Traditional Elementary Education
Once there was a time when traditional elementary education was ‘the education system’ that we most familiar with. If you are, or ever we’re, a student you probably have received education by receiving the elementary education in traditional schools.
Traditional schools are public or private schools divided into many grades. The majority of students still take education from such schools
because of this, the significance of traditional elementary education can not be underestimated even today.
In the USA the range of pupils who attend elementary schools is from six to fourteen years with some variations depending on the pattern of education in a particular state.
The main focus of the elementary school curriculum is to equip the students with the basic knowledge of –reading, writing, arithmetic, science, social sciences, arts and craft, and physical education.
Another major objective of elementary education is to generate a sense of oneness and help children to learn socialization.
Basic Characteristics of Traditional Elementary Education:
Approach
Traditional elementary schools follow a teacher-centred approach wherein the teacher being a subject expert plays the major role and explains the students the content. Students act as receptors and follow the teacher’s instructions.
Method of Teaching
The lecture method with direct instructions is the most commonly used in traditional education. Almost all teachers at every level adopt lecture methods at one point or another. The focus of this method is to explain the content before the students to achieve the learning objectives.
Curriculum
Traditional elementary schools have a fixed curriculum for every grade based on the national curriculum set by the ministry of education and each student has to follow the same curriculum.
Learning
Students learning in traditional elementary education is highly dominated by rote learning of facts, dates, incidents, definitions and formulas. The learning here is textbooks based and all the activities take place within the classroom.
Evaluation of Performance
In the traditional elementary education system, the performance of students is evaluated by written and/or oral exams. There is little or no weightage given co-curricular and extra-curricular activities.
Advantages of Traditional Elementary Education
1.) In-person teaching promotes student engagement with teachers. Teachers also can effectively monitor the attentiveness of their students while teaching by physically present in the class.
2.) It encourages and interactions among the students which promotes a conducive classroom environment.
3) It also encourages a sense of competitiveness among the students that motivates them to perform better than their fellow students which eventually improves their performance.
4) The social environment plays a major role in shaping the character and personality of children.
5) In traditional elementary education teachers play a pivotal role in guiding the activities of students and instilling in them discipline and self-control.
Disadvantages of Traditional Elementary Education
1.) In Traditional Elementary Education they adopt a teacher-centred approach and ignore child psychology completely.
2.) Children act merely as passive listeners. It is the teacher who gives the lecture and speaks most of the time. The lecture method is not recommended especially for elementary students because they are prone to distractions and can’t focus on lectures for long.
3.) The learning is highly based on content rather than concepts. Moreover, too much dependency on textbooks hinders the creative and divergent thinking of students.
4.) Most often, the teacher presumes that all learners learn at the same pace and are at the same level of intellect which is not the case.
Modern Online Education
We live in a dynamic world where everything is evolving continually and new styles and methods of doing things arrive every day. How can education remain unaffected by the change?
We are living in the 21st century and the rise of Information Communication and Technology(ICT) has brought a revolutionary wave in the field of education.
Now, 21st-century learners don’t wait for the next day to clear their doubts with their teachers, instead, they head over to Google and find the answers themselves.
The recent pandemic lockdown has forced even the traditional schools to change their ways and embrace technology by conducting online classes. Modern online education has been getting popularity among students, educators and administrators.
Due to astounding flexibility and feasibility online learning is attracting the students like honey. Consequently, the utmost acceptability of online education became the cause behind the thousands of educational blogs and online academies. Enrolling students in online classes is a popular trend among parents who can’t afford the expenses of traditional schools.
Advantages of online methods of teaching
1.) Flexibility
While studying online students enjoy a great deal of flexibility. They can select the timing for their online session according to their availability.
2) Easy Attendance
Online classes are easier to attend as they are “weatherproof”. No matter whether what kind of weather is, if the internet connection is up then even the storm cannot stop students from attending the lectures.
3.) Self-Discipline
Online classes are a self-discipline booster you develop. While studying in online classes students have to take care of everything by themselves. They take care of the projects, assignments and due dates. This puts a positive effect on their overall personality and they learn to mind their actions in other walks of life.
4.) Students Access to Teacher
Although the teacher appears to be sitting at long-distance students have easier access to the teacher in online classes. They can even mail or text the teachers to clear their doubts.
5) Lecture Recording
One of the most important benefits of online classes is that students can watch the lecture as many time as you want until the concept gets crystal clear in thier mind which is impossible in traditional classroom teaching.
6) Plethora of Educational Resources
Another advantage of online education is that there is a plethora of study material such as test papers, books, notes, assignments, worksheets and test modules are available in the database of online academies which you can use and study anywhere and anytime.
Disadvantages of Online Classes
1.) Lack of Concentration
Focusing on the lectures is a big challenge for student particularly for elementary students who get distracted even by a slight change in their environment. They often get distracted by their imagination and stuck in their thoughts while sitting mute during the lectures.
2.) Little or no face-to-face interaction
Another reason for distraction is very little or no face-to-face interaction between students and teacher. It is also quite difficult to develop a cordial relationship between students and instructors because of the lack of face-to-face instructions.
3.) More work
Students taking online classes typically require to do more work in reading and making, assignments and presentations. These tasks may appear small but for elementary students they not less than climbing a mountain.
4.) Self-discipline
Perhaps, this is one of the most crucial skills that have to be taught to students in general and elementary students in particular. Elementary students are not habitual in remembering dates of assignment submission, tests, and attending lectures. Therefore, it is a difficult skill to learn for them which affects thier performance.
5.) Boredom
This is one of the major drawbacks of online education. Children attending online lectures start feeling bored after 20-25 minutes of the commencement of the lecture. This makes the job of the instructor very challenging as he has to keep students engaged and active throughout the lecture.
What is Special About Hakaba Academy?
Being fully aware of the advantages and disadvantages of both traditional elementary education and online education we have pedantically prepared our study modules to include the advantage of styles of teaching. With our hard and careful work, we have been successful in removing the limitations of both online and traditional education.
With our right approach, effective methods and personalized guidance students will be able to get the advantages of either system of education and achieve the set objectives.