I remember at the end of class, we’d sometimes have time to work on essays or other research we had to do in class. The teacher would roll in the school’s cart of 30 or so Google chromebooks. We’d each sign out our little laptop and get to work diving into the world wide web of information.
Approaching the end of my undergraduate days, I’m on the cusp of the millennial generation and generation z. We’ve grown into technology, grown up with it. I had a flip phone by middle school, spent most of my high school years growing up with the iPhone series. More interestingly, I’ve seen how the education system has adapted to the rapidly changing role of technology in our society.
At first, my educators were skeptical of the role of technology in the classroom, so much so that it was not allowed or incorporated into the curriculum whatsoever. As time has progressed, technology has proven essential in creating a well-rounded education, especially considering the infinite possibilities that have helped reimagine creativity in education and pedagogical methods. Technology can do so much with so little, so much so easily, and with the expansion of its accessibility, technology is a facet to new age education models. Thanks to programers and developers worldwide, technology -- in both programs and hardware -- has become more and more specialized to fit into the education system. This is what we, at Conversations Unbound, value most in the limitless possibilities at the intersection of technology and education.
Our digital initiative connects two corners of the world. In high school, I read about the Middle East in my textbook, or on that aforementioned chromebook during independent research hours. I’d read CNN articles or search Google Scholar for information about the area. I never thought that I’d one day be writing a blog post for an organization that connects students in America with people abroad.
Now, with our partners at italki, we connect two corners of the world formerly studied in textbooks and library books. Our students learn first hand from our tutors, fluent speakers of Arabic and Spanish with backgrounds in forcible displacement. We’re able to put a face to the news about displacement that students read in CNN every day.
We’re sure our program will only develop further with the expansion and innovation of new technologies. Maybe in a few years, we’ll look back at this blog post and revel in our simple fascination with video chat. Until then, we’re happy with what we’ve created here, and we hope you can find intrigue in our programs’ capabilities and the greater world views we’re bringing forward.
That’s all for today!
Gabrielle Chwae
Marketing & PR Manager