By Sandra Quinn
Technology is often lauded as the big bad monster when it comes to family life and the development and education of a child, but sometimes there are two sides to this coin and the other side is often hidden from view.
There have been a number of studies to prove that technology can actually help to develop parts of a child’s brain, which traditional learning methods cannot have an impact on, but as it is with anything, too much of something will inevitably lead to an over-dependancy or to damage.
This writer is not suggesting that all babies be dual-raised with soothers and tablets or smartphones, but there are benefits to be gained from introducing technology into the classroom and home environment, as teaching and learning aids.
For children who have vision difficulties, an e-reader could be used to help them to read, as they can change the font, style and size of the writing to better suit their eyesight. Similarly, those with hearing difficulties can use visual cues from a tablet or smartphone to help them to understand a topic or subject.
Students who have dyslexia often find their confidence suffers if they struggle with spelling or writing and different computer programmes can help to combat this.
If a student is struggling with a subject, games and interactive technology have been known to make the subject seem more fun and like less of a chore. This in turn helps to increase the student’s enthusiasm towards that subject and that makes it easier for them to learn about it.
Using teacher oriented software, there are often wonderful platforms to prevent plagiarism through thorough screening programmes, teachers can provide feedback and hone in on areas for students to focus in on and it also gives a platform for learning outside the rigid parameters of the classroom, which does not suit all types of learners.
If you have used technology to aid in your own education or that of a child, we would love to hear about it – please tell us about your experiences in the comments.