Role of ICT in Education

 Introduction

The education has vital role in building the society. Education determines standard of society. The quality education helps to empowering the nation in all aspects by providing new thoughts, the ways of implementation of various technologies and so many such things. The quality education is basic need of the society. There are number of effective teaching & learning methodologies in practice. Technology is the most effective way to increase the student’s knowledge. Here comes the role of ICT in the education sector! Being an academician I cannot imagine education without ICT. Nowadays ICT (specially an internet) plays imminent role in the process of integrating technology into the educational activities.

Types of ICT in education

1. Prezi Presentation 

Prezi is a presentation app known mostly for its style of zoom navigation and a “slideless” design. The core concept of creating a presentation with Prezi is that all sections are connected and the presenter can zoom and navigate between them seamlessly. This style of presentation is unique to Prezi and it’s their way of standing out above PowerPoint. Even though the zooming feature sounds complex as an idea, its ease of use is impressive, especially when following a template.

2. Microsoft PowerPoint 

Microsoft PowerPoint is the presentation software in the Microsoft Office Suite.It has long been the most sought out software for creating presentations in both business and education. So much so that its overuse led to the term “Death by PowerPoint”.The downloadable desktop app for Microsoft PowerPoint works seamlessly on both Mac OS and PC with Windows.

3. Digital Library 

Digital libraries are Internet sites consecrated to the creation and preservation of electronic book collections and holdings of other kinds of materials, without the need for end users to purchase the materials they want to consult and read. Creating and preserving these collections involves the participation of a large number of intermediate institutions, which is part of what makes digital libraries so interesting. Among the participants are those institutions that secure from the publishers the rights to transform or distribute their materials in digital formats, and libraries that purchase the rights for the members of their institutions to access these materials while respecting certain conditions.

4. Linux

Linux is a community of open-source Unix like operating systems that are based on the Linux Kernel. It was initially released by Linus Torvalds on September 17, 1991. It is a free and open-source operating system and the source code can be modified and distributed to anyone commercially or noncommercially under the GNU General Public License. 

5. Ubuntu

Ubuntu (pronounced oo-BOON-too) is an open source Debian-based Linux distribution. Sponsored by Canonical Ltd., Ubuntu is considered a good distribution for beginners. The operating system was intended primarily for personal computers (PCs) but it can also be used on servers. The word "ubuntu" is from the African Zulu language and translates as "humanity to others." It is suitable for cloud computing, servers, desktops, and internet of things (IoT) devices. The main difference between Linux and Ubuntu is that the former is an operating system family based on Unix, while Ubuntu is a Linux distribution.

Conclusion

The role of ICTs in the education is recurring and unavoidable. Rapid changes in the technologies are indicating that the role of ICT in future will grow tremendously in the education.

1. By observing current activities and practices in the education, we can say the development of ICTs within education has strongly affected on:

a. What is learned?

b. How it is learned?

c. When & where learning takes place

d. Who is learning and who is teaching.

2. ICT also focuses modification of the role of teachers. In addition to classroom teaching, they will have other skills and responsibilities. Teachers will act as virtual guides for students who use electronic media.

3. Ultimately, the use of ICT will enhance the learning experiences of students. Also it helps them to think independently and communicate creatively. It also helps students for building successful careers and lives, in an increasingly technological world.