subject: Educational Technology: A Brief History And Benefits [print this page] Right from the onset of civilization, if there is one thing that mankind has always worked on for enduring a better lifestyle, than that has to be Technology. Educational technology has its roots grouted deep in the history of mankind as seen in the example of cave paintings. However, it is believed to truly be recognized in the 1900"s with the emergence of educational films and Sidney Pressey's machines of mechanical teaching in the 1920.
The first eminent usage of the above mentioned technology finds its root in World War II, where soldiers were trained by means of well documented movies and related material. Nowadays, audio and visual clips and power point presentations play one of the most important roles in trainings and education alike. Another unique invention of Education Technology was seen in the 1940's was hypertext.
The 1950's saw the emergence of two popular designs still in use. "Programmed instruction", that worked on the principle of behavior of objects, the content was then broken into small bits because of which fast & correct responses were obtained was done by Skinners. Instructional Techniques endorsed by bloom varied both instructions and time. In the 1970's through the 1990's the models based on such designs were usually referred to as Computer based training and Computer-assisted instruction. Web based learning or e-learning as we generally refer to is nothing but a simplified form of the above. The breaking of text into smaller content & adding to it graphics make it the perfect presentation is the job of a course designer. Questions with multiple options & a quick assessment are necessary for self evaluation.
The 80's and 90's saw many educational institutions coming under the wings of computer based learning. With the emergence of World Wide Web, Education Technology received a major push towards the goal. Computer based techniques were now replaced by web that could handle interaction with the student through drills and simulations on the other. While classroom enhancement is a must, learning technologies cannot be sidelined. Educational Technology, while taking leaps, has now left no stone unturned by minimizing the usage of books that have been replaced through e-books.
Taking all the salient features into consideration, it can be seen that Educational Technology is to make life easier for all of us and provide an ideal platform for a student to decide for his Future. Dell Educational Technology which is the best on the market has provided the ideal solution for ideal learning.
