CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND IT'S BACKGROUND

INTRODUCTION

"Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master" quoted by the famous Norwegian

historian and scientist, Christian Lous Lange, shows us the perfect view on how technology can

make or break us. In today's fast moving world, technology has gained huge momentum and has

taken up a lot of the jobs of our daily lives. Communicating, working and entertainment can all

be done in a single device. Though it has some drawbacks, it has definitely made our lives easier.

Technology improves the quality of education by facilitating learning by doing, real time

conversations, delayed solving, information seeking and analysis and critical thinking, as well as

the ability to communicate, collaborate and learn (Green, 1987). Possessing the knowledge of

technology is really the need of hour. The need of technology knowledge is very much required

for students in order to carry out the process of studying and learning smoothly (Lee & Ju, 2010).

Students demands special attention because they have special needs and interest that must be

addressed with respect and ingenuity in order to make them embrace the new technologies

placed in classrooms. In order to improve the pedagogy, students need training on technology

which motivates the teachers as well as the students.

The findings of this study will rebound to the benefit of the society considering the technology

play a significant role on the lives of the students. Thus, schools that apply recommended

approach derived from the result of the study will be able to understand why some of their

students cannot have a good performance in class and they will be guided to train the students

better.

This research will explore on what are the different levels of the students in terms of their

technology skills and knowledge. The researchers will going to investigate whether technology
has an adverse effect on the students or is benefit on their part. Various factors that is considered

to have effects on student's technological skills are explored.

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Technology is important in today's world because it serves a variety of functions in many of the

most important aspects of modern society like education, communication, business and specific

progress. Technology can be a powerful tool for transforming learning. It can help affirm and

advance relationship between education and students, re-invent our approaches to learning and

collaboration, shrink long-standing equity and accessibility gaps, and adopt learning experiences

to meet the need of all learners. Technology can affect life both positively and negatively. New

technology always changes our life very much and takes it to a new level. Technology, it is the

sum of techniques, skills, methods and processes used in the production of goods or services.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The study seeks to attain the following objectives ;

Determine the level of technology skills of Grade 11 ICT students of Northeastern College.

Identify the strength and weaknesses of the Grade 11 ICT students in using technology.

Find out what can be proposed for the Grade 11 ICT students to enhance their technological
skills.
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The study aims to probe the technology skills of the Grade 11 ICT students of Northeastern

College. The study aims to answer the following questions ;

What are the level of technology skills of the Grade 11 ICT students in terms of the following?

Word Processing Skills

Spreadsheet Skills

Electronic Presentation Skills

What are the strengths and weaknesses of the Grade 11 ICT students in using technology?

What can be proposed for the Grade 11 ICT students to enhance their technological skills?

SCOPE AND DELIMINATION

This study focuses on determining the technological skills of the Grade 11 ICT students on

Senior High School.

It is only limited for 20 Senior High School students in Information and Communication

Technology Strand. This study will be conducted at Northeastern College Senior High School

Department, Villasis, Santiago City and only limited to Grade 11 Students. The analysis of the

data are based on the result of the survey that was conducted.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Students. The study will let the students know their different levels in terms of technological

performance.

IT/ICT Instructors/Teachers. The study will serve as their basis to identify the technological

skills of the students.

Parents. The result of the study will help the parents to understand the situation of the students.

This way they'll be able to encourage their child.

Future Researchers. The study will serve as their guide for the future studies they will conduct

later on. More over, It will serve as a source or a foundation for broader studies that is related to

the said topic.

 CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter includes a review of literature and studies which have significant relationship and

similarities with the present study. The researchers made a comprehensive review of various

studies and literatures found in the library of this college and elsewhere : unpublished thesis

journals, books, materials found on the internet and other related sources where likewise review

on the recent study. The relevant of this materials to the research in consideration was

established and their significant finding were given due consideration.

Papert (1980) studied on ‘Children, computer and powerful idea’. He understood the importance

of digital media and how it could be used to enable children to learn better within a constructivist

learning environment. He believed that in order for children to assemble and modify their ideas,

the traditional tools such as pencils, copies and texts were inadequate. He felt that computers

were the appropriate tool to enable the learner to take control of the learning process. He found

that a complementary relationship exists between technology and constructivism, the

implementation of each one benefiting the other. Recent attempts by educators to integrate

technology in the classroom have been within the context of a constructivist framework.

Sandholtz et al. (1997) worked on ‘Teaching with technology, creating student centered

classrooms’. They reported that there were positive changes in student attitude. Their interest and

motivation typically extended to the last week of school and as students became involved in

working on computers, the time they spent on assignments and projects often increased.

Students' enthusiasm and interest resulted in greater on-task behavior and they were highly

involved in their assignment and frequently able to work with little assistance. The project

increased student initiative as they worked beyond the requirements of their assignments, and
independently explored new applications and developed new skills. Student experimentation and

risk taking increased.

Krysa (1998) in his study ‘Factors affecting the adoption and use of computer technology in

schools’ stated that computer training should not be limited to teachers who teach computer but

all teachers should train computer and its usage. The need for

computer training is explained by the fact that most of the presently recruited teachers received

little or no training in their formal education concerning use of computers in teaching. It could

also be a reflection of the need to update teachers’ knowledge in the

world of fast moving technology of communication. Training all teachers on the educational use

of computers gains special importance when considering integrating the computer into regular

curriculum. Teachers need to know how to use computers first

before they can integrate them in the curriculum. This could make ICT innovation simple

to adopt and implement as the innovation becomes compatible with the current objectives of the

users.

Jonassen et al. (1999) conducted study on ‘Learning to solve problems with technology’. They

reported that after analyzing applications of IT in various schools and projects grouped these

learning activities around several mind tools, which can be used by teachers to enable students to

learn effectively. These are Databases, Semantic Networks, Visualization Tools, Micro worlds,

Expert Systems and Mental Models.

Hasselbring et al. (2000) in his study ‘Technology to support teacher development’ had

shown that improving the quality of an education system depends upon teachers’ training and

development. He argues that teachers should be trained to view ICT as a resource and to use

technology in classroom activities, whilst earlier added that education authorities are responsible

for teacher training.

Cuban (2001) investigated study on ‘High access and low use of technologies in high schools’.

He found that teachers who used computers in their classrooms largely continued their

customary practice, A very few fundamental changes in the dominant mode of teacher-centered

instruction have occurred occasional to serious use of computers in their classes had marginal or

no impact on routine teaching practices. In other words, most teachers had adapted an innovation

to fit their customary practices, not to revolutionize them. He noted that the overwhelming

majority of teachers employed the technology to sustain existing patterns of teaching rather than

to innovate. In interviews with 21 teachers he found that 13 said that their teaching had indeed

changed because of their use of information technologies. Changes include planning more

efficiently, communicating with colleagues and parents far more via the Internet, securing

education materials from the Internet, having an additional tool in their customary set of teaching

practice, and seeing students’ access to information as a phenomenal enhancement to their

teaching. Of the 13 teachers who said that their teaching had changed, only four said that they

had modified their daily practices in major ways: organized their class differently, lectured less,

relied more on securing information from sources other than the textbook, gave students more

independence, and acted more like a coach than a performer on stage.

Berner (2003, cited in Afshari et al, 2008) in a case study on the ‘Relationship between

computer use in the classroom and two independent variables: beliefs about computer

competence; and administrative support’, found that the faculty’s belief not computer

competence was the greatest predictor of their use of computers in the classroom. Therefore,

teachers should develop their competence in ICT skills through training based on the educational

goals they want to accomplish in order to use computers in teaching.

Synthesis

The above collection of both foreign and local studies provides information to the proponent that

their proposed study has similarities with other system which is widely used. As stated

technology has brought new option that helped us improve. Interaction is done through the use of

computerized systems which above product of technology processing.

Papert (1980) studied on ‘Children, computer and powerful idea’, . He felt that computers were

the appropriate tool to enable the learner to take control of the learning process. Sandholtz et al.

(1997) worked on ‘Teaching with technology, They reported that there were positive changes in

student attitude. Their interest and motivation typically extended to the last week of school and

as students became involved in working on computers, the time they spent on assignments and

projects often increased. Krysa (1998) in his study ‘Factors affecting the adoption and use of

computer technology in schools’, the need for computer training is explained by the fact that

most of the presently recruited teachers received little or no training in their formal education

concerning use of computers in teaching. Jonassen et al. (1999) conducted study on ‘Learning to

solve problems with technology’. They reported that after analyzing applications of IT in various

schools and projects grouped these learning activities around several mind tools, which can be

used by teachers to enable students to learn effectively. Berner (2003, cited in Afshari et al,

2008) in a case study on the ‘Relationship between computer use in the classroom and two

independent variables, found that the faculty’s belief not computer competence was the greatest

predictor of their use of computers in the classroom.