Education through ICT Technology: Need of an hour

Within a very few years, it has been noticed that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has turned out to be an effective educational technology which promotes some dramatic changes in teaching and learning processes. Technologies allow students to work more productively than in the past, but the teacher’s role in technology-rich classrooms is more demanding than ever (Keengwe, Onchwari et al. 2008). According to Daniels (2002) ICTs have become within a very short time, one of the basic building blocks of modern society. Many countries now regard understanding ICT and mastering the basic skills and concepts of ICT as part of the core of education, alongside reading, writing and numeracy. However, there appears to be a misconception that ICTs generally refers to ‘computers and computing related activities’. This is fortunately not the case, although computers and their application play a significant role in modern information management, other technologies and systems also comprise of the phenomenon that is commonly regarded as ICTs.

Pelgrum and Law (2003) state that near the end of the 1980s, the term ‘computers’ was replaced by ‘IT’ (information technology) signifying a shift of focus from computing technology to the capacity to store and retrieve information. This was followed by the introduction of the term ‘ICT’ (information and communication technology) around 1992, when e-mail started to become available to the general public (Pelgrum, W.J., Law, N., 2003).

According to a United Nations report (1999) ICTs cover Internet service provision, telecommunications equipment and services, information technology equipment and services, media and broadcasting, libraries and documentation centers, commercial information providers, network-based information services, and other related information and communication activities. The field of education has been affected by ICTs, which have undoubtedly affected teaching, learning, and research (Yusuf, 2005). A great deal of research has proven the benefits to the quality of education (Al-Ansari, 2006). ICTs have the potential to innovate, accelerate, enrich, and deepen skills, to motivate and engage students, to help relate school experience to work practices, create economic viability for tomorrow's workers, as well as strengthening teaching and helping schools change (Davis and Tearle, 1999; Lemke and Coughlin, 1998; cited by Yusuf, 2005).As Jhurree (2005) states, much has been said and reported about the impact of technology, especially computers, in education. Initially computers were used to teach computer programming but the development of the microprocessor in the early 1970s saw the introduction of affordable microcomputers into schools at a rapid rate. Computers and applications of technology became more pervasive in society which led to a concern about the need for computing skills in everyday life. Hepp, Hinostroza, Laval and Rehbein (2004) claim in their paper “Technology in Schools: Education, ICT and the Knowledge Society” that ICTs have been utilized in education ever since their inception, but they have not always been massively present. Although at that time computers have not been fully integrated in the learning of traditional subject matter, the commonly accepted rhetoric that education systems would need to prepare citizens for lifelong learning in an information society boosted interest in ICTs (Pelgrum, W.J., Law, N., 2003).

Any discussion about the use of computer systems in schools is built upon an understanding of the link between schools, learning and computer technology. When the potential use of computers in schools was first mooted, the predominant conception was that students would be ‘taught’ by computers (Mevarech and Light, 1992).In a sense it was considered that the computer would ‘take over’ the teacher’s job in much the same way as a robot computer may take over a welder’s job. Collis (1989) refers to this as “a rather grim image” where “a small child sits alone with a computer”. However, the use of information and communication technologies in the educative process has been divided into two broad categories: ICTs for Education and ICTs in Education. ICTs for education refers to the development of information and communications technology specifically for teaching/learning purposes, while the ICTs in education involves the adoption of general components of information and communication technologies in the teaching learning process.

Information and Communications Technologies present a range of tools that can be used by teachers to present and demonstrate as part of their teaching as well as something for pupils to use as part of an activity as individuals or in groups. These technological tools can be explicitly designed for use in educational contexts such as a mathematics teaching program or an overhead projecting calculator or they can be equipment and software also used in other contexts, such as computers with data-projectors or word-processors and spreadsheets. The choice of when and how to use such technologies in teaching and learning is complex. The evidence above all clearly indicates that it is how ICT is used that makes the difference. Knowledge of, and experience with, computers is not enough to enable teachers to make the best use of ICT in the classroom. Effective adoption of computers within the classroom takes time (Somekh and Davis, 1997) even up to a year with the support of an experienced team or through collaborative working (Sandholtz, 2001). In addition the way in which teachers’ skills, beliefs and practices are related is complex (Wild, 1996) and this in turn affects the way that teachers choose to use ICT and how effective they are at using it (Higgins and Moseley, 2001). ICT enhances higher education in a number of ways; some of them are as follows:

• It enables the effective storing/sorting of information, and can offer new fast ways of communication;

• It enables the reduction of information quantity towards a higher quality and better structure;

• It can be integrated into teaching and learning strategies – and used to support relative learning theories; and

• ICT (computers, Inter and Intranet) can be used to create new types of interactive learning media for improved quality, equity, and access in higher education (Rosswall, 1999).

The final issue is that ICT changes rapidly and new innovations offer new possibilities for teaching and learning. These not only open up new techniques to influence the existing curriculum more effectively or more efficiently but change the nature of that curriculum by altering the content of what needs to be taught, such as in the area of digital literacy with use of electronic texts or the progression of how a topic like algebra can best be taught in mathematics. The potential of new tools and opportunities can take a long time to have an impact on classroom practice. Despite the availability of word-processors in primary schools they are still used mainly to teach ICT skills rather than support aspects of writing and redrafting (Mumtaz and Hammond, 2002). The evidence supports their use (Goldberg, Russell and Cook, 2003) as discussed above. However, what prevent effective use of word-processors in schools may be more about teachers’ and pupils’ skills and expectations than about the availability of such technology. In addition the curriculum and its assessment act as a brake on this process of change by influencing what and how skills and knowledge are taught because of the way that they are assessed (Torrance, 1997).

The development and increasing use of ICT in education is however likely to be accompanied with a bitter contradiction–the digital divide which refers to the digital gap between people with effective access to ICT and those with limited or no access at all. This gap includes the imbalances in physical access to ICT (whether at home, college, work place or cyber café) and the resources and skills needed effectively to use the full capabilities of ICT. Major factors contributing to this digital divide include quality and cost of physical infrastructure, lack of knowledge about full capabilities of ICT and lack of availability of high quality content uniformly across the country. One can transform this digital divide into a digital opportunity by giving top priority to the development of ICT and telecommunication infrastructure (computers with internet access and broadband connectivity) in order to provide universal and affordable access to information to people and institutions in all geographical areas of the country.

Hence, to promote computer literacy and build capacity in ICT skills, ICT courses should be integrated to curricula from the school level itself. Computer literacy classes in public libraries can also be used as a means of promoting and propagating ICT awareness. Since most of the time our computing facilities remain underutilized (about 30% of their potential), efforts should be encouraged to harness the full potential of our computing resources with the help of shared resources and innovative technologies. This could obviate the problem of physical access and connectivity. ICT in education is the need of the hour. It has the potential to provide solution to many of the challenges higher education faces today. The common fear that ICT shall replace a teacher is totally unfounded. Realization now seems to be slowly dawning on the teaching community that ICT is primarily to empower them and not to replace them. ICT is, therefore, not to be feared but to be embraced so as to empower our future generations by providing them high quality ICT- enabled education.

Research has shown that the appropriate use of ICTs can catalyze the paradigmatic shift in both content and pedagogy that is at the heart of education reform in the 21st century. Kulik’s (1994) meta-analysis study revealed that, on average, students who used ICT-based instruction scored higher than students without computers. The students also learned more in less time and liked their classes more when ICT-based instruction was included. Fuchs and Woessman (2004) used international data from the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), they showed that while the bivariate correlation between the availability of ICT and students’ performance is strongly and significantly positive, the correlation becomes small and insignificant when other student environment characteristics are taken into consideration. Attwell and Battle (1999) examined the relationship between having a home computer and school performance, their findings suggest that students who have access to a computer at home for educational purposes, have improved scores in reading and math. Becker (2000) found that ICT increases student engagement, which leads to an increased amount of time students spend working outside class. Coates et al. (2004) showed that students in on-campus courses usually score better than their online counterparts, but this difference is not significant here. ICTs especially computers and Internet technologies enable new ways of teaching and learning rather than simply allow teachers and students to do what they have done before in a better way.

ICT helps in providing a catalyst for rethinking teaching practice (Flecknoe,2002; McCormick and Scrimshaw, 2001) developing the kind of graduates and citizens required in an information society (Department of Education, 2001); improving educational outcomes (especially pass rates) and enhancing and improving the quality of teaching and learning(Wagner, 2001; Garrison and Anderson, 2003). ICT can help deepen students’ content knowledge, engage them in constructing their own knowledge, and support the development of complex thinking skills (Kozma, 2005; Kulik, 2003; Webb and Cox, 2004).Studies have identified a variety of constructivist learning strategies (e.g., students work in collaborative groups or students create products that represent what they are learning) that can change the way students interact with the content (Windschitl, 2002). Albert Bandura, Girasoli and Hannafin (2008) urge the use of asynchronous CMC tools to promote student self-efficacy and hence academic performance. Fister et al (2008) also depict the power of tablet PCs to improve mathematics instruction. ICTs have the potential for increasing access to and improving the relevance and quality of education. The use of ICT in educational settings, by itself acts as a catalyst for change in this domain. Students using ICTs for learning purposes become immersed in the process of learning and as more and more students use computers as information sources and cognitive tools (Reeves and Jonassen, 1996), the influence of the technology on supporting how students learn will continue to increase.

Thus, in order to conclude we would like to synthesize from a general viewpoint the results obtained, taking into consideration the relevant aspects of the literature. The results provided by both the quantitative and qualitative analysis of the literature obtained will be exposed especially regarding those aspects which are related to ICTs for Education and ICTs in Education. ICTs for education refers to the development of information and communications technology specifically for teaching/learning purposes, while the ICTs in education involves the adoption of general components of information and communication technologies in the teaching learning process. The above literature review has been made to explore the role of ICT in education as we progress into the 21st century. In particular ICTs have impacted on educational practice in education to date in quite small ways but that the impact will grow considerably in years to come and that ICT will become a strong agent for change among many educational practices. Extrapolating current activities and practices, the continued use and development of ICTs within education will have a strong impact on: ICT and teaching learning process; quality and accessibility of education; learning motivation, learning environment and ICT usage and academic performance.

Changes in the curriculum do support fundamental economic and social transformation in the society. Such transformations require new kinds of skills, capabilities and attitudes, which can be developed by integrating ICT in education. The overall literature suggests that successful ICT integration depends on many factors. National policies as well as school policies and actions taken have a deep impact on the same. Similarly, there needs to be an ICT plan, support and training to all the stakeholders involved in the integration. There needs to be shared vision among the various stakeholders and a collaborative approach should be adopted. Care should be taken to influence the attitudes and beliefs of all the stakeholders. ICT can affect the delivery of education and enable wider access to the same. In addition, it will increase flexibility so that learners can access the education regardless of time and geographical barriers. It can influence the way students are taught and how they learn. It would enable development of collaborative skills as well as knowledge creation skills. This in turn would better prepare the learners for lifelong learning as well as to join the industry. It can improve the quality of learning and thus contribute to the economy. Similarly, it can be interpreted that the wider availability of best practices and best course material in education, which can be shared by means of ICT, can foster better teaching. However there exist some risks and drawbacks with introducing ICT in education which have to be mitigated. Successful implementation of ICT to lead change is more about influencing and empowering teachers and supporting them in their engagement with students in learning rather than acquiring computer skills and obtaining software and equipment. Also proper controls and licensing should be ensured so that accountability, quality assurance, accreditation and consumer protection are taken care of. Thus, a ICT enabled education will ultimately lead to the democratization of education.

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Received on 24.12.2013 Modified on 15.01.2014

Asian J. Management 5(2): April-June, 2014 page 246-249