Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are a “diverse set of tools and resources used to communicate, create, disseminate, store, and manage information.” These technologies include computers, the Internet, broadcasting technologies (radio and television), and telephony. There is increasing interest in how computers and the Internet can improve education at all levels, in both formal and non-formal settings. Older ICT technologies, such as radio and television, have for over forty years been used for open and distance learning, although print remains the cheapest, most accessible and therefore most dominant delivery mechanism in both developed and developing countries.
Technology tools create greater student engagement is that they strongly support a constructivist approach to education. By using a technology such as the Internet or a CD-ROM encyclopedia, a student can explore and navigate through a wide body of information and discover facts, principles, and concepts as they go. This type of exploration is largely self-directed, thereby allowing each student to assimilate information and construct meaning in a way that is personally relevant. Furthermore, when used to present information - such as through the use of a spreadsheet or presentation manager - the student must learn how to manipulate and organize information in such as way as to convey the meaning that s/he has constructed. Again, this is not only highly engaging, but also replicates the real world tasks that the student will face outside of school. Students easily make this connection between "authentic" tasks and the real world, and this often results in their taking greater pride and ownership in their work when that work involves the use of technology.
Finally, technology supports a multiplicity of cognitive styles and learning behaviors. Students who are not sufficiently engaged with text-based information may become fully engaged with audio or visual information. Technology can be used to translate virtually any content into another media, and therefore makes content accessible to all students.
Technology tools create greater student engagement is that they strongly support a constructivist approach to education. By using a technology such as the Internet or a CD-ROM encyclopedia, a student can explore and navigate through a wide body of information and discover facts, principles, and concepts as they go. This type of exploration is largely self-directed, thereby allowing each student to assimilate information and construct meaning in a way that is personally relevant. Furthermore, when used to present information - such as through the use of a spreadsheet or presentation manager - the student must learn how to manipulate and organize information in such as way as to convey the meaning that s/he has constructed. Again, this is not only highly engaging, but also replicates the real world tasks that the student will face outside of school. Students easily make this connection between "authentic" tasks and the real world, and this often results in their taking greater pride and ownership in their work when that work involves the use of technology.
Finally, technology supports a multiplicity of cognitive styles and learning behaviors. Students who are not sufficiently engaged with text-based information may become fully engaged with audio or visual information. Technology can be used to translate virtually any content into another media, and therefore makes content accessible to all students.
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