Thailand's technology in the classroom

Traditional teaching methods are changing as computers take over

• Published: 8/09/2010 at 12:00 AM
• Newspaper section: Database

In a bid to achieve its mission to make students and teachers competitive with 21st century skills, Dell has rolled out its Connected Classroom solution in Thailand, the first Asean country to adopt it.

A teacher tries ‘‘Tell Me More’’, an English conversation program by one of Dell’s partners in the Connected Classroom initiative.

"Technology means nothing if users cannot improve their learning outcomes", said Harjeet Singh Rekhi, Dell Asia Pacific & Japan regional director of Solutions Sales & Strategy, who noted that learning environments must be transformed to suit the digital age and be aligned with the needs of the connected generation.

He pointed out that in the past, school computers were used only in computer labs. Since then, schools have evolved to have computers in the classrooms.

Preparing for the 21st century workplace, educational technology has evolved to the point of collaborative connected classrooms often boasting one computer per student, and from now on cloud computing will be of increasing importance. Singh Rekhi labels the potential of cloud as "one student, multiple devices", with pupils able to use any technology at any time.

He raised an example that when students go on school trips, such as to temples, forests, or museums, and then return to school to write a story, what they have done is "blogging".

"Children are naturally inquisitive and in the future everyone will blog, as technology allows students to adapt to what they want," he said.

Dell Connected learning for schools is a point of view that unites the entire education environment, he said.

By integrating technology into the learning process, educators can give students the means to learn at their own pace, interact with each other, and provide them with a window to the world of knowledge beyond the classroom.

Educators can use technology to accommodate multiple learning styles, individualise lessons to fit the specific needs of each student, and regularly assess student progress.

The solutions also gives administrators the powerful tools they need to prepare educators for 21st century teaching, involve parents and the community in the education environment.

Parents can also access tools that enable communication with teachers and monitor student performance and get them involved in class projects.

Delivering the right technology at the right time helps manage infrastructure and day-to-day support more efficiently.

"The important thing is that these must be done across the entire eco system and that everyone goes along with the initiative," said Singh Rekhi.

Our children are growing up in the digital age, the director said. Citing the statistics of the US Department of Education, he noted that 94 percent of students use the Internet for school research, 74 percent use instant messaging, 48 percent say the Internet improves relationships with their friends, and 24 percent have created their own websites.

Dell has developed products and services specially designed for schools and established dedicated accounts teams with local school expertise, he said, adding that the company has simplified technology to make powerful products that are easy to use.

Dell has worked with many partners, including companies offering audio and visual enhancements, instructional tools, classroom management solutions and interactive devices to make sure that everything is work for one another.

Singh Rekhi admitted that the bigger hurdle in implementing ICT comes from teachers who grew up without such technology. Thus the company has a plan to train teachers in using technology in the classroom.

Each country will develop different curriculum content, but the basic tools should be similar, so Dell will use the pedagogy strategy of learning which companies have invested a lot of effort and money in such initiatives.

Anothai Wettayakorn, Dell Thailand managing director, noted that the company is now working with local schools and the local government. It is expected that 10 schools, both public and private, will join the Connected Classroom pilot this year. "We would like to create a reference so that the parents and schools can visualise the concept and outcome of the Connected Classroom," he said.

Anothai said technology is part of our lives, and that people use it in almost everything around us in our day-to-day activities and in our jobs. However, the efficiency of the integration of technology in education when a plan is developed for the consistent use of the technology in the classroom is a concern, as there is a model that involves both the curricula and the community.

Citing research, Anothai noted that students learn more effectively if they spend time on appropriate tasks related to goals and standards. In such situations, their make progress against established goals and standards is regularly assessed, and as teaching methods match student learning styles, they are get engaged in their learning, and information is presented multi-modally.

In countries where the use of computers at schools is commonplace, they have typically achieved a 20 percent increase in interest for education and have found it easier to incorporate knowledge in students.

Anothai emphasises that to be able to achieve a similar result in Thailand, schools must apply technology as the core of education, not just as a tool.

"Dell has helped the structure to be more systematic, and Thailand has to do this now, otherwise we will be left behind," he said, pointing out that Vietnam has one million PCs for schools, while China has announced that the next generation of Internet-based education requires a "one student, one platform" policy to ensure learning outcomes.

Recently, Dell introduced the Connected Classroom initiative in India and China, and Thailand is the first country in the Asean region in which the company has launched the program, with some of the pilot schools part the HRH Princess Sirindhorn project.