INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Electronic gadgets have been around for many years and became a part of our lives.

Almost everyone today is equipped with electronic gadgets; it may be a mobile phone, tablet, or

laptop. Especially in this pandemic, people will avoid going outside and prefer to finish their

tasks online. Teens are the most vulnerable to addiction to technology since when they are

stressed they use online videos and social media sites to comfort themselves however it also

affects their overall health and behavior. Children nowadays spend most of their time using

gadgets instead of doing physical activities which may lead to different health problems.

Although electronic gadgets are not the main cause they will contribute significantly to a variety

of mental or physical health disorders which may affect their academic performance.

Mobile phone usage is high in adolescence compared to other stages of development.

This study was conducted to determine the impact of electronic gadget usage on the academic

performance of students. Electronic devices and media have become an unintentional part of our

lives. In today’s world, it is an integral part of our lives. In the last 5 years mobile phone usage is

increasing exponentially. Groups which has seen the greatest increase in mobile usage are the

adolescent, not only because they make up the majority of the population, but also because

gadgets acquire greater significance in adolescence than it does at other stages of development.

In a short period, it is surprising that there has been a lot of research done on the use of mobile

phones and their effects on the students. Gadgets are one of the most significant influences on

children’s and adolescents’ overall health and academic performances (Suman, 2018). In

comparison to children in 1990, today’s children use more technology. The students are affected

by technology in both positive and negative ways (Anirudh et al., 2018). Furthermore, studies
confirmed that 53% of the children are facing difficulties in focusing during classes due to the

distraction an electronic gadget can do hence their academic performance will be poor (Hedge et

al., 2019). Students at this time use gadgets in studying since it is required in the new pedagogy,

online classes.

According to Jimson Mariano’s (2017) research, the Philippine government is dedicated

to modernizing the educational system, particularly basic education, to put every student on a

level with students from surrounding developed nations. Our country is today capable of utilizing

and producing information, as well as transforming it into knowledge and a wide range of

commodities and services. The Department of Education (DepEd) launched a computerization

initiative in 1996 to educate Filipino students for employment and competitive careers by

teaching them how to use new types of technology. They would also like to harness and improve

the power of technology to develop the entire teaching-learning process, especially to empower

every public school student in this highly globalized and interconnected world economy. Modern

technology considerably enhanced people’s lives (Micael et al., 2020). Electronic gadgets or any

technology advancement also does various of impact and significance more particularly to

students. And in this time of the pandemic, the student’s usage of the gadgets increased because

of online distance learning which caused an impact on students’ academic performance. The

evidence of the significance of gadgets can be truly seen, but the growth rates of academic

failures of students in every grade level caused by uncontrollable habits in gadgets become

alarming (Jennifer, 2012).

Social media is taken into account as phenomenal in our todays day-to-day living. It

conquered the world by storm and have become additional popular to the youth of most nations

together with the Philippines. This analysis aims to check the connection of gadgets and/or
Social media in relation to the overall performance of the students of Bachelor of Science in

Technology at Centro Escolar University-Malolos.

There are several version and variations of the gadgets that are available in every market.

In a conservative country like Philippines, there are still numerous presumptions from guardians

that gadgets has negative consequences on student's academic performance. Then again, there are

guardians who permit their youngsters to expose in gadgets since they believed it will assist their

youngsters to be more alert, intelligent and dominate in school. Schools and institutions are

encountering numerous innovative headways and changes in procedures in further developing

their teaching methods to satisfy the developing needs of their students. The target market of

these gadgets are mostly the students since this innovation for youths fill in as their close

companion as well. Internet, to be sure has been important for a student's life in the present age.

In the 2012 survey conducted by Cartoon Network, the Philippines is the number 1 among the

teens who use technology or gadgets generally in Asia-Pacific. Internet offers innumerable

applications, for example, gaming, search engines and the phenomenal social media which

anyone can easily navigate with the use of internet for free. (Josan D. Tamayo et al.,2014)