How technology and play can power high-quality learning in schools.

Education systems around the world will need to evolve to better meet the needs of a rapidly evolving economy and society.

Unfortunately, many education systems remain outdated - designed for old industry models and societies of the past. In addition, national economic reform often prioritizes upskilling the current labor market to transfer between jobs, in both old and emerging industries, rather than investing in the future of our economy by reforming the education system.

While traditional education metrics of literacy and numeracy are vital, society also requires learners to have a range of holistic skills to thrive in the modern world. These include creative, technology, innovation and interpersonal skills. And today, these skills and knowledge need to be acquired in a more accessible, personalized and active way than ever before.

The amount spent globally on education technology is expected to increase approximately $342 billion by 2025 as EdTech is globally considered as a viable way to address increasing and changing learning demands.

Technology can support classrooms, schools and education systems to evolve at the pace required to better serve learners in 2020. However, the U.K.'s Education Endowment Foundation stresses that technology itself is unlikely to improve young people's learning. Many EdTech solutions and services simply digitize old ways of working, re-enforcing rote learning and other practices more suited to the past.

These practices rarely support the development of skills and knowledge in an effective and engaging way. This challenge is sometimes referred to as the race between technology and education, where education either tries to catch up and capitalize on advances in technology or technology enslaves education into learning paradigms of the past by digitizing old ways of working.

In parallel, research has repeatedly underscored that learning through play has a critical role in education and in preparing children for challenges and opportunities throughout their lives. A growing body of evidence supports learning through play as fundamental for children's positive development, serving as an essential way to foster a range of holistic skills required to thrive in today's world. Thinking deeply about how to apply what makes a quality playful experience to technology (including EdTech) solutions can provide a powerful lens to ensuring that the technology or the technology experience provides a mechanism or context...