Professional Documents
Culture Documents
2
CHAPTER 1
TEACHERS AND
STUDENTS IN DIGITAL
AGE
EMPERIAL, REALYN B.
TEACHERS OF THE EARLY GENERATIONS VS TEACHERS
OF THE 21ST CENTURY
Every journey has its start and end. On how the journey has started and
ended may have significant implication in one’s achievement, but the most
important event in every journey is the liminal space between the start and
end – how one has journeyed.
It is not only the ‘matter’ or the ‘what to teach’ that is important, but the
‘manner of delivery’ or the ‘how to teach’ plays a very important role in
today’s teaching and learning environment. Also, it is not only the ‘matter’
or the ‘what was learned’ that is significant, but the ‘quality or the
authenticity of learning’ where students become life ready.
In the early years;
Teachers were regarded as instruments for information dissemination
and communicators of knowledge in which the students obediently
receive and believe.
Teachers were always in authority over the students. This was during
the period in which teacher-centered approach were observed in the
education system. This approach seems to weaken the aim of acquiring
quality learning for this makes the students passive learners.
exemplar futurist
leader
Can you imagine the relationship of digital immigrant teachers when faced
with native digital students?
It might appear that students would be less participative and the class
might be boring if the teachers would remain traditional in their ways
of teaching and in the materials they are using. Therefore, teachers are
highly encouraged to make themselves involve with the use of
technologies and keep them updated with technologies.
STUDENTS OF THE EARLY GENERATIONS VS STUDENTS OF THE
21ST CENTURY
In as much as the roles of the teachers change to meet the needs of the students in
today’s education, the students’ roles likewise need to change to become more
competent, knowledgeable in theories and in practice and competitive in the call of
the community and the world.
Students in the earlier generations are indeed different in today’s generation. Having
technologies at their side make them more advanced in information where they do not
need to have a long distance walk just to access information from the books in the
library. Almost all information and tools that they need are already at the palm of their
hands. They only need to access and use these technologies rightfully and
appropriately.
Before, students depend so much from the teacher when it comes to learning. They
listen passively to the discussion, they only speak or answer when they are asked, they
learn theories through memorization of text and many others in which we can tell that
is not entirely authentic. Thanks to the technologies especially to the period that it
began to enter the field of education.