In the future, the classroom will change greatly, reflecting social and technological changes penetrated our society. In the future, a great layer of information and varieties of technology will be available, so the classroom of the future is a virtual classroom: e-classroom and e-learning (Nelson et al. 2006). In contrast to the modern education system, where the Internet is used as a supportive context for extending student inquiries, in the future, the Internet and Intranets will be used as a core of education and learning. Wireless, seamless networking of devices as disparate as mobile phones, PCs, personal organizers, and televisions will be the norm, and the expectation will be that this works well and that it happens as if by magic. Access will be everywhere; at home, in the workplace, on holiday, in both public (public sites will vary from Internet cafes to public libraries) and private (home access, subscriber clubs) (Sanchez 2007). It will be as ‘natural’ for students to access information as it is for us to access electricity.
In a virtual classroom, there will be multiple levels of possible collaboration. The primary focus will be on helping students in the same classroom become a community of learners, a team of inquirers who listen carefully to each other, challenge, and encourage–in short, who learn together. This type of interaction, and the kind of dialogue that characterizes it, does not spontaneously occur among students over the network (Classroom of the Future, 2006). In fact, it does not spontaneously occur in the classroom either but requires active involvement by the teacher. E-books and e-textbooks, re-writing books, and e-tests will be part of the classroom and education. The students will be graded automatically according to their participation and learning progress. These techniques will help teachers to coordinate, direct and guide the efforts of students toward the achievement of learning goals and objectives (Nelson et al. 2006). Some critics describe the school of the future as ‘chairless school’ complete with “standing” desks and a host of sophisticated of learning technologies” (Classroom of the Future, 2006). This approach will help to overcome such problems as obesity and increase physical activities.
Within this process, effective communication has a great influence on analytical skills and the decision-making process as a part of the educational process. The classroom of the future will also be based on communication and interaction between a teacher and a student. Thus, all interaction and communication will be online (virtual conferences). “Teachers will build lesson plans around information on classroom websites” (Sanchez, 2007). In the future, all students will interact in real-time in a graphic world (like a computer game) where they are either assigned a role or create their own role to play within the environment. Class discussions and learning will take place in the virtual environment. A young person registering in an education center will begin a lifelong contract where his or her learning is not time delimited but grows richer and deeper throughout life. Influenced by technologies and innovative solutions classroom will never be the same: it will evolve with science and Information Technologies.
References
- Classroom of the Future. (2006). Web.
- Nelson, J.L., Palonsky, S.B., McCarthy, M.R. (2006). Critical Issues in Education. McGraw-Hill Humanities/Social Sciences/Languages.
- Sanchez, L. (2007). Learning via e-Pad. Web.