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Definition of Information and Communication Technology

 

There are many definitions of Information and Communication Technology or ICT. The following two examples are identify the aspects of what ICT stand for and what ICTs are. Included at the bottom of this page is a video provided also to provide information on what are ICTs. 

 

 

The Following is UNESCOs idea on what is ICT.

 

What ICT are When the first computers made their entry into schools in the late 1970s, we used to speak about computers in education. With computers came printers, floppy disk drives, scanners and the first digital cameras. We began to use the term IT, or Information Technology, to describe computers and these various peripheral devices. Then the internet arrived together with computer networks, the World Wide Web, email and search engines. A new 4 ICT TRANSFORMING EDUCATION: A Regional Guide term entered the language – ICT. The term ICT, short for Information and Communication Technologies, embraces the many technologies that enable us to receive information and communicate or exchange information with others. You see what some of these many technologies (both devices and functions) are in Figure 1.1.

 

The very air we breathe literally buzzes with all kinds of information signals. ICT encompass all the technologies by means of which we can detect these signals, interpret them and exchange information with others. The term ICT is plural, referring to a great many technologies. To sum up, ICT is an all encompassing term that includes the full gamut of electronic tools by means of which we gather, record and store information, and by means of which we exchange and distribute information to others.

This definition of ICT is from Robert Toomeys' Schooling Issues Digest.

 

The acronym ICT is taken to stand for information and communication technology or alternatively information and communications technology. The differing number of the word “communication” is significant in that the singular form is concerned with human interaction while the plural is generally taken to refer to the whole field of data communications infrastructure. At its simplest, the former or singular form is the process or outcome while the latter or plural is about the technology itself. The acronym ICT can also take a plural form (technologies) where it is understood to entail the specific devices or processes which collectively make up the “Technology.” This pluralised form (particularly in Queensland) is sometimes written as ICTs. The term ICT must be seen as an evolution from the antecedent and more narrowly defined term IT (information technology) which maintains its usage in government, business, industry and in relation to tertiary and other academic courses dealing with such areas as programming, database design and expert systems. In the United States, synonymous terms such as “technology” and “educational technology” are used. A useful definition of ICT is that it: … generally relates to those technologies that are used for accessing, gathering, manipulating and presenting or communicating information. The technologies could include hardware (e.g. computers and other devices); software applications; and connectivity (e.g. access to the Internet, local networking infrastructure, videoconferencing). What is most significant about ICT is the increasing convergence of computer-based, multimedia and communications technologies and the rapid rate of change that characterises both the technologies and their use. 

Anderson, J. (2010). ICT Transforming Education:

A Regional Guide. UNESCO Bangkok. Bangkok, Thailand.

 

Toomey, R. (2001). Schooling Issues Digest No 2:

Information and Communication Technology for Teaching and Learning. Retrieved March 29, 2015, from http://www.dest.gov.au/schools/publications/2001/digest/technology.htm

 

soul4real. (2012, January 30). What is ICT?

[video file]. Video posted to https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=u-hu6lMemB0

Figure 1.1

This video was posted to youtube by Dr. Alisa Cooper, an English teacher at Glendale Community College. This is her accout of what an ICT is.

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