An Effective use of ICT for Educational and Learning:

ICT as a Change Agent for Education

Agustina Ayu Safitri

2201412142

Department of Education, Univerrsity of Semarang

nana.ayu17@gmail.com

 Introduction

The field of education has been affected by ICTs, which have undoubtedly affected teaching, learning, and research (Yusuf, 2005). The use of ICT in education, including language teaching and learning is a positive response to the development of the information and communication technology in the third millennium. Moreover, the use of ICT for educational and learning is a necessity, not only to improve the effectiveness and quality of education, but more importantly to enhance the ICT literacy for student and teacher as their life skill in the era of rapidly changing and progressing technology (Hartoyo, 2009). 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). 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. 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.

ICT enhancing teaching and learning process

The field of education has been affected by ICTs, which have undoubtedly affected teaching, learning and research (Yusuf, 2005) .ICTs have the potential to 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). In a rapidly changing world, basic education is essential for an individual be able to access and apply information. Such ability must find include ICTs in the global village.

Conventional teaching has emphasized content. For many years course have been written around textbooks. Teachers have taught through lectures and presentations interspersed with tutorials and learning activities designed to consolidate and rehearse the content. Contemporary settings are now favouring curricula that promote competency and performance. Curricula are starting to emphasize capabilities and to be concerned more with how the information will be used than with what the information is. Contemporary ICTs are able to provide strong support for all these requirements and there are now many outstanding examples of world class settings for competency and performance-based curricula that make sound use of the affordances of these technologies (Oliver, 2000). This can help to improve and develop the quality of education by providing curricular support in difficult subject areas. To achieve these objectives, teachers need to be involved in collaborative projects and development of intervention change strategies, which would include teaching partnerships with ICT as a tool. As mentioned previously, any use of ICT in learning settings can act to support various aspects of knowledge construction and as more and more students employ ICTs in their learning processes, the more pronounced the impact of this will become. Teachers generate meaningful and engaging learning experiences for their students, strategically using ICT to enhance learning. Students enjoy learning, and the independent enquiry which innovative and appropriate use of ICT can foster. They begin to acquire the important 21st century skills which they will need in their future lives.

ICT enhancing learning motivation

ICTs can enhance the quality of education in several ways, by increasing learner motivation and engagement, by facilitating the acquisition of basic skills, and by enhancing teacher training. ICT, 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 has an impact not only on what students should learn, but it also plays a major role on how the students should learn. ICT changes the characteristics of problems and learning tasks, and hence play an important task as mediator of cognitive development, enhancing the acquisition of generic cognitive competencies as essential for life in our knowledge society. 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).

More so than any other type of ICT, networked computers with Internet connectivity can increase learner motivation as it combines the media richness and interactivity of other ICTs with the opportunity to connect with real people and to participate in real world events. ICT-enhanced learning is student-directed and diagnostic. Unlike static, text- or print-based educational technologies, ICT-enhanced learning recognizes that there are many different learning pathways and many different articulations of knowledge. ICTs allow learners to explore and discover rather than merely listen and remember. The World Wide Web (WWW) also provides a virtual international gallery for students’ work (Loveless, 2003). ICT can engage and inspire students, and this has been cited as a factor influencing ready adaptors of ICT (Long, 2001; Wood, 2004).

ICT enhancing the scholastic performance

ICTs are said to help expand access to education, strengthen the relevance of education to the increasingly digital workplace, and raise educational quality. However, the experience of introducing different ICTs in the classroom and other educational settings all over the world over the past several decades suggests that the full realization of the potential educational benefits of ICT. The direct link between ICT use and students’ academic performance has been the focus of extensive literature during the last two decades. ICT helps students to their learning by improving the communication between them and the instructors (Valasidou and Bousiou, 2005).

The analysis of the effects of the methodological and technological innovations on the students’ attitude towards the learning process and on students’ performance seems to be evolving towards a consensus, according to which an appropriate use of digital technologies in education can have significant positive effects both on students’ attitude and their achievement. Becker (2000) found that ICT increases student engagement, which leads to an increased amount of time students spend working outside class. 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 enhancing the quality and accessibility of education

ICT increases the flexibility of delivery of education so that learners can access knowledge anytime and from anywhere. It can influence the way students are taught and how they learn as now the processes are learner driven and not by teachers. This in turn would better prepare the learners for lifelong learning as well as to improve the quality of learning. In concert with geographical flexibility, technology-facilitated educational programs also remove many of the temporal constraints that face learners with special needs (Moore & Kearsley, 1996).

One of the most vital contributions of ICT in the field of education is- Easy Access to Learning. With the help of ICT, students can now browse through e-books, sample examination papers, previous year papers etc. and can also have an easy access to resource persons, mentors, experts, researchers, professionals, and peers-all over the world. This flexibility has heightened the availability of just-in-time learning and provided learning opportunities for many more learners who previously were constrained by other commitments (Young, 2002).

ICT can be used to remove communication barriers such as that of space and time (Lim and Chai, 2004). ICTs also allow for the creation of digital resources like digital libraries where the students, teachers and professionals can access research material and course material from any place at any time (Bhattacharya and Sharma, 2007; Cholin, 2005). ICT provides new educational approaches (Sanyal, 2001). It can provide speedy dissemination of education to target disadvantaged groups (UNESCO, 2002; Chandra and Patkar, 2007).ICT enhances the international dimension of educational services (UNESCO, 2002). It can also be used for non-formal education like health campaigns and literacy campaigns (UNESCO, 2002). Use of ICT in education develops higher order skills such as collaborating across time and place and solving complex real world problems (Bottino, 2003; Bhattacharya and Sharma, 2007; Mason, 2000; Lim and Hang, 2003). It improves the perception and understanding of the world of the student. Thus, ICT can be used to prepare the workforce for the information society and the new global economy (Kozma, 2005).

General Conclusions of the review

In order to conclude we will try to proceed 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.

This literature review has sought 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.

The adoption and use of ICTs in education have a positive impact on teaching, learning, and research. 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 provide the rich environment and motivation for teaching learning process which seems to have a profound impact on the process of learning in education by offering new possibilities for learners and teachers. These possibilities can have an impact on student performance and achievement. Similarly wider availability of best practices and best course material in education, which can be shared by means of ICT, can foster better teaching and improved academic achievement of students. The overall literature suggests that successful ICT integration in education.

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