New services for teachers

Contents:

• Behind new technologies - old solutions
• What are the real pain points of teachers?
• Is the speed of development and implementation really that good?
• How to adapt to new digital solutions?
• When the future arrives?

Behind New Technologies, Old Solutions

Experts agree that digital tools must meet the real needs of teachers. However, methodologists, educators, and technology developers have not yet reached a consensus on which tools are truly essential for an effective educational process. Natalya Kiseleva, Deputy Head of the Moscow Department of Education and Science, emphasizes that teachers' needs often include the digitization of traditional paper materials. At the same time, technical specialists face different challenges and note that the educational community does not always distinguish between digitization and digitalization. It is important to establish a dialogue between all participants in the process to create tools that will truly help teachers and improve the quality of education.

The expert noted that discussions between technical developers and teaching methodologists lead to problems in educational institutions.

Ignoring teachers' opinions leads to them not using developments they don't need. The experience of the pandemic has demonstrated that imposing solutions without considering the real needs of teachers is either ineffective or implemented only on paper. It is important to take into account the opinions of teachers to create truly useful and in-demand educational tools.

Of course, I am ready to help you with editing the text. Please provide the original text you wish to revise.

When discussing the introduction of technology into the educational process, it is important to understand that it must solve the current problems of teachers and students. Otherwise, such solutions will be ineffective and will not bring benefits. Over the past ten years, we have seen many unsuccessful technologies both in our country and abroad. Skyeng Managing Partner Alexander Laryanovsky notes that the success of educational technologies directly depends on their ability to meet the real needs of users.

The speaker noted that many digital solutions recognized as new in the educational sphere are, in fact, not so. Currently, developers are focused not on creating fundamentally new tools, but on solving two key problems for the education system. These problems include optimizing existing processes and improving interaction between participants in the educational process.

• Filling the gaps. Tools that are just appearing in schools have been used in other areas for years, and sometimes decades. These include electronic diaries, databases, and multimedia content. "It's just that for many reasons, primarily conservatism, all these technologies have not made it into the educational sphere," Laryanovsky explained. He cited lesson direction and dramaturgy, as well as a customer-oriented approach, as examples of such new "technologies" for education. "We are now bringing what has long been used in other industries, but has only recently been used in education. "This is what we're really doing," the expert added.
• Data accumulation. The speaker noted that, as in other sectors, education currently has virtually no data—and the ability to obtain it has only recently become possible. At the same time, the methodologists developing the programs work with a very limited sample of data, so in reality they do not always achieve the desired quality and the desired result.

What are the real pain points of teachers?

Experts unanimously agree that when developing new digital solutions for education, it is necessary to focus not only on the opinions of teachers, but also on their key problems. This approach is similar to the development of any other product. In the field of education, three main pain points can be identified that require special attention.

• routine processes that take a lot of time, such as checking homework and tests;
• inability to complete some elements of the program due to lack of resources;
• lack of work and personal time.

Developers offer a variety of solutions to solve educational problems. One of the most well-known projects is the joint work of Skyeng and the Prosveshcheniye Group of Companies, which led to the creation of an interactive workbook, launched in the spring of 2020. Today, it is used by about five million schoolchildren, according to Alexander Laryanovsky. The success of this project is due to several key factors: high-quality and verified content, automation of routine tasks, and an intuitive interface, which makes learning more accessible and effective for users.

We solved three key problems, which became the key to our success. It's important to note that there is no clear line between technical specialists and educators. There are those who are attentive to their clients' needs, and those who ignore them. This attention to the client plays a crucial role in the success of any business.

Tatyana Serebryakova, First Deputy Director of the Department at Prosveshcheniye Publishing House, emphasized the importance of monitoring innovations that could create difficulties for teachers. In this context, she presented two new digital services developed by the company, designed to facilitate the educational process and increase the effectiveness of teaching. These tools take into account the current needs of teachers and are aimed at improving interaction in the educational process.

• "ProVospitanie." The company plans to test this new service in September: it allows schools to create an individual educational program for students. Users will also have access to a calendar of planned events and a "bank of pedagogical ideas" that they can use or supplement themselves. "The lack of time to prepare reports, plans, and homework—this pain is being alleviated. Now we're talking about freeing up teachers, giving them more time for creativity, so they can focus on achieving fundamentally new personal and educational results, focusing on the students in the classroom, and not dealing with routine tasks that could easily be taken off their hands, like reporting and other automated tasks," the specialist explained. "Project Laboratory." The automated service was a response to the introduction of the "Individual Project" course in senior grades. "Schools have also endured a great deal of pain with the introduction of this course. Our practicing colleagues say that practically one teacher per class is capable of creating high-quality individual projects with four or five students, and there are more than 30 of them. And an automated service that can help assemble a completely individual project from a ready-made template and suggested topics using a construction kit is, of course, primarily useful for teachers," Serebryakova commented. The service is currently undergoing testing.

All of the listed services are aimed at teachers, not children, which is significant. This emphasis on professional development and support for teachers helps improve the quality of education by providing resources and tools for effective teaching. A focus on teachers helps create a higher-quality educational environment where teachers can develop their skills and share experiences.

It is crucial not to forget the role of teachers, because without them, it is impossible to raise a new generation. Teachers are the foundation of the school, and therefore our work is aimed at supporting them. We strive to ease their workload so that they can devote more time to their students and their calling.

Is the speed of development and implementation really that good?

The pace of change and new products in the education sector is becoming increasingly relevant. The pandemic has forced developers to quickly adapt to new conditions and offer solutions for the education industry. For example, an interactive notebook was created in just six days, as noted by Alexander Laryanovsky. This demonstrates the rapid response to the challenges of the times and the need to implement innovative technologies in education.

During the course of a month and a half during the pandemic, a new project, the Sferum platform, was developed, as reported by Ruben Akopov, CEO of the Digital Education joint venture. The main goal of Sferum is to optimize communication between all participants in the educational process: students, teachers, and parents. Future plans include integrating Sferum with other services, such as electronic diaries, content systems, and the State Services portal. This will create a unified educational space, increasing the effectiveness of interaction and improving the quality of education.

The rapid development of digital tools for education is distorting teachers' expectations. They are looking for technology developers to ensure ever-increasing speed in the development and implementation of new solutions. This demand for speed can hinder the process of high-quality teaching and the introduction of innovations into the educational process. It's important to find a balance between the speed of development and the quality of the tools created to ensure they truly facilitate effective learning.

At a recent meeting of the State Council Presidium on education, Boris Dobrodeev, CEO of Mail.ru Group, presented the Sferum project. It launched in 8,000 schools in 15 regions of Russia on September 1. Dobrodeev called on the president to expand the implementation of this educational solution to other regions of the country, emphasizing its importance for improving the quality of education and digitalizing the educational process.

New technologies create new demands, and the experience of the Moscow Electronic School exemplifies this. In collaboration with Microsoft Teams, the system was simplified, allowing students to access lessons directly from the schedule. After implementing this integration, teachers had new requests: creating separate online rooms, adding chat management functions, providing the ability to store materials in the system, and providing feedback in an electronic diary. Such changes contribute to more effective learning and interaction between teachers and students.

Teachers often don't realize that changes don't happen instantly. Developing tools takes time, and the process of technical development and testing takes a long time. Kiseleva noted that all stages of implementing new technologies into the educational process must be considered.

How to adapt to new digital solutions

The teaching community needs Time to adapt to new changes, regardless of their speed. Tatyana Serebryakova emphasized that previously, all innovations first underwent a research phase, were then discussed in educational institutions, and only then were they implemented. However, the process of introducing new developments to users has now changed.

New technology emerges and is implemented in innovative schools, creating platforms for educational practice. Following this, pedagogical research is conducted, resulting in successful examples shaping new approaches, documented in a document. This illustrates the current situation in educational policy. Teachers are facing changes, and many of them have not yet had time to adapt to the new conditions. Today, they are awaiting regulations that will help them understand how to act in the new circumstances and what steps to take in the future.

The pandemic has revealed another important problem: despite the development of new technologies, teachers often lack effective methods for conducting lessons in various formats. Clearly, in this context, digital tools should come to the rescue. They not only help educate schoolchildren and students but also facilitate teachers' self-education. However, the variety of professional educational content for teachers is quite vast, and navigating it can be difficult. Therefore, the ability to select appropriate resources is becoming a key skill for education specialists.

Experts believe that solving current problems is only possible through active interaction and communication within the teaching community. Olga Sukhanova, Head of the Research and Development Department at the Academy of the Ministry of Education, cited her department's successful experience as an example. Effective collaboration between teachers facilitates knowledge sharing and the implementation of innovative practices, which in turn improves the quality of education.

The field of continuing professional education is undergoing significant changes. It is expanding, encompassing not only continuing professional education institutions but also methodologists and teachers working in schools and demonstrating positive results. The Academy actively collaborates with tutors – teachers who demonstrate high achievements and are willing to share their experience. This collaboration promotes improved education quality and the exchange of advanced teaching methods.

The agency organizes professional development courses for mentors, who then help their colleagues implement modern practices and utilize proven developments. This creates a system of "horizontal learning," a popular peer-to-peer learning model worldwide. Digital technologies significantly simplify the process of professional mutual assistance: teachers from any region can easily find a supportive colleague and consult with more experienced specialists.

The experience of experienced teachers is utilized not only by teachers but also by developers of digital solutions. Sferum, for example, employs teacher ambassadors who act as a link between the educational community and the creators of digital products. This collaboration allows us to better understand teachers' needs and adapt technologies to the real-world conditions of the educational process.

We truly need specialists from different regions with whom we can collaborate. They can exchange experiences with colleagues and share information on how they effectively use our system. Given the diversity of approaches, this is especially important. We are developing a mass-service system designed to support teachers in their work and facilitate the educational process. Ruben Akopov noted the importance of such interaction for improving the quality of educational services.

The developers actively collaborate with educational experts, receiving feedback not only on existing products but also when planning the implementation of new features. This approach ensures the creation of digital tools that are truly useful for teachers. This helps avoid situations where developed solutions prove unnecessary and ineffective in the educational process.

When the Future Arrives

Despite the introduction of new technologies and the growing popularity of horizontal learning, schools' transition from traditional teaching methods to digital formats won't happen overnight. The pandemic has pushed educational institutions to quickly adopt new tools, but fully adapting to the digital age takes time and effort.

Ruben Akopov asserts that full-fledged digitalization in education will only become a reality in several decades. Moreover, the transition to a new digital reality will be driven not only by technological advancements or improved teacher qualifications, but also by a natural generational shift. The speaker noted that children born in the last five to six years are significantly different from today's schoolchildren, not to mention those who have already graduated. He cited the example of his son, who, upon seeing dots on the carpet, tried to click on them. Natalya Kiseleva also described a similar experience, describing how her child tried to "push" photographs to enlarge the image. These examples highlight how quickly the perception of technology is changing among new generations, which, in turn, requires the adaptation of educational methods and approaches.

According to Ruben Akopov, the results achieved will be visible in approximately 20-30 years. Various tools are currently being developed, but a complete system does not yet exist.

Alexander Laryanovsky emphasizes that it is impossible to provide an accurate forecast for the near future. He notes that developers of digital solutions for teachers will encounter numerous errors in the process of searching for effective mechanisms. In his opinion, an understanding of how to properly integrate offline and online education will only come in two to three years. It is important to understand that this process requires time and careful analysis to create high-quality educational tools.

Tatyana Serebryakova emphasized that the most important task is to ensure a smooth transition between traditional and digital tools in the educational process. She noted that if a teacher knows how to seamlessly integrate digital technologies into lessons, using them at the right time, then this level can be achieved quite quickly. According to the expert, achieving this goal will take two to five years.

Olga Sukhanova noted the importance of variability in digital content, especially in the context of assessing applied assignments. She emphasized that only with time will it become clear which tools will prove most in demand in modern educational institutions. Adapting digital technologies in the educational process requires a careful approach to choosing tools that promote effective learning and student development.

According to experts, teachers should consider several key recommendations as they adapt to the "transition period." These tips will help facilitate the change process and increase effectiveness in the new environment. Applying these recommendations will facilitate a smoother implementation of new educational practices and technologies, as well as improve interaction with students and colleagues.

• Don't be afraid of new services and digitalization in general;
• Be tolerant of new developments and the mistakes of their creators;
• Participate in product testing;
• Remember the purpose of the lesson and the educational process when using new technologies or services. Too many digital tools won't make your work easier and certainly won't reflect the modern educational process.

Of course, please provide the text you'd like me to edit and optimize for SEO.

Digital tools for teachers are merely means to achieving educational goals. Just as a hammer, screwdriver, or drill can be used to hammer nails, it's important to understand that the end goal is what we want to hang on the nail. New products from various companies are appearing on the market, creating variety and choice for educators. However, teachers need time to learn and adapt these tools to their needs. It's important to give them this opportunity. On the other hand, teachers need to realize that traditional methods are no longer the only option. Rejecting modern technologies and services would be an unjustified step. Natalia Kiseleva emphasizes that integrating digital solutions into the educational process is not only a necessity but also an opportunity to improve the quality of education.

The speaker emphasized that development is impossible without joint efforts. It is essential that government agencies, development companies, and educational organizations involved in teacher training work together to support teachers in choosing optimal solutions. Collaboration among all stakeholders is key to the successful implementation of new approaches in education.

Also read about how to optimize your content for search engines. Use keywords naturally to increase your website's visibility. Don't forget the importance of meta tags and titles, which help search engines better understand your page content. Update your content regularly to keep it relevant and relevant to your audience. Make sure your site is mobile-friendly, as this impacts search engine rankings. It is also worth paying attention to the page loading speed, as this is an important factor for users and search engines.

• What digital transformation strategy has been prepared for education?
• When EdTech is useful for schools, and when not so much?
• Why our schools have not yet become digital: expert opinions
• 5 features of children's online classes that are important for teachers to consider.