Role of Technology in the Preparation of GATE

We all know the role of technology in our day to day lives but we are still not very clear about it’s role in the preparation of exams like GATE. Any new invention or advancement in the world is worth it only if it proves useful for the people who live there and use it. The same goes for technology. Though technology is literally taking over all the existing conventional fields, be it shopping, entertainment, marketing or anything else. Usefulness of technology in the education field, especially in exams like GATE is yet to prove its worth. There is a constant battle of thoughts regarding whether technology can be useful or harmful for serious GATE aspirants. While a complete inclination or switch to digital medium or means of technology may not be a good idea, when it comes to GATE exam preparation strategy, there are still some ways to study smart using the advancements in information technology. Students can go for smart work by saving on hard work using these simple tips to study smart and utilize technology in the most efficient way to prepare for the upcoming GATE exams:

• Strategize your preparation: Use technology wisely in this part of your preparation. Before you start your preparation or even while preparing, if at any point of time you feel doubtful of your approach, you can always use technology like YouTube, blogs and various student platforms to read and know about the strategy that experts suggest, how toppers used to plan their schedule and how they used to You can use platforms like Quora, where innumerable students are connected to know how they used to study, where did they go wrong and how to rectify it. After you are done with the strategy, you can also use technology to learn efficiently.

• Increase the efficiency of your learning: Yes! Technology can do that for you if you use it properly. You can use your smartphone to keep digital copies of your short notes. Whenever you are traveling, in the metro or at any other place where you can utilize even five to ten minutes of your time, you can use them to revisit the technical concepts.

• Study circles/groups: You can form small closed study groups on WhatsApp, Telegram or Facebook to discuss any doubts with your peers that you think are like-minded and as serious aspirants as you are. This may help you to learn things that you could not do yourself and also to discuss doubts among like-minded Sometimes, discussion boosts the thought process of oneself and you may get unconventional and shorter solutions to problems that you could not think of.
• Updates on exams: You can use technology smartly for GATE exam preparation. No one has time to regularly check and find the new job notifications, You can visit the official website of GATEFORUM to get all the updates on upcoming exams and job vacancies and apply for them in time without having to check regularly for all new vacancies.
• Technology in practice: After you have learned and prepared your syllabus for GATE the next logical step that follows is applying your knowledge and practicing for the final exam day. An online test series is the best way to do that. Since it is not feasible to go to a center and appear for mock tests, an online test series gives you the liberty to take tests at the comfort of your home. A good test series, provided by institutes like GATEFORUM helps in value addition to your concepts, along with providing a proper analysis of your existing preparation level.
• Advanced tools in the analysis: After you have successfully taken tests and applied your existing knowledge, it is as important to analyze them properly to gain the maximum form the test-taking Now, imagine if technology would be able to help you out there! That would be fun and interesting, right? Have a look at the following images depicting some tools from GATEFORUM online test series:

The above image represents your marks in comparison with the first 10 toppers that have taken the same test. Apart from all the tools for comparison, you can also have a solution report for each question and also, video solution for the same, which makes learning all the more interesting:

All these tools embedded in GATEFORUM Online Test Series makes it an interesting process altogether. Also, since now test series apps are also available, you do not even need to open your laptop or system every time you want to take tests. Even when you have little time, you can log in and just go through the already taken tests, go through the wrong attempts or learn from the new concepts that you came across while taking tests earlier.

As Christian Lous Lange quoted, “Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master.”, and nothing can be truer when it comes to the usefulness of technology in the education field. Excess of nothing is good. If you can utilize technology in the above said ways and in a controlled manner, you can surely gain and gear up your preparation. But like any other thing, this comes with disadvantages too. To give you a complete picture, here are some factors that you might want to consider before you think of relying completely on digital methods for your GATE exam preparation.

• Procrastination is human nature and hard to avoid. If you enroll for a regular classroom course, a lot of discipline and consistency in the schedule comes from the regularity in classes itself. On the other hand, if you enroll for an online module to prepare for GATE, it becomes tough to maintain the regularity. One cannot afford to procrastinate or delay at any cost.

• Preparing for an exam with a short module through digital means is still justified because there you are required to spend less time studying so you can afford to sit on digital media of learning. If you try to adopt the same for GATE exam preparation, it is very less likely that it would work, because the human body has not yet adapted to the usage of screens so much. This would exhaust your body, mind, reducing your efficiency of learning in a long run. This does not count as smart work at all.

• Losing focus is another issue. You can, for sure use technology in your favor to ensure learning. But then, how do you ensure not losing focus and not wasting time on social media platforms. Any use of information technology is not a smart work if it does more harm than it does good. This is a simple cost-benefit You are not having as many benefits, as you are required to pay the costs.

• The credibility of learning sources is another grave issue that follows in learning through online sources. Not everything on the internet is true. Even faculty imparting lectures they are seldom qualified themselves. They are either aspiring candidate themselves or those who could not successfully clear the exam so switched to teaching. This does not quite happen in regular classroom teaching as answer ability increases.

• Ethics for online learning have not been quite defined yet and pose a serious challenge till date. It is thus very important that you only follow verified and credible sources for any source of learning or even information. When you search for any information on the internet, it is necessary that you check the source where the information is coming from, before you believe it to be true.

In this era of increasing competition, no one can afford to waste time in any sense. Technology is not the solution to 21st-century education, but it surely is a tool to aid learning. As Steve Job quotes, “Technology alone is not enough.” Using technology in the right direction to study smart along with the credible sources of study and right guidance can help you get through GATE exam preparation. Hope these tips to study smart help you in getting through GATE.

Best of Luck !