This article was originally submitted as an assignment to Mr. Marvin Cruz in partial fulfillment of the academic requirements in our subject, Technology in Teaching and Learning. I submitted this paper yesterday.
The instruction is for us students to write an essay about our personal beliefs and attitudes towards technology integration in education. We are asked, How much technology should be used in the classroom, church, or ministry? Can learning still be effective even without the use of technology? How does technology hinder learning?
The above questions inquire about the appropriate relationship between learning and the use of technology. My response to these series of questions is informed by historical and pastoral considerations and biblical examples.
Introduction: The Historical Role of Technology in Education
History provides an adequate justification for my attitudes towards the use of technology in education. Several technological advancements were vital in the mission to cultivate minds. While various tools have shaped learning, paper and ink were undoubtedly the most significant, from the invention of papyrus to parchment and vellum paper or its more modern counterpart—the revolutionary impact of the Gutenberg Press. The Bible, the greatest of books, was the first to be printed, a milestone for both Christianity and the world of learning.
After this momentous event, a few hundred years later, another equally innovative discovery was engineered—the Fourdrinier machine. Paired with the widespread industrialization and rapid economic development in Central Europe, paper, once costly and reserved for the academic elite, became accessible and affordable. It had been only a matter of time before all of humanity benefitted from it.
The Benefits of Technology in Education
Roughly five millennia later, the rise of digital copies, web cloud storage, and internet accessibility overshadowed the role of printed materials. The impact of paper in education seemed almost outdated compared to the plethoric promises of the digital world—a place where information touches all in a mere second.
Now, it is evident how everyone brings their electronics into classroom settings; facts are known in one click; traditional writing becomes tedious, and students prefer to study using their phones, tablets, or laptops. For educators who have a low or soft voice, a lapel mic could help project their voice effectively. For theoretical and philosophical subjects that lack creative imagination, using images or diagrams might prove beneficial. For classes with shorter attention spans, game-based learning, videos, and music can maintain focus, restart attentiveness, and inspire excitement and interest. People with special needs are likewise accommodated in appropriation. Platforms designed for class situations made collaborative exercises hassle-free, and many other contributions this paper could not contain.
The Need for Balance in Technology Integration
With such a wildfire-like effect, we must therefore use technology in all of its offered arsenal towards the enhancement of pedagogy. However, the question also arises whether there exists a limitation where such integration is considered harmful. There is, in fact. We know intuitively and in principle that balance is key—when something exceeds its proper bounds, it often leads to harm rather than being of favor. At one point, the extreme; at the other, deficiency; and in the middle, balance and adequacy. The integration between technology and education must be assessed likewise and find this middle ground.
In the classroom setting, both the teacher and the student equally share a responsibility to find this. The teacher must prioritize clarity and avoid sophistication and unnecessary complexity, where technology, when used rightly, can be of great assistance. The student must listen, think critically, and raise valuable contentions, all of which technology can enhance—provided its use does not foster overdependence that undermines fundamental skills in the learning process. As such, most educators will find this statement an accurate representation of this relationship: technology must be used as a tool in education, not as the determinant of classroom outcomes.
Technology in the Church and Ministry
The approach above can also be applied in the church. Believers should use technology as a tool—God’s means of providence for her to use—towards His deemed purpose for it. And such purpose is to encourage believers, with the best of their abilities and with the reinforcement of new tools, to better conduct a God-pleasing service. Aspiring for a better service with little to no mistake is not perfectionism or some anti-Christian thought and practice. These God-given tools help us achieve this. Moreover, if these tools help communicate the gospel effectively, then such integration is likely to be utilized.
For example, young members of Sunday school are more likely to be interested in the gospel message through videos, music, and interactive activities. However, we must be likewise wary of an integration that elevates entertainment, in which technology might be its key cause. In addition, overdependency on using technology, such as preaching using a projector, might make believers unable to think critically and reflect on gospel truth themselves, for their senses are occupied with the sight above.
The Limitations of Technology in Education and Ministry
Rev. Ernesto Gloria, my former Homiletics 2 professor, argues that preaching should center on the preacher. The preacher’s mouth movements, gestures, facial expressions, and posture all convey information and emotion—intonation, emphasis, and rhetoric—as well as hope, joy, warning, and righteous anger, all of which are essential parts of the sermon. However, the use of projected images can unintentionally divert attention away from this vital aspect of delivery, where even a millisecond is valuable for internalizing truths.
In contrast to all of these ideas, it seems that education is a crippled man without technology. However, I would argue such is not the case. Perhaps this argument would eventually boil down to human responsibility and the desire for wisdom and knowledge. For example, the Greeks, living in ancient times, managed to create a rich plenary of human thought. While their ideas are ultimately insufficient and some are outright false in light of Scripture, it is astonishing that even without digital aid, some truths they have argued and developed upon are so valuable they have become classics, which human civilizations revisit even in the modern age.
Biblical examples also affirm that wisdom and learning are not dependent on technology. The Israelites received God’s law and developed understanding even before modern advancements. The prophets and scribes preserved truth through oral tradition and written texts. Jesus, the greatest teacher, imparted eternal truths through parables, direct discourse, and personal interactions—without digital tools.
Conclusion: Technology as a Neutral Tool Requiring Responsible Use
From this, we can surmise that technology acts as a tool, and as a tool, it is inherently neutral, that is, incapable of hindering the educational enterprise in itself; therefore, all obstructions are naturally obstructions driven by human agency—irresponsibility, misuse, and misapplication. We must, therefore, be good stewards of this God-given providence, using it with responsibility and keen discernment.
To close, I find this assignment a helpful reminder of what technology has imparted throughout history in the realm of education and all of human flourishing, but it must be consistently viewed as a tool rather than an object of dependence that makes skills of basic human cognition diminish.