RESEARCH WORK

on
EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY I

Prepared by:
Del Rosario, Maria Nelissa D.
Dizon, Richard T.
Lobo, Maricel B.
Maego, Debra M.
Muoz, Anjaneth D.
Tacadena, Jeshel S.

Submitted to:
Mr. Conrad Burkeley, MAEd

Group Name: The Contemporaries

Thinker: Tacadena, Jeshel S.

Assessor: Lobo, Maricel B.
Builders:
Del Rosario, Maria Nelissa D.
Dizon, Richard T.
Maego, Debra M.
Muoz, Anjaneth D.

EDUCATION IN THE CONTEMPORARY TIME

I.

INTRODUCTION

The 2nd millennium saw the pervasiveness of educational technology in all

aspects of educational organization and management. Most schools have
already adopted the computerization records, entrance procedures and all over
aspects of administration and supervision. Schools in the secondary, collegiate
levels and even in the graduate level have radically revised and enriched their
curricular offerings to include courses in computer/applications. Computers
became more user-friendly so people began procuring sets of personal as well
as for office instructional use.

II.

DEFINITION OF CONTEMPORARY EDUCATION

Contemporary means belonging to or occurring at present.

Education on the other hand, is a process through which we equip ourselves
with knowledge. Anything that can have a formative influence on the way a
person thinks, acts and feels may be considered as education.
At present, modern technology is a big part of the education system. Computers
and other gadgets such as IPads, tablets and smartphones are considered to be
the best buddies of students to survive in this advanced environment.
The use of modern information technology in education helps students to form a
creative and productive approach, which is sure to come in handy in their future
profession or a process of self-education.

III. TEACHERS IN CONTEMPORARY TIME

In the fast-changing world of the early 21st century public education is
also changing. As part of the changes the role of schools and education will also

be different both in the educational system and in the society. Together with them
the role of teachers will also change. We aim to have a closer look at the
characteristic features of changes.
III.1 Roles of a Teacher in Contemporary Time
III.1.1 New Relationships and Practices
Traditionally, teaching was a combination of information-dispensing, custodial
child care and sorting out academically inclined students from others. The
underlying model for schools was an education factory in which adults, paid
hourly or daily wages, kept like-aged youngsters sitting still for standardized
lessons and tests.
Teachers were told what, when, and how to teach. They were required to
educate every student in exactly the same way and were not held responsible
when many failed to learn. They were expected to teach using the same methods
as past generations, and any deviation from traditional practices was
discouraged by supervisors or prohibited by myriad education laws and
regulations. Thus, many teachers simply stood in front of the class and delivered
the same lessons year after year, growing gray and weary of not being allowed to
change what they were doing.
Many teachers today, however, are encouraged to adapt and adopt new
practices that acknowledge both the art and science of learning. They
understand that the essence of education is a close relationship between a
knowledgeable, caring adult and a secure, motivated child. They grasp that their
most important role is to get to know each student as an individual in order to
comprehend his or her unique needs, learning style, social and cultural
background, interests, and abilities.
Their job is to counsel students as they grow and mature -- helping them
integrate their social, emotional, and intellectual growth -- so the union of these
sometimes separate dimensions yields the abilities to seek, understand, and use
knowledge; to make better decisions in their personal lives; and to value
contributing to society.
They must be prepared and permitted to intervene at any time and in any way to
make sure learning occurs. Rather than see themselves solely as masters of
subject matter such as history, math, or science, teachers increasingly
understand that they must also inspire a love of learning.
They no longer see their primary role as being the king or queen of the
classroom, a benevolent dictator deciding what's best for the powerless
underlings in their care. They've found they accomplish more if they adopt the
role of educational guides, facilitators, and co-learners.

The most respected teachers have discovered how to make students passionate
participants in the instructional process by providing project-based, participatory,
educational adventures. They know that in order to get students to truly take
responsibility for their own education, the curriculum must relate to their lives,
learning activities must engage their natural curiosity, and assessments must
measure real accomplishments and be an integral part of learning.
Students work harder when teachers give them a role in determining the form
and content of their schooling -- helping them create their own learning plans and
deciding the ways in which they will demonstrate that they have, in fact, learned
what they agreed to learn.
The day-to-day job of a teacher, rather than broadcasting content, is becoming
one of designing and guiding students through engaging learning opportunities.
An educator's most important responsibility is to search out and construct
meaningful educational experiences that allow students to solve real-world
problems and show they have learned the big ideas, powerful skills, and habits of
mind and heart that meet agreed-on educational standards. The result is that the
abstract, inert knowledge that students used to memorize from dusty textbooks
comes alive as they participate in the creation and extension of new knowledge.
III.1.2 New Tools and Environments
One of the most powerful forces changing teachers' and students' roles in
education is new technology. The old model of instruction was predicated on
information scarcity. Teachers and their books were information oracles,
spreading knowledge to a population with few other ways to get it.
But today's world is awash in information from a multitude of print and electronic
sources. The fundamental job of teaching is no longer to distribute facts but to
help children learn how to use them by developing their abilities to think critically,
solve problems, make informed judgments, and create knowledge that benefits
both the students and society. Freed from the responsibility of being primary
information providers, teachers have more time to spend working one-on-one or
with small groups of students.In addition, ability groups, from which those judged
less talented can rarely break free, are being challenged by a recognition that
current standardized tests do not measure many abilities or take into account the
different ways people learn best.
One of the most important innovations in instructional organization is team
teaching, in which two or more educators share responsibility for a group of
students. This means that an individual teacher no longer has to be all things to
all students. This approach allows teachers to apply their strengths, interests,
skills, and abilities to the greatest effect, knowing that children won't suffer from

their weaknesses, because there's someone with a different set of abilities to

back them up.

III.1.3 New Professional Responsibilities

Aside from rethinking their primary responsibility as directors of student learning,
teachers are also taking on other roles in schools and in their profession. They
are working with colleagues, family members, politicians, academics, community
members, employers, and others to set clear and obtainable standards for the
knowledge, skills, and values we should expect America's children to acquire.
They are participating in day-to-day decision making in schools, working side-byside to set priorities, and dealing with organizational problems that affect their
students' learning.
Many teachers also spend time researching various questions of educational
effectiveness that expand the understanding of the dynamics of learning. And
more teachers are spending time mentoring new members of their profession,
making sure that education school graduates are truly ready for the complex
challenges of today's classrooms.
Reinventing the role of teachers inside and outside the classroom can result in
significantly better schools and better-educated students. But though the roots of
such improvement are taking hold in today's schools, they need continued
nurturing to grow and truly transform America's learning landscape. The rest of
us -- politicians and parents, superintendents and school board members,
employers and education school faculty -- must also be willing to rethink our roles
in education to give teachers the support, freedom, and trust they need to do the
essential job of educating our children.
III.2 Characteristics of a 21st Century Teacher.
III.2.1.

Learner-Centered

Classroom

and

Personalized

Instructions
As students have access to any information possible, there certainly is no need
to "spoon-feed" the knowledge or teach "one-size fits all" content. As students
have different personalities, goals, and needs, offering personalized instructions
is not just possible but also desirable. When students are allowed to make their
own choices, they own their learning, increase intrinsic motivation, and put in
more effort -- an ideal recipe for better learning outcomes!

III.2.2. Students as Producers

Today's students have the latest and greatest tools, yet, the usage in many cases
barely goes beyond communicating with family and friends via chat, text, or calls.
Even though students are now viewed as digital natives, many are far from
producing any digital content. While they do own expensive devices with
capabilities to produce blogs, infographics, books, how-to videos, and tutorials,
just to name a few, in many classes, they are still asked to turn those devices off
and work with handouts and worksheets. Sadly, often times these papers are
simply thrown away once graded. Many students don't even want to do them, let
alone keep or return them later. When given a chance, students can produce
beautiful and creative blogs, movies, or digital stories that they feel proud of and
share with others.
III.2.3. Learn New Technologies
In order to be able to offer students choices, having one's own hands-on
experience and expertise will be useful. Since technology keeps developing,
learning a tool once and for all is not a option. The good news is that new
technologies are new for the novice and experienced teachers alike, so everyone
can jump in at any time.
III.2.4. Go Global
Today's tools make it possible to learn about other countries and people first
hand. Of course, textbooks are still sufficient, yet, there is nothing like learning
languages, cultures, and communication skills from actually talking to people
from other parts of the world.
It's a shame that with all the tools available, we still learn about other cultures,
people, and events from the media. Teaching students how to use the tools in
their hands to "visit" any corner of this planet will hopefully make us more
knowledgeable and sympathetic.
III.2.5. Be Smart and Use Smart Phones
Once again -- when students are encouraged to view their devices as valuable
tools that support knowledge (rather than distractions), they start using them as
such. This will help students have different needs when it comes to help with new
vocabulary or questions; therefore, there is no need to waste time and explain
something that perhaps only one or two students would benefit from. Instead,
teaching students to be independent and know how to find answers they need
makes the class a different environment!

III.2.6. Blog
I have written on the importance of both student and teacher blogging. Even my
beginners of English could see the value of writing for real audience and
establishing their digital presence. To blog or not to blog should not be a question
anymore!

III.2.7. Go Digital
Another important attribute is to go paperless -- organizing teaching resources
and activities on one's own website and integrating technology bring students
learning experience to a different level. Sharing links and offering digital
discussions as opposed to a constant paper flow allows students to access and
share class resources in a more organized fashion.

III.2.8. Collaborate
Technology allows collaboration between teachers & students. Creating digital
resources, presentations, and projects together with other educators and
students will make classroom activities resemble the real world. Collaboration
should go beyond sharing documents via e-mail or creating PowerPoint
presentations. Many great ideas never go beyond a conversation or paper copy,
which is a great loss! Collaboration globally can change our entire experience!
III.2.9. Use Twitter Chat
Participating in Twitter chat is the cheapest and most efficient way to organize
one's own PD, share research and ideas, and stay current with issues and
updates in the field. We can grow professionally and expand our knowledge as
there is a great conversation happening every day, and going to conferences is
no longer the only way to meet others and build professional learning networks.
III.2.10. Connect
Connect with like-minded individuals. Again, today's tools allow us to connect
anyone, anywhere, anytime. Have a question for an expert or colleague? Simply
connect via social media: follow, join, ask, or tell!

III.2.11. Project-Based Learning

As today's students have an access to authentic resources on the web, experts
anywhere in the world, and peers learning the same subject somewhere else,
teaching with textbooks is very "20th-century" (when the previously listed option
were not available). Today's students should develop their own driving questions,
conduct their research, contact experts, and create final projects to share all
using devices already in their hands. All they need from their teacher is guidance!
III.2.12. Build Your Positive Digital Footprint
It might sound obvious, but it is for today's teachers to model how to
appropriately use social media, how to produce and publish valuable content,
and how to create sharable resources. Even though it's true that teachers are
people, and they want to use social media and post their pictures and thoughts,
we cannot ask our students not to do inappropriate things online if we ourselves
do it. Maintaining professional behavior both in class and online will help build
positive digital footprint and model appropriate actions for students.
III.2.13. Code
While this one might sound complicated, coding is nothing but today's literacy. As
a pencil or pen were "the tools" of the 20th-century, making it impossible to
picture a teacher not capable to operate with it, today's teacher must be able to
operate with today's pen and pencil, i.e., computers. Coding is very interesting to
learn -- the feeling of writing a page with HTML is amazing!
III.2.14. Innovate
Expand your teaching toolbox and try new ways you have not tried before, such
as teaching with social media or replacing textbooks with web resources. Not for
the sake of tools but for the sake of students!
III.2.15. Keep Learning
As new ways and new technology keep emerging, learning and adapting is
essential. The good news is: it's fun, and even 20 min a day will take you a long
way!
IV.

STUDENTS DURING CONTEMPORARY TIME

Students are the focus and they play the center role where they are actively
engage in their learning process in a collaborative nature along with their peers and
under the guidance of their teacher.

Students can turn into active learners where they learn by doing, engaging and
interacting. The teacher takes a back seat and students come out taking challenges
and exploring new aspect of their learning. Educational technology is one of the new
strategy that teacher can use as a tool to attract the attention of students and it will
serve as a challenge for the teachers.

IV.1 Comparisons of student during contemporary times

Students can now learn on their own with a lesser supervision parents
and teachers. Information are accessible using the internet and there would be
instant results. Students only need computer skills and everything else would be
easy.
Before , students need to carry heavy books to and from the school but
with the modern technology nowadays, students can be free from heavy
luggages. Students need to exert efforts in copying notes which divide the
attention of students in listening and writing. Nowadays, students can just take a
photo of the lecture using smartphones. Colorful photos and interactive videos
will definitely entice and motivate students to study as they enjoy while learning.
IV.2 The readiness of the student during contemporary time.
With contemporary classrooms becoming increasingly diverse,
educational authorities, teachers and school administrators are looking to
teaching and learning strategies that cater for a variety of learning profiles.
Student interests vary, these interests can become effective tools to support
learning.and is a powerful motivator, which wise teachers could take advantage
of . Teachers should find ways to engage students, by tapping into what interests
students, and by involving students in the daily running of the class. Activities
and discussions that are built around students concerns and their life
experiences allows the curriculum to become more meaningful to students.
Allowing for student interests within the learning community, ensures that even
marginalised students find a place. Most students, even struggling learners, have
aptitudes and passions, providing an opportunity within the classroom for them to
explore and express these interests, mitigates against the sense of failure
previously experienced by these students.

V.

Methods and Materials used during the Contemporary Time

V.1

Digital Storytelling

Digital Storytelling has become a powerful instructional tool for both students and
educators. There are many different definitions of Digital Storytelling but in
general, they all revolve around the idea of combining the art of telling stories
with a variety of digital multimedia, such as images, audio, and video. Just about
all digital stories bring together some mixture of digital graphics, text, recorded
audio narration, video and music to present information on a specific topic. As is
the case with traditional storytelling, digital stories revolve around a chosen
theme and often contain a particular viewpoint. The stories are typically just a few
minutes long and have a variety of uses, including the telling of personal tales,
the recounting of historical events, or as a means to inform or instruct on a
particular topic.
V.1.1 Digital Storytelling as an Effective Instructional Tool for
Teachers
There are numerous ways that Digital Storytelling can be used in
education. An engaging, multimedia-rich Digital Story can serve as an
anticipatory set or hook to capture the attention of students and increasing
their interest in exploring new ideas. Teacher-created digital stories may
also be used to enhance current lessons within a larger unit, as a way to
facilitate discussion about the topics presented a story and as a way of
making abstract or conceptual content more understandable. While many
educators still lack a cohesive plan for integrating multimedia into their
instruction, a growing number of teachers are interested in exploring ways
to engage their students by including images, audio and video elements in
their instruction. And Digital Storytelling can provide educators with a
powerful tool to use in their classrooms.
V.1.2 Digital Storytelling as an Effective Learning Tool for Students
Digital Storytelling can also be a potent tool for students who are taught to
create their own stories. This type of activity can generate interest,
attention and motivation for the "digital generation" students in todays
classrooms. The process can capitalize on the creative talents of students
as they begin to research and tell stories of their own as they learn to use
the library and the Internet to research rich, deep content while analyzing

and synthesizing a wide range of content. In addition, students who

participate in the creation of digital stories may develop enhanced
communications skills by learning to organize their ideas, ask questions,
express opinions, and construct narratives. It also can help students as
they learn to create stories for an audience, and present their ideas and
knowledge in an individual and meaningful way. In addition, when digital
stories are published on the Web, students have the opportunity to share
their work with their peers and gain valuable experience in critiquing their
own and other students work, which can promote gains in emotional
intelligence and social learning.
V.2

Information and Communication Technology

Information and communication technology (ICT) has become, within a

very short time, one of the basic building blocks of modern society. Many
countries now regard understanding ICT and mastering the basic skills
and concepts of ICT as part of the core of education, alongside reading,
writing and numeracy. Education is a very socially oriented activity and
quality education has traditionally been associated with strong teachers
having high degrees of personal contact with learners. The use of ICT in
education lends itself to more student-centered learning settings. But with
the world moving rapidly into digital media and information, the role of ICT
in education is becoming more and more important and this importance
will continue to grow and develop in the 21st century. ICTs have the
potential to innovate, accelerate, enrich, and deepen skills, to motivate
and engage students, to help relate school experience to work practices,
create economic viability for tomorrow's workers, as well as strengthening
teaching and helping schools change (Davis and Tearle, 1999; Lemke and
Coughlin, 1998; cited by Yusuf, 2005). Computers and applications of
technology became more pervasive in society which led to a concern
about the need for computing skills in everyday life. The integration of
information and communication technologies can help revitalize teachers
and students. This can help to improve and develop the quality of
education by providing curricular support in difficult subject areas. To

achieve these objectives, teachers need to be involved in collaborative

projects and development of intervention change strategies, which would
include teaching partnerships with ICT as a tool. According to Zhao and
Cziko (2001) three conditions are necessary for teachers to introduce ICT
into their classrooms: teachers should believe in the effectiveness of
technology, teachers should believe that the use of technology will not
cause any disturbances, and finally teachers should believe that they have
control over technology. Teachers generate meaningful and engaging
learning experiences for their students, strategically using ICT to enhance
learning. Students enjoy learning, and the independent enquiry which
innovative and appropriate use of ICT can foster. They begin to acquire
the important 21st century skills which they will need in their future lives.
V.2.1 ICT enhancing the quality and accessibility of education
ICT increases the flexibility of delivery of education so that learners can
access knowledge anytime and from anywhere. It can influence the way
students are taught and how they learn as now the processes are learner
driven and not by teachers. This in turn would better prepare the learners
for lifelong learning as well as to improve the quality of learning. One of
the most vital contributions of ICT in the field of education is-Easy Access
to Learning. With the help of ICT, students can now browse through ebooks, sample examination papers, previous year papers etc. and can
also have an easy access to resource persons, mentors, experts,
researchers, professionals, and peers-all over the world. As well as
learning at anytime, teachers are also finding the capabilities of teaching
at any time to be opportunistic and able to be used to advantage. Mobile
technologies and seamless communications technologies support 24x7
teaching and learning. ICTs also allow for the creation of digital resources
like digital libraries where the students, teachers and professionals can
access research material and course material from any place at any time
(Bhattacharya and Sharma, 2007; Cholin, 2005). ICT provides
opportunities to access an abundance of information using multiple
information resources and viewing information from multiple perspectives,
thus fostering the authenticity of learning environments. It can influence
the way students are taught and how they learn. It would provide the rich
environment and motivation for teaching learning process which seems to
have a profound impact on the process of learning in education by offering
new possibilities for learners and teachers. These possibilities can have
an impact on student performance and achievement.
V.3 Distance Learning

Distance education or distance learning is the education of students who

may not always be physically present at a school. Massive open online
courses (MOOCs), offering large-scale interactive participation and open
access through the World Wide Web or other network technologies, are
recent developments in distance education. A number of other terms
(distributed learning, e-learning, online learning, etc.) are used roughly
synonymously with distance education. Distance learning can expand
access to education and training for both general populace and
businesses since its flexible scheduling structure lessens the effects of the
many time-constraints imposed by personal responsibilities and
commitments. Present-day online communication allows students to
associate with accredited schools and programs throughout the world that
are out of reach for in-person learning. By having the opportunity to be
involved in global institutions via distance education, a diverse array of
thought is presented to students through communication with their
classmates. This is beneficial because students have the opportunity to
"combine new opinions with their own, and develop a solid foundation for
learning. Distance education has been a more cost-effective form of
learning, and can sometimes save students a significant amount of money
as opposed to traditional education. Distance education may be able to
help to save students a considerable amount financially by removing the
cost of transportation.[67] In addition, distance education may be able to
save students from the economic burden of high-priced course textbooks.
Also, the increasing improvements in technology have resulted in many
school libraries having a partnership with digital publishers that offer
course materials for free, which can help students significantly with
educational costs. Distance learning may also offer a final opportunity for
adolescents that are no longer permitted in the general education
population due to behavior disorders. Instead of these students having no
other academic opportunities, they may continue their education from their
homes and earn their diplomas, offering them another chance to be an
integral part of society. The use of distant technologies in circumstances of
credit-modular system enables (Batsurovska .V., 2011):

a) students - to choose a convenient time for study and mastering of

subjects, perform module control distantly and independently, to analyze
their training activities.
b) teachers - systematically manage the academic work of students, to
control and analyze their activities per each module of educational
discipline. All mentioned above encourages students qualitatively master
the content of higher education.
Students can participate in contemporary topics, such as learner
engagement, retention, creating accessible learning materials and the role
of technologies as educational supports for classroom, online and hybrid
delivery. Students are immersed in an interactive, experiential learning
environment that allows them to find relevant sources to design and create
learning materials and to develop effective teaching skills in an everevolving educational environment.

V.4 The Use of Social Networks as an Educational Tool

Use of Social Networks as an Education Tool

Social network, particularly Facebook, can be defined as a unique online service,

platform, or area where social communication and/or social relations can be established
and individuals intensely share information.
Starting with emergence of the Internet as a public sphere, many unprecedented
changes have occurred in communication types and formats in daily life. Face-to-face
communication in interpersonal relationships has been gradually replaced with
communications via technological devices.
Social networks are platforms for virtual social lives created by people over the Internet.
Individuals define themselves in such networks so that they communicate with other
people sharing same or different cultural backgrounds/dimensions through powerful
communication opportunities provided by the Internet.
The first known network in this area is considered the SixDegrees which was
constructed in 1997. Particularly after 2003, rapid and important developments were
experienced in social networks; consequently the number of users has increased
quickly. The worldwide growth of social communication networks gained incredible pace
and popularity.
As of February 2011, Facebook has more than 500 millions of users around the world.
Fifty percent of total users actively login the site every day. Users spend a total of 700
billion minutes per month on Facebook. More than 200 million users have mobile
connection to Facebook. There are about a billion of locations (pages, groups, activities
etc.) in Facebook where users interact with each other. An ordinary user is connected to
80 groups, activities or society pages and shares an average of 90 contents per month.
More than 30 billions of contents per month are shared by users
(http://www.facebook.com).

V.4.1 Social Networks in Educational Environments

Social network sites offer several possibilities such as socialization of individuals, ability
to communicate with people living worldwide, ability to be a member of group which
cannot be possible in real life due to geographical and physical constraints, selfexpression and ability to receive information and share it. Problems pertaining to
confidentiality, misuse of information and social network dependence are also
undeniable facts. However, it is possible to make social networks advantageous through
positive uses.
Social networks can also be successfully used in the field of education. Seguin and
Seguin (1995, p.30) recommends educators that they may gain benefits such as
program exchanges, job announcements, creating relief funds or searching such funds,
arranging concurrent or non-concurrent conferences, and publishing studies conducted
by themselves or their students. Moreover, studies such as course plans, activities etc.
can be more efficiently used by a larger number of educators over a database.

When we examine advantages deriving from the use of social networks as an

educational tool, interactivity and participation provided by such environments should
be also mentioned. Advantages possibly deriving from use of social networks as an
education tool can be listed as follows:
Independence from time and location
Improvement in quality, success, and efficiency of education by use of computer for
education
Ability to learn in more systematic manner and in shorter time due to advances in
computer technology
Individualization of learning
Ability to have instant feedback
Offering the student ability to repeat course content as much as desired
Ease of displaying the content
Allowing to the design of visual and auditory learning environments
Ability to present courses that require laboratory applications to students via simulation,
animation, and virtual laboratories
Archiving course content and synchronized class (virtual class) applications
Bidirectional communication
Tendency towards more voluntary behaviors on the side of students for improving
research, knowledge, and skills in comparison to conventional programs
Offering possibility to evaluate performance of students
Minimizing risk of error in measuring evaluation results
Improving skills of students and teachers to reach, evaluate, use, and efficiently cite the
knowledge.
Social networks have affected the modern society positively and have changed some of
peopleshabits. Effective use of features and opportunities of social networks supports
instructors' empowering of the educational process with active learning, creativity,
problem-solving, cooperation, and multifaceted interactions as well as students' using

and improving their academic performance, inquiry, and alternative thinking skills.
It develops communication skills, extends participation and social commitment,
strengthens peer support, and enables the realization of cooperation-based learning. In
addition, social network sites can be used easily and conveniently, they can be
integrated into the educational practices successfully and such utilizations are
becoming widespread rapidly.
Social networking sites are becoming more involved in our daily life day by day. As of
today, instructors can neither conduct a course completely through Facebook nor they
can ignore this development comfortably. None of the instructors in the current study
denies that Facebook is an effective medium; they all agree that educators should
benefit from its tools. The younger faculty members use Facebook and similar
technologies more in their courses compared to senior faculty members. This might be
due to their familiarity and mastery regarding the use of these technologies.