siliconindia | | Jan - Feb 20199eLearning has a vast presence in almost every field. Language teach-ing is one such field where technol-ogy has taken over and improved the ways of learning. eLearning has redefined many of the strategies and concepts of teaching, thus enabling the teaching community to per-form better. Infusing technologies in classroom learning have added stimulus and enhanced the learner's interaction within the classroom. Take for example, the English language. eLearning has enabled the user to gain standardised knowledge even if societal restraints of teach-ing are there with parents or teach-ers not having the know-how to teach the child English or train them in communication. Teachers resort to eLearning tools, including audio-video clips, recording, and assess-ments to impart knowledge. Not only does it make the session more interesting than the old book style teaching, but it also keeps the learner attentive during the class. eLearn-ing is not restrictive, thus facilitating the user to learn at his own pace and time, and thus reinforcing till knowl-edge is learnt.Efficient & effective communi-cation is essential for the success of a school. Learning platforms help schools improve communication by promoting the use of a wide variety of modern communication tools such as cloud mail, internal messaging, project spaces and blogs. As a result, a school can save time by streamlin-ing information sharing between dif-ferent stakeholders and ultimately, reduce the amount of money spent on paper.These learning platforms also help schools realise time-saving benefits for teachers and adminis-trative staff, improve communica-tion within the school and the local community, and improve student en-gagement and performance. Accord-ing to a 2011 survey conducted by the company that developed a learning management system, 75 percent of teachers feel that parental involve-ment is `very important' in the suc-cess of a child's education. But for many teachers, finding the time to communicate effectively with par-ents can be difficult. Using a dedi-cated online tool, such as a parent portal, can reduce the amount of time teachers spend in communicating with parents and improve the quality of informa-tion they get. A parent portal may give parents access to a secure web-page containing informa-tion about their child's education, such as grades and attendance. As much of the information is up-dated automatically, the parent portal saves teach-ers' valuable time. Teachers can also add specific information about indi-vidual students as required, such as comments on behaviour, attendance and mentorship, enabling them to easily and quickly communicate directly with a child's parents.Learning online is popular because it is:1. Faster & Wider: This new age learning system is technology-based and helps knowledge to be shared by connecting with other users. Teach-ers can reach their class with a click and get feedback instantly. They have a chance to connect with a wider group of learners and educa-tors that help them maximize their academic objectives.2. Convenient & Cost-Effective: The new age learning system al-lows students to acquire knowledge at one's own pace and convenience. And it is possible because eLearn-ing doesn't need you to travel far or spend time at libraries. Everything is available with an internet connection that makes education comfortable and cost-effective.3. A Collaborative Learning System: With eLearning you get the option to learn with the whole world. The class today is no longer con-fined to a physical classroom with walls. People from different parts of the world join to discuss and share knowledge. Through online learn-ing, different students from different countries can exchange learning processes and through that, a cultural exchange also takes place. This constant cross-cultur-al exchange benefits students in many ways.One of the platform providers and a big player in digital school content claims to reach 10 percent of India's private school-going children every day. This gives us an idea of the market scope in this segment. For a publishing house, which is making in-roads into the eLearning sphere, the following are the avenues to be explored:1. Apps based on language learn-ing or cloud-based online learning platform that learners can access on desktops and mobiles2. Assessment & reporting tools3. Language labs for Science, Maths and EnglishThe efforts of teachers and tech-nology combines to improve the quality of education. Easy access to materials, flexible space, time and pace of study and immediate feed-back are some of the advantages that make online language learning a fun thing to go. Chaitali Moitra
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