Will Zoom Be the Future of Education?

Rogelio Valdes

Mar 9, 2021

Over the last year, we experienced a radical change in the way we learn. Many families told me they decided to switch schools or leave traditional education behind in favor of different alternatives.

Social distancing forced us to think more clearly about what we actually value in education for our children, and it also pushed us to ask how the system itself should evolve. Is Zoom the future of education? Of course not, at least not the way it has been used so far. Long sessions with groups of 20 to 30 students, where teachers deliver textbook content over video call, do not work well. In truth, that model was already struggling in person. It was simply transferred to an online setting.

Group size

We have learned that learning in groups is extremely important. It matters for basic things such as making friends, and for developing communication skills. But when groups are made up of 20 to 30 students, each child’s individuality gets lost, even if they are all in the same virtual room. We still need groups, just much smaller ones, ideally from 5 to no more than 10 students.

That allows the teacher to support each student more personally and take on the role of mentor. It also solves many behavior problems because attention is better distributed. Bullying or disrespect can be addressed quickly when a mentor is much more present with each student and is able to give everyone the same level of attention.

Content delivery

The way content is delivered also has to change. It became obvious that a teacher lecturing for an hour over Zoom does not work, but that format was not very effective in person either. And to be clear, there are teachers doing an incredible job trying to make their classes more interactive and dynamic. The problem is not individual teachers. The problem is that the system itself does not support them well.

Not all students can follow a class at the same speed. Some get bored because they already understood the concept. Others get frustrated because they never fully understood the previous topic. This is where technology really can help: by delivering learning in a more interactive, concise, and above all personalized way. Why should every student spend exactly two weeks on multiplication and then move on to division? What if I need three weeks to strengthen that concept, or I can master it in one? We already have many tools that allow students to move at their own pace with a personalized curriculum.

What will the future look like?

At Robin, we are building a new educational model to replace traditional schooling. It is based on small groups and mentors located in different cities so we can reach children no matter what city or country they live in. We began launching our in-person model with small groups in selected areas starting in August 2021, and enrollment opened soon after. If you want to know more about this model, I invite you to schedule a call with us so we can better understand your family’s needs and tell you more about the methodology.

Enroll in our Elementary and Middle School at robinacademy.com/escuela