In early 2020, mandatory lockdown shut down schools and universities, pushing most of the world into emergency remote learning situations. Schools turned to e-learning using online learning management software and other digital solutions to keep education going.
According to FACTS & FACTORS, because of COVID-19, the e-learning market is expected to reach USD 374.3 Billion by 2026 while in 2019, it only reached USD 144 Billion.
Before this outbreak, e-Learning was only preferred by students who were unable to travel to their respective schools and colleges but COVID-19 forced people to stay in their homes which boosted the use of e-Learning like never before.
Adapting e-learning was not an easy task for both educators and students. At first, it seemed impossible to adapt to this new way of teaching and learning but with the help of technologies like IoT, the process became easy with time.
Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the system of transferring and collecting data through different connected and interrelated devices with the use of wireless internet.
With time, the use of IoT increased in the education sector and transformed the way of learning. It replaced “chalk and board” with “click and learn”.
It was first introduced to the education sector in the form of SMART Boards. These boards made it possible for educators to connect education with technology and made learning interesting for students. Since the introduction of SMART boards, various technical industries have noticed the increased likeness for IoT software in the education sector, thus encouraging them to develop new IoT software.
Here are some ways in which IoT has transformed the education sector Post-Covid:
1. IoT for examinations: During an examination, data collected from IoT sensors are processed for the detection of abnormalities to examine students’ behavior. The lecturer receives messages indicating the students who are using unfair means. This enables the lecturer to warn or remove students who use unfair means from the examination.
2. Concrete learning: Due to COVID-19, students and teachers were unable to access physical school infrastructure, but e-learning helped them with academic instruction as usual. It was observed that blended learning proved to be more beneficial than traditional learning as the use of advanced technologies (like IoT, augmented and virtual reality, and predictive analytics) allowed the integration of real-world experiences in teaching modules and imparted concrete learning in students.
3. Trackable performance: Automatic student attendance monitoring allows teachers to track student’s attendance in a given pedagogical activity. In case of low-class attendance, the teacher could decide to postpone the activity, apply additional channels for communication with absent students, or impose some administrative sanctions.
The future of IoT and education:
COVID-19 acted as a pause button in everyone’s life but nothing lasts for long. Schools and universities have decided to re-open after a long one-year lockdown with proper sanitization facilities, thereby maintaining a healthy and safe environment for students.
IoT software could easily be integrated into this system to further reduce risk by installing Raspberry Pi, a series of small single-board computers, to the RFID platform for student and asset tracking. With this addition, schools could use camera systems, with specified face recognition settings to scan faces entering and exiting the premises, checking whether or not they’re wearing masks.
Using sensors, educational institutes can track the number of bathroom visits and compare it to the number of times the faucets have been used and soap has been dispensed to understand whether handwashing guidelines are being followed.
Furthermore, with IoT, educational institutes can gather the essential data of students and teachers captured by thermal equipment, using which an institute can identify if an infected person came in contact with anyone at the campus and trace all contacts to contain the spread of the virus.
As we navigate this “new normal,” IoT software allows schools to close the technology gap much easily, creating an easier distance learning environment while maintaining safe and healthy environments on school campuses.
Wrapping Up
From offline learning to smart classrooms and offline written exams to online exams, technology has transformed the education sector completely.
Leading IoT application development companies like Jellyfish Technologies understand the need to incorporate technology in the education sector, thus providing various benefits and enhancing the quality of education.
Jellyfish Technologies has a highly experienced team of designers and engineers who have successfully transformed the ideas of various international clients into IoT products and have also developed numerous in-house IoT products such as Vehicle Tracking System (VTS) and Personal GPS Tracker, among others.
