I was educated in the province. The skills that I acquired were inferior as compared to students who took up education courses in the city. I was trained to copy lectures on the board because of insufficient book supplies. There was even a time when a semester ended and yet my professor had just barely finished the first 2 chapters of the book. I was able to view cells on large charts and drawings; witnessed chemical reactions taking place on the board; studied human anatomy through imagination. Worst of all, in one of my major subjects which I only attended once, I got a 1.5 final grade.
This is what education is in the countryside. It is a far cry from what the modern educators view education as it should be. The scenario is so depressing that while the world inevitably advances, there lurks in remote places, an educational institution that deteriorates more than it progresses. As research shows, education is revolutionizing in other parts of the world, and soon this educational revolution could reach the remote places I am referring to.
In fact, the Philippines is girding to prepare its educators for this unstoppable change. The Department of Education now promotes the integration of technology in class learning activities. It couldn't be denied however that the campaign is generally a failure. In the global community, technology indeed shows significant contribution in the teaching-learning process, as findings of many researchers would have it. But I cast doubt, considering the many technicalities in the coming paradigm, that in the third world country like the Philippines, similar results will be gleaned. Not that I don't trust the curriculum experts but because of the stark fact that we, teachers, are caught unprepared for it.
Yet the world is advancing, and there is nowhere for us, teachers, to go but to adjust our sails along with the hard-blowing wind of change so that we won't be absolutely sunken in the ocean of ignorance and mediocrity. The ringing challenge therefore posed to all teachers - tenured and neophytes - is to "learn once more how to learn."
LEARNING HOW TO LEARN
I believe that the proper use of technology is the driving force so that expected outcomes can be achieved successfully. Many teachers are cyberphobic, perennial and traditional. The notion that they would be leaving their shells in favor of a practice they are not accustomed to would pose a major problem for the school. Try to go to a school and randomly ask if how many teachers are knowledgeable enough on computer applications, surfing on the net, word processing, preparing computer animated visuals… and see for yourself the gap between the Philippine education and the American education (which I understand is the subject of the research paper I am commenting upon.)
This is the reason why the new trend calls on all of us to "learn how to learn" so that we can't be outmoded. We can't just simply indoctrinate facts after facts in our classroom anymore. Technology has affected every facet of our lives so much that its imminent effect is viewed with over-exaggeration.
For example, in a recent survey of the Time Magazine, on the ten jobs that will disappear in the future due to technologies, the teaching profession is listed as one of the dying occupations. This is very alarming! What would happen of us whose bread and butter is teaching alone? At this point enters our high sense of professionalism to be on the look out for something new. If there is someone in the classroom who would bring open to the students the realities of the world and connect their experiences in and off the school, it is the teacher - you and I. We can't just isolate the academic world from that of the real world. If the real world goes high-tech then the academic world must go with it. I am sorry to concede but sometimes students are more technological than we are. This is the reason why we need to 'learn' again because education is a process that never ends. In this fast-paced world, who knows that the technology of today will persist the next day around? It might be new again tomorrow leaving the other obsolete. 'Learning to learn' is a state of mind and dedication. It should not be considered as a burden but an opportunity that in this very competitive era, teachers stand out to be on the lead. And it feels good to be on the forefront, right?
A WHOLE NEW ROLE
Far from the lone dispenser of knowledge, we, teachers must now collaborate but not compete with information technologies. I believe that an open-minded teacher is not being threatened by technologies because she is out there to enslave technology with her educational methods and techniques. The research says, the teacher that uses educational technologies assumes the role of a facilitator, a mentor and a guide than a lecturer. Is it not a joy to celebrate the fact that there is a way to overcome the heaps of paper works that exhaust us everyday?
With the advent of these technologies in the academe, our role of planning changes into a more extensive, relevant and effective one than the usual lesson planning. Our avenues for more substantial information widen because all the information we need to know are just within the grasp of our fingertips. The door for collaboration with other teachers is also disclosed and thus enriching our experience and ideas on preparing student activities be they in the form of virtual modules, interactive modules and the like. This is a whole new role for us which surely we're gonna enjoy.
THE CYBERLEARNERS
Imagine the day coming when you are conducting classes with your students in a non-structured classroom (it's happening now too). These are independent students who design their own learning and through a computer monitor you are giving advice to one hundred of them. That the only thing you do is to post in your class web page the sites that best discuss and provide exercises to a particular topic, post assignments, announcements and then contact the site masters about the results of your students' exercises. You have an immediate feedback of their performance. And since today's educational technologies provide significant contribution to the teaching-and-learning process, how much more in the future!
I am pretty sure that these students will be performing much better than their counterparts. Embracing the existentialist and constructivist ideals, we can surely see a breed of genius emerging from these students whom I'm gonna call "cyberlearners". They are the learners who view knowledge not as series of facts but a process instead. One of the greatest scientists of all time, Albert Einstein, once remarked that there is only one difference between genius and stupidity and that there is a limit to a genius. Probably, what Einstein really wanted to say is that there is no limit to stupidity. As educators, our challenge is to evoke the genius in every student and reduce or eliminate his capacity for stupidity. We can only do this when we speak the language of the students and show them what the world is beyond classroom.
A FORMIDABLE ATTEMPT
The challenge posed by the research study is so formidable. In the Philippines, only few schools have the capacity to procure multi-media equipment and computer units. Educational institutions choose to settle for what they have today than invest to a change whose effect is yet uncertain. To shift to technology integration is costly. An average school for example has a multi-media room with 60 computer units. It is not sufficient if we are going to go on 'strict' teaching with technology. I would define technology here more than videos, tv sets, powerpoint and slide presentations. But it is the linkage to the global community where information explodes like bombs.
The thought alone of hooking all computer units to the world wide web already costs a fortune. And I think this can hardly be afforded even by the school I am employed right now. This is really a challenge to our curriculum planners. In a country where graft and corruption is but normal, I doubt if the government can support this formidable attempt. Education in our country has really deteriorated so much that it is so depressing to see our students flunking in board exams here and abroad. If technology would make a difference on the performance of our students, why won't we give it a try,anyway? My fingers are tightly crossed that somehow… only somehow… miracles might happen!
CONCLUSION
Finally, in the high-tech world that seems to move faster than the pace of our understanding of its growth and implications, we, teachers are challenged to restructure and reshape our teaching practices with the aid of technology to promote critical and creative thinking. And the students hopefully would respond to this challenge by removing the barriers to stupidity, posing no boundaries to genius, and facing the world with competitive spirit and reasonable confidence.
I agree that technology helps a lot to promote excellent educational outcomes but this should be done side-by-side with teachers. And teachers in order to cope with the current trend in education must have a profound power that comes from knowing how to do something. In today's world let's move ahead of our students by utilizing technology wisely to acquire the best information available. When we know how to get things done, we are powerful. Our KNOWLEDGE is our POWER. Obviously knowledge will come to us by having our eyes and mind always open to the winds of change.
I do not mean to brag, but who would think that a petty student from a poor island, educated in a remote school, trained in an outmoded way … could make it here in the city and bring interactive technologies at the doorsteps of his class? After all, it's just 'learning how to learn.'
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