doi: 10.56294/dm2024.602
SYSTEMATIC REVIEW
Internet of Things in Education: Transforming Learning Environments, Enhancing Pedagogy, and Optimizing Resource Management
El Internet de las Cosas en la Educación: Transformación de Entornos de Aprendizaje, Fortalecimiento Pedagógico y Optimización de Recursos
Badr MACHKOUR1
*, Ahmed ABRIANE1 *
1Faculty of Law, Economics, and Social Sciences of Agadir, Ibn Zohr University. Agadir, Morocco.
Cite as: MACHKOUR B, ABRIANE A. Internet of Things in Education: Transforming Learning Environments, Enhancing Pedagogy, and Optimizing Resource Management. Data and Metadata. 2024;3:.602.https://doi.org/10.56294/dm2024.602
Submitted: 15-05-2024 Revised: 12-09-2024 Accepted: 21-12-2024 Published: 22-12-2024
Editor:
Adrián Alejandro Vitón Castillo
Corresponding author: Badr MACHKOUR *
ABSTRACT
In the educational sector, Internet of Things (IoT) is poised to redefine learning environments by facilitating interactive and personalized experiences tailored to individual learner needs. Additionally, it offers transformative solutions for managing educational infrastructures, optimizing resources, and enhancing administrative efficiency. This study provides a comprehensive examination of IoT’s development, definitions, and emerging trends, with a specific focus on its applications within the educational domain. Utilizing a methodological framework based on an analysis of academic literature, the research traces the evolution of IoT-related studies and assesses its implications for teaching and learning. The findings reveal a significant surge in IoT-related publications since 2010, underscoring its applicability across diverse sectors, including education. In this context, IoT technologies are shown to enrich learning experiences by offering adaptive, student-centered approaches while improving the operational efficiency of educational institutions. Despite its transformative potential, the study also highlights persistent challenges, such as technical limitations, data privacy concerns, and ethical considerations, which require careful attention to ensure responsible and equitable implementation. As IoT adoption continues to expand, the research underscores its potential to reshape the educational landscape and contribute to a more connected and technologically advanced future.
Keywords: Internet Of Things (Iot); Communication Technologies; Education; Training.
RESUMEN
En el ámbito educativo, el Internet de las Cosas (IoT) se perfila como una herramienta clave para redefinir los entornos de aprendizaje, facilitando experiencias interactivas y personalizadas adaptadas a las necesidades individuales de los estudiantes. Asimismo, ofrece soluciones transformadoras para la gestión de infraestructuras educativas, la optimización de recursos y la mejora de la eficiencia administrativa. Este estudio presenta un examen exhaustivo del desarrollo, las definiciones y las tendencias emergentes del IoT, con un enfoque específico en sus aplicaciones dentro del sector educativo. A través de un marco metodológico basado en el análisis de literatura académica, la investigación traza la evolución de los estudios relacionados con el IoT y evalúa sus implicaciones para la enseñanza y el aprendizaje. Los hallazgos revelan un incremento significativo en las publicaciones sobre IoT desde 2010, lo que subraya su aplicabilidad en diversos sectores, incluida la educación. En este contexto, las tecnologías del IoT demuestran su capacidad para enriquecer las experiencias de aprendizaje mediante enfoques adaptativos y centrados en el estudiante, al tiempo que mejoran la eficiencia operativa de las instituciones educativas. A pesar de su potencial transformador, el estudio destaca desafíos persistentes, como las limitaciones técnicas, las preocupaciones sobre la privacidadde los datos y las consideraciones éticas, que requieren atención cuidadosa para garantizar una implementación responsable y equitativa. A medida que la adopción del IoT continúa expandiéndose, la investigación resalta su potencial para remodelar el panorama educativo y contribuir a un futuro más conectado y tecnológicamente avanzado.
Palabras clave: Internet de las Cosas; Tecnologías de la Comunicación; Educación; Formación.
INTRODUCTION
The Internet of Things (IoT) represents a seminal advancement in contemporary digital ecosystems, seamlessly integrating physical objects, sensors, and data streams into the global information network. By enabling remote monitoring, dynamic control, and the continuous exchange of real-time data, IoT has fostered innovative services and applications that can be enriched through their integration with other online data sources.(1) This far-reaching technological evolution, propelled by the proliferation of cutting-edge wireless communications technologies such as Wi-Fi, 4G, and 5G, positions IoT at the vanguard of the ongoing transformation toward ubiquitous, pervasive connectivity.(2) In this context, the post-2010 Internet, often referred to as the “fifth generation,” encapsulates both IoT and the emerging paradigms of Web 3.0, effectively transcending traditional spatial constraints and ensuring that objects remain seamlessly linked to the online environment irrespective of their geographical location.(3)
Although current estimates indicate that merely 20 % of everyday objects are connected to the Internet, the prospective expansion of IoT networks is staggering, with forecasts projecting approximately 75 billion new interconnected devices by 2025.(4) This exponential growth extends well beyond industrial and commercial sectors: IoT is progressively permeating diverse domains, including education and training, where it holds extraordinary potential to enhance the efficiency, accessibility, and inclusivity of learning experiences. By offering unprecedented analytical insights, real-time feedback, and personalized learning pathways, IoT solutions contribute to the creation of rich educational ecosystems, ultimately reshaping pedagogical strategies and enabling more engaging, student-centered environments.
In this evolving landscape, the integration of IoT within education is not merely a question of optimizing teaching processes or bolstering administrative systems. It also involves a critical reassessment of existing pedagogical frameworks and the development of forward-looking strategies that anticipate emerging trends and systematically harness new capabilities. As educational institutions strive to remain agile and responsive amidst rapid technological changes, they face complex questions regarding the effective implementation, sustainable management, and long-term impact of IoT-based solutions. The interplay between technological innovation and pedagogical practice thus necessitates a refined understanding of both opportunities and challenges associated with IoT’s educational integration.
To address these multifaceted issues, this study conducts a comprehensive literature review aimed at synthesizing existing knowledge, identifying best practices, and illuminating pathways for future inquiry. The corpus of analyzed articles, spanning the period from 2015 to 2024, derives from reputable, indexed scientific databases. The search methodology employed targeted keywords — “Industry 4.0,” “Internet of Things,” and “education”— to ensure that the resultant literature set is both relevant and methodologically robust. Through this scholarly examination, the present work endeavors to provide nuanced insights into IoT’s educational implications, distill critical success factors and offer informed guidance for stakeholders seeking to maximize its transformational potential.
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
The notion of the Internet of Things (IoT) was first introduced by (5), and it subsequently gained significant momentum in the early 2000s, especially after the publication of the 2005 International Telecommunication Union (ITU) report, which underscored its transformative potential. Since then, IoT’s conceptual boundaries have expanded markedly. Although alternative terminologies—such as the “Internet of Everything,” designed to highlight the broader integration of people, data, and processes, or “Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Communication,” which emphasizes autonomous device-level interactions—occasionally appear in scholarly and industrial discourse, “Internet of Things” remains the predominant and most coherent descriptor.(6) This term’s persistence stems from its versatility, clarity, and resonance across a wide range of academic, commercial, and policy-making spheres, thereby steering ongoing debates and influencing the strategic direction of technological innovation.
Definitions and Trends of the Internet of Things
The IoT paradigm can be broadly construed as a dynamic and continuously evolving ecosystem that integrates heterogeneous devices, objects, and systems capable of sensing, computing, and communicating with minimal direct human intervention. Its defining feature lies in the convergence of physical and digital realms, enabling the seamless movement of data and intelligence across domains. By extending beyond mere interconnection of devices, the IoT concept encapsulates complex interactions involving various stakeholders: not only objects and machines but also humans, algorithms, and broader socio-technical networks. In this vein, the “Internet of Everything” emerges as a conceptual extension, positing an even more inclusive framework that underscores interactions among individuals, smart devices, and data-driven processes. Other related constructs, such as the “Web of Things,” emphasize adherence to standardized web protocols, thereby simplifying cross-object communication, while the “Network of Everything” aspires to achieve a comprehensive, harmonized environment in which diverse systems can interact and interoperate seamlessly on a global scale.(7)
Despite IoT’s pervasive presence in both academic literature and industrial practice, the absence of a universally accepted definition reflects its intrinsic complexity and multidimensionality. Most conceptualizations converge on the idea of a distributed infrastructure that integrates sensor-equipped, context-aware, and often autonomous devices capable of collecting, transmitting, and analyzing information. Within this flexible framework, IoT-enabled objects can independently make decisions tailored to specific contexts, effectively bridging physical and virtual landscapes.(8,9) A rich variety of enabling technologies underpins this ecosystem: from inexpensive sensors and radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags to embedded microcontrollers, cloud computing platforms, big data analytics, and advanced network protocols. Taken collectively, these technologies allow for the seamless delivery of an increasingly diverse array of services and applications, ranging from predictive maintenance in manufacturing to personalized healthcare, environmental monitoring, and beyond.(10)
As the IoT continues to mature, predictions underscore an unprecedented expansion in its scale and scope. By 2024, billions of devices—ranging from household appliances and consumer wearables to industrial machinery and urban infrastructure—are expected to be embedded within a complex informational lattice, facilitating real-time data exchange and analysis across numerous sectors.(11) In this holistic interpretation, the IoT can be perceived as a constellation of interconnected nodes capable of autonomously responding to human needs, frequently without the necessity for active human control.(6) Each node, equipped with sensors to track environmental parameters (e.g., temperature, light, pressure, sound), becomes a source of actionable intelligence. Such nodes can selectively transmit raw or processed data to various endpoints — cloud servers, mobile devices, or other objects — to orchestrate decision-making processes that streamline operations, enhance user experiences, and, ultimately, generate value with minimal oversight.(9,11)
Within this digital tapestry, IoT technologies do more than merely enable remote control or data collection: they endow ordinary objects with the capacity to “observe” their surroundings, “listen” to relevant cues, “evaluate” incoming data streams, and “interact” productively with other entities in the network.(7,12) This reconfiguration of ordinary objects into agents of information production and exchange converges with the vision of an interconnected, adaptive, and self-regulating environment. In such environments, devices and systems collaborate fluidly, forging continuous communication loops that adjust dynamically to changing conditions, demands, and constraints.(13) The emergent property of such networks is a form of collective intelligence that may influence organizational strategies, inform public policies, and guide the development of new business models.
Moreover, the IoT paradigm is inherently pluralistic with regard to communication patterns and interaction modes. Beyond M2M communication—which frequently involves automated data exchanges between sensor-equipped devices—IoT ecosystems incorporate device-to-device (D2D) linkages, as well as human-to-machine (H2M) interfaces that empower users to interact directly with networked systems and receive meaningful feedback.(10) Such layers of interaction extend further, encompassing human-to-human, human-to-object, and object-to-object channels. Each mode supports distinct operational and communicative functions, enabling the IoT to transcend traditional application boundaries and infiltrate a wide array of domains including manufacturing (Industrial IoT), healthcare (Internet of Medical Things), smart cities, agricultural monitoring, education, and beyond. This multifaceted connectivity and the resultant capacity for rapid innovation, adaptation, and scaling collectively position IoT as a transformative paradigm that continues to redefine technological landscapes and socio-economic prospects in the contemporary digital era.
Technical Aspects and Communication Technologies
Contemporary IoT deployments hinge on a suite of technologies that facilitate precise, uninterrupted connectivity among countless networked objects. Central to these deployments are advanced sensing mechanisms, including RFID sensors and associated tags. Such components provide granular item-level visibility, ascribing unique identifiers to physical objects and thereby enabling their seamless communication and management through digital interfaces.(14) The use of Electronic Product Codes (EPC), for instance, allows the unambiguous recognition, monitoring, and integration of diverse assets into broader IoT ecosystems. As a result, data about each item—its origin, condition, and location—can be effortlessly shared across multiple platforms, ensuring a coherent and context-rich information environment.
The connectivity backbone that supports these intricate networks draws from a wide array of communication protocols and standards. Traditional technologies like Bluetooth and Wi-Fi continue to underpin localized or mid-range interactions, proving indispensable in controlled environments such as homes, office spaces, and retail stores. However, the more recent advent of 5G cellular networks has profoundly altered the IoT landscape. By furnishing ultra-reliable, low-latency connections and supporting massive device densities, 5G paves the way for large-scale, real-time operations. This leap in connectivity not only accelerates data exchange and reduces response times but also enables next-generation applications in sectors like healthcare (e.g., remote patient monitoring), manufacturing (e.g., predictive maintenance of assembly lines), and urban planning (e.g., real-time traffic management in smart cities).(12)
Source: Gartner (2023)
Figure 1. Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies(15)
This evolution toward increasingly resilient and sophisticated IoT infrastructures is reflected in Gartner’s 2023 Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies (figure 1). Having evolved beyond the initial “Peak of Inflated Expectations,” IoT technology now resides at the “Plateau of Productivity.” This shift signifies those earlier obstacles—including vulnerabilities in security frameworks, technical fragmentation between heterogeneous systems, and difficulties in cost-effective scalability—are being systematically addressed. As these foundational issues recede, market-ready implementations that emphasize tangible returns on investment have come to the fore. Whether streamlining supply chains, optimizing energy use in production facilities, or enabling more responsive public services, IoT deployments now consistently demonstrate measurable improvements in efficiency, cost management, and resource utilization.
The deepening maturity of IoT is closely intertwined with parallel advancements in complementary domains. Robust communication infrastructures intersect with cutting-edge data analytics, intelligent automation, and AI-driven insights to create a technology stack capable of extracting actionable knowledge from raw sensor data. This integrated approach empowers organizations to anticipate operational bottlenecks, refine strategic planning, and continuously adapt to evolving market conditions. By integrating IoT data with machine learning algorithms, enterprises can detect subtle anomalies, predict maintenance needs before failures occur, and tailor services to individual user profiles—processes that would be prohibitively complex or time-consuming without AI-driven inference.
As a consequence, IoT’s presence at the “Plateau of Productivity” signals a fundamental paradigm shift: enterprises no longer view IoT as an experimental add-on but as a core element of their long-term operational and strategic frameworks. Decision-makers allocate resources to IoT projects with confidence, emboldened by proven best practices, clearer regulatory guidelines, and standardized technologies that facilitate interoperability. The emphasis has moved from merely connecting devices to generating sustained business value—improving customer satisfaction, refining decision-making processes, and forecasting emerging market opportunities. In doing so, organizations across manufacturing, logistics, energy, healthcare, and beyond are not only realizing concrete benefits in the present but are also positioning themselves to capture future value as IoT technologies continue to evolve and reshape the contours of the global digital economy.
Domains of the Internet of Things Utilization
The Internet of Things (IoT) constitutes a transformative paradigm that is redefining the organizational and operational contours of contemporary telecommunication systems, while simultaneously permeating a growing number of sectors.(16) Its scope extends well beyond basic connectivity: IoT fosters integrative frameworks in which physical objects, sensors, computational intelligence, and network services coalesce into intricate, data-driven ecosystems. As a result, IoT-enabled solutions are positioned to generate significant socio-economic benefits, enrich user experiences, and streamline resource management across a diverse range of application areas.(11)
Increasingly sophisticated IoT deployments underpin processes in home automation, digital healthcare, energy and water governance, agricultural optimization, environmental stewardship, smart metering, urban systems engineering, industrial control, security protocols, emergency operations, commerce, and logistics. In each of these contexts, networked sensors serve as the linchpins, continuously harvesting real-time data—often aggregated into substantial “Big Data” repositories—and propelling iterative refinements in decision-making and operations. This wealth of sensor-driven information, when subjected to advanced machine learning models and cloud-based analytics, fuels predictive insights, operational agility, and continuous improvement.(11) In manufacturing, for instance, IoT components form the bedrock of “Industry 4.0,” a framework emphasizing interconnected production lines, digital twins, and cyber-physical systems capable of rapid adaptation. Smart factories embed IoT sensors into machinery and workflows, enabling predictive maintenance, waste minimization, and precision resource allocation. Similarly, in utility management, smart meters and intelligent grids empower stakeholders to optimize energy distribution, calibrate consumption to demand patterns, and enhance the sustainability and resilience of critical infrastructures.(10) Such intelligent resource coordination directly translates to cost savings, environmental responsibility, and heightened reliability.
The influence of IoT also manifests in more quotidian environments, permeating domestic spheres and weaving technology seamlessly into daily life.(16) Household appliances, personal devices, and infrastructure components—ranging from refrigerators and entertainment systems to thermostats, lighting fixtures, and network routers— are now equipped with wireless interfaces and sensor technologies. These embedded capabilities enable real-time communication among objects, allowing them to respond dynamically to evolving conditions. For instance, climate control systems may synchronize with local weather forecasts, traffic updates, and calendar events, ensuring that home occupants experience enhanced comfort, reduced energy expenditure, and smoothly orchestrated schedules.
IoT’s versatile attributes also reinforce innovations in agriculture and environmental management. In precision agriculture, IoT sensors embedded in soil, irrigation systems, and greenhouses continuously assess humidity, nutrient composition, and other ecological parameters. These inputs inform automated adjustments to irrigation, fertilization, and ventilation, maintaining optimal growth conditions and improving crop yields while conserving essential resources.(8) In urban contexts, the deployment of sensor arrays throughout transportation networks, waste management systems, and public safety corridors create “smart city” environments. By aggregating data on traffic flow, air quality, noise pollution, and structural integrity, urban planners and municipal authorities can enact evidence-based policies, prevent bottlenecks, enhance public safety, and improve citizens’ quality of life.
As IoT technologies and their supportive infrastructures mature, their influence inevitably expands into new domains. Healthcare professionals leverage wearable devices and remote patient monitoring solutions to track vital signs, deliver personalized treatment regimens, and reduce the burden on medical facilities. Logistics operators embrace IoT-based tracking systems to manage inventories, anticipate supply chain disruptions, and refine last-mile delivery efficiency. Environmental scientists employ IoT sensor networks to monitor biodiversity, track pollution sources, and formulate strategies for climate resilience.
In essence, IoT’s ubiquity and adaptability render it a key enabler of data-centric innovation, agile decision-making, and sustainable development. By integrating machine intelligence, big data analytics, and advanced communication protocols, IoT ecosystems not only elevate the capabilities of disparate sectors but also generate synergistic value across the economic and social fabric. As stakeholders increasingly recognize these advantages, IoT stands poised to play a pivotal role in shaping resilient, resource-efficient, and forward-looking infrastructures that can adapt to the evolving challenges of the twenty-first century.
The Internet of Technology in Traditional Education and Training
While the Internet of Things (IoT) has rapidly established its value across fields such as healthcare, transportation, logistics, and energy systems, its penetration into conventional educational settings remains comparatively limited. Despite this relative infancy, recent scholarly assessments forecast a substantive integration of IoT within academic institutions—particularly at the higher education level—over the next two to three years.(17) This incipient phase of adoption reflects growing awareness that IoT’s capacity for real-time data generation, resource optimization, environmental monitoring, and enhanced security measures can substantially improve educational quality, cost-effectiveness, and institutional resilience.
Empirical investigations and pilot initiatives have begun to elucidate the specific benefits IoT might confer on both teaching and learning infrastructures. For instance, sensor-equipped environments can continuously capture and analyze parameters such as temperature, humidity, air quality, and illumination. This capability allows administrators to fine-tune heating, ventilation, and lighting systems, thereby creating healthful, energy-efficient indoor climates that bolster student engagement and satisfaction. In addition, IoT-based surveillance and alarm systems can be deployed to safeguard campuses against potential threats, ensuring that students and staff members inhabit secure learning spaces.(7) Beyond these operational improvements, the data harvested by IoT devices—when combined with predictive analytics—can furnish educators and policy-makers with actionable insights, enabling them to tailor learning environments to evolving academic and administrative needs.
Economically, the potential impact of IoT in education is striking. Projections suggest that IoT-driven strategies may yield a global net value of approximately $175 billion in this sector over the coming decade.(18) Key sources of this added value stem from more judicious allocation of resources, dynamic management of educational materials, and strategic oversight of campus facilities. By intelligently adjusting HVAC and lighting systems based on occupancy patterns and schedules, institutions can realize substantial energy savings, allocate financial resources more effectively, and reinvest cost reductions into academic priorities such as expanded digital libraries, professional development, or advanced pedagogical tools. Such enhancements directly address long-standing appeals in educational policy literature for increased financial prudence, infrastructural adaptability, and sustainable resource utilization.
Although the current level of IoT deployment in educational and training contexts remains modest, pioneering initiatives are beginning to showcase the long-term potential of these technologies. Early experiments, for example, involve sensor-based evaluation of classroom conditions, correlating environmental variables with student performance metrics. Such insights enable instructors and curriculum designers to identify subtle factors influencing attentiveness, retention, and knowledge transfer. Over time, these findings could guide the refinement of pedagogical approaches, fostering learning environments that respond dynamically to learners’ cognitive and emotional states. This adaptability holds particular promise for inclusive education, where IoT data could be leveraged to support diverse learning preferences and identify early signs of disengagement or underperformance.
Envisioned on a broader scale, the systematic incorporation of IoT technologies stands poised to deliver a transformative effect on educational ecosystems. In conjunction with advanced analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, IoT-driven frameworks can supply real-time feedback loops that adjust curricula, allocate resources based on emergent needs, and streamline administrative workflows. Moreover, these intelligent systems could underpin the development of more equitable educational models, extending high-quality instruction and supportive services to learners in remote or under-resourced communities. As institutions gradually transition from experimental pilots to integrated, long-term adoption strategies, IoT is likely to reshape the contours of educational practice, establishing new standards for efficiency, inclusivity, and evidence-driven decision-making that respond to the evolving challenges of a digital age.
Benefits of IoT in Education and Training
The infusion of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies into educational contexts heralds a profound shift in both pedagogical practice and institutional strategy. Rather than remaining tethered to fixed spaces, timeframes, and standard-issue materials, teaching and learning are becoming increasingly nimble, integrative, and data-informed.(19) By enabling seamless access to digital courses and interactive content on any connected device, IoT diminishes the constraints of geography and traditional timetables, fostering a more learner-centric paradigm. Students are no longer confined to static print resources and instructor-led lessons; instead, they can engage with adaptive and contextually relevant educational materials that evolve in response to their cognitive progress, interests, and performance trajectories. This digital dynamism not only enriches students’ experiences but also supports a more inclusive, personalized approach to education, accommodating diverse learning profiles, paces, and preferences.
Central to this transformation is the emergence of “smart schools” and “smart classrooms,” which operationalize IoT’s capacity to reconfigure the learning environment. In these enhanced settings, connectivity does not merely mean better internet access; it signifies an ecosystem of interlinked devices and platforms that harmonize instructional delivery, assessment, and feedback loops. For example, interactive displays, sensor-enabled seating arrangements, and IoT-integrated educational applications invite students to participate actively rather than passively consume content. Such an environment encourages student agency, curiosity, and collaboration, ultimately heightening engagement and motivation.
Beyond enhancing student experiences, IoT augments institutional agility. Mobile learning opportunities have expanded exponentially, enabling learners to study at their own pace and in diverse contexts, ranging from traditional classrooms to remote field sites. This flexibility proves particularly beneficial for non-traditional learners, working professionals, and geographically dispersed cohorts, who can now access high-quality instruction without the logistical constraints of physical attendance. Simultaneously, the continuous data streams generated by IoT devices inform educators and administrators about individual and collective learning curves, resource consumption patterns, and infrastructural needs. Real-time analytics empower decision-makers to refine curricula, target pedagogical interventions, reallocate instructional materials efficiently, and maintain educational spaces attuned to student well-being.
Operational improvements further underscore IoT’s value. By automating routine administrative tasks—such as recording attendance, managing inventories of educational materials, or adjusting environmental controls—IoT-enabled systems liberate instructors and support staff from time-consuming manual duties. This reallocation of effort frees educators to focus more intensively on teaching quality, student mentorship, and the development of innovative course designs. The enhanced accuracy and immediacy of IoT-generated feedback also strengthen assessment methodologies. Rather than relying solely on static, end-of-term evaluations, instructors can integrate ongoing, formative assessments that yield granular insights into student understanding, allowing for timely corrective measures and more nuanced mastery of learning outcomes.
IoT’s broader contributions to educational advancement extend beyond logistics and efficiency. It lays the groundwork for more experiential, immersive learning modalities. For instance, integrated virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) systems can create simulated laboratories, historical reenactments, or complex engineering scenarios in which students can experiment, hypothesize, and learn through direct engagement with virtual representations of real-world phenomena. These technologically enriched experiences deepen conceptual understanding, foster critical thinking, and cultivate problem-solving skills that are indispensable for success in a rapidly evolving global economy.
Security and well-being also benefit from IoT deployments. Sensor networks and intelligent surveillance systems can detect unauthorized intrusions, monitor environmental hazards, and promptly issue alerts in case of emergencies. Ensuring that learners inhabit safe and stable environments enhances institutional reputation and strengthens the trust relationship between families, students, and educational providers.
Finally, IoT nurtures a culture of responsive leadership and data-driven governance in education. Administrators and policymakers gain unprecedented visibility into operational metrics, allowing them to forecast resource demands, identify inefficiencies, and prioritize strategic initiatives based on empirical evidence. This capacity to adapt and innovate in near-real time positions educational systems to remain resilient amid shifting pedagogical theories, technological disruptions, and societal expectations.(20) As IoT technologies continue to mature, their integration into education and training will likely drive more sophisticated personalization, improved learning outcomes, and a sustained alignment of educational practices with the demands of a knowledge-driven.
Applications of the Internet of Things in Education and Training
The progressive infusion of the Internet of Things (IoT) into educational landscapes is gradually reshaping conventional pedagogical models, augmenting both the utility and the richness of learning environments. By strategically deploying sensors, actuators, and connected devices across university infrastructures — be they classrooms, libraries, laboratories, studios, or sports facilities — institutions can bridge the gap between physical and digital realms, creating a dynamic interplay that enriches knowledge acquisition and resource management. In essence, IoT transforms educational spaces from static, predetermined settings into highly adaptive, data-driven ecosystems capable of evolving in accordance with learners’ needs, institutional priorities, and emerging academic paradigms.
One noteworthy outcome of these IoT-driven transformations lies in the creation of “smart” educational contexts. Interactive whiteboards, sensor-equipped educational games, robotic learning companions, and networked learning platforms can collectively produce immersive experiences far surpassing the traditional lecture model. In practice, these tools foster increased student agency, encouraging learners to engage actively and participate in problem-solving rather than passively consume information. Moreover, the power of IoT extends to personalization: learner profiles can be seamlessly integrated with particular zones of campus—such as specific library sections, media resource hubs, or fitness areas—allowing immediate, contextually relevant access to academic content or specialized equipment through mobile devices. Within libraries, IoT-based tracking systems not only help monitor attendance patterns and reading behaviors but also enable librarians and administrators to derive actionable insights that inform the strategic curation of collections and targeted improvements in service delivery.(14) Such intelligent allocation of resources results in both operational efficiencies and an elevation of the learner experience.(6,13)
As the potential benefits become more evident, educational institutions increasingly adopt IoT-enabled solutions to foster cohesive, responsive, and secure academic environments. Conventional assets—whiteboards, surveillance systems, locks, and laboratory instruments—gain heightened functionality through embedding sensors and integrating wireless connectivity. Campus-wide connectivity, paired with IoT-equipped ID cards, supports real-time attendance monitoring, granular resource tracking, and streamlined equipment borrowing processes. Similarly, advanced 3D printers and environmental control systems adjusted via IoT devices allow for flexible, user-oriented learning setups.(21,22,23) The cumulative impact of these enhancements is profound: teaching quality improves through heightened interactivity; resource allocation becomes more evidence-based and efficient; and the learning ecosystem attains greater inclusivity, accommodating diverse learners and learning styles.
Beyond the brick-and-mortar confines of institutional campuses, IoT’s influence also reverberates within open and distance learning (ODL) frameworks. Although this domain remains relatively underexplored, emerging initiatives demonstrate IoT’s potential to strengthen remote education. By providing tools for the continuous monitoring of student engagement in digital environments, IoT helps educators identify difficulties early, adapt learning pathways in real time, and personalize content delivery. Virtual classrooms, fortified with IoT-enabled devices, can support immersive simulations, interactive laboratories, and asynchronous discussion forums enriched by data analytics. This approach particularly benefits the so-called “IoT Generation,” students who are not only comfortable with digital connectivity but expect real-time, intuitive interactions that mirror the immediacy of face-to-face instruction.
Nonetheless, the strategic application of IoT to ODL is still unfolding. Future research directions may focus on refining robust IoT infrastructures that facilitate low-latency streaming, reliable data capture, and resilient data privacy measures—qualities essential for scaling such innovations. Additionally, investigating how to best utilize IoT-collected data for predictive analytics could inform adaptive learning algorithms, enhance personalized feedback, and support a variety of instructional designs that transcend geographical barriers and time zones. As these developments mature, and as educational institutions become more adept at weaving IoT capabilities into their broader strategic visions, the nature of education itself stands to be reimagined. Traditional notions of the classroom or campus will increasingly give way to fluid, hybrid learning ecosystems that prioritize experiential, personalized, and data-informed pedagogies. In this evolving paradigm, IoT emerges as a crucial lever for educational transformation, enabling institutions to refine their instructional missions, continuously adapt to societal and technological changes, and ultimately broaden the horizons of global learning opportunities.
CONCLUSION
The Internet of Things (IoT) has emerged as a transformative force, reshaping how knowledge is produced, resources are managed, and strategic decisions are made across various sectors. Within education, IoT presents unprecedented opportunities to redefine learning environments through personalized instruction, efficient resource allocation, and data-driven decision-making processes. Its integration with Artificial Intelligence (AI) further enhances its impact, enabling real-time analytics, adaptive learning systems, and improved institutional operations, which collectively contribute to more dynamic and inclusive educational ecosystems.
Despite its immense potential, IoT’s adoption must navigate a range of challenges, including data privacy, ethical concerns, and interoperability across diverse systems. Addressing these obstacles requires coordinated efforts among researchers, educators, policymakers, and industry leaders. Establishing robust governance frameworks, harmonized technical standards, and transparent policy mechanisms will be essential to ensuring responsible deployment.
In essence, IoT embodies both opportunity and complexity. As it becomes increasingly integrated into daily life and educational practices, its influence extends beyond technological innovation to shape societal norms and values. To fully harness its transformative potential, stakeholders must adopt interdisciplinary approaches, prioritize ethical considerations, and foster collaboration. In doing so, IoT will not only address the pressing needs of today but also lay the foundation for a more sustainable, equitable, and innovative future.
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FINANCING
No financing.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
AUTHORSHIP CONTRIBUTION
Conceptualization: Badr MACHKOUR and Ahmed ABRIANE.
Investigation: Badr MACHKOUR and Ahmed ABRIANE.
Methodology: Badr MACHKOUR and Ahmed ABRIANE.
Writing - original draft: Badr MACHKOUR and Ahmed ABRIANE.
Writing - review and editing: Badr MACHKOUR and Ahmed ABRIANE.