Schools (Primary, Secondary, Technical, Polytechnic, College & University) in Nigeria are producing people into Smart Nigeria and World at large.
The question is “can an age-old Knowledge/ methods school produce a student that will fit into the smart world?” The answer is no.
Early 1990s in Nigeria, there is nothing like bank alert, ATM systems, withdrawing cash at any branch of your choice. etc and we were living confortable then even though we waste so much time to achieve little or nothing at the end of the day.
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A smart school is – as its name suggests – different from a traditional school. This is a kind of school where advanced equipment and technology are used to take the educational process forward. The main idea is to provide the students with a learning experience that is a lot better than what may otherwise have been possible. These days, teaching has moved to such a level that it has become advanced in the truest sense of the word. No longer are age-old methods of lectures as effective or appreciated as they once were. These days, students want a learning experience that is a lot more interactive in nature and this is what a smart school provides them.
Let’s have a look at some things that makes your School a Smart School and amazing benefits of smart schools:
- Easy access to information
This is perhaps the biggest benefit of a smart school. This is because such a school uses many gadgets that have internet connection such as mobile, laptops, and tabs. Thanks to all these devices it is easier for students to gain access to information on the internet. Now, students have all the information that they need about any kind of topic they want to know about. It is basically at their fingertips. In fact, this is beneficial for the teachers as well. This way, they are able to learn outside the syllabus as well and this only enriches them further.
Parents, students, staff and management will easy do their work and find tool to do it in a smart school.
Approving students Results, Staff Leaves, Staff Payroll, giving student’s assignments while on breaks, students viewing results, management to view income and expenses, etc are all easily and timely managed.
- A better understanding of topics through digital tools
If students learn to topics in a better way, chances are that a smart class would be a much better bet for the same. The learning sessions at these classes normally use many visual aids. This includes powerpoint presentations, word documents, audio sessions, and video screenings, to name a few. They play a major role in conveying the lessons in a way that is a lot more understandable. At times, a simple picture is a good enough substitute for thousands of words.
- Learning in a dynamic manner
It is common knowledge that not all students in a class have the same power to grasp things. As far as the weak students are concerned they always find it hard in the traditional classrooms. But, the smart classrooms – by being as dynamic as they are – have made it easier for these students to learn at a pace that they are comfortable with. Mention needs to be made of the visual effects concepts that are being used in these classes. These effects make the entire lesson a lot clearer and this benefits these weak students in particular.
- A teaching environment that is interactive
The digital tools are now an integral part of these smart classes. This is why the teaching environment over here can be called interactive in the truest sense of the term. It is one where both students and teachers have definite roles to play. This kind of learning makes the entire process a lot more transparent. It is a lot better than what it would otherwise have been. This improves the interaction between the students and the teachers in a significant way as well. It also improves the bond between these individuals as well. This is because they are able to communicate outside the school with the help of emails and messages.
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- They are easy to maintain
In traditional classrooms, students have to spend a lot of money each year to buy the necessary educational items such as books and pens to name a few. Even as they go up these costs increase as well. However, with smart classes, such expenses can be kept to the bare minimum. In these classes, all you need to do in this regard is to make a onetime investment in the first year and buy those electronic gadgets.
- Paper being replaced by digital tools
Each year students use tons of paper in order to take notes. These days, there is a lot of emphasis on being environment-friendly and this is the reason why most of the businesses are going paperless as well. In fact, by facilitating note taking on digital instruments it is now actually possible for the environment to be saved in a way. They are creating a way to replace usage and wastage of paper. In such a concept there is no place for photocopies and printouts, and this is helping reduce the carbon footprint as well.
- Taking notes on a digital medium
One of the biggest features of a smart school is that students can take their notes by using digital devices such as pens and tabs. This way they are able to save a significant amount of their learning time as well. No longer do they need to carry all those heavy notebooks and textbooks to class. Technology such as Google Docs has also made it a lot easier for the teachers to come up with documents and presentations. This can add major value to their students’ education.
- A great option for students who are absent
One thing with smart classes is that they are always being recorded. This means that even if you were to miss a couple of sessions you need not to feel bad. This is because there would always be the video recordings to fall back on in case you need them. You can go through the videos and also email the teachers in case you happen to have any doubt about the same. In a traditional classroom, the students always find it hard to copy down all the information that the teacher is providing them.
Conclusion
With the help of the technology available in these smart classes, students actually have the chance to learn from the experts of various subjects. This is one facility that is not available in traditional classrooms where it is the same teachers who take care of various subjects and this is something that does not change at all. Apart from all these, smart classes provide students more learning opportunities, makes the process of learning a fun-filled one, help them learn new technology, allow them the option to collaborate with others and learn, and their grades improve as well.