Elucidating the Role of Smart Technologies in Redesigning Teaching–Learning Processes in Twenty-First-Century Schools

Abstract

This study aims to systematically explain the role of smart technologies in redesigning the structures and functions of teaching–learning processes in twenty-first-century schools. This qualitative review study adopted a theoretical content analysis approach. Fifteen relevant peer-reviewed articles were purposefully selected through systematic literature search in major scientific databases. Data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis through open, axial, and selective coding. NVivo 14 software was employed to organize and manage the analytical process, and data collection and analysis continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. The results indicate that smart technologies have fundamentally transformed educational processes by shifting instruction toward learner-centered approaches, strengthening personalized learning, enhancing active engagement, redefining the teacher’s role, promoting experiential learning, and redesigning assessment systems toward formative and data-driven models. Furthermore, the development of smart learning ecosystems, digital school leadership, teachers’ professional development, and digital educational equity emerged as major organizational and cultural outcomes of this transformation. Smart technologies have restructured traditional educational foundations and established a new framework for effective, sustainable, and future-oriented education, requiring integrated educational policies and strategic planning.