May S. Villo (Author)
Abstract
The aim of this research was to identify the ICT capabilities of public high schools and educators in Division of Rizal. This includes the profile of educators- respondents in terms of age; gender; length of years of teaching ICT; maximum educational degree; trainings attended, or learnings acquired related to ICT; and assessment of level of ICT competencies of the respondents in terms of knowledge and skills in basic computer/ ICT operation; usage of ICT as an instrument for teaching / learning; and use of the Internet and web applications to teaching/ learning. This study used descriptive research that includes 62 teachers and 4 ICT Administrators from the public high schools in the schools from Division of Rizal. This is a male-dominated study, composed of young respondents with a good number of years in service. Based on the findings, teacher- respondents are highly competent on creating a new spreadsheet (enter data), creating a new document and slide show. Furthermore, some respondents believed that they are competent because they can format cells, copy, delete and rename files, change font and layout, and edit an existing slide show. Also, most of the ICT coordinators have a 5-year basic computer training course that helps them integrate the technology with the curriculum. They gauge themselves competent in creating materials for students’ use (e.g., hand-outs, tests) and communicating with student(s) and/or students’ parents as well as communicating with colleagues/other professionals. Furthermore, respondents are also competent to access research and best practices (e.g., preparation, tracking, assessment, and reporting) for teaching and curriculum administration. Further, this means schools should support the need of teachers when it comes to employing ICT- based skills. There is a need for continuous training and upgrading of facilities and equipment that will support teachers’ demand regarding it.
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Keywords: Information and communications technology, Competencies, Public school