Top 3 Educational Trends in 2021

After a rather turbulent and roller-coaster year for our students and teachers, we will never think of school as only a place ever again. With the world learning and working remotely for a year, we have changed or better said evolved the definitions of school, educator, student, and classroom. How will this shape the educational trends in 2021? Read these predicted trends in education for a better understanding and perhaps inspiration for this exciting year.

Online Learning

The online classroom is here to stay. Yes, the instructor-led classes with students coming to class from their bedrooms and living rooms is going to continue. However, the hope is that each school will create a hybrid learning model, which would combine both in-person learning and remote participation. For early education, this move is essential. Likewise, many higher education institutions will make all learning of basic courses online but keep laboratories and practicums in-person. Few educational institutions will return to all in-person classes and extracurricular activities. The prediction is that once the general population has received the vaccine, there will be a rollout of in-person classes, sporting events, and even the return to on-campus accommodations. For the social aspect of learning, it is important to get back to this style. However, the world is cautiously optimistic that within the near future we will witness in-person scholastic and sporting competitions, parades, debates, and celebrations.

Leading Change

Educational leadership will adapt to the challenges of the new normal. School boards, superintendents, principals, and more will implement new policies around remote learning, cybersecurity, social media, and post-pandemic health procedures. An example of a successful educational leader and trailblazer is Dr. Gerard Jellig in South Jersey. Leading change is crucial in this game-changing year. How education moves forward and progresses will hinge on it. This goes for just about every industry but is very important when it comes to the future of our society.

Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality

The world of a classroom with four walls is so twentieth century. Now students can receive online instruction from a teacher who lives in another country. Also, learners can tour a museum or an aquarium with virtual reality.  Plus, students can collaborate and even play games with others learning remotely wherever in the world. Virtual and augmented reality are emerging ways to teach with a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree view. It seems like virtual reality and augmented reality are make-believe, but they aren’t. The way students can learn has no boundaries in 2021 and beyond.

Whether you are a parent, teacher, or life-long learner yourself, you know that 2020 was a challenging year for our students and educators. The brick-and-mortar classrooms turned into digital classrooms without much warning or preparation. Last year taught us all a lot about how to learn remotely as well as how not to learn remotely. There were plenty of awkward digital learning moments of 2020, including frozen screens, bad audio, horrible lighting, slow internet, loss of wi-fi, and confused participants. Hopefully, this year we can implement our lessons from 2020; thus, making a better learning environment for everyone whether online or offline.