ABSTRACT

Web-based Instruction has been used all over the world. It provides convenient and
accessible tool especially in the field of education and training domains. WBI (web-based
instruction) plays an important role in the Philippines especially in rural areas. With the
help of WBI, the literacy rate will increased to reach their goals to provide 100% education
to all Filipinos.

This educational tool will help the students to access anytime and anywhere, it serves as
their “the virtual teacher”. It allows the students who were absent or their schedule is full
to catch up the previous lessons. It will also help students who have disability and those
who can’t afford to go to school to still learn through the internet at their own convenience.

For the teacher’s perspective, WBI reduced the used of paper based instructions such as
Visual Aids and books. It allows quick and easy revisions for their teaching aids. The
teachers will able to teach the students in much easier and simpler way.

INTRODUCTION
Year 2000, the technology arises from pager to cellular phones. The world adopts the use of
computers in daily life. There was also a huge jump internet usage globally. It provides
easy access of information and communication. The internet became common electronic
dissemination methods for professionals, amateurs, and businesses to conduct knowledge
management. Wireless networks became even more commonplace in homes, education
institutes and urban public spaces. E-books were developed and it was widely used in
schools and universities.

The use of web-based instruction has created a possibility for a new way of learning and
teaching. It can improve the quality of education and heighten efficiency through pre-
service training and programs that are relevant and responsive to the needs of education
system. It will allow teachers to create a new teaching programs, methodology and
strategies for lifelong learning.

In the Philippines, web-based instruction is really a big help in the learning process of
students in which learning will become more accessible and not limited to the information
they needed. It can also help students to understand better and to relate more easily.
WHAT IS WEB-BASED INSTRUCTION
Web-Based Instruction (WBI) offers a wide range of opportunity in education and training
programs. It provides satisfaction to meet each student’s learning objective. It helps
students to easily access information on the internet that needs to be viewed, reviewed and
retrieved that is useful to them. It also makes possible learning experiences that are open,
flexible and distributed, providing opportunities for engaging interactive and efficient
instruction.

In the country, Web Based instruction focuses in providing new ways to organize
curriculum content, assessment plans and instructional programs. It enables teachers to
easily design a curriculum and reduced repetitive teaching tasks and improved
instructional materials while students are expected to improve and enhance their learning.

WHY USE WEB-BASED INSTRUCTION?

According to the Philippine Statistic Authority (PSA) the total population as of Aug 2015 is
100,981,437. Out of 100 million (as of 2013), 96.5% are able to do basic reading and
writing skills (simple literacy for 10 years old above) while Functional literacy (10 to 64
years old; basic reading, writing, and computational skills) rate reached 90.3%.

The proportion of urban population to the total population was 45.3 percent. This means
out of 92.3 million (2010), 41.9 million lived in areas classified as Urban. The Rural
population 50.5 million and accounted for 54.7 percent of the total population (2010, CPH).

The government provides a wide range education program in rural areas to reach their
100% quality education to all Filipinos. The position of the barrio teacher is one of great
responsibility and importance (1921, Osias). They commit themselves to the rural areas
especially for the indigenous people. They teach them to do basic reading and writing skills
to use for their everyday life. The Barrio teacher provides visual aids, written outputs and
books for easy learning. They always bring these learning materials to different
communities’ everyday. Because of the distance between communities, the teacher became
late to their schedule. Lack of accountability of teachers and school authorities has raised
the rate of absenteeism (2017, Ralhan).

To attain the 100% quality education, the government launched some projects to ease the
teaching load of the barrio teachers. They provide digital learnings such as computers,
television and tablets accessible to learners in rural areas. The project aims not only to
benefit learners in learning concepts, but also to make them comfortable with technology
(2017, Ralhan).

WBI has become a very important role in education. It helps the educators to achieve the
complete basic education to all Filipinos also to ensure that quality higher education is
accessible to all who seek it particularly those who may not be able to afford it; especially
in rural areas.

Most educators choose to use Web-based instruction to enhance students learning,

spending more time to small groups of student or one-on-one, reducing paper flow
management and accessibility to information. It also helps students not only in learning but
also: 1) used to post students course material with little or no instruction. The teacher
guides their students for relevant information rather than obliging them to search for
information. 2) used as a medium of information. The teacher becomes the facilitator of
information, guiding the students rather than asking them what to do, like posting on the
internet the course assignments, group project and lecture notes. 3) Teachers and students’
interaction will take over only on the internet. Unlike in a conventional teaching method,
teachers are required to create visual aids, and other instructional materials on a paper-
based instruction as well as writing on the board all the topics needed so that students will
really understand what is the teacher requires them to do and become interested and
participate in the class in discussions.

Web-based instruction is also environmentally friendly since there is no management issue

associated with the paper based-instruction such as students’ duplication of information,
filing and revising. For teachers who really want so improve his/her teaching ability, they
will choose to use technology especially if they can see a positive outcome on student
learning, in terms of achievement on subject areas, skills development and attitudes in
school.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

Web-based instruction has advantages and disadvantages, some of the advantages are
teachers can easily update information or content, easy delivering of training to users,
multitasking capability for both teachers and students, and it can establish deadlines in
which teacher will let the students to become more responsible and punctual in submitting
the required assignments/projects needed. Disadvantages are browser limitation may
restrict instructional methodologies and limited bandwidth will cause slower performance
of sound, video, and intense graphics which will result to students can get easily be
distracted and allows them to will stop browsing and just think of other things that they
can do.

It allows two-way communication via the Internet, so that students may benefit from
communication with each other, teachers. You may interact with other nationalities and
gain more friends thru net. Students share their ideas with other students for better
learning. It may have a group chat for discussion at any hour and encourages those who
don’t want to speak. It allows sharing their own perspective and provides better
interaction with one another. It only limits human contact and only relied on social media.
Bad study habits or students with low motivation may lose their track during online
discussion.
Using WBI, students and teachers can access their lesson anytime and anywhere. They can
submit written output on time and teachers may provide feedback immediately. It also
directs access to materials, resources in many different formats and of good quality.
Disadvantage is; problems with technology might prevent the access: low speed
connection, difficulties to download information, problems with communication tools.
Some courses and materials might be out of date. There may be lack of quality control. Lack
of computer in communities can prevent students to learn new information. It may become
5 students to 1 computer ratio. It may lessen the students to explore with the up to date
knowledge about the course.

CONCLUSION
Web-based instruction appears to be an improvement over conventional classroom
instruction in terms of the flexibility of time, the ability to repeat lectures, and continual
access to lectures, notes and homework. But there are hindrances the teacher has to
address in transferring learning especially if web based instruction is concern. I believe
that someday, teachers can use web-based instruction to its fullest to help them reach even
the farthest places in the Philippines to teach and transfer learning to every Filipino people
which is the ultimate goal of our educational system.