Changing The Way Kids Learn

When I was a kid, especially in nursery school, when going to school, all I needed was a pencil, a book and a long arm to cover from one side of my head to the other side. For one to be admitted in nursery school back then, you had to be able to hold your left ear with your right hand. Nowadays, to admit your kid in playgroup, you will need to buy 6 bookshops, 2 supermarkets and a country’s’ worth of supplies.

Seriously, I joined my three and half year-old son in play group and I was given a list of things to buy. The list was longer than my yearly personal care items. They were very specific on what I had to buy, failure to which, there was no admission. This is where I dissent with Sauti Sol when they sang that ‘mtoto atakuja na sahani yake’ no, nope, the kid will come with ‘majukumu’ – responsibilities.

 But that is not even the topic of the week, technology has advanced so much and for some reason, our education system has remained the most unaffected.

Yes, we have CBC, a big step from the system we had before, which is great and all but how much technology is integrated in our curriculum? With the pandemic shifting focus and changing priorities and dynamics; technology could have helped a great deal in our schools. Take a look at developed countries, and how much they are using technology in schools, the more things change, the more they remain the same.

Kids have access to technology devices around them and are spending more of their time on phones, tablets, laptops, and TVs than they spend in school. While technology Is good and has a positive impact on the growth of kids, it also comes with negative impacts.

Leaving the kids with devices that connect to the internet can expose them to content that is not healthy and good for them. That is why you need devices that have been built specifically for kids.

Tablets are the most common smart devices for kids, they are easy to use and have a wide range of variety for kids from videos to games to books that kids can read and use in learning.

As far as non-violent, educational games go, Minecraft is arguably one of the best. It can teach kids the fundamentals of programming skills, teamwork, problem-solving, project management, and offers a fantastic environment to foster creativity and “out of the box” thinking.

Try it: Minecraft Education Edition.

Consider buying a tablet that has practical parent control features and supports kids’ friendly content. You can get tablets from a low as 8,500/- and Ex UK laptops from 25,000/- that are both child friendly and easy to use.

These and other technologies have the opportunity to improve learning outcomes for our kids.