Technology has been one of the greatest innovations humankind has been blessed to experience. It has greatly influenced most aspects of people’s lives; transportation, work, health, education, and many more. Undeniably, it made majority of the population technology-literate.
As technology continues to flourish in the 21st century, it made great developments in the field of education. In the early times, educational opportunities were only accessible to the elite few; teachers travel far-and-wide to cater the student’s needs. But as technology evolved throughout the years, no longer do teachers have to be the “sage on the stage”, the only primary source of information. Massive amount of information are abundantly provided nowadays, and formal learning can be done across countries without travelling. Indeed, education has been profoundly upgraded by technology.
The access provided by technology became supplemental in the teaching-and-learning process; different subject areas were improved in terms of visualization and presentation which surely equip students more as compared to the mere discussion and spoon-feeding of information being done before. Physical Education is one of the subject areas which was thoroughly improved by the different technological advancements. Even though theories are an important part of the subject, actual videos are now being provided for a more definite visualization. Instead of merely discussing the theories of baseball in a class, the teacher can easily show an actual video of the game while discussing the theories of the game. Moreover, students can also access videos to the various folk dances and Zumba choreographs. They can easily scrutinize the video as to what has been taught by the teacher, and they can even practice the steps provided at their most convenient time.
These things played an even more important role because of the pandemic. With the geographical distance of the teacher to the students, classes were conducted on different video conferencing methods. The teacher will still be able to show how basic steps were done and at the same time, student can see it real-time and ask for clarifications. Aside from this, the teacher can also do a video recording of the instructions for the lesson, followed by the demonstration of what the students are expected to showcase. In return, students can also send the video to their teacher which will be checked according to the principles and theories of the lesson. Learning is not confined inside the classroom, anymore.
Though technology has some limits, its integration to various teaching strategies offered a more engaging discussion¾especially in the time of a pandemic. With proper utilization of the resources, more ways will surely be unlocked that will benefit both the student and the teacher. The advancements present today will be the stepping-stone to prepare students with the appropriate knowledge and skills needed in this century.
The world does not stop evolving; we, as teachers, should continuously modify the teaching strategies and practice to conform to the upgrades being provided by technology. Changes will never be easy, but one thing is for sure, these changes will result to better learning outcomes, regardless of the subject area.
References:
How Has Technology Changed Education? (2017, April 25). Retrieved from: https://online.purdue.edu/ldt/learning-design-technology/resources/how-has-technology-changed-education
By: Precious Lagrisola Destreza| Naparing, Dinalupihan, Bataan
