Teacher on Center Stage: Francis Jim Tuscano (1 of 2)

Francis Jim Tuscano is an EdTech advocate too!

The blog is glad to have this interview with Global Teacher and Distinguished Apple Educator, Francis Jim Tuscano. He talks about technology in education, makes a distinction on Blended Learning as approach and modality, and shares strategies for teachers who will be teaching remotely in this coming school year.

1. All of a sudden, Educational Technology and Instructional Design are thrown into the forefront of education. What do you think of this phenomenon given the circumstances and how is PH education responding to the change and challenges in teaching and instruction?

What’s happening right now is definitely and undeniably accelerating the adoption of technology in teaching and learning. Before the pandemic, a lot of schools did not see Edtech as a priority because we have never imagined the possibility of school closures that will not allow face to face teaching and learning. It was a very remote scenario that a lot of us never considered in our wildest dreams. But unfortunately, we are in a public health emergency right now and distance education or remote learning is the only viable option to continue learning and teaching, aside from homeschooling. The accelerated adoption is so obvious right now as seen in the rapid adoption and purchase of learning management systems and the rise of webinar workshops or talks on technology integration. 

Personally, I am excited with this because people now realise the importance of technology, its possibilities in elevating or raising the bar of learning. For now, my fear is that schools and educators overlook their core reason for adoption. I mean, right now, the core reason is to answer the negative effects of the pandemic but that can be very short-sighted. I hope that despite the quick transition that is happening in many schools right now, they see, invest, and hope to sustain with a long-term vision. It is not something that you invest now and then terminate once the pandemic ends. The investment on infrastructures, devices, and professional development of teachers cost much, so it is important that school leaders are able envision technology and embed it naturally in their vision and mission as a school community. They should have a bigger why that will guide their tech adoption even beyond the pandemic. 

In terms of its adoption then, the current situation in the Philippine education system show us the haves and have nots, the digital divide which has been present before. The pandemic has just made it more obvious and this is the case in a lot of countries. So, we are again playing catch up, accelerating things, racing against time to put more devices in the hands of teachers, partnering with local government units for donations of devices to students who do not have access, and training teachers to learn more ICT skills. There was a big misconception that online learning was the way to go and I would like to temper this. 

Despite being an advocate for Edtech, I always cautioned educators and school leaders to be more careful in making decisions regarding Edtech or online learning adoption. While we want to push the agenda for better ICT access and infrastructure in the country, such quick decisions right now puts families, parents, and students in a very difficult situation. Context of the learner should always be considered. If there is inequitable access, then do not at all adopt online distance learning. ICT or Edtech should always be a tools to bridge the gap in education, as envisioned by UNESCO. But, reality has shown us that it is a two-edge sword. It can bridge and widen the gap at the same time. In the end, we do not want Edtech adoption especially in school communities with equity issues to be the wall that bars students from accessing education.