By Ma. Lourdes F. Osorio, Teacher III, Nueva Ecija NHS
One year is over…
Everyone was caught flat-footed when the pandemic was declared in March
- Immediate responses were social distancing, frequent hand-washing, wearing
of face mask and face shields, and on top of it was the community quarantine. This
phenomenon paved the way to the term “new normal” which all sectors of society
have to endure in order to preserve life. Aside from health and economic systems,
the education sector found its way to sustain formal learning, despite the fact that
younger generation have to stay at home, through the Learning Continuity Plan
crafted by the Department of Education for the basic education system.
From face to face to remote distance learning, one full school year was
survived, yet, with no established evidence of its effectiveness and success. No one
can really tell if the desired outcomes were met, on the ground that one year
implementation scheme is not enough to establish a valid judgement. All we know is
the fact that, we have to endure and brace for what we have at hand, and proceed to
another year of providing and facilitating learning to our children.
Moving on, as a teacher in a secondary school teaching Filipino subject, I am
bound to equip myself with more weapon, better than with what I have in the
previous year. As I gear myself, two points loitered in my mind. First, “Do I like this
remote distance and online learning? and second was, “Am I really technologically
competent?”
Instead of directly answering my own questions, I looked for some researches
related to my personal query. Interestingly, I came across with a very recent study
conducted by Javier (2021) about the correlations of attitude towards online learning
and technological competency of 162 teachers teaching Filipino subjects in public
schools Northern Luzon. Findings in the study revealed that respondents were
“somehow negative” as per online learning. However, majority of the respondents
claimed that they were technologically competent. The author argued that the
findings were intriguing. First, this means that the teachers are inclined to likely
favor the traditional teaching. However, there were proofs in earlier studies that
online learning was preferred due to rapid progress in digital technology revolution
where almost anybody around the world lives with digital gadgets which are hooked
on the Internet. It was also argued in the research that unpreparedness and lack of
training of the respondents, plus the taxing
demands of remote online learning, and lack of sufficient support for resources like
Internet allowance, led them to manifest a negative attitude towards online leaning.
On the other hand, respondents claimed to be technology competent. This
means that the respondents perceived themselves to be able to perform tasks with
the use of computers and technology. Perhaps, the respondents’ being digital
natives is the main reason pertinent to their claim. Digital natives refer to being born
and grew up along with technology and Internet where such becomes part of their
daily lives. However, these respondents were less competent in terms of developing
assessments and using appropriate applications online. This might also construe to
their somehow negative attitude towards online learning.
This research to some extent provided answers to my questions. I have to
admit that by heart, I was adamant and reluctant to go online and conduct teaching –
learning process. Hence, I also need to admit that I have the basic competencies
when it comes to using technology.
This was like a slap in the face when I reflected deeper. Yes, I have the heart
and the skills, but I do not have the all the tools to use them all. It’s like, having the
vaccines but ended up locking them all in a freezer forever.