If you think about it, even though there is a huge generational gap between our parents and us, education was imparted in the same way to both generations. And, even as society evolves and mobilizes, resulting in new ideologies and technological advancements, how come have our teaching methods remained stagnant? Almost everywhere, work ethic, mannerisms, and methods evolved over time, and they also adopted technology; therefore, why is it that the teaching profession is still using traditional methods to impart education that will set the course for future development?

The COVID-19 crisis forced schools to close abruptly, causing 1.2 billion children globally to miss school. It became necessary for these educational institutions to engage in digitalisation in order to continue providing education to these children. To be honest, the education sector was not ready to incorporate technology into their teaching methods. In reality, it was not the children who struggled to adopt technology because they are constantly surrounded by it and have become quite “tech savvy.” It were the teachers who struggled to make the transition from chalk and board to imparting knowledge while looking into a camera.

But why are educators afraid to embrace technology? Consider this: when parents don’t understand and are struggling with social media platforms, they turn to their children, who are basically “digital natives.” Then imagine how difficult it is for teachers, especially senior teachers, to embrace technology and adopt a new method of teaching when they are already masters of their own methods. They believe that technology will never be able to match the quality of instruction and “human touch” that traditional teaching methods provide.

However, digitalisation in education has expanded the horizons of both learning and teaching. It has improved the lives of both students and teachers. It allows a student to learn while also developing his creativity and curiosity. For educators, digitalisation unlocks a number of benefits, such as tracking the child’s progress through Learning Management Systems, allowing them to provide the necessary personal attention. Recorded lectures help children retain and understand concepts better than memorizing. One distinct and significant benefit of digitalisation is that it has drastically reduced the carbon footprint, which is critical in today’s world, particularly in light of climate change.

To summarize, academia has accepted digitalisation as the new normal. It is critical for school and district administrators to emphasise teacher digital literacy in order to avoid policies that simply mandate the placement of technology in the hands of students without regard for how that technology will be used. Teachers who are digitally literate see technology for all of its creative potential, rather than something they are required to do step by step. Teachers do not need to become experts in digital literacy, but they do need to understand the digital tools that can help them unlock their deeper teaching potential.