TNCT CHAPTER 1

Lesson 1: 21ST Century World

Our society is modern and fast paced, globally networked, technologically oriented and
overwhelming with varied changes and development. It requires learners to think critically, make judicious
decision and act with prudence.
Utilizing merging ways of doing things, learners today use various forms of technology for different
situations to address predicaments, analyze issues and problems and come up with wise decision. Their
expanded experiences are keys to their learning and success.
Twenty-first century learners are given choice and option to survive the workplace and thrive in the
modern world.
The 21ST century reveals an unfathomable dawn of a modern era. James Martin calls it as the “make or
break century”.
He said “Humanities demand on the planet are growing rapidly. If we are able to make the planet
and civilization work, we face magnificent future if we fail, we could be headed for a new Dark Age”
MAIN IDEA:

 The onset of the 21st century world has greatly changed the lives and events of humanity.
 The kinds of job and the way people live will keep changing.
 The world faces many challenges in the new century.
The 21st century Culture

 The 21st century has dawned amazing achievements, surprising milestones, innovation and change in modes of
thinking. It has unveiled enormous challenges as well the demands in meeting the possibilities of fulfillment and
triumph. All these unfold on a global stage.
 One of the significant changes is the Internet. Specifically, the speed of the internet has significantly affected the
way people choose and decide.
 Greene(2014) mentioned in his research that growing internet access in the Philippines poses opportunities and
challenges for many kinds of companies. It has provided an “increasingly fertile channel for connecting with
consumers, while entirely new markets are opening in a range of internet sectors including online retail, gaming,
photo sharing, cloud services, music and more.
 One promising potential of the 21st century is leading learners to become learned and responsible citizens, in the
context of today’s global society.
 Success in the 21st century requires everyone to understand how to learn independently.
 Moreover, it brings imperatives to develop fair mindedness along with the interpersonal communication skills,
both written and oral for the interconnected and complex world.
Howard Gardner in his book, Five Minds for the Future featured the following:
 “In the age of Info-whelm, students are bombarded by information 24/7. Shrewd triage become an imperative.
Those who develop a synthesizing mind will rise to the top.
 Synthesizing is not one-time process. New information must be acquired, probed, evaluated, followed up with or
sidelined, there is constant reflection and tinkering.
 Good synthesizers always keep an eye on the big picture while securing and arranging the smaller details in
useful ways; one must know what works for oneself and for those who make use of their synthesis.
VOCABULARY!

 SHREWD- having or showing a clever awareness or resourcefulness, especially in practical matters; suggests a
sharp intelligence

 TRIAGE- a process in which things are ranked in terms of importance or priority; to sort or allocate by triage

 SHREWD TRIAGE- having a clever awareness and sharp intelligence in identifying which needs much attention

In everyday parlance, “fads” and trends” are almost always used interchangeably: “Trending
in Twitter…”, “There’s a new fad in school!” What are the hottest trends today?, moreover, soon.
However, one is different from the other.

According to Trend Spotter, one of the leading consulting firms in Canada, a fad is an “…..
Intense and widely shared enthusiasm for something, especially one that is short-lived and
without basis in the object’s qualities”.
From the story above, examples of fads are the fat-melting, abs-crunchers and slimming pills
that guarantee results in one week.
 Meanwhile, still according to Trend Spotter, a trend is a “…..General direction in which
something is developing or changing.”
Examples of trends in the story are proper diet and regular exercise.
Social trends have been a part of life since the beginning of time.
Society reacts to certain stimuli, whether it is a type of music, fashion or activity. These
trends are not always created by the majority, but the majority of society does typically follow.
The 1980s brought leg warmers, neon-colored clothing and big hair, whereas the 1960s saw
social trends like bell-bottom jeans, peace signs and protests against war.
Every era offered social trends that seemed to fade away as the new decade began. As
technology progresses, the changes in social trends do as well.
DEFINITION OF TREND

A trend is a behavior or new way of doing things and it has a big impact on our society.

It is a sequential pattern of change in a condition, output, or process, or an average or general tendency of a

series of data points to move in a certain direction over time, represented by a line or curve on a graph.

LESSON 2; spotting trends

THREE FUNDAMENTALS ELEMENTS THAT DRIVE ALL TRENDS

1. BASIC NEEDS- These are the forces that have been shaping human behavior for years (if not forever) Think
status, fairness, community and more.
2. DRIVERS OF CHANGE On the other hand, there are no trends without change, to analyze change, think in terms
of shifts 9long term, slower.
3. INNOVATIONS- Innovations aren’t trends. But without examples of customer-facing innovations, a trend can’t be
said to exist fully yet.

Trends emerge as innovators address people’s basic human needs and wants in novel ways.

We look for customer-facing innovations that are (re) defining what people will want and even
start to expect.
Ex. Modular smartphones, sustainable sports car transparent facing
INTERNET OF CARING THINGS

A network of connected objects brought to life by a clear mission to actively care for consumers –their physical
and mental wellbeing, homes, loved ones and more.

The process of identifying a trend

 Trend analysis is the widespread practice of collecting information and attempting to spot a pattern, or trend, in
the information.
 Trend spotting is the identification of new trends or attempting to see the future.
 Trend spotter is a person who notices and reports on new fashions, ideas, or activities that are becoming
popular.
LESSON 3: DIFFERENTIATING TRENDS FROM FADS

Both fads and trends are products of people’s reactions to events. Whether the reactions will bring about a fad or trend
remains to be determined, but the resulting fad or trend is directly proportional or commensurate to the magnitude of
the events.
Events + People’s Reactions to said events = FAD/TREND

The nature of fads and trends can be both tangible and intangible.

Tangible fads and trends are those that can be felt by the five senses. Examples of this are diet pills, changes in
demographics, the newest fashion statement and the most read book for a year among others.
Meanwhile, intangible fads and trends are those that cannot be felt by the five senses but form part of the behavior and
attitude of the people.
Example:
Changes in the buying behavior of consumers after every economic crisis. This was seen before and after the
great depression in 1929 or more recently, the global financial crisis of 1997 and the late 2000s. If people spent more on
material goods and didn’t mind getting more than one credit card, after every crisis, the people began a culture of saving
and risk avoidance which entailed limited spending and cutting credit card subscriptions.
What’s the Use of Knowing Fads and Trends?

Knowledge of fads enables one to dig the reason why such fads exist? Once this reasons are identified, one will be enable
to identify more long term and sustainable alternatives, which are trends.
 Once one identifies a trend, the knowledge must be put to practical use. For example, trends are very
entrepreneurs and marketing people, because they can invest their capital and other resources to trends.
Aside from businessman, doctors and those in the medical profession also benefit from the knowledge of trends,
as they will know what to advise o their patients which will prove effectiveness. This practice applies to teachers and
educators as well.
According to David Zach, a futurist, one must be able to notice and play with fads and work and plan with
trends.
However, instead of this, we are too often seduced by fads and ignorant of trends. What’s more, we often
suppose that fads are the trends- what is cool, what is in, what is attention-grabbing that causes bandwagon.
However, the quick entry and surge of popularity of these fads also mark the manner of their exit- fast and often
unnoticed.
Zach gives us an analogy: If compared to a river, fads are the waves, while trends are the currents.
While the waves just rock the boat and capture our attention, trends move the boat. Even though currents are
difficult to see, they are stronger than waves and have long lasting effect on the boat. Given this, we must learn to
navigate the currents of trends instead of paying attention to the waves of fads.
The following serves as features of trends:

1. EASY: Trends do not require many adjustments on the part of the subscribers. In fact, trends are smooth and
straightforward to follow.

2. CONSISTENT: Trends generate uniform and tangible results. Unlike fads which claim to deliver results in the often
unrealistic timeframe, trends are steady and dependable.

3. SUSTAINABLE: Trends exist and can be maintained for a long time. Unlike fads which are brief and fleeting,
trends are for the long term

4. BROAD APPLICATION: Trends are consumed by a large group of people from different sectors of society and
various walks of life. Unlike fads which are contained in one segment of the society, trends almost gave a general
acceptance among people.

DEFINITION OF TRENDS

 It is a recurrent phenomenon that takes place over time and gives rise to speculation on
the future
 Trends have a much longer lifespan than fads. In fact, they can continue to be fashionable
for years and even decades.
 A trend is a behavior or new way of doing things and it has a big impact on our society.
 It is a sequential pattern of change in a condition, output, or process, or an average or
general tendency of a series of data points to move in a certain direction over time,
represented by a line or curve on a graph.
DEFINITION OF FADS

 The easiest way to categorize a fad is one word: short-lived.

 Typically, fads last for a total of one season, but they can also last less than a month.
 Fads are novelty driven fashion choices.
 A fad is often referred to as “catching on” with the larger population, but will often fade as quickly as it
appeared.
 The easiest way to remember a fad is through a simple alliteration: fads fade. Although engaging in fads can be
fun, they are often not worth investing a large amount of money or time.
 Fad is something such as an interest or fashion, that is very popular for a short time.
 A fad is a product that has little, if any utility but is characterized by a quick rise in sales and popularity followed
by a quick decline in sales and popularity. This quick up and down in sales is because fad products usually do not
satisfy a strong consumer need.
 Nevertheless, fads seldom completely die out with some hardcore followers remaining loyal.
 A fad is an intense but short-lived fashion. It is a widely-shared enthusiasm for something, especially one that is
short-lived. It is a temporary fashion, craze, interest or activity that people follow enthusiastically, but lasts for a
short period of time.
 A fad is different from trend in that a fad always has a definite beginning and end. A trend on the other hand,
evolves and changes as it continues to grow.
Some classic examples of fad:

 Hula hoop
 Yo-yo
 Virtual pets
 Frisbee
 Loom band
  Pokémon
Fads are helpful in that way in that they are indicators of what consumers want to do, achieve and or experience
and these discoveries lead to the identification of consistent and lasting trends.

It is indeed difficult to discern when a fad becomes a trend. In these situations, hindsight is necessary, as well as
one’s understanding of causes and consequences.