Learning made fun with technology
Easier for kids to absorb lessons with digital tools, says parent
KUALA LUMPUR: “This is fun,” Loo Qian Yu cooed with delight.
The two-and-a-half-year-old was drawing an orange on an interactive whiteboard while learning how to count at the Sharp Electronics booth at the Star Education Fair 2018.
Her mother, Karen Lim, 34, said interactive innovations in classrooms are important because it makes learning fun.
“It’s also easier for children to absorb the lesson. My daughter is so engaged because she finds it interesting.
“In the future, I’d like to send her to a kindergarten that uses innovative digital learning tools like this whiteboard,” she said.
Sharp business solution division (marketing) assistant general manager Sukumar Krishnan, who gave a talk on education through innovation, said interactive whiteboards increase student engagement and allow remote teaching.
“With the tool, sessions can be recorded for playback and shared with distant learners, or saved on the cloud for collaborative projects.
“Classroom lesson plans, annotations and lectures can be easily saved, shared and synced with mobile devices.
“This is important because 85% of education institutions currently allow students to use their own devices on school networks.
“And 62% of students say that technology helps them feel better prepared for class,” he said, adding interactive whiteboards allow the integration of dynamic apps for intuitive and active learning environments.
Visual communication, Sukumar added, improves retention by 38%.
Meanwhile, a group of 40 Form Five students and a teacher from SM Sains Kuala Lumpur visited the Star Education Fair 2018 yesterday.
Aimar Haziq Firdaus said it was never too early to explore the different tertiary education pathways.
“It’s convenient here because as we visit each booth, we get information on the different courses available, which helps us narrow our decisions,” he said.
His friend Zafrul Huzail Mohd Zawahir agreed, saying that a representative from a university also shared with them the importance of being industry-ready rather than merely studying for the sake of getting a job.
“Attending the fair opens our minds because we get to speak personally to the representatives.
“It helps us to get a clearer picture on the possible path to take after Form Five,” said Zafrul, who aspires to be an aeronautical engineer.