Digital Transformation of Schools Post Covid

Schools must accept that digital transformation is here to stay for good. It is more than just a temporary solution to the problems brought by the pandemic. In fact, digital tools are now essentials rather than luxuries if schools want to remain relevant in society. The impact of COVID-19 on digital transformation pushes schools to move away from traditional learning methods and adapt to the changing times and demands.

According to a recent report, the demand for digital technology in education will go up to $350 billion by 2025. This just shows that schools, colleges, and universities are shifting away from the four walls of their classrooms and finally embracing digital transformation after the pandemic. Fortunately, there are various tools that can help your teachers virtually connect with students.

With that, here are how technology will transform learning in the COVID-19 era and the years to come.

1. Integration of virtual classrooms

Thanks to the rapid digitalization during pandemic, many schools resorted to using virtual classrooms for their learners. This simulates the same atmosphere of collaborative and dynamic learning that traditional classrooms have. The only difference is the lack of face-to-face interactions to give way to remote learning. This has become an essential feature for many online classes during the pandemic.

Post-pandemic, virtual classrooms will still play a huge role in student learning. It can serve as an extension of traditional classrooms in the event that students can come back to school. Moreover, innovations such as virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) can further boost immersions for virtual classrooms. In fact, a recent study shows 71% of schools who have experimented on the use of VR/AR during the classes reported increased learning outcomes from their students.

The positive results brought by the implementation of virtual classrooms just prove that this feature will still remain relevant in the coming years.

2. Continued demand for online learning

Even before the pandemic, students rely heavily on the internet. A survey shows the 90% of high schoolers use the internet to accomplish schoolwork. This is where they do research for homework, submit papers to their teachers, and interact with their classmates. And thanks to the internet, many schools can continue their operations during the height of the pandemic.

As more schools open their doors to their students, the internet will still be a popular channel for students to learn. Hence, you should take advantage of its benefits and use it to maximize your students’ learning.

You can also use the internet to implement hybrid classes for your students. This will allow your teachers to conduct some of the classes online or face-to-face depending on the demands and needs of both students and teachers. This way, you can safely transition their students from remote learning back to physical classes. You can also check out this guide to online schools to learn more about the benefits of continued online learning.

3. Need for personalization

There is no one way of learning. Every student has their own strengths and weaknesses that schools and teachers must take into consideration if they want their courses to be effective. This has always been a challenge for many traditional teaching methods that schools are trying to resolve.

Fortunately, the various tools for remote learning allow you and your teachers to experiment with your approach to student learning. A great example is the learning management system (LMS). This software provides various tools for teachers to customize and personalize the learning experiences for their students.

For example, teachers can create their own modules using LMS which students can take on their own pace and time. These modules could contain everything the students need to learn such as eBooks, links, videos, and even quizzes. As a result, students have more freedom on how, when, and where they want to study for their classes.

4. Use of anti-cheating and anti-plagiarizing tools

A common issue in the digital transformation of education during covid-19 is the administration of exams. Many schools remain skeptical about the integrity of online tests. After all, there are many ways to cheat an exam using the internet. With so many possible loopholes, many forms of cheating and plagiarizing can get through online tests without the schools’ knowledge. Unfortunately, these doubts often overshadow the various benefits that digital examinations can bring to your school, teachers, and students.

Consider investing in anti-cheating and anti-plagiarizing tools to ensure integrity in all your students’ submissions and exams. Even after the pandemic, these tools can still be useful for your teachers to check and grade papers, quizzes, and exams—whether digital or not. These tools can be integrated into your LMS or other eLearning platforms. This will allow you to conduct online examinations with confidence that your students remain honest even after the pandemic.

5. Multi-platform eLearning

Mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets have become crucial tools for remote and online learning. In fact, 92% of internet users prefer using their mobile devices when going online. The same is true with students. The convenience of accessing all their learning materials and courses in the palm of their hands allows students to maximize their study experience and time.

Hence, multi-platform eLearning is something that you should consider during post-pandemic. Aside from providing online and virtual class experience, a multi-platform experience can further boost flexibility and personalization to your students’ learning experience. Moreover, It gives your teachers the freedom to conduct and manage classes using any of their preferred devices.

6. School management systems

If there is one thing that you should learn from the pandemic, it is that digital transformation should go beyond online learning and virtual classrooms. You should also use it to revolutionize school management in general. This includes other tasks such as managing classes, teachers, staff, students, and even their parents.

You can do this by investing in a school management system. This is an all-around and comprehensive platform for managing and running a school. The best school management system can provide you with tools such as:

• Keeping students’ records
• Managing relationships with parents
• Human resource tools
• Student enrollment and admission
• Data and analytics
• And other automation

School management platforms serve as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system for schools. It centralizes all essential data and processes into a single platform for a more streamlined operation.

7. Smarter automation

Digital transformation usually goes hand in hand with automation. By digitizing certain aspects of your school operations and teaching methods, you can also do away with repetitive and tedious tasks. This includes:

• managing students’ records
• grading and checking exams or papers
• enrolling students in classes
• assigning classes to teachers
• disseminating information throughout the entire school body

Available automation tools will depend on what type of solutions you use for your school. Check out some of the advantages of having good school automation software to find out more about what other processes you can automate.

The best part is that automation is getting smarter as time goes by. Thanks to various innovations such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, automation has the capacity to adapt to changes without further human interference. This helps boost precision and accuracy with how automation accomplishes certain tasks.

Going digital post-pandemic

Many schools started to embrace digital transformation in education due to COVID-19. But as more schools start to reopen, you might be wondering if you will still need these digital tools during post-pandemic.

The answer to this question is yes. The COVID-19 pandemic only accelerated the transformation out of necessity. Nonetheless, this had always been the path that the world was heading towards.

So hold on to all the digital tools you have invested in for your schools and make the most out of it in the coming years. And if you still haven’t fully embraced digital transformation yet, it is high time you check out what solutions you can use for your school. Check out Edisapp to find out more.