Modern teaching aids and tools

         Introduction

Education is vital to the pace of the social, political and economic development of a nation, so effective teaching is very essential. Effective teaching is important because teaching is based on helping children progress from one level to another a more sustainable interactive environment and to get the approach right to get students to be independent learners. Effectiveness does not mean being perfect or giving a wonderful performance, but bringing out the best in students.

Role of Modern aids in teaching

Teaching aids are a boon for a teacher in making his or her task easy in making students to understand a concept. Teaching aids involve in the use of the senses of hearing and sight. Scientists through their research estimated 86% of the learning process of an individual depend on the senses of hearing and seeing. From the following example one can clearly understand the role of senses in learning process. A baby after birth at the beginning try to learn things by his or senses. First through the sense of sight he or she is able to identify mother and other family members. Slowly the baby is able to hear sounds and learn to respond them which finally help the baby to speak small words. After that, the senses coupled with mind leading to perception of the child. Perception leads to ideas for concepts. From this example we can clearly see how the senses helped in learning the various abilities of the baby like recognising, speaking and construct forming. Learning through senses is more permanent than mechanical learning. At the same time, one has to keep in mind that teaching aids have to be used as aids to supplement teaching but should not be used to replace the teacher itself which otherwise will have a determinantal effect on the learning process of students.

Advantages of Modern aids in teaching

1. Using teaching aids in teaching makes his or her lesson more interesting and real. It motivate the student to imagine and think mentally. Audio-visual aids used for this purpose will make use of the senses of hearing and sight of the student. This will ensure quick and effective learning. For example, a social teacher if he uses a globe model in his teaching the students feel the lesson will be more real and interesting. They can learn things like shape of the earth, the various aspects of the earth like latitudes, longitudes, poles etc. more effectively. 

2. It saves the time of the teacher in teaching his or her lesson as well as it makes the learning process of the student more solid and durable. A Biology teacher who is teaching about the digestive system of man may do it by drawing the diagram of the same on the board. But this consume much of his time of this period for drawing the diagram with no time left for the teachers to explain. But using the chart for this purpose saves his time as well as it makes the teaching more interesting.

3. Using teaching aids in teaching will help the students to form a direct bond between the word and object what the teacher is teaching. For example, a language teacher in a primary class, if he wants to make his students to understand the difference between 'parrot green' and 'thick green' he cannot do it by using his verbal expression for any length of time. Using teaching aids makes this task easy by selecting the two different colour papers or cloth pieces of the same what he is talking about.

4. Teaching aids will remove the barrier of class room walls by bringing vivid reality into the classroom. For example, the specimens of various animals and plants stored in sealed bottles were shown to the students for teaching a biology lesson will arouse interest and enthusiasm as well as widen the scope of their learning.

5. Using teaching aids preparewill help slow learners or those who lack power of concentration to learn things by way of doing practically. It provides a first hand experience to see a demonstration, handle the apparatus and perform the experiments by themselves, prepare charts, models etc. This type of experience makes the learning permanent. 

6. Teaching aids are needed for those things which we cannot have accessibility, very expensive or physically cannot be carried has to be shown in the form of a chart for a model replace the original thing and help the students to understand easily. For example, extraction of a metal from its ore through various steps can be explained clearly with the help of a chart.

Modern teaching aids and tools

The most popular modern teaching aids in use at present are English language lab, Interactive electronic white screen, Computers, Overhead projector, Power Point presentations, Internet, Online dictionaries, Online Encyclopaedia, E-books, VCD's, DVD's, Televisions, Tablets, DVD players etc. 

1. English language lab

At present modern schools are well equipped with the facility of good English language lab. It provides a scope for the students to improve spoken aspect of English language. A language lab is a special room with a set of sound proof booths where the students sit. Each booth is connected with master track and student track. The master track provides the lessons and the student track record the response. Through the headphones lessons is fed to the students. There is one way glass partition between the console and the student booth. The teacher sits in a console booth. The teacher check the progress of the student from the console. Teacher and student can communicate with each other without disturbing other students. The language lab supplements the work of the teacher. It is an audio-lingual supplement to classwork. 

2. Computers

Computers are one more valuable teaching aids at present. Teachers are using the computers for preparing their lessons, to prepare progress sheets and to conduct online test. To prepare educational software like cartoons, animations, video and audio lessons one has to depend on computers. For the students to do and practice their programs students should be provided with computer facilities. Teachers would prepared their own lessons on VCD's  or DVD's can be projected on to a overhead screen from the computer to view the entire class.

3. Internet Surfing

At present teachers and students are dependent on internet browsing to get maximum knowledge of a particular thing on what they are studying. They get the facility to read online books, e-books, online dictionary, online encyclopaedia which otherwise they buy cost thousands of rupees.

4. Power Point Presentation

A teacher can prepare PowerPoint presentation on any topic in the form of slides incorporating with graphics and sounds. The topic has to be designed in such a way that the slides display one by one on the screen. The teacher can explain the topic by showing slide by slide projected on the overhead screen. One disadvantage with this teaching aids is if the presentation is not much attractive it becomes a failure. This type of method can be advisable to use only at higher studies like Degree colleges, Universities and in professional courses.

5. Television

At present television also form an important educational tool for effective teaching. Various channels like National Geographical channel, Discovery Channel Animal Planet channel, History TV etc. are educative in nature. They provide very interesting and amazing information about various beautiful creatures elsewhere present in nature to the viewers. These channels telecast their programmes 24 hours continuously and so these programmes can be shown to the children in the laser periods of the school time by projecting on to a overhead screen. Some channels even telecasting a special programs to educate students in English Grammar, Maths, Science which benefit the students very much.

6. Interactive Electronic White Screen

Present day  modern schools are well equipped with interactive electronic white screens in the classrooms. A combination of the devices like computer, digital overhead projector, educational software will allow us to use this Interactive Electronic Screen most effectively in classroom teaching. Companies like Educom, Smart sync. by payment from the school, arranging Interactive screens along with supportive topic contents for all classes from their service. This technology will help the teacher to avoid all other teaching aids which he or she using in their teaching with single stroke. Exercise works provided for the topic will help in the active participation of the student in learning process.

         Conclusion

Without any doubt teaching aids are very essential for effective teaching process. Teacher has to be very careful in selecting a teaching aid that demands and suits the situation of teaching. Using too many teaching aids, using a teaching aid at a wrong place may bring negative effect on teaching. Using a combination of modern and traditional teaching aids by the teachers will pave the way for the effective teaching. Teachers also have to see that technology should not dominate teacher which otherwise may result in indiscipline in students.