Technology in education is not optional, but a necessity to build future leaders

Leadership is about self-awareness, self-confidence, and the relentless pursuit of a goal larger than oneself. Schools play a vital role in shaping this leadership from a young age. But is our current education system doing justice?
The normal curve in our current education system labels a few students as ‘above average’, a few as ‘below average’, and a large swathe as ‘average’, leaving many students feeling inadequate, and preventing them from discovering their true capabilities. This creates a lack of self-confidence and self-belief, which are key ingredients for leadership!
This is where technology can play a critical role! Yes, technology can help shape leaders! It can help every child make progress, experience success, and build self-confidence. Today the adoption of technology in education is not optional, but has become a necessity to build future leaders. Technology makes education accessible and personalised; and empowers all school stakeholders, including teachers and parents.
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A teacher in a 40-student classroom struggles to reach every child. But technology can assist the teacher to ensure every child is progressing. For instance, a student struggling with specific Mathematical concepts can be assigned additional support through AI-powered learning tools, while more advanced learners can be assigned more challenging material . Technologies like PIE are making this possible.
Artificial Intelligence can help every child learn how to read and speak English, which is critical for them to comprehend the world around them and express themselves confidently. Teachers can assign reading tasks to their students to read at their pace and build pronunciation, vocabulary and reading fluency – something difficult to achieve in traditional classrooms.
Technologies like IRA are now making this personalised reading fluency possible for every child through ‘Read to Me’ and ‘I will read’ modes. In short, Technology can reach every child in a way that traditional education cannot. And when students experience success, they are motivated to work harder and go farther.
One of the biggest challenges in education is engaging students, especially when teaching complex concepts in a typical class strength of 40 where students have different grasping abilities. Technology helps solve this by incorporating multimodal learning methods such as interactive and immersive digital resources, video lessons, and hands-on activities to transform abstract topics into tangible, understandable lessons, thereby making learning come alive in the classroom. Augmented Reality helps students visualise and explore difficult concepts. This not only enhances conceptual understanding, but also fosters curiosity, creativity and critical thinking—all essential traits for future leaders.
Teachers play a crucial role in shaping leadership skills, and technology significantly enhances their ability to do so. Technology empowers teachers to track every child’s progress in real time, without going through numerous lists, answer sheets and homework notebooks.
Technology can assist a teacher in identifying students who need remedial support and concepts that need to be retaught. Technology also helps reduce administrative tasks for teachers, such as grading or tracking homework, freeing them to spend more time engaging students. With the help of integrated technology systems, schools can drive consistent quality in every classroom; and monitor and track both teacher progress and student progress.
Parents play a vital role in their child’s education, and technology makes it easier for them to stay informed and engaged. Digital tools can help parents not only monitor their child’s growth, but also identify their interests, skills and future career pathways. Technology can make high quality career counseling accessible and affordable to every child.
Technology is not only a tool to help every child succeed, but also a skill that every student should learn. AI, Coding and Computational Thinking are essential skills for the future, and teaching students these subjects helps them become innovators, not just consumers of technology. By learning how to build apps and code software, or by understanding AI, students gain critical thinking and problem-solving skills that prepare them for leadership roles in a technology-driven world. These skills will be crucial for leaders of tomorrow, who will need to navigate and shape an increasingly complex digital landscape. If schools, teachers and parents use technology to empower themselves and make students creators of technology, then we can create leaders of the future.
(Author Sumeet Mehta is CEO and Co-Founder of LEAD Group. Views expressed here are personal.)