Explain the concept of Digital Fitness

The present generation learners are digital natives who have rightly said subscription to digital natives who have rightly said subscribed to digital citizenship by opening email accounts, registering on Facebook and posting their thoughts on blogs, and participating in debates and discussions taking place on digital platforms like Twitter. Teaching this generation of students could be quite a challenge for a digitally naïve teacher. Though it might apparently seem that teachers are left clueless and at a disadvantage, the willingness to learn new things can help them gain a foothold in the digital world.

And, actually their expertise and experience is pivotal for all around development of kids even in digital arenas. Students born in 21st century are passive consumers of technology. They are IT literate but are not IT fluent because they cannot use technology to influence unity. Teachers could facilitate the transition in students from being IT literate to being IT fluent. First, teachers should up skill themselves in the digital field to help in this transition. Rote learning methods have plagued the Indian education system for long. Teachers being the sole arbiters of knowledge it becomes problematic because such a process leaves students with no role to play in their learning process. Thus, teachers should be able to curate reliable visual and auditory content from the web to keep learners engaged in the classroom. And better engagement automatically translates to better learning.

Now, teaching learning is no more confined to the four walls of classroom. Asynchronous learning is a student- centered learning approach with the motive of sharing information. This way of learning transcends all boundaries such as time and place. Thus, if a teacher knows of a colleague who can give students valuable insights on a particular topic but stays abroad, they could perhaps arrange a Skype call. So they need to have the basic know-how of digital media, including proficiency with setting up online calls. Keeping the students motivated has been the biggest challenge of teachers. Educators have experimented with the innovative ways of teaching learning of ages. The 21st century teachers should be open to new ideas. Among such new ideas are gamification and game based learning. Application of gaming mechanics in a non game context is called gamification. Instant feedback and gratification in the form of scores keeps the students hooked. Effectively used and monitored by teachers , it can also be students summative assessment. Game-based learning, on the other hand, is the use of actual video games in the classroom. For instance, the teacher might encourage students to play Civilisation3, the third part of video games series on building empires, at home to get them acquainted with Chinese history and politics, before actually starting lessons on Chinese history. A teacher should be more open wit unconventional pedagogies. Political and economic discussions and debates taking place on digital platforms help students to develop their critical thinking skills as they go on to form their own opinions on current affairs and also learn to defend their own ideas. A teacher should stay aware of such digital forums and encourage the students to sign up on such platforms. Teachers should also update themselves on blogging as this would provide the students with an opportunity to showcase their work to the world.

The advent of technology and inflation of information has left students overwhelmed with information, and thus, they may not be able to choose a reliable source to gather information. The assistance of a teacher becomes imperative in such cases. Teachers should make students aware about plagiarism etc. they should use tools available on the net to detect plagiarism in the work of the students. Apparently, acquiring these skills might seem like a difficult task for a person who is not tech-savvy. However, a teacher can start with just opening an email account and take baby steps towards discovering the digital world, full of excitement and adventure. There should be familiarization of teachers with the various digital tools like audio, video or other internet connected things that can be useful for the students. There should be the use of digital technologies and teachers should be knowledgeable enough to use them in order to further tell students about them. The open learning or distance educations are already using these techniques for making students study and learn various things. It comprises of accessible media for learning, teaching and research purpose. Educomp smartclass, english mentor, 3D lab, smartclassPro, smartstem are some of the examples of digital technologies used in the schools. Teacher should be trained enough to operate various digital products and technologies. Media can be used to make the things simpler and faster and hence it can be used for the educational purposes in the institutions. The game based learning is also effective in making students learn in a joyful way. The students learn faster when the education is mixed with games. They can remind these things easier in this way. The visual and auditory contents can be used in order to increase the effectiveness of the learning. These techniques are also helpful to increase the confidence of the students and hence make them come forward and reduce their stage fear. They can build up the confidence to express themselves clearly and confidently. The students are already passive consumer of the technology as they are born in 21st century which is the digital era. It can be said that the teachers and students can make their bond stronger through this digital connections as they can become more interactive through this. To match with the pace of today’s world it has become important to become digitally fit. The fitness in digital world not only help one to make one globally active but also helps to keep in touch with each other in a faster way. It is necessary to keep the students motivated in this regard. Games based learning is the most helpful way through which one can provide motivation to the students in today’s world.