Educational technology plays an important role in 21st century education by allowing for student-centered, collaborative learning with real-world context. It provides 24/7 access to information, constant interaction, and easily shared digital content. Technology should be integrated comprehensively to develop 21st century skills like communication, collaboration, problem solving and innovation. It also supports innovative teaching, training for teachers, development of curriculum and materials. The 11 key functions of educational technology are to improve teaching and learning, analyze the process, enhance goals, provide training, develop curriculum and materials, identify community needs, and help overall improvement of the educational system.

1. Roles and
Functions of
Educational
Technolgy in the
21st Century
Education
Prepared by: Michaelangelo A. Limpangog
BSED-2

2. • The term “21st
century” has become the
central part of educational thinking and
planning for the future. Administrator and
teachers are actively searching for ways to
prepare for the future, and the educational
system has been evolving faster than ever
before. Creating a 21st
century education
system is bout making sure that all
students are prepared to succeed in a
competitive world.

3. • In order to prepare students to play their
role in the 21st
century society we are a part
of, the following can be considered when
deciding how education will look in our
schools and classrooms.:
1.Instruction should be student-centered
2. Education should be collaborative
3. Learning should have context

4. 1.Instruction should be student-centered
-Different learning styles are encouraged,
and students have an enhanced sense of
motivation and responsibility.
-They engaged in many different types of
hands- on activities, as well as demonstrate
learning in many different ways.

5. 2. Education should be collaborative
- Students should be encouraged to work
together to discover information, piece it
together, and construct meaning.
- Students should learn how to recognize
the different strengths and talents each person
can bring to a project, and change roles
depending on those attributes.

6. - Schools should be collaborating with other
educational institutions around the world to
share information and learn about different
-They should be willing to alter their
instructional methods in light of new
advancements.
-Collaboration should also be dynamic.

7. 3. Learning should have context
- While students are encouraged to learn
in different ways, the teacher still provides
guidance as to the skills that need to be
acquired.
-We need to take a more general
approach and teach them the skills that are
useful in any situation

8. The Role of Technology in 21st
Century Learning
1. Technology allows for 24/7 access to
information
2. Constant social interaction, and
3. Easily created and shared digital content

9. There is a call for action to integrate technology as a
fundamental building block into education in three
broad areas:
1. Use technology comprehensively to develop
proficiency in 21st
century skills.
- Even if all students mastered core academic
subjects, they still would be woefully
underprepared to succeed in postsecondary
institutions and workplaces, which increasingly
value people who can use their knowledge to
communicate, collaborative, analyze, create,
innovative and solve problems.

10. 2. Use technology comprehensively to
support innovative teaching and learning.
- To keep pace with a changing world,
schools need to offer more rigorous, relevant
and engaging opportunities for students to
learn-and to apply their knowledge and skills in
meaningful ways.

11. 3. Use technology comprehensively to
create robust education support system.
- To be effective in schools and
classrooms, teachers and administrators
need training, tools and proficiency in 21st
century skills themselves.

12. Important functions of
Educational Technology
1. Improvement of Teaching
- It tries to find out the different variables of
teaching their interlinks, effects upon each
other, relationships, theories of teaching,
phases of teaching principles of teaching,
maxims of teaching etc.

13. 2. Analysis of the Teaching-Learning Process
- It tries to find out the different variables of
teaching their interlinks effects upon each other,
relationship etc.
3. Improvement of Learning
- It takes the help of various empirically
established generalizations from psychology,
sociology, physical sciences, engineering etc.

14. 4. Enhancing Goals of Education
- Educational Technology helps in enhancing
the right objectives in the light of changed
circumstances and changed environment.
5. Training to Teachers
- Educational Technology can render its
valuable help in the training of teachers.

15. 6. Development of Curriculum
- Educational technology can do this job of
developing a suitable curriculum appropriately.
7. Development of Teaching-Learning Materials
- Only right type of materials will able to
modify the behavior of the learner suitably
making him a fit person for the society.

16. 8. Teaching-Learning Strategies
- The strategy has to be the right one, which
should be according to the materials and is able to
bring about effective teaching learning.
9. Development of Audio-Visual Aids
- The software aids, the hardware aids, the
computer and etc., have “to be used in the present
type of teaching-learning environment.

17. 10. Help in Overall Improvement
- Educational technology helps in locating the
problems in the different areas of education. It also
helps in remedying the draw-backs.
11. Identification of Needs of the Community
- It helps in providing equal education
opportunities to backward people, disadvantaged
students and deprived sections of the society

18. Reference:
• Edtech2D(Educational Technology
Workbook) pp. 1-10 by Mrs. Ma. Estela T.
Balbuena