Enabling and Inhibiting Dimensions of Technology

Objectives:
The learner is expected to:
1. Identify the dimensions of technology that are enabling and inhibiting (HUMSS_MCT12-IId-f-1)
2. Discuss the benefits of technology (HUMSS_MCT12-IId-f-2)
Questions to reflect on before reading the discussion part.
1. What do you think are the positive contribution of Technology in today’s modern world?
2. Do you think technology is now a necessity?
3. Can you compare the technology in the past with the ones that we have now? Please elaborate.
4. How was Information Technology able to help you with your studies?
INTRODUCTION
Twenty-first century learning has been defined by application and advancement in information technology or IT.
Information technology has become an essential part of education. According to Information Technology Association of America,
information technology is defined as “the study, design, development, application, implementation, support or management of
computer-based information systems” which serves as a big help both for the teachers and learners.
Integrating technology in education is imperative for it is one way to encourage the learners to be more interested in the
subject they are studying. It can encourage a more active participation in the learning process which can be hard to achieve
through a traditional lecture environment and hence, provides different opportunities to make learning more fun, interactive
and enriching.
Emerging technologies show many challenges to the traditional system. Nanotechnology, biotechnology and robotics
are not limited to an individual organization like many older technologies such as motor vehicles, pharmaceuticals and others
but rather, to a multiple of industries and application companies. These controlled sectors and applications create a
complication of regulatory efforts in determining the risks and control costs of these technology – life cycles.

Emerging technologies further show an unprecedented vagueness parallel to the risks they bring, advantages, and
upcoming growth while traditional technologies possess toxicity which may not be in the case of nanomaterials. Some
genetically altered food products can be risky to the welfare of public health and the environment. Information technology has
served as a major catalyst of change and innovation in different aspect of business and society. It has proven game changer in
resolving economic and social issues.
As the proliferation of technology in the classroom continues to accelerate, schools that haven’t yet implemented some
of the latest and greatest devices such as computers in the classroom are starting to really feel the pressure to cope with the fast
changing world. Mobile devices can make perfect learning tools and open up unlimited possibilities for educators and students
alike, but it’s not all daisies and roses. Sometimes the initial infatuation with the shiny new technology turns into a love-hate
relationship as problems and issues arise.

POTENTIAL ISSUES TO LOOK OUT FOR WHEN BRINGING TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION

Of course, teachers are afraid that their students may just play around on social media instead of using their devices for
educational purposes. Today’s kids spend quite a bit of time on Facebook, mobile games, other social networking sites, etc.
Security Breach

Students are oftentimes more curious than they are malicious. They want to push the boundaries just to see if they can.
If you're network allows them access to the admin servers, you can bet they're going to get on it.
Cheating
At one time a student had to pull a paper written “cheat sheet” out of their pocket to have the ability to cheat. It
certainly seems easier that they can now cleverly pull up a “cheat sheet” on their device. The good news is, with the ever-
evolving change in technology, software companies are developing ways to alleviate the cheating problem by for example,
allowing teachers and administrator’s access to students’ screens while in the classroom.
Gaming
There are a ton of free gaming apps out there and people love them, especially the learners. These addicting games can
be quite the distraction and take away from productivity in learning.
Information technologies have contributed to the increase in the concentration of access to information, decision –
making and control. They have accelerated the crisis in employment through labor substitution and have intensified the
competitive processes in both economic and social spheres. Their development has sustained the belief that the urban crisis can
be resolved through new information and communication infrastructures.
Technology has taken over the lives of many people who spend way too much time on social media just trying to see
how many likes and comments they have on their Facebook or Instagram posts. People think of social media when someone is
looking at their phone, or when someone mentions technology. They forget all the amazing things other than social media that

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technology has brought to us. Technology has allowed parents not to be in the dark when it comes to being aware as to where
their children are. It has allowed people away from their own countries to contact their loved ones and even see them through
video calls. But technology has enslaved us and has controlled our lives in some other ways as well.
Technology has been lauded as a way to free up time for us, yet the reality of all of these – consuming medium often
does the reverse. New innovations bring with them a host of unintended consequences, ranging from the troubling to the
downright depressing. Social media makes us lonely. Too much screen – time makes teenagers fall behind their peers. And at the
more feeble end of the spectrum, many of us have walked into an obstacle while texting. Tech innovators frequently profess
aspirations to improve the lot of mankind. Such aspirations are admirable, but we shouldn’t forget that there’s one rather more
concrete intention they share: to make money. They’re vendors, we’re consumers: it’s simple as that.
But even if tech companies aren’t really trying to enslave us, or to make us feel inadequate, that doesn’t mean that the
current situation is a case of good intentions gone awry. There’s no more reason to think that technology is intrinsically good,
but occasionally getting it wrong, than there is to think that it’s a remarkably successful villain.
Technology can be used in various ways to facilitate business organizations. For example, technology can be used to
organize information. It can be used to aid data transfer and information flow within an organization. Technology can also be
used to process, track and organize business records. IT indeed has countless of advantages in the field of business and
commerce. It helps businesses automate most tasks and this process results in increased production and efficiency. Business can
automate tasks in the accounting department by using accounting software like QuickBooks.
Technology helps to speed up the learning process for students because it creates a more efficient learning
environment in many ways. Moreover, technology can also be an important part of one’s life for many other reasons aside from
education.
Technology has important effects on business operations. Regardless of the size of your enterprise, technology has both
tangible and intangible benefits that will help you make money and produce the results that your customers demand.
Technological infrastructures affect the culture, efficiency and relationships within a business. Technology has the ability to
enhance relationships among teachers, students and even the community. When teachers effectively integrate technology into
varied subject areas, teachers grow into roles of adviser, content expert, and coach.
Technology helps make teaching and learning more meaningful and fun. Technology is in many ways like its own form
of entertainment. However, for people with disabilities, technology can be so much more than just entertainment. It can change
their lives. It can help them learn and enable them to do things they wouldn't otherwise be able to do.
Assessment (next page please)

Direction: Read each item carefully and write TRUE if the statement is correct and FALSE if the statement is incorrect. Write your
answers in your notebook.
True or False
_______1. Information communication technology answers most of the problems
in communication dissemination faster.
_______2. Technology can solve urban crisis through new information and
communication infrastructures.
_________3. Information technologies have contributed to the increase in the concentration of access to information, decision –
making and control.
________ 4. Information communication technology is the growing discovery in the 21st century that helps in the interaction of
countries from one another.
_______ 5. Technology is a necessity.
_______ 6. Technology has taken over the lives of many people.
_______ 7. Social Media consumes all our time.
_______ 8. Likes and comments quantity will make a person contented for a day.
_______ 9. Technology can be used in various ways to facilitate business organizations.
_______ 10. Technology helps to speed up the learning process for students.
Performance: “Interventor on the Making!”
If given the chance to invent something in the future, what would it be and why? Have your drawing on a bond paper and don’t
forget to include a short description of your intention with regards to your proposed invention. (15pts) (do it on a separate
paper)

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ACTIVITY: ESSAY

1. What for you is the greatest invention? Why?