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Using
ICT
in the
Classroom:
Status
and
Prospects
in Southeast
Asia
Priscilla
G. Cabanatan
Abstract
There
is uneven
economic
development
in Southeast
Asia.
One
major
regional
characteristic
of Southeast
Asia
is that
the
technology
backbone
varies
significantly
from
country
to country
as well
as within
each
country.
In
terms
of technology
use
in classroom
there
is a
broad
range
of technologies
being
used
including
print,
radio,
video
and
computer-based
materials.
Print
materials
are
still
the
most
extensively
used
for
instructional
media
and
particularly
in countries
whose
populations
live
in rural
areas.
Radio/audio-tapes
and
television/video-tapes
are
also
widely
used
in combination
with
print
materials.
There
are
a significant
number
of initiatives
for
the
use
of computer-based
materials
especially
in some
of the
more
developed
countries.
Singapore
and
Malaysia
are
much
more
advanced
in terms
of using
ICT
in classrooms.
In
Indonesia,
the
Philippines
and
Thailand,
cooperative
efforts
between
government
ministries
and
multinational
companies
have
made
it possible
to install
computers
in urban
and
rural
classrooms
and
train
teachers.
The
government
of Brunei
Darussalam
has
initiated
ICT
initiatives
to bring
computers
into
classrooms.
Cambodia,
Laos
PDR,
Myanmar
and
Vietnam
have
been
assisted
by international
donor
agencies
in establishing
ICT
infrastructure.
ICT
has
been
integrated
into
the
secondary
school
curriculum
of most
Southeast
Asian
countries,
either
as a
compulsory
or elective
subject.
In some
countries,
the
integration
has
been
done
in the
primary
level
as well.
Factors
influencing
the
use
of ICT
in the
classroom
in the
region
are
(1)
ICT
vision
embedded
in national
policy,
(2)
ICT
infrastructure,
equipment,
and
software,
(3)
integration
of ICT
use
into
school
curriculum,
(4)
support
of school
leaders,
(5)
teacher
training,
(6)technical
support,
and
(7)
collaboration
with
business
and
communities.
The
prospects
for
each
country
are
varied.
However
in the
light
of four
stages
(emerging
stage,
applying
stage,
infusing
stage
and
transforming
stage)
of UNESCO
ICT
growth
continuum
model,
each
country
in the
region
will
move
forward
along
the
continuum
at various
speeds.
This
paper
is an
expansion
and
updating
of a
presentation
made
at the
Asia
and
the
Pacific
Seminar
held
in Tokyo
and
Kyoto
in September
2003.
It
describes
general
trends
in the
classroom
use
of ICT
in Southeast
Asia.
It reports
on activities
being
undertaken
by governments
and
international
agencies
such
as the
Southeast
Asian
Ministers
of Education
Organization
Regional
Center
for
Educational
Innovation
and
Technology
(SEAMEO
INNOTECH),
which
undertakes
capacity-programs
and
projects
to enhance
capabilities
of key
educators
to lead
change
through
technology-oriented
innovations
(www.seamo-innotech.org).
These
activities
are
cited
to illustrate
some
trends
in the
use
of ICT
in education
in Southeast
Asia.
Lessons
are
then
drawn
from
the
experience
by citing
factors
that
influence
the
effective
and
sustained
use
of ICT
in the
classroom.
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