It’s Teacher’s Day again. Like other days that commemorate other professions and other people, teachers too deserve a specially set aside for them. The teaching profession has evolved over the years and the role the teacher too has changed in many ways. We no longer can see ourselves merely as transmitters of knowledge. In fact, we will fail quite miserably if that is what we think we are.
Among the many changes that have emerged in the field of education is the incorporation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as an integral part of the teaching-learning process. With this development the role of the teacher has moved to being a facilitator of learning. It is a fantastic opportunity for us as teachers to utilize ICT, especially through the Internet to provide our learners the opportunity to tap into resources which will enrich their learning experience. This is one way of remaining relevant to our learners. Many classrooms are so distant from the world our students inhabit that they have little no interest in coming to our classes. The chalkboard and even our powerpoint presentations will do little entice them to come eagerly to our classrooms.
I am not asking for technology to replace the teacher. We need to reassess our teaching strategies and provide a strong useful presence of ICT in our lessons. I am not asking for the abdication of the human touch in the teaching profession. Technology can never replace teachers. Michelle Haynes and Kyriaki Anagnostopoulou in an article entitled ‘Virtual Learning Environments as tools in learning and teaching’ (2002) remind us of the need for the human touch an a learning-teaching environment with incorporates ICT.
Virtual learning environments need to support orientation, understanding the relationship between tasks and resources, the establishing and maintaining of new study habits, confidence building, integration, and allow personalisation, tracking and provide feedback. Academics were often responsible and accountable for the provision of most of the above in a physical, face to face environment. In their new roles as online facilitators, they are called upon to provide support and guidance additional to that provided by technology.(2002:65)
As I have warned many of my teacher trainers before, I just like to give us all the same caution, let us not become dinosaurs in the Digital Age.
Once again, Happy Teacher’s Day! Do send a message or a card to the teachers who have left a mark in your lives.