budget constraints, staffing and training gaps, lack of material resources affecting the schools at district and classroom levels.
Somewhere in the race to develop technology, the people who would actually be using it have not been considered. Study apps can inspire students and keep them engaged but a teacher who can effectively integrate these tools into their classwork is the gap between technology and human capital that needs to be filled. For that it is important that the educators be compensated properly so as to keep them motivated to invest their time and resources into creating more effective teaching methodology especially in adopting technology. Financial constraints should not hinder them from using digital learning tools because ultimately these tools are only as good as the teachers who use them.
Another most significant factor is that the educators need to be educated. Organisations like Google, Apple and Facebook are investing millions of dollars in the global edtech industry and the Silicon Valley is providing teachers the knowledge through training programs, conferences, boot camps etc to implement these digital learning tools.
Source: https://www.xconomy.com/san-francisco/2018/10/23/why-technology-alone-wont-fix-education/
