Multimodal Essays

The Digitization of Education

     In today’s day and age, digitization has impacted virtually every sector of everyday life. Not only has digitization improved the way we work and communicate, it constantly continues to advance and evolve in order to accommodate our ever-changing needs. This is especially important now, as the current generation of humans are growing up more familiar with electronics and technology than ever before. As a result, it has become necessary to utilize digitization, in the academic sector in general, and specifically in how the next generation will be educated.

The use of technology transitioning into the classroom can already clearly be seen as education today becomes more and more digitized in order to better suit these learners that have grown up with technology all of their lives (Figure 1).  However, much like anything else that involves change, the most essential thing to fully accept digitization as the solution to future education is to ease into it. Traditional learning methods utilized by the older generation must find a middle ground with the more technologically advanced methods of the younger generation that we will inevitably shift into. Transitioning into a world with digitized education is necessary because the students that are being educated now and in the future have grown up with technology all of their lives and it has become an essential part of their being. With education becoming digitized, students are more likely to participate in the classroom as technology is an area they are already very comfortable and familiar with. Not only that, but technology also allows students to learn at their own pace, as they can go through lessons on an as-needed basis. Using methods that students are already familiar with will only facilitate how efficiently they learn and understand things.

Figure 1: Growing Up With Technology

Education should also be digitized as it is more convenient in general. It opens up new horizons with limitless possibilities, because education is no longer limited to the boundaries of a classroom (Figure 2). As a result, distance no longer remains a factor, and a whole wealth of information is readily accessible to nearly the entire world. Not only is it more convenient to digitize education, it is more practical as well. For example, the practicality can be found in the purchasing of textbooks. A digitized e-textbook does not have to be printed, packed, and shipped like a normal one, and the cost of replacing a an e-textbook in favor of an updated one is much cheaper done digitally than having to buy a brand new book on a yearly basis. Secondly, the possibilities that come with digitizing education are endless. For example, readings and notes can be uploaded as easily accessible pdf files, online chat rooms can be used as a substitute for a regular class, and sites such as Google Drive can be used to write notes for others to see, or to work on something collaboratively as a class. The most convenient part is the fact that all of these things can be accessed and used virtually anytime, anywhere, without physically even having to be in the classroom.

Figure 2: Online Classrooms

The digitization of education is also made easier due to the fact that digitization in general has become something of a bandwagon. Major companies and publishers have already seen the potential of digitization and how it is inevitably the future of education. This has been reflected in their manufacturing of tablets, notebooks, and e-readers, and how many of the printed versions of things are complemented with a digital counterpart as well (Figure 3). The digitization of education has already begun, and it is only a matter of time before education as a whole becomes fully digitized.

Figure 3: Digitization of Print

As has always been historically true, society changes along with the times. Despite the tendency of humans too stick with what is familiar and what is comfortable, humans have ultimately embraced change when it is unequivocally better and more convenient for them. This is the case with digitization, especially in the education sector. Digitization has clearly emerged as the future in education, due to the fact that it has already been embraced in life in general, and its convenience and popularity only serve to enhance its desirability. Digitization has already made daily life easier and simpler and it is only inevitable that digitization will do the same in the education sector as well.

The Digitization of Communication

As technology progresses, many aspects of the human life are affected. One specific development of the last half century is the digitization of information. This shift changes many aspects of our lives, including how we communicate with one another. In recent years, digitization has produced many new means of communication including texting, email, and most recently, social media. The introduction of the Internet, which powers devices such as portable computers and cell phones, has been a large contributor to this change. These digital devices provide many benefits and are becoming increasingly prevalent in our lives. In fact, this year, 37% of all our daily communication happened through digital devices. For most people, this number is astonishingly high; however, considering the amount of time we devote to texting, email, and social media, this ratio should not be surprising.

Prior to the last half century, all text-based forms of communication for the most part had to be written or printed. However, digitization introduced computers that were capable of producing digital copies of text. This digital text provides many benefits to their non digital counterparts. For example, it can be instantly transmitted via the Internet which creates a much more immediate environment in which we communicate. Physical paper copies are limited primarily by the time it takes to communicate; they must be literally transported to the recipient which takes time, effort, and money. A stepping stone for digitally transmitted text was the fax machine. This technology utilizes an analog signal but allows images and text to be sent remotely. Fax machines represent a beginning of the change in communication that was brought about by digitization. Another benefit of transmitting text via the Internet is its ability to facilitate many people communicating simultaneously. Group chats create a multi-directional discussion that cannot be created by using physical copies. Multiple people are able to share ideas simultaneously and immediately, something that was not possible prior to digitization.

Additionally, digitization allows communication through means that were not easily utilized prior to digitization, such as photos and video. Before these means became digitized, they were unable to be easily utilized as communication at a local consumer level. With analog methods of storing data, the amount of effort required to manufacture and store photos and videos did not lend itself to sharing them in a casual setting. Additionally, in the same way that written text was limited in the way that it could be shared immediately and with a large group of people, analog copies of photos and videos were limited by the medium that they inhabited. With digitization, visual media can be captured, stored, and shared via the Internet all through the same device.

Progress is constantly being made in terms of electronic communication and as a result, it is becoming more prevalent in our lives. As shown, there are many benefits to the transition into digitized communication. However, the shift away from face to face communication may have adverse effects in the long run. As more areas move towards being digitized, the more primitive means of communication such as printed text and even spoken word, may become less prevalent in our lives.