Technology & the Changing Role of the Teacher & Learner Date:   Monday , September 07, 2009 Looking back at human history, only two technological inventions have changed the very role of the teacher and the learner. The first of these was the printing press. While books existed right from the early days of humankind, it was the printing press that allowed books to be mass-produced. The learner no longer needed to orally remember everything that was taught since books were more easily available for later reference; the teacher could complement the books and teach by referring to them. The need to memorize reduced as compared to the schools of old. The second was the Internet which allowed computers to play a similarly significant role in learning. Access to structured information such as E-learning and unstructured information such as Wikipedia have created a revolution in the dynamics of learning. Here are some thoughts on how the role of the teacher and the learner will change in this new light. The changing role of the teacher and learner What is the role of the teacher? The popular belief that is that with the advent of technology, the role of the teacher will become redundant. However, this is a simplistic and incorrect view. If we equate teaching to the dumping of knowledge, then that may be so. But teaching is more than that. If the real role of the teacher involves inspiring people, assisting them in expanding their boundaries and helping people realize their true potential; then the answer is that in reality the role of the teacher is even more enhanced than before. This can be illustrated through an example. Consider the coach of a sports team. Without technology, the coach had to instruct the players on each and every thing – but with the advent of technology, a lot of information is available to the players and they can use this to learn on their own. The role of the coach now changes to someone who can guide and mentor and inspire each player as per their individual needs. The coach can hence focus on larger things and hence add more value. In knowledge management parlors, explicit knowledge is defined as that knowledge which is easily documentable – say the ten steps you need to follow to install a piece of software. On the other hand, tacit knowledge is that which is difficult to document and is built with experience and is best communicated by someone in person. This concept can be used to define the role of the teacher in today’s world. The explicit elements of the subject are communicated effectively using technology mediums and can easily be self-learnt. On the other hand, the tacit elements of the subject are where the teacher focuses his or her energy on. When the learner is stuck on some area, the teacher provides guidance; at other times, the teacher provides mentoring and inspiration. This allows the teacher to move closer to the role of a Guru as defined from ancient times. This means that since more things are self-learnt via mediums such as E-learning – the teacher is able to teach more learners than before. This can be further aided by virtual technologies such as video-conferencing and tele-presence that allow the teacher to reach out simultaneously to more people. Hence even as the teacher’s role becomes more valuable, the teacher is also able to touch more learners than ever before. What about the role of the learner? Since information is available freely, the need to memorize in today’s age has reduced even further. The learner can focus on learning the fundamentals and refer to other details as needed. The learning will become largely self-led and self-paced and very little will be spoon-fed – the richer content that is now available through multi-media aids this process. The onus on learning will rightly shift to the learner – the teacher is only there to steer one in the right direction. As newer mediums such as social networks enable us to connect dispersed learners together – peer learning will also begin to happen in a larger way. All of this helps in building independence, self-leadership, questioning and communication skills in the learner which are important attributes of success in today’s world. Conclusion Understanding these changing dynamics can help us devise better learning solutions. In MindTree, we have used such approaches to great effect in areas as diverse as the campus assimilation program, performance improvement plans, project management and design certifications. The principles can be applied elsewhere as well. To give an example, a problem we face in India is the lack of sufficient number of good faculty and engineering colleges. If we are able to create virtual connectivity and platforms among colleges and supplement the classrooms with E-learning – the good college can support many other colleges in the vicinity. Similarly, the good teacher can mentor many other teachers with lesser experience. The good teachers can also touch a larger set of learners across colleges. The learners can become more self-reliant and learn on their own with the richer content that is now available with them. The learner also benefits positively from the interactions with teachers and learners from better colleges. Developing such eco-systems at various levels can solve many of the ills facing the Indian education sector. But for this to happen, we will need to change our ways of thinking. We will have to treat technology as a friend rather than a foe. And more than that, we will need to understand the changing role of the teacher and the learner in the new world we now live in. The author heads Culture and Competence in MindTree & can be reached at krishnan@mindtree.com