INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY

Overview

The quickening pace of evolution in technology is very evident in this era. It seems that it is progressing
faster than ever. From year to year, the evolution of technology is one of staggering promise and
opportunity--as well as uncertainty. Basically, technology has been around before, and as long as there
are people, information technology will be there also because there were always ways of
communicating through technology available at that point in time. The future may be unknown, but
digital advancement continues to reshape our world in ways that encourage people to form new habits,
find new ways to work together, and become better human beings. And, in most cases, these changes
translate into a range of opportunities and disruptions across every industry. Humans have always been
quick to adapt technologies for better and faster communication.

Objectives

• After successful completion of this module, the student can be able to;

• Demonstrate a sense of readiness for the upcoming semester;

• Identify their learning outcomes and expectations for the course;

• Recognize their capacity to create new understandings from reflecting on the course;

• Know the role and importance of ICT.

Lesson 1: Information and Communication Technology

History of ICT

ICT, or information and communications technology (or technologies), is the infrastructure and
components that enable modern computing. Although there is no single, universal definition of ICT, the
term is generally accepted to mean all devices, networking components, applications and systems that
combined allow people and organizations (i.e., businesses, nonprofit agencies, governments and
criminal enterprises) to interact in the digital world.

Uses of ICT In Our Daily Lives

Communication

We all know that ICT take a major role for us by means of communicating, way back in the past our
parents use to make letter and send it via post mail. But now with the help of ICT it is easier to
communicate with our love ones. We can use cellular phones that design for communicating with other
people even they are miles away far from you.

Nowadays people are in touch with the help of ICT. Through chatting, E-mail, voice mail and social
networking people communicate with each other. It is the cheapest means of communication.
 ICT allows students to monitor and manage their own learning, think critically and creatively, solve
simulated real-world problems, work collaboratively, engage in ethical decision-making, and adopt a
global perspective towards issues and ideas. It also provides students from remote areas access to
expert teachers and learning resources, and gives administrators and policy makers the data and
expertise they need to work more efficiently.

Job Opportunities

In the employment sector, ICT enables organizations to operate more efficiently, so employing staff with
ICT skills is vital to the smooth running of any business. Being able to use ICT systems effectively allows
employees more time to concentrate on areas of their job role that require soft skills.

For example, many pharmacies use robot technology to assist with picking prescribed drugs. This allows
highly trained pharmaceutical staff to focus on jobs requiring human intelligence and interaction, such
as dispensing and checking medication.

Nowadays, employers expect their staff to have basic ICT skills. This expectation even applies to job roles
where ICT skills may not have been an essential requirement in the past.

Nowadays, finding a job is different, you can just use your smart phone, laptop, desktop or any gadgets
that is available in the comfort of your home.

Education

Information and Communications Technology (ICT) can impact student learning when teachers are
digitally literate and understand how to integrate it into curriculum.

Schools use a diverse set of ICT tools to communicate, create, disseminate, store, and manage
information.(6) In some contexts, ICT has also become integral to the teachinglearning interaction,
through such approaches as replacing chalkboards with interactive digital whiteboards, using students’
own smartphones or other devices for learning during class time, and the “flipped classroom” model
where students watch lectures at home on the computer and use classroom time for more interactive
exercises.

When teachers are digitally literate and trained to use ICT, these approaches can lead to higher order
thinking skills, provide creative and individualized options for students to express their understandings,
and leave students better prepared to deal with ongoing technological change in society and the
workplace.

Socializing

Social media has changed the world. The rapid and vast adoption of these technologies is changing how
we find partners, how we access information from the news, and how we organize to demand political
change.
The internet and social media provide young people with a range of benefits, and opportunities to
empower themselves in a variety of ways. Young people can maintain social connections and support
networks that otherwise wouldn't be possible and can access more information than ever before. The
communities and social interactions young people form online can be invaluable for bolstering and
developing young people's self-confidence and social skills.

As the ICT has become ubiquitous, faster and increasingly accessible to non-technical communities,
social networking and collaborative services have grown rapidly enabling people to communicate and
share interest in many more ways, sites like Facebook, Twitter LinkedIn You tube, Flicker, second life
delicious blogs wiki’s and many more let people of all ages rapidly share their interest of the movement
without others everywhere. But Facebook seems to be the leading areas of where people communicate
and share their opinions. What a change! “Nothing is permanent, but change” (As Heraditus in the
4thcentury BC). Internet can be seen as the international networks of interconnection of computer
networks, the main purpose for the institution of internet are quest for information i.e. browsing,
electronic mail, knew groups fill transfer and access and use of other computer. Socialization can be
seen as a process by which a child adapts a behavior to be an effective member of the society, which can
only be achieved through learning or education.

Impact of ICT in The Society

Positive impacts of Information and Communication Technology

• Access to information: Increase in access to information and services that has accompanied the growth
of the Internet. Some of the positive aspects of this increased access are better, and often cheaper,
communications, such as VoIP phone and Instant Messaging.

• Improved access to education, e.g. distance learning and online tutorials. New ways of learning, e.g.
interactive multi-media and virtual reality.

• New tools, new opportunities: ICT gives access to new tools that did not previously exist: digital
cameras, photo-editing software and high quality printers, screen magnification or screen reading
software enables partially sighted or blind people to work with ordinary text rather than Braille.

• Communication: Cost savings by using e.g. VoIP instead of normal telephone, email / messaging
instead of post, video conferencing instead of traveling to meetings, e-commerce web sites instead of
sales catalogues. Access to larger, even worldwide, markets.

• Information management: Data mining of customer information to produce lists for targeted
advertising. Improved stock control, resulting in less wastage, better cash flow, etc.

• Security: ICT solves or reduces some security problems, e.g. Encryption methods can keep data safe
from unauthorized people, both while it is being stored or while it is being sent electronically.

• ICT allows people to participate in a wider, even worldwide, society.

• ICT facilitates the ability to perform ‘impossible’ experiments’ by using simulations.

• Creation of new more interesting jobs. Examples would be systems analysts, programmers and
software engineers, as well as help desk operators and trainers.

Negative impacts of Information and Communication Technology

• Job loss: Manual operations being replaced by automation. e.g. robots replacing people on an
assembly line. Job export. e.g. Data processing work being sent to other countries where operating costs
are lower. Multiple workers being replaced by a smaller number who are able to do the same amount of
work. e.g. A worker on a supermarket checkout can serve more customers per hour if a bar-code
scanner linked to a computerized till is used to detect goods instead of the worker having to enter the
item and price manually

• Reduced personal interaction: Most people need some form of social interaction in their daily lives and
if they do not get the chance to meet and talk with other people they may feel isolated and unhappy.

• Reduced physical activity: This can lead to health problems such as obesity, heart disease, and
diabetes.

• Cost: A lot of ICT hardware and software is expensive, both to purchase and to maintain. An ICT system
usually requires specialist staff to run it and there is also the challenge of keeping up with ever-changing
technology.

• Competition: this is usually thought of as being a good thing, but for some organizations being exposed
to greater competition can be a problem. If the organization is competing for customers, donations, or
other means of funding nationally or even internationally, they may lose out to other organizations that
can offer the same service for less money.

References

• W. Samuel, S. G. Ajumo, E. C. Anderson and S. Worgu (2016). ICT As A Change Angent For Socialization
and Social Engineering. IOSR Journal of Computer Engineering (IOSRJCE) e-ISSN: 2278-0661,p-ISSN:
2278-8727, Volume 18, Issue 4, Ver. II

• https://www.digitalistmag.com/cio-knowledge/2019/02/26/evolution-of-technologycontinues-what-
is-next-in-2019-06196611/

• https://bit.ly/30IZ4FO

• https://ailynvlla.home.blog/2019/03/04/how-ict-affect-our-daily-life/

• https://bit.ly/32Vlpm6

• https://www.wikijob.co.uk/content/application-advice/job-applications/what-are-ict-skills
• https://bit.ly/2BuODwV

Assessment
Instruction: Answer the following questions.

1. What is the relevance of ICT in your chosen course?

2. Name at least 4 uses of ICT in our daily lives and explain.

3. Give 5 positive impacts and 5 negative impacts of ICT in the society.