Education and student learning needs are evolving as technology advances. The internet has changed how society accesses, searches, retrieves and shares knowledge. Knowledge is advancing more quickly than in the past due to the ease of accessing and sharing information online, Students today need to learn different skills than required in the past. Students must understand how to use cloud computing, search the internet, analyze data, determine if a source is credible as well as how to use different tools, Chromebook, tablet, Google, Microsoft 360 and social media platforms to name a few.
The question then becomes have education systems advanced to meet the needs of students and society to prepare students for the workforce? In addition, due to globalization and the internet, students and parents are demanding that students have access to their courses, assignments, lectures, grades and resources relevant to their classes 24/7 through online platforms such as Google Classroom, D2L Brightspace and other Learning Management Systems. Education and learning are no longer restricted to the teacher and the school building, globalization of learning has removed barriers to student learning.
Big data is the idea that whenever we hook up to the internet our browsing, purchasing history is stored. Predictions are made, marketing schemes are developed and the computer knows what we want before we even do. There are pros and cons to big data. Big data supports personalized learning through analyzing what students are looking at, reading and how they respond to course material. This information can be analyzed and programming can be developed to support each student learning needs. However, big data doesn’t consider the whole student as raw data is just that, raw.
Additionally, programs such as Google Earth and Google Hangouts expand students horizons literally to collaborate and learn with students from anywhere in the world where there is an internet connection. Virtual field trips, online amazing races and learning from experts have experienced students foster globalized learning through online mediums.