FACULTY OF EDUCATION "SCHOOL BEYOND THE 21ST CENTURY--IS TECHNOLOGY THE ANSWER?"

Opening Remarks

By: Rev. Bro. Dr. Prathip Martin Komolmas, FSG, Ph.D.

"Do not confine your children to your own way of learning, for they were horn in another generation"

The concept of today's education is very well expressed in that simple Latin proverb. Children today are exposed to things and mediums that did not exist in our time. This exposure gives learning a new twist and direction and creates novel ideas ready to be explored.

Assumption University as an academic institution and in line with the Church Declaration on Christian Education, exhorts everyone who has the power, authority, and leadership to "assist to their utmost in finding and implementing suitable methods of education and programs of study and in molding teachers who can provide true education to our youth."

I commend the Faculty of Education for organizing a professional conference entitled "School Beyond the 21st Century-Is Technology the Answer" and for inviting educational experts who can share their knowledge and experience in this field.

Many of you may wonder why technology is singled out in the educational context? The truth is that our schools thrive on information. In the ever-changing world filled with new technology, our teachers and students require the right information, from the right sources. Having direct access to information gives the competitive edge needed to succeed. Student performance can be improved with the enhancement of teaching and learning using technology as the norm.

The Bible warns us that "Where there is no vision, the people perish." Public education, too, could perish without a vision. But do not confuse vision with prediction. Predictions are based on extrapolations of existing trends; meteorologists, for example, make predictions about the weather in the days ahead on the basis of such factors as existing wind currents and atmospheric pressures. A vision statement, in contrast, describes the future we want-not necessarily the one we might predict on the basis of what is happening now. We don't ask weathermen for visions of weather; we want their predictions. A visionary assumes that the future does not exist and must be created. Within limits, we can obtain the future we want, if we are willing to work for it. We must begin to dream about what schools could be like if we would only take full advantage of the technology available to us today. How would teachers teach if textbooks were replaced by small multimedia devices that serve as both a computer and a communication tool? What would school libraries be like when students have access to the libraries of the world? How would teaching change when students can contact experts who know more about a topic than their teachers? We have scarcely begun to imagine what schools could become when we exploit the new technology to its maximum advantage.

The first step in using technology for the transformation of schools, then, is to build a vision of what we believe schools could become by taking full advantage of the new technology.

As Martin Luther King once said "The prosperity of a country depends, not on the abundance of its revenues, nor on the strength of its fortifications, nor on the beauty of its public buildings; but it consists in its number of cultivated citizens, in its men of education, enlightenment, and character".

I now declare open this professional conference on "School beyond the 2 1"' Century-Is Technology the Answer?' and hope and pray that your discussions and deliberations will help to achieve the objectives of the conveners.

Closing Remarks

By: Rev. Bro. Bancha Saenghiran, FSG., Ph.D.

Distinguished Guest Speakers, dean, deputy dean, faculty members, participants, ladies and gentlemen:

It is my honor and pleasure to be with you at this closing ceremony. Before this professional conference comes to a close, I would like to share with you my perspectives on "Is Technology the Answer?"

Anatole France gave a very wise saying that goes "The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of seeking satisfaction afterwards." Yes technology is playing an integral sole in our lives and we are in the midst of a technological revolution. Today we are unable to work efficiently without computers, cell phone and satellite dishes. What we have is an abundance of information and tools that facilitate learning. It is the teacher's job to ignite the flame of curiosity in the minds of learners and inspire them to pursue the learning process with the modern tools and equipments. There is little point if our goal of introducing technology to classrooms merely to produces individuals with only factual information. Alec Bourne says "It is possible to store the mind with a million facts and still be entirely uneducated." Our philosophy in the Faculty of Education is that "Excellence in teaching begins with the insight that it is not teaching but learning which is critically important. The focus will be on the concept that teachers are not so much as sources of wisdom, dispensers of knowledge, transmitters of culture as managers of the learning process and that excellence comes from rigorous and repeated exercise in thinking, feeling, deciding, and doing significant things."

To be effective, technology and teachers must work together to provide challenging learning opportunities. Why is technology so important? The goals of education and technology are so closely aligned that they can have profound impact on the way we think and learn! The computer has changed from a productivity tool to an affordable learning tool. The most impressive fact is that educational information is available on a massive scale through the different means of technology. Learning now is vastly different from the past and the following requirements were identified for learning in the 21"' Century:

• A greater dependence on new communication and computing technologies that support new levels of student creativity and research.
• A change in the role of teachers from "sages on the stage" to mentors, researchers, publishers, technology users, knowledge producers, risk takers and lifelong learners.
• Involvement of parents to play a major role in the education of their children and. to work actively with teachers to connect formal and informal education.
• Partnering of local businesses and other community organizations so they become actively involved in the schools.
• Collaborations that bring students, teachers, and researchers together to create new curriculum for K- 12 learners and adult learners.

Dear participants, technology has paved a new way into our lives and how we deal with this change will contribute to our children's success. It is our duty and responsibility to learn all aspects and all the tracks of the trade as well as criticisms that come with the adoption of technology and use it in a way that will be of the greatest benefit to society. I hope that the day has been well spent with exchange of ideas and innovative thoughts. The seed has been planted, and it will certainly germinate and with proper care and mustering fructification will follow in due time.

I would like to thank the organizers who contributed to the success of this conference. My sincere thanks also go to the dean, faculty members who took the time to act as advisors. I wish to thank all the participants for your interest and presence.

May I now bring the seminar to a close. Have a pleasant evening and may God bless you all. Thank you!