SAN JOSE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

SAN JOSE MALILIPOT ALBAY

MECHA BALDERAMA PROF ED 8
BSED-FILIPINO III-D MR. VICTOR BOHOLANO
ACTIVITY 2

1. How can Technologies for learning aid learners with special needs? Make a
thorough research on the topic.
 The Use Of Technology In Special Education: Application And Solutions

In the modern world, we’re witnessing the gradual erasure of borders. This process is
related not only to business or politics. Nowadays, almost any person despite their citizenship of
physical state can get medical or educational services all around the world. To regulate such
relationships between a person and international organizations, there are dozens of specialized
commissions creating laws and standards.

The educational standards claim that students with disabilities should be provided with
opportunities to realize their potential. They should participate in education and training on the
same basis as students without disabilities and that they are not subject to discrimination. Due
to the progress in the IT industry, digital technologies are easily accessible and widespread
which allows using them for providing students with new opportunities.

Here is how technology can simplify the educational process for people with disabilities.

 How Modern Technology Helps Students With Special Needs

According to the National Center For Education Statistics, in 2015–2016, the number of
students served under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in the US was 6.7
million. This number is equal to 13% of all public school students. While the percentage of such
students stays pretty much the same during the last years, the total number of them has
increased by 0.3 million since 2011-2012. The percentage distribution of different disabilities
types is presented in the National Center For Education Statistics website.

These numbers tell us that there can’t be a single technological solution that would suit the
needs of all students with special needs. Due to the high diversity of types of disabilities, the
best possible outcome can be guaranteed by the use of custom-made solutions designed
according to the requirements of a particular group of students.

Special technology allows increasing the independence of a particular student freeing him
from the constant need for direct teacher involvement. As a result, a student can choose the
speed of learning that is convenient for him which leads to more personalized learning. When a
student doesn’t inhibit the learning process for the whole group, it allows reducing the anxiety
level which plays a significant role in education as well. Implementation of technologies in
special education allows simplifying the communication and improve the academic skills of
students with disabilities.
 2. Explain how technologies for learning improve academic performance of
learners and bridge learning gaps?

 How can educators bridge learning gaps with blended

learning?

Schools have adapted well and survived the crisis, now it’s time to thrive….

Education sector witnessed an unimaginable disruption last year! But, thankfully, the worst is
behind us and there is a ray of hope that schools will reopen soon.

Though studies continued for our children through digital means, it is a bitter fact that face-to-
face interactions with teachers and fun time with peers were missed terribly, even if the virtual
classes were effective.

Physical classrooms are an indispensable part of a student’s life – vital to their growth, we all
know that. But, we have realized something else too, which is equally important – THE
INCREDIBLE POTENTIAL OF TECHNOLOGY IN EDUCATION!

Technology integration into lesson plans brought several interesting and multi-dimensional
prospects to the classroom. Would teachers and students want to say ‘bye’ to all the amazing and
wonderful things they have discovered and explored during this exceptional academic session?
Definitely, not!

Well, a 100% digital approach is not something we are endorsing here, for sure! It is
inappropriate for holistic development and infeasible too given the ‘digital divide’ in our
country.

Only 40% of the rural communities have access to devices and only 8 -10 percent of the
children from such households, get to use the devices for their learning. It’s no surprise that
only 60% of the children from such regions have been able to attend online classes because
either they were grappling from network connectivity issues or  unavailability of dedicated
devices due to a single device being shared among 2-3 children.

Then, what is the best way forward…..

…embrace “blended learning”, where print and digital coexist!

Yes!, our futuristic classrooms should have tools from both traditional and digital realms, so that
teachers can adopt a “blended” multichannel teaching approach offering the best of face-to-face
and online worlds – all in one place.

As schools prepare to reopen for the next session, there are several challenges ahead of them. In
particular, educators are anxious about the emergence of learning gaps. One complete session
has been online! It has been hard for teachers to gauge students’ performance with precision. Not
every child has been comfortable with virtual learning, some had inhibitive fears to express,
while some failed to concentrate and grasp concepts during online sessions.

Can teachers bridge these learning gaps through blended

learning?
“Students” are at the heart of the blended teaching-learning process.

Blended learning will help teachers acknowledge varying strengths of students, personalize
instruction and present information in multiple ways.

 The analytics capabilities of online platforms can be instrumental in addressing learning gaps – 
the automatically generated statistics such as quiz scores can be used to inspect the patterns,
common trouble areas etc. This kind of information is so helpful in giving personalized feedback
to students.

Imagine a textbook aligned to some video on a digital board and is mapped to an evaluation
framework with reporting capabilities! – a great tool indeed to conduct formative assessments
  Online quizzes are quick and effective techniques to uncover learning gaps and assess students
about the previous chapters. Follow-up activities can be assigned to students based on their quiz
scores. Interactive games and short presentations can be used to reflect their understanding.

 The use of eLearning materials promotes a sense of responsibility and ownership in students
regarding their learning. They become self-driven and learn to seek help or hunt resources as
per need. Students can also revisit concepts anytime, helping them learn at their own pace.

 Blended learning, provides an online platform like LMS for organizing and presenting material
that students can refer to prepare for in-class activities. For instance, give students an online
reading assignment and a linked quiz to complete before attending class the next day where
there will be follow-up discussion on the story and a writing task. The references will help them
prepare better and participate more actively.

 Blended learning engages parents in their child’s learning journey – digital learning resources,
question banks with different difficulty levels, class performance charts and graphs, automated
reports can be shared with parents giving them a better perspective about their child’s growth.

 Conducting research and exploring topics online is interesting – they stay focused for longer
periods compared to textbooks or paper sheets. Blended lesson plans incorporating audio-visual
elements, online assessments along with textbooks, enhances student engagement levels quite
significantly. They are able to retain information and apply the knowledge gained.

 Online apps and learning materials in a digitized setup, facilitates the teacher to experiment
with new ways of teaching, allowing her to collaborate with students in creating a more
experiential learning environment.

Blended learning solutions are the need of the hour for a robust and progressive educational
system, barring all access and time-related limitations to learning materials!

Blended learning has the proven potential to enhance both the effectiveness and efficiency of
meaningful learning experiences and bridging learning gaps.

3. How can abuse and misuse of the technologies for learning be prevented if not
at all eradicated? Research on the different solutions presented to address
global issues discussed in the article above (DICT Roadmap)

Philippine  Roadmap for Digital Startups

The Philippine Roadmap For Digital Startups Is A Short And Long-Term Strategic Plan
For The Philippine Startup Community And The Department Information and
Communication (DICT) Technology Towards Developing Digital Innovation In The
Country. The Goal of This Initiative Is to Generate Innovative Startups That Will Spur
Economic Growth and to Find Solutions to Society’s Most Pressing and Pervasive
Issues. This Roadmap Is A Framework That Clearly Defines Our Overall Direction To
Push For Digital Innovation – One That Can Leverage The Country’s Resources To Its
Highest Potential.

The Roadmap is divided into three parts:

 The Internet-Related (Digital) Startup Ecosystem – Provides A Clear Definition Of

Terms, Goals, And Benchmarks. A Summary Of Current Internet-Related Technology
Ecosystems, As Well As One For The Current Philippine Startup Ecosystem, Is
Included.

 Patterns Of Technology Startup Ecosystem – Provides Insights From Various Startup

Ecosystems Around The World, Highlighting Key Features Of Each Ecosystem. It Also
Explores The Philippines’ Current Progress In Those Defined Key Areas As Well As A
Swot Analysis Of The Local Ecosystem.

 Action Plan – Enumerates The Short And Long-Term Recommendations For All
Stakeholders To Improve The Philippine Digital Startup Ecosystem As Well As The
Localized Programs Based On Existing Programs From International Ecosystems.

4. As the availability of technologies for learning varies in different places and

regions, discuss the most commonly used technologies for learning in our
locality and explain how it facilitates the learning process.

In our most commonly use learning technologies in our region is a PowerPoint

presentation teachers use this to discuss and teach students. Through this technology
teachers can teach properly and create a lesson that will help students to learn more,
other facility use television and laptop for learning process and it really helps to the
students to gain more knowledge.