Technology has dramatically changed traditional classrooms as well as homeschooling environments.  For the most part, tech advances have made it that much easier for homeschooled students to learn and also helped parents teach their little ones.  Plenty of parents who homeschool their kids are quick to heap on the praise for the latest tech education solutions as they alleviate the pressure of educating a child in every single subject.  After all, most parents are not experts in each academic subject.  Those who lean on tech find homeschooling their little one(s) really is that much easier, less stressful and more efficient.  Let’s take a closer look at how tech is changing homeschooling.

Smart Tech Automation

There is no shame in leaning on technology to homeschool a child.  Even professional teachers are quick to admit they often need assistance, be it in the form of technology, a teacher’s assistant or in another form.  Some parents are leaning on Google Home, Amazon Echo and other tech solutions to boost homeschooling efficiency.  These tech advances do everything from providing voice control for in-home classes to making note of assignments, remotely playing educational monologues and even the remote playing of background music conducive to learning.  Furthermore, some parents use smart lighting and smart thermostats to control home utilities to ensure their child has a comfortable space to learn.

Tech is Fueling the Gamification of Learning

Nowadays, gamification is en vogue in classrooms, workplaces, conferences and other settings.  Education technology has made learning fun by turning otherwise-dry material into learning games that provide positive reinforcement.  Though homeschooled kids have to look at screens to “win” the learning game, this is a small sacrifice to make to ensure they learn the necessary material in a timely and enjoyable manner.  From learning a foreign language to mastering the rules of grammar, memorizing how to spell words and beyond, there are countless tech games that facilitate the learning process for homeschooled children.

The Customization of the Homeschooling Experience

Thanks to improvements in educational technology, parents who decide to homeschool their kids can tap into the seemingly endless resources on the web for a truly customized education at home.  From educational videos on YouTube to virtual tutors on the web, online chat rooms designed to help kids learn, online learning materials and beyond, there are countless ways in which technology is making learning at home that much easier.  In fact, there are now homeschooling curriculums on DVD and online streams that provide helpful video instructions as well as in-depth lesson plans for students who learn at home. 

Direct Communication with Instructors and Advisers on the Internet

Web-based learning advisers are becoming quite popular as they alleviate pressure from the parents, organize the learning process and provide structure.  Thanks to tech advances, it is now possible to communicate with advisers, instructors and others relevant to homeschooling through the internet.  From live chats to emails, instant messages, video streams and beyond, it has become incredibly easy for students who learn at home to interact with online instructors, advisers and others from a screen.

Open-source Coursework

MIT and other educational leaders are paving the way in terms of open-source coursework.  Open-source means the code is available for all who are interested in enhancing it.  The result of this effort has been the democratization of learning.  In fact, some such learning materials are provided at no cost whatsoever.  As an example, Coursera is a program that provides web-based classes.  Another example is iTunes U that provides an array of learning opportunities on the web. 

It won’t be long until we reach a “critical mass” of sorts where the number of online options for homeschoolers is seemingly endless.  The best part of open-source coursework is it is constantly improving as anyone with tech skills can enhance online course offerings that are open-source.  Such online courses really are the gift that keeps on giving for homeschoolers and anyone else interested in learning.