The future of education on the internet

By Joe Pritchard in A doctor's life on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 @ 15:23

With the majority of our blog posts focusing on medicine, I have decided to write a little something about the roles of computers and the internet in education and how I see these roles developing and expanding in the future. This is a topic that is incredibly important to us as a company and certainly should be to anyone that is studying now or will be in the future. I could, no doubt, write tens of thousands of words and still not come to a conclusion, so I will try to keep this post short, sweet and open ended, encouraging thought and debate!

We have seen a huge rise in computing for education over the last 20 years and as technology continues to improve dramatically, the internet is becoming the most effective, accessible and, therefore, most popular form of viewing, storing and sharing learning and revision material. With the introduction of video and animation to the internet, it is more powerful than ever and can only get stronger.

At PasTest, for example, we have been able to better explain practical tests such as the PACES exam by displaying patient cases as videos, providing heart sounds using interactive animations and organising useful images in online galleries, such as this fundoscopy one. The popularity of this service has far exceeded our expectations and we are now on the look out for new and exciting ways to improve and widen your learning options.

How does the internet improve the way we learn, and how will it affect and possibly even replace offline forms of learning? Among our customers, we have recently seen the use of online revision overtake that of books and courses, so how will the use of offline products and institutions have changed in say, ten years time? How much importance do you place on face to face meetings, at what point will an online tutorial feel ‘real?’ We are seeing more and more lectures take place online and there are already courses that are solely provided using the internet. I wonder how long it will be before we start to see learning institutions closing because of the internet?

I would like to think that within medicine at least, there will always be offline institutions and certainly real life examinations. We clearly need to ensure the highest quality of teaching and examination, to keep the standard of doctors as high as possible. At the rate computer technology is advancing though, it is able to improve the quality of learning in more and more areas, and we constantly need to adjust and refine a balance between on and offline services. I said I would keep this short, so I leave you to consider the topic yourselves. Do let us know if you have any suggestions or ideas, using the comment box below.