The TV and the Internet as ICT
When we say Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in education, the things that come to mind are educational films, television shows, and the Internet as one vast online library.
High school students find themselves sometimes herded to the audio-visual Theater for documentaries on wildlife or a biographical film on Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Nowadays, they are led towards the computer library to access the Internet for research.
TV and film
Films and videos have been used in classrooms halfway around the world since the middle of the 20th century. Then television burst into the scene, especially with “Sesame Street” running for 40 years and proving that television could play a major role in teaching children lessons in math and the alphabet.
Here in the Philippines, we have Sineskwela, a science television program for children. It even won the Youth Prize (Prix de Jeunesse) at the 20th Television Science Programme Festival held in France.
Episodes of the show even ventured to discussions on how the once-clean Pasig River deteriorated over time, aside from the usual Science subject topics. Sineskwela is curriculum-based and catered to public elementary students.
And with the Department of Education mandating science classes in each grade level to watch the show once a week, a 1996 study revealed better science achievement level of target students because of the television show.
These days, we also have the Knowledge Channel, the first and only all-educational channel on cable television. These dynamic and Filipino-oriented shows are now geared towards both elementary and high school students, over 2.8 million of them.
Internet
The main problem regarding Internet in schools in the Philippines is access, although cheating and plagiarism are relevant issues, too. Around 80% of schools in this country do not have Internet access. Metro Manila has the greatest access, but connectivity decreases when one goes farther from the nation's capital.
Moreover, some teachers are not well-equipped in teaching the technology, with those in the hinterlands scared of it. This has prompted the government to not only provide equipment and materials, but also the skills to introduce new learning methods to teachers.
Since 2000, the Department of Education mandated to hire only computer-literate teachers. Those public school teachers handling Technology and Home Economics (THE) classes also receive training. The DepEd, since 1997, intensified ICT training for English, Science, Math and THE teachers.
The Internet is important in the educational experience of teenagers, as it provides knowledge and information beyond what textbooks can contain. Studies by the Pew Internet and American Life Project in 2000 emphasized how high school students use the Internet as study aids with websites like Wikipedia, CliffNotes or Discovery Channel.
Students are turning to these online libraries because they get the best of everything—from interactivity, to convenience and speed, to diversity of information.
It makes sense, therefore, to strive to get all our schools and students connected to the World Wide Web.
Sources:
Abcede, Marivic. “The Philippines.” Retrieved June 10, 2008 from
http://www2.unescobkk.org/education/ict/v2_2/info.asp?id=13244
Cristobal, Rudy. “Sineskwela wins grand prize in International Television Festival in France.” Retrieved June 10, 2008 from
http://www.stii.dost.gov.ph/sntpost/frames/OcttoDec03/pg8.htm
Lenhart, Amanda, et.al. “The Internet and Education: Findings of the Pew Internet & American Life Project.” Retrieved June 10, 2008 from
http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/39/report_display.asp
Rainie, Lee and Hitlin, Paul. “The Internet at School.” Retrieved June 10, 2008 from
http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/163/report_display.asp
“The Knowledge Channel.” Retrieved June 10, 2008 from
http://www.knowledgechannel.org/kch/aboutCH.asp
Thorpe, Ronald. “Digital Technology in Classrooms: Video in Teaching and Learning.”
Retrieved June 10, 2008 fromhttp://www.nhk.or.jp/bunken/english/pdf/080222-04.pdf
(Published 16 June 2008, Smart Communications, Inc.)
