DEVC204

TMA NO. 1

Adona Tuazon- Dela Rosa

Student No: 1987-18464
Adona T. Dela Rosa

Effective Communication in Teaching and Learning Technical Concepts for I.T.

Education

Rationale of the Study

The National Information Technology Council of the Philippines in formulating its

plan for development of Information Technology in the Philippines envisioned our

country to be:’ the knowledge center in Asia Pacific, the leader in IT education, in IT

assisted training, and in the application of information and knowledge to business,

professionals, sciences, and the arts. 1

Focusing on one of its vision, that is, to be the leader in IT education, pose a

complex task for government, education institutions and other key players in realizing

the said goal.

Information Technology Education in the Philippines has gained significant value

among the Filipino youths in terms of its role and impact on national development and

as a relevant discipline. The sprout of many computer learning centers in the country

and the offering of the degree programs in I.T. courses in colleges and universities

indicate the popularity of the discipline. Data shows that in 1996, 200 training centers

were opened and 30 colleges and universities opened degree programs in Information

Technology. The same year, the students enrolled in IT courses rose to 29%.2
Adona T. Dela Rosa

As defined, Information Technology is a collective term for the various

technologies involved in the processing and transmitting information which include

computing, multimedia, telecommunications, micro electronics and their

interdependencies. It refers to the convergence of various information-based,

3
broadcast, and mass media communication technologies. Information Technology

Association of America defined it as “the study, design, development, implementation,

support or management of computer-based information systems, particularly software

applications and computer hardware.4

The above definition illustrates the scope and complexity of information

technology as a discipline and as an industry. This posts a greater challenge for

education institutions for development of IT education and for IT educators to be

effective in transforming IT concepts into knowledge and skills to produce competent IT

professionals. Training and education in the field of information systems is viewed as a

current critical issue. 5 It is important that we are creating IT individuals who understand

the concepts and its applications and not merely awarding IT degrees and diplomas to

IT graduates.

To assess IT education is a vague task and entails a macro analysis of the entire

IT education system. The focus of this study is a micro representation of an education

institution that offers I.T subjects. It will focus on the problem encountered in providing

technical concepts. And as a communication research study, it will evaluate the

communication process relative to the effectiveness of teaching technical subjects.

Adona T. Dela Rosa

The Research Problem

Information Technology education constitute a curriculum that involves technical

and complicated concepts, principles, and methods. Common Information Technology

concepts are generally complex and rather difficult for the new students to grasp. It is a

real challenge for instructors to adequately convey the complex IT concepts to student.6

This research paper inquires on the problems encountered by IT educators in teaching

IT subjects in one particular school:

1. Problems in delivering effective instruction and absorbing knowledge

specifically technical subjects,

2. Difficulty of students in expressing/communicating and presenting

ideas on concepts learned.

Objective of the Study

The objective of the study is to evaluate the communication process in

relation to the problems encountered in conveying and learning the technical

concepts. This research will try to define the problems of effectiveness in

communication and determine the communication barriers in achieving effective

delivery of instruction and absorbing knowledge. It also aims to identify the

difficulty in expressing the learned concepts and ideas.

Adona T. Dela Rosa

Importance of the Study

Teaching and learning technical concepts require effective communication

process. In the field of Information Technology education, the process of

communication starts with conveying the technical concepts, principles, and

methods and flow with listening and absorbing knowledge. The purpose of

communication is achieved if the students were able to communicate the

knowledge learned during evaluation. Such is the ideal end in teaching-learning

scenario. It is important to identify problems in the delivery of instruction and

understanding concepts and formulate solutions for the attainment of goal.

This research study can be used as a guide by IT educators in identifying

possible problems in teaching technical subjects. And design teaching methods

for effective delivery of instructions and learning of knowledge. This is not to say

that this research study is a concrete model for teaching technical subjects. But

can be used by IT educators who can relate with the problems presented herein.
1
National Information Technology Council of the Philippines. IT21 Philippines Asia’s Knowledge

Center (Manila October 1997).

2
Same
3
Same
4
http://www.answers.com/topic/information-technology#after_ad1
5
Downing, Charles E., A Simple and effective Method for Teaching Information Systems
Vocabulary and Concepts in a Large Lecture Setting. Operations Management and Info Systems
Department, College of Business, Northern Illinois University
6
Nguyen, Thang N. Developing and Using an Integrated Collection of Rich Real Life Analogies
and Metaphors in the Teaching of Complex IT concepts. Callifornia State University. Long Beach
California