Editorial

Technology-Mediated Teaching-Learning Process: From Developing of Learning Materials to Classroom Management and Practices to Students’ Welfare

Technology-mediated teaching-learning process has been in the limelight when academic institutions worldwide shifted to remote teaching and learning modality due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Such a process has been viewed as the best option to allow for teaching and learning continuity. Though the modality has existed long before the COVID-19 pandemic, it continues to be tapped universally in the K-12 and tertiary level settings. Hence, it is important to examine the technology-mediated teaching-learning process during the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods in order to understand how it works under normal and new normal conditions in this ever-changing educational landscape.

This special issue aims to create a venue for sharing research projects on how collaborations among educators and other stakeholders in the education sector responded to the call for technology-mediated teaching-learning. The articles published in this issue provide information on (a) design principles for the development of technology-mediated modules for teaching practical mathematics in the basic education; (b) teaching and assessment practices that can address online learners’ needs, especially in a general education course; (c) the change of students’ welfare as universities shifted to the remote teaching and learning approach; and (d) factors that can contribute to the creation of a positive climate and behavior management in a flipped classroom with peer instruction. These articles hope to provide insights and possibilities to other academic institutions at the crossroads of establishing their own technology-mediated education programs.

The article of Benedicto Norberto V. Aves and Monalisa M. Te-Sasing affirms the place of a design-based research approach in the development of technology-mediated learning materials for the teaching of practical Mathematics in a technical-vocational education. The study shows that the modules developed provided a better learning experience for students. It emphasizes the role of the online learning teacher as facilitator, feedback giver, and mentor mediating the overall learning process. The study highlights the criticality of design in considering the new role of teachers, i.e., as facilitators of the learning process. Instead of occupying the traditional role of the teacher as authority figure, teachers are now able to relinquish to their students the right to make the final decisions with regards to the time and place of their learning.

In addressing the needs of distance education learners, Mabini DG. Dizon’s article examines the students’ perception of what it means to be a successful student. The study highlights the need for the faculty-in-charge to create more avenues for student socialization and interaction and to provide timely responses to students’ messages. It suggests that the assessment of learning in an online learning environment should consider the practical application of knowledge as well as the timelines for requirement submissions. The article engages instructors and teachers to consider their ways to help learners balance their academic and non-academic responsibilities.

Analyzing the change in students’ welfare under the remote teaching and learning modality, Patrick C. de Leon’s article provides empirical information to academic institutions planning to shift to the remote teaching and learning modality. The study reports that students’ welfare has not been affected significantly with the shift. As such, it supports the institutional policies of the Commission on Higher Education that mandated higher education institutions to shift to such the remote teaching and learning modality.

The article by Aprhodite M. Macale and co-authors provides information on how to create a positive learning environment as well as manage students’ behavior in a flipped classroom. It suggests that promoting a positive climate for learning and behavioral management must consider transparency in the use of the modality, i.e., students should be informed on what and how to use the modality. There is also the need to effectively design the face-to-face set-up to maximize student-to-student interactions in keeping with the online learning expectations. The materials used in online learning must also be comprehensible to the students. Lastly, the study affirms the shared responsibility among the teacher and the students when it comes classroom behavior management in both virtual and physical settings.

With this set of articles, we hope this special issue covering empirical information will inspire creative thinking and reflection among our readers - those who are intent on establishing technology-mediated education in their institutions or those who are heeding the call to enhance their teaching and learning processes to reduce the students’ apprehension with such a modality. We hope that readers can use examples from these studies to ensure effective teaching-learning transactions in the best way possible amid challenging circumstances.

Ricardo T. Bagarinao, Ph.D.
Juliet Aleta R. Villanueva, Ph.D.