The field of education is constantly evolving. Every year we are being introduced to new trends. And the faster technology advances, the quicker these trends alternate.
Apart from technology, there are also a number of other factors that stimulate changes in the educational field. One of such factors turned out to be the ongoing global pandemic.
It forced us to break the traditional academic system and adjust to the new rules. And this fact also brought a number of trends that might be staying for good.
What are the main innovations and trends we’ve seen in the educational sphere in 2021? In this article, we are going to answer this question. Let’s dive in!
Education in 2021: Top 6 Innovations and Trends You Need to Know About
The traditional classroom is long left in the past. Over the past decade, the learning system has transformed completely. Instead of focusing on delivering as much knowledge as possible, today’s teachers focus on engaging students and delivering the best learning experience. And this is only a small part of all the changes that are already there and those that are only evolving.
Although this field is changing constantly, it seems like the past year has brought us the most changes. So, what has 2021 brought to us? To help you keep up with time, we’ve gathered some of the most significant tendencies of the outgoing year.
Online Help
Online academic help has been trending for quite a while. Many students from all over the world have long discovered the benefits of delegating their tasks to professionals. However, in 2021, this trend began to gain momentum even more.
Being unable to get in-person tutoring and assistance really enhanced the demand for online academic help. Online writing services like Essayhelp.com, editing services, freelance tutors – all of these are extremely popular these days. Such services help students stay afloat even in the most complex situations and still perform great at schools.
If you still don’t have such a helper by your side, be sure that you are falling behind. It is an absolute must-have for every student!
Bite-Sized Learning
Young people’s attention span has significantly changed over the past decade. The deeper technology integrated into our lives, the lower got students’ ability to concentrate and stay focused in the classroom. And the problem keeps growing bigger.
According to studies, the average attention span of a modern student is only about 10-15 minutes. This fact forced teachers and schools to look for another approach to training in order to find new ways to engage their students and keep them focused.
This brings us to one more tendency we can observe in 2021. It is bite-sized learning. In a nutshell, this strategy implies delivering the educational materials in smaller chunks. Such an approach allows teachers to make the program appear easier and less intense. At the same time, it makes lessons much more interactive and engaging.
AR
This next trend has been topping for the last few years. As technology evolves, education specialists find more and more exciting ways to integrate it into the learning process. And one of the most innovative and exciting changes we are observing currently is the integration of AR (Augmented Reality) that brings education to a whole new level.
In the nutshell, AR merges virtual and real worlds. The main advantage of AR in the learning process is that it delivers an interactive, hands-on experience and makes the process much more efficient and fun.
With the help of AR, students can look inside the human body, take a trip to space, and learn complex concepts from the inside. And all this can be done right from the classroom. This is one of the best tendencies and we believe it has the potential to stay with us.
Distance Learning
One more big shift we’ve seen in 2021 is a global switch to distance learning. This year, due to the lockdown, it was a forced measure. However, it might as well become a new big thing in education.
At this point, distance learning is still in its infancy stage. The global pandemic has shown us that most of the schools around the world were not ready for this change. Many teachers lack the technical background and skills to ensure a smooth and effective workflow in an online environment.
However, those issues can be easily overcome. With some decent training and effort, we can bring distance learning to a new level and that’s when everyone will be able to enjoy all the benefits it can offer.
Being able to study at home can give students enough flexibility. Also, it can make self-paced learning possible, which is also a good thing. Thus, this is one more trend that is out there and, with some slight adjustments, it can transform the field of education.
Exam Management
Since so many students were forced to study from home in 2021, many schools have also moved their exams and tests online. This turned into another trend – AI-powered exam management.
This solution turned out to be pretty good in many ways. First of all, it ensures learning continuity by allowing pupils to take their exams from anywhere. At the same time, it is also very beneficial for teachers. Not only does it make it much easier to track students’ performances and monitor tests fairly, but it also allows tracking any signs of cheating.
The Bottom Line: Focus on Soft Skills
Finally, the last (but definitely not the least important) academic trend in 2021 is the focus on soft skills. For decades schools made emphasis on building up pupils’ hard skills. As of now, everything has changed.
In a modern workplace, soft skills tend to be valued much higher than hard ones. Due to this fact, the academic program is gradually adjusted to help students meet the needs of today’s employers and survive in a highly competitive environment. Schools now focus on preparing new generations for their future careers, and that’s also a great change!
