“Tell me, and I forget, Teach me, and I will remember, Involve me, and I learn.”
This time-honored adage by Benjamin Franklin resonates with the idea and importance of visual content and innovation in the education curriculum.
For years now, the learning process in India is bordering on becoming antediluvian, so much so that it has nearly reached its saturation point.
Regrettably, in doing so, our education system is presenting very little value for money to the students and parents.
Therefore, as is evident, the serious gap between education and innovation remains unfulfilled.
However, if we inculcate an inventive zeal in our academia by propelling technologies like Augmented Reality (AR) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Deep Learning, we might just transform the way our students envision their monotonous curriculum.
Augmented reality in education
With the foray of Augmented Reality into the education sector, we might just witness a much-needed renaissance in the textbooks.
AR brings the characters to life!
Soon, the students may well be holding their devices over their history books and experience with vivid details, what transpired during the American Civil War...
...that’s how profound the effect of AR would be!
AR turns the evidence-based study into reality, thus contextualizing the information to the students.
Owing to its credibility in the education sector, even the world’s most erudite professors are vouching for the inclusion of AR into academia.
A few years back, Professor Xiangyu Wang, an internationally recognized expert in AR said, “AR offers an innovative learning experience by merging digital learning material over the physical space, thus providing situated learning.”
In STEM education, especially, it is difficult for students to visualize things, and eventually, they resort to rote learning.
And this is where academia is going wrong.
However, to some extent, this poor situation of rote learning can be eliminated with Augmented Reality.
For example:
Students learn and understand with more clarity by seeing how “steep the curve is,” or by visually discerning the intricate subject areas like neuroscience.
Take another instance, if the schools and colleges deploy AR mechanism in outdoor environments, they can overlay a wide array of subjects including navigation, directions, botanical studies, and more.
Education sector's pressing need of the hour
While several universities in the Western countries have espoused the AR technology for a long time now, we, in India are still far behind.
In India, the enthusiasm to transform the system is yet not as prevalent as it should be.
Those who are lagging in the race of creativity and innovation are simply churning out students with theoretical knowledge but it has nothing to do with practical implementation and inventions.
That said, not all the educational institutions are ignorant anymore as is visible from the inculcation of Augmented Reality and Artificial Intelligence technology by many of them.
Most prominent educational institutions are making provisions to pave the way to integrate Augmented Reality with the curriculum.
Thus, many of them are gradually contributing to modernization in the education sector...
... and it is irrefutable that they are gearing up to create tomorrow’s leaders and scientists.
When humans, particularly millennials, see things rather than hearing or reading them, they are better equipped with the gist of the matter, for it creates the impression of originality and realness.
If the students are given a chance to visualize things, then innovations will inundate the walls of Indian schools and colleges, and the students, in turn, will be able to work effortlessly to achieve the quest of indigenous inventions.
And India has an edge in one factor, that is its RTE mandate which allows the students from lower income groups to come and study in the most opulent and prestigious schools and have access to their prolific study material.
It throws light on the fact that if only prestigious and private schools take a step in the right direction and introduce AR in their curriculum, then even the lower strata of society will garner humongous benefits.
Conclusion
The academic sector is now setting everything in motion, and it goes to show that they are finally conscious of the fact that there is a pressing need to revive the system using technology.
And India has stats in its favor, as half of its population is under the age of 25.
Two-thirds are less than 35.
With a booming youth demographic, India is poised to prove its mettle in research and innovation.
However, this seemingly far-reaching dream will only become a reality if the educational institutions provide a broad spectrum of technological options and is ready to realize the vast possibilities and benefits that AR can engender.
*About the Author:
Lucy Manole is a creative content writer and strategist at Right Mix Marketing, SEO-focused link building agency . She specializes in writing about digital marketing, technology, entrepreneurship, and education. When she is not writing or editing, she spends time reading books, cooking and traveling. You can connect with her on Twitter at
@RightMixMktg *
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are exclusively of the author. A few minor edits may have been made by the Naukri Content Team.
