Bayaan Academy proudly announces the winners of this year’s High School Essay Competition on the theme, ‘The Future of Education: Discuss innovations in education, challenges faced by students or teachers, the role of technology in learning, or alternative education models.’ Congratulations to Ishal Khan, Azaan Ahsen, and Janat Kashif for their outstanding essays.

First Place: Ishal Khan – Grade 9

Future Education

 As all of us may know, education plays a key role in our daily lives. Our education shapes our future. Most people find school for them to be challenging, while some find it to be quite easy. As your education progresses, not everything will remain constant, potentially impacting your learning journey. However, there are numerous paths through which we can enhance our educational adventure, all of which will ultimately benefit our children and future generations.

   Firstly, I would like to talk about innovations in learning. These days we use books and papers in school to learn, which can seem quite boring to most kids. This can potentially discourage them from learning. In schools, teachers should make learning fun for our kids. One way in which we can change the student’s perspective of learning is by changing the learning tools we use from paper to electronics. Electronics are a big improvement in our learning system since this  catches the kids eye and makes them want to know what’s in this and they will want to do their work on technology.

   Most parents and teachers don’t realize what struggles their kid might be going through in terms of education. The one main problem in most schools which is ruining our students’ education is the lack of comforting and kind teachers and students, and yes most  people might say “oh that’s not true all teachers are kind and comforting and they are just kids they cant be rude to others” until they see it themselves. Kids are afraid to ask their teachers questions about their assignments because they think someones gonna make fun of them. If this problem keeps 

 going on then how will our kids be able to gain confidence and how will they be able to get the knowledge they need to have a successful future. Another problem students are facing is lack of parents’ attention and lack of comfort. You might be thinking “what does this have to do with students’ education” Well this is the biggest problem. Let’s say a kid has an upcoming exam coming up and the student asks their parents for help but instead of actually helping their own child they just tell them to help themselves on their own. Then when their exam results come back and they get a low grade the kid gets in trouble and gets terrified to even ask their parents for any help. If parents keep on moving their kids away then how will our kids ever have enough confidence to do anything?

   Without technology in this generation, kids won’t be able to learn and won’t find the fun in learning. Technology is the main thing in this generation and that is what catches the students eye and will encourage your kid to learn more enthusiastically. Including technology in our learning environment will make learning more relevant and you will yourself be able to see the change in your student as in for their grades and improvement in their passion for learning. Technology also provides students with multiple resources and websites which will in the end benefit them. 

  These are some ways that education can be improved and how education will actually hook the children’s attention and make them more interested in learning. Which in turn improves their future. And surely this will help the students’ lives and the parents’ lives as well so that it can encourage them to communicate with their children so that in return they get a confident student that InshAllah will have a bright future.

Second Place: Azaan Ahsen – Grade 9

The Future of Education

Students are the future, which is exactly why learning has to be perfect for every student and why there shouldn’t be issues in the way that are blocking the students from reaching their goals. Online education is not always easy for both students and teachers. Sometimes the cameras and microphones don’t function properly, other times the assignments go missing, but inshallah everything works out in the end and innovation helps us get through it. This is how the year of 2024 so far in Bayaan Academy has been going.

In the years 2014 to 2023 I was in public school in New Jersey, and during quarantine we had to use Google Classroom for a while. But ever since I moved to Pakistan I have been learning at Bayan Academy. Over the past year I’ve faced difficulties here and there but I realized that most of these issues were a matter of the Bayaan Academy website and not of the faculty. Google Classroom was invented in 2014 to stop things like this from happening and keep everything simple and user friendly. Of course, Google Classroom also had some issues like assignments not getting turned in, or online classes not connecting. But these things happened maybe once a year, since Google is such a big company and if anything ever goes wrong they can have someone fix it immediately. Which is why I personally think that Bayaan should transfer all of their resources over to Google classroom over the Summer for easier access.

Ever since learning has become more advanced and technology based, I think that students feel more comfortable and motivated to learn as this is what they grew up with and know how to navigate devices like the back of their hands. Although technology makes it easier for students, not all teachers feel the same way. I’ve known a few teachers that know technology better than I do, and I’ve known some that cannot figure out how to do something simple and need to get help from a student or peer. But it mostly pays off in the end, for example if you had to write a physical essay and you lose the paper, that would be very stressful for you, but if you do the essay virtually you don’t have to worry about it going missing as it gets uploaded to the cloud immediately allowing you to access it from another device. 

Unfortunately not everything that comes from online learning is good, for example when kids don’t pay attention during class or don’t even respond at all then there is really nothing the teacher can do except email the parents and hope that the parents care more than the child. In public school when a child misbehaved they would get punished accordingly, but sadly I haven’t seen this happen much at Bayaan Academy. Sometimes the teachers actually end up getting used to or accepting the fact that some students just aren’t in it to learn which is a major problem. But even after all that I can tell you wholeheartedly that Bayaan academy doesn’t feel like a school to me and feels more like a family. It would just be much better in my opinion if everybody interacted with each other.

Now if somehow we figure out a way to solve these issues, move onto Google Classroom, and actually punish those who don’t care about learning in this academy, then I’m sure that this family of ours could grow more and more and feel better and better. But nevertheless I still would not choose any academy over Bayaan Academy.

Third Place: Janaat Kashif – Grade 9

Addressing Technological Dependency in Education: Opportunities and Concerns

Did you know that traditional teaching and learning strategies are being superseded by the use of technology? Interactive whiteboards, e-books, online learning platforms, and the use of school portals are some examples of the implementation of technology in classrooms. Through the further application of technology in education systems, parents and guardians have gained the ability to stay informed regarding their children’s academic progress. Students are familiarized with digital resources and have acquired several software skills. But is technology in education a beneficial resource? How is the role of technology revolutionizing the learning experience? 

First, regular utilization of technology in classrooms has empowered students to access immediate answers to questions and assignments through artificial intelligence and Google. Constant availability of responses and answer keys is seen as a source of damaging and eroding students’ inherent critical thinking abilities. While this concern is justified, it is essential to comprehend the innovative changes in education resulting from technology. By utilizing accessible online platforms like Google Docs, Word documents, and Canva, students have gained the ability to automatically preserve their work, complete assignments remotely regardless of location, and effortlessly incorporate advanced elements like custom fonts, image editing, and advanced color palettes, enhancing the quality of assignments and projects. Additionally, the vast opportunities provided by technology have been further explained in a recent study. “Today, technology enables forms of communication and collaboration undreamt of in the past. Students in a classroom in the rural U.S., for example, can learn about the Arctic by following the expedition of a team of scientists in the region, reading scientists’ blog postings, viewing photos, emailing questions to the scientists, and even talking live with the scientists via a videoconference. Students can share what they are learning with students in other classrooms in other states who are tracking the same expedition.”Richardson, K. E. (2024, April 10). How has technology changed education? Purdue University College of Education. https://education.purdue.edu/2024/01/how-has-technology-changed-education/#:~:text=Students%20can%20collaborate%20on%20group,roles%20of%20teachers%20and%20learners. The extent of communication and services available through technology is incomparable, facilitating efficient and effortless methods of note-taking and assignment preparation and eliminating several hours employed to manually assemble assignments on paper. Hence, although unceasing accessibility of technology in classrooms, elevates the likelihood for application of Artificial Intelligence in completion of assignments, the benefits that students gain through availability of technology outweigh the  negative effects that students hold responsibility for engaging in.

Secondly, due to increased exposure to digital platforms on Chromebooks, students have substantially improved their technological capabilities, enabling them to acquire real-world skills such as eloquent speech, confidence, respectful communication and collaboration, and creativity. Consistent use of technology enables students to build strong digital citizenship skills. By navigating through online resources and developing their digital footprint, students assess and learn the importance of online safety, respecting boundaries, and finding reliable information. Furthermore, the utilization of technology familiarizes and equips students for the modern workforce; developing digital citizenship, real-world skills, and learning to use various software tools will prove to be effective and essential skills in their career path journey.

Thirdly, the role of technology in education not only facilitates quick methods of quality assignment preparation and achieving effective skills for students, but is also substantial in the impact it nurtures for teachers’ professional skills. Through the use of technology, teachers create lesson plans online and utilize organization tools such as remote alarms, calendars, and online Zoom or Google meeting sessions. Moreover, through growing dependency on technology, the responsibility and position of teachers have been reduced. A recent study explained that“because of the access to information and educational opportunity that technology has enabled, in many classrooms today we see the teacher’s role shifting to the “guide on the side” as students take more responsibility for their own learning using technology to gather relevant information.” Richardson, K. E. (2024, April 10). How has technology changed education? Purdue University College of Education. https://education.purdue.edu/2024/01/how-has-technology-changed-education/#:~:text=Students%20can%20collaborate%20on%20group,roles%20of%20teachers%20and%20learners.   Furthermore, the nuisance of in-person parent and teacher conferences, surplus purchases of school supplies, manual lesson planning, and verbal explanation have been significantly reduced and replaced by online resources like digital white boards, video conferencing platforms, YouTube tutoring videos containing explanations for lessons, and online educational activities like booklets and Kahoot. Next, in present-day education systems, parents have the unparalleled ability to stay involved in their children’s attendance, behavior, and grade reports through Gmail, parent portals, or school-based websites. Moreover, considering our current dependence on technology, we can only envision the potential amendments to the education system.

In conclusion, while the concern for plagiarism and AI employment persists, students ultimately hold responsibility for their approach to utilizing technology for either harvesting technological expertise or academic dishonesty. Contrarily, increased technological dependence in education systems has created large fundamental changes that emphasize productivity and growth for students, teachers, and parents alike. As students utilize digital tools, they are relieved from the burden of traditional assignment production and also gain digital citizenship skills and advanced software expertise beneficial for their future career endeavors. Simultaneously, teachers are less dependent on physical materials to enhance their teaching abilities. And parents now possess unprecedented abilities to remain involved and updated on their children’s progress, attendance, grades, and behavior.