Making Knowledge Tangible — with Digital Teaching
Text: Raphael Pohland
Modern devices and software solutions alone do not inherently make teaching in schools better or worse. The digitalization of schools is not a substitute for conveying educational core values or teaching competence.
The potential lies in the opportunities for networking and integrating sources that have not been previously considered. This opens up new forms of knowledge transfer.
But what does digital teaching actually mean? Essentially, it’s about enabling structured learning with contemporary media. The key is to meaningfully integrate technology and media into the daily school routine — into a classroom free from chaos. It’s important to show the largely media-savvy students that there is more to discover on the internet than just games, TikTok, and WhatsApp. The goal should be to teach a methodical and sensible approach to using the internet.
Get Relution’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
Tablets, in essence, are similar to books, tools for work or knowledge storage — but with added possibilities. They allow learning content to be accessed or reproduced. Through the additional layer of interactivity, such as animations, complex concepts can be presented more clearly. For example, in math class, the “Pythagorean Theorem” can be illustrated by virtually merging the sum of squares “a” and “b” into square “c.” A classroom experience that brings Euclidean geometry to life.
In the best-case scenario, digital teaching works without disruptions. The ideal scenario looks like this: software and hardware operate smoothly. The Wi-Fi is stable, the tablets are charged, ready for use, and properly preconfigured. The teacher starts the lesson using the tablet. On all the students’ tablets, only the apps needed for the lesson are displayed, and the students gain access to the learning materials. Functions that are currently unnecessary, such as the camera, the internet browser, or other distracting apps, are temporarily deactivated by the teacher.
If the app allows saving on the file system, all data created by the students can be stored in compliance with the GDPR on a school-owned server or within the learning platform. It’s crucial that only authorized individuals have access. Third parties cannot “intercept” the data. Particularly for class sets used by multiple students, data on the tablets can be automatically deleted after the lesson.
Relution is a unified endpoint system that enables the use of devices in digital teaching. These devices are centrally managed. Relution is not learning software or a learning app, but works in the background of the lessons. Devices can be optimally configured for use in schools — whether tablets, laptops, or interactive whiteboards.
