TRENDS, NETWORKS, AND CRITICAL THINKING IN THE 21ST CENTURY All…will bear in mind this sacred principle.

ind this sacred principle. That though the will of the majority
is in all cases to prevail, that will to be rightful must be reasonable; that the
DEMOCRATIC INTERVENTIONS
minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect and to violate
would be oppression.
What is Democracy?
D. Conduct of plebiscite to amend a constitutional provision. The
Democracy is a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in
Constitution embodies the fundamental laws of the land from which all other
the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under free
laws should be in accord with. The change in a provision of the constitution, such
electoral system or a state of society characterized by formal equality of rights
as increasing the number of years of term of office of the president, cannot be
and privileges. It originates from the Greek word demos, which means “people”,
carried without the approval of the people or general constituencies in a process
and kratos, which means ‘strength or power.”
called plebiscite. A plebiscite is an electoral process for approving or rejecting a
What is Democratic Practice? change or amendment in the Constitution. It is in the process of direct vote-say
yes or no; accept or reject.
Democratic Practice is a set of principles and practices that guide how people
interact and work together every day to improve their community and to create Democratic participation is the involvement or engagement with something
a more just society. which is freely done, without coercion, and without threat or fear.

What are some democratic practices? Importance of Participation in Democracy

A. Suffrage or the right to vote. It gives the people the opportunity to exercise 1. Democracy provides equality and admission to opportunities for all its citizen
sovereignty by choosing the candidates who will govern and serve them. Eligible in the government;
voters have the right to elect the government of his/her country by secret vote. It
2. checks and balances the government to prevent possible abuse of political
is only fair that they have a direct hand in choosing the officials.
power from the officials;
B. Public assembly and consultation. “The Public Assembly Act of 1985,”
3. allows citizens to influence and suggest policies and laws through plebiscite in
makes sure that the people’s exercise their right to a peaceful assembly. Citizens
selecting delegates or representatives.
have a set of rights and responsibilities, including the right to participate in
decisions that affect public welfare. This act stipulates that rallies, 4. allows the popular majority to oust a representative or a politician who hold
demonstrations, marches, public meetings, processions, or parades(collectively too much power and abuses it;
referred to as public assembly) can be held in public places to express opinion, to
5. promotes freedom where citizen enjoy human rights, allows people to engage
protest against, or to air grievances on certain issues.
the business and innovations;
C. Majority rule and minority rights. It is the making of binding decisions by a
6. becomes competent, firm, and stable when the state is ruled with leaders who
vote of more than one-half of all persons who participate in an election. Thomas
have dedication and transparency;
Jefferson, third President of the United States, expressed the concept of
democracy in 1801 in his first Inaugural Address. He said 7. provides political education to the people telling them of the state affairs; and
8. upholds change since the citizens have the opportunity to participate in the INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY (ICT)
involvement in the government.
EVOLUTION OF COMMUNICATION has improved and evolved to enable our daily
Representative and Participatory Democracies activities. In the 21st century, everything related to communication utilizes
technology to “direct out” or distribute information to a wider audience.
Democracy has several forms. Two of the most popular types are representative
Information can be “send out” in many ways. Which implies that inventions of
democracy and participatory democracy.
cellular phones, televisions and other electronic devices important in enhancing
Representative Democracy communication.

In the modern period where large populations usually form societies, WHAT IS ICT?
Representative Democracy (also called indirect democracy) is observed to be
Information Communication Technology (ICT) could be a technology needed for
more popularly exercised. It is a political system where the qualified citizens
information dispensation that use of communication devices electronics,
exercise their political power through representatives. The sovereign power
computers, and software system applications to convert, store, protect, process,
remains on the citizens but its exercise is delegated to the representatives they
transmit and retrieve information.
elect. By extension, the citizens, through their votes, allow these representatives
to make choices and decisions on their behalf.
Participatory Democracy
Quite similar to representative democracy is participatory democracy which also
encourages a more active and wider involvement of citizens. While
representative democracy motivates individual citizens to contribute to policy
making, participatory democracy offers more opportunities for members of the
population to contribute to decision-making through popular assemblies. It has
variants. In a direct democracy, all eligible citizens and qualified voters directly INFORMATION
or personally involve themselves in making political decisions. In the
Philippines, one popular demonstration of participatory democracy was the Information states to the information obtained from reading, investigation, study
EDSA People Power of 1986. Through the people’s direct involvement in a series or analysis. It helps us to meet our daily tasks and deciding. These tools transmit
of protests, the dictatorial rule of President Ferdinand Marcos was toppled information are telephone, television and radio. As an example, scientist can
down. detect the formation of a tsunami using the newest technology and warn the
public to avoid disasters in within the affected areas.
COMMUNICATION
Communication is associate degree act of transmitting messages. It is a method
whereby information is exchanged between individuals using symbols, signs or
verbal interactions. Previously, people communicated through exchange of signs
and symbols, whereas others perform it by drama and poetry. With the arrival of
technology, these “older” styles of communication are less utilized as compared The Technology-enhanced Learning Environment Conole et. (2008)
to the use of the internet, e-mail or video conferencing. Communication is very investigated how university students’ learning patterns are influenced by the
important in order to gain knowledge. That will make us more confident in availability of technology-enhanced learning environment. The technology-
expressing our thoughts and ideas. propelled society has opened a lot of opportunities to learn. They further said
that these require combining old and new methods, higher-lever skills, such as
TECHNOLOGY
evaluation and synthesis, and are necessary to make sense of their complex
Technology is important in communication that deals with the employment of technological-enriched learning atmosphere and proper use of tools in a
knowledge domain, experiences and resources to make processes and product combination of ways to suit individual needs. Their learning exhibited that the
that fulfil human desires. Merriam-Webster dictionary defines associate degree peer group of new millennium learners displays complex learning styles that are
Invention Technology are a few things invented, like a device, gadget, or shaped by the ubiquity, convenience and ease of use of digital resources.
process originated after study and experiment a product of the imagination.
While, Innovation Technology a brand-new idea, method, or device that was
Benefits of Traditional and Contemporary Technologies
introduction of something new like room computer to laptop computer.
The benefits of technology on our lives, these days can simply, not be
overlooked. The 21st century is already being called as the era of science and
technology, and we have innovative so much in this field, in just 18 years ago.
This seems incredible but, yet it has occurred.

BENEFITS OF TECHNOLOGY
1. Make housing and lifestyle more mechanized with the creation of teachnology
will provide convenience since every task becomes easy and handy.
2. Allow travel to be faster and accessible.
3. Improve communication using the telephone, mobile phones, satellite, and
other related calling devices.
4. Expand the entertainment sector with the inventions of music, video games,
mobile games, video games, and visual systems.
5. Make use of the social networking to promote the company’s products and
services that makes business easier.
6. Encourage educational technology and enhance online education.
7. Provide state of the art in medicine and technology thereby improving how people, institutions, and governments permits, respond to change, or simply
doctor’s prognosis to their patients. ignore its development.
8. Save time and money in the production of goods with all the machines doing Leads to Dependence
most of the work.
As of the easy access to technology particularly the internet, many individuals
9. Encourage creativity and innovation since people can do online business or tend to be addicted to video games and social networks spending too much time
work at home. on their gadgets. Such strong attraction to the wireless technology will lead to
social isolation, loneliness, and increase dependence on these devices. Instead of
10. Provide easy access to information such as e-books and reading materials.
interacting with people, most teenagers prefer to be technology savvy by
Utilization of Technology wanting instant answer, instant solutions in life, and when they cannot find this
spontaneous feedback, they apparently withdraw from the crowd. Similarly, it
Pollutes the Environment from Industrial Wastes
may also reduce creativity and intelligence as an outcome of being too
Comforts and convenience are among the many benefits of technology and yet it dependent on the internet.
too has endangered our environment. Unwanted by-products from industries
Emerging Technologies
and manufacturing plants turn to pollute the air, water, and soil. Thus, these
environmental hazards raise concerns that laws be implemented to regulate the Emerging Technologies are tools that will bring forth change in society and is
safety of our surroundings, corresponding consequences must be given to demonstrated by comprehensive novelty, fast growth, consistency, projecting
companies that violate the laws. impact, and yet at times become uncertain and unclear as to its acceptance in the
community. It is a product of convergence combing telephone, video, and other
Promotes Endless War
resources that will result to the creation of new productivity.
Issues on the making of nuclear warfare and other weapons of mass destruction
Fields in Emerging Technologies
may lead to unending battles among nations. Although the creation of weapons
serves to safeguard the country, it meanwhile branches aggression to the nations Fields in emerging technologies include robotics, artificial intelligence,
being under the position of first world countries. For instance, biological warfare educational technology, information technology, nanotechnology, biotechnology,
or germ warfare uses biological poisons or infections materials like viruses, cognitive science, and psycho technology.
fungi, bacteria to kill people and animals.
Replaces the Jobs of People
The beginning of technology makes production of goods and services faster. It
saves time and money yet the benefits it gives create a lesser workforce in the
workplace. Factories employ machines to meet the demands of the consuming
market but still need people to supervise the use of the machines in the
production of goods. It is being debated that the creation of technology is not
overpower or enslave mankind but rather it is believed to provide benefits and