Lesson II

                                           TECHNOLOGY BOON OR BANE

Objective:

 To interpret technology as boon or bane.

  

     Technology is a blessing for man. With technology, there is a lot that we can do which we could not  do then.  With cell phones, webcam, you will be closer to someone miles and miles away.  So far yet so close! That is your feeling when you talk through a cell phone to a beloved one who is far away from home. Just think of the many human lives saved because of the speedy  notifications via cell phones. Just think of how your  teaching  and learning have become more novel, stimulating, exciting and engaging with the use of multimedia in the classroom. With your tv, you can watch events as they happen all over the globe.

     However, when not used properly, technology becomes a detriment to learning and development. It can destroy relationships.  Think of the husband who is glued to tv unmindful of his wife seeking his attention. This may eventually erode marital relationship. Think of the student  who surfs the internet for pornographic scenes. He will have trouble  with his development. The abuse and misuse of the internet will have far reaching unfavorable effects on his moral life. The teacher who schedules class  tv viewing for the whole hour to free herself from a one – hour teaching and so can engage in “tsismis” , likewise will not benefit  from technology. Neither will her class truly benefit from the whole period of tv viewing.

In education, technology is bane when:

·         The  learner is made to accept as Gospel truth information they get from the internet

·         The learner surfs the Internet for pornography

·         The learner has  an uncritical mind on the images floating on televisions and computers that represent modernity and  progress

·         The tv makes the learner a mere spectator not an active participant in the drama of life

·         The learner gets glued to his computer for computer assisted instruction unmindful of the world and so fails to develop the ability to relate to others

·         We make use of the internet to do character assassination of people whom we hardly like

·         Because of our cell phone, we spend most of our time in the classroom or in our workplace texting

·         We use overuse and abuse tv or film viewing as a strategy to kill time.

Let’s go back  to the question asked  at the beginning of this lesson. Is technology boon or bane to education? It depends on how we use technology. If we use it to help our students and teachers become caring, relating, thinking, reflecting,  and analyzing and feelings beings, then it is boon, a blessing. But if we abuse and misuse it and so contribute to ruin  and downfall and those of other persons, it becomes a bane or a curse.