The top five educational trends to look out for in 2022
For the last two years it’s been hard to think about anything other than the Covid-19 pandemic, and how it’s impacted our lives. The education sector in particular has seen its fair share of ups and downs.
But, in a way, the pandemic and other trends have changed how we do things, and in a good way. Even so, certain trends created before and during the pandemic will continue even as the new year begins. This article looks at five of them.
1) Technology in education will grow even more
Technology has seen a major explosion in the past two decades. Many societal sectors have taken advantage of this, and education has not been left behind. Computers and the internet have ensured that students and teachers can interact in a whole new way.
Students can access information from anywhere and learn from any part of the world. In 2017 alone, there were millions of students enrolled in online classes from a university of their choosing. Teachers have changed how they assign and mark assignments.
Technology for schools is only going to get better. While the pandemic presented a challenge to the education sector, it also opened opportunities with technology. But technology presents benefits and drawbacks. The biggest benefit by far is that teachers will be able to add new teaching techniques. However, students may not get the opportunity to grow certain soft skills. For example, without group work, they may not develop good leadership skills.
2) The need for soft skills training
The employment world is getting ever more sophisticated and competitive. Employers are not just looking for high education degrees. Many organizations are now asking potential employees to develop critical thinking, people management, problem-solving, and creativity skills.
Recruiters want to work with people who can make tough decisions and show their leadership skills. Teachers now have an obligation to train their students in these skills to prepare their students for future careers.
But, it may not be easy for this to happen when students can learn on the computer without having to interact physically with the teachers. Educators will now have to find a way to balance screen-time and face-to-face learning to encourage students to work together to develop these skills.
However, schools that will do this will have a competitive advantage within higher education. Their students will have a high chance of getting employment. This will improve their alumni success rate and consequently the school’s overall standing.
3) Declining attention spans
Some have termed this as the “millennial crisis.” Unfortunately, many students today fall into the category of millennials. This is the generation that has grown up with technology and has seen the explosion of mobile phone technology.
Apparently, these students can only pay attention to something for about eight seconds, instead of the normal 12 seconds. These same students can also pay attention for record periods if the content is highly engaging. When the content fails to engage them, they automatically tune out the speaker.
This has been a real problem for professors when they have to assign papers to these students. Many of them are unable to fully concentrate and write a good paper. Even when they do, they tend to copy from the internet. Even with the choice to browse Fixgerald, many still send in copied papers. Teachers and professors have to find a way to make learning more engaging for these students. One way to do this is the use of excellent dialogue and visuals.
4) Teachers as learning facilitators
The internet has a wealth of information that many students can access with the click of a button. This means they don’t have to wait for class time to learn certain things. This has changed how teachers engage with students. Teachers now only need to help students understand how to learn.
They also have to teach them to love learning, and how to uncover and comprehend what they see on the internet. This means that teachers have to learn soft skills to show students how to approach this new way of learning. Teachers have to learn problem-solving and leadership skills
5) Learning will be a life-long trend
Technology and the ever-changing nature of the work and job environment means that learning has to continue beyond the classroom doors. Employees who have degrees cannot afford to completely rely on them to keep their job secure.
Professionals now have to continuously re-skill themselves to remain competitive. This calls for educators to mentor a self-development mindset in their students. Classrooms now have to teach self-learning skills to give students a chance to continue learning in their chosen fields.
These trends are here to stay
These educational trends and many others will dictate what happens in the education industry in 2022 and many years to come.
Teachers and students have to familiarize themselves with these trends if they hope to do well. For institutions, knowing these trends can open up new opportunities to make their schools stand out from the rest. There is also a chance to stay connected with their alumni throughout their careers.
Michael Turner is an enthusiastic freelance journalist. He has been a writer for eight years and loves writing about education topics. He also loves sharing knowledge with students who come to him for advice. He occasionally writes essays and dissertations for students.
