Effect of ICTs on Modern Education

This article describes some of the opportunities and challenges of education and information communication technologies (ICTs) in India. The authors see a number of changes occurring in the education sector which are leading to changes in the form, organisation and delivery of educational services. According to the authors, the key features of the evolving educational system are:

• a switching over from "teaching" to "education."
• a stronger bias towards fundamental knowledge and development of an individual’s creative potential.
• the use of new information technology in the selection, accumulation, systematisation, and transfer of knowledge.
• the role of ICTs as facilitating all the above mentioned functions.

The authors believe that in order for students to locate, evaluate and effectively use information, ICTs play a crucial role in shaping services in knowledge management. They also note that school systems have not kept pace with the rest of society in terms of IT use and "over expectations have clouded the important values" in respect to the value of citizenship. They also raise concern over the fact that the evolution of the Internet is becoming more commercial, rather than being more focused on issues such as public debate and education.

The authors identify that participation of girls has increased in primary, middle and secondary school but indicate that it is still below 50 per cent
at all stages of education. According to the authors, girls have started participating in higher level professional courses but this trend is based
on educated classes and urban areas only. Girls are described as having started participating in higher level professional courses but that this trend is based on educated classes and urban areas only. The authors note that girls from urban slums and rural areas continue to lag behind.

The authors view education as once having been "a set of skills, attitudes and values" in modern society but that today education is viewed as a commodity that is purchased to build a "skill set" in the market place. Further, they suggest that the development of online courses, libraries, and other information resources will occur based on businesses and schools seeking to profit from opportunities that expand their horizons. They refer to this change as a revolution in learning. The authors refer to this change as a revolution in learning.

The article identifies that out of approximately 11,562 colleges, 10 per cent have Internet access and out of 250 universities, 5 per cent have Internet but are rarely connected. The authors note that school system have not kept pace with the rest of society in terms of information technology (IT). They conclude that there is considerable potential in the educational uses of the Internet but that there must be the principles of "equality, participation, privacy, mutual respect, and responsibility" that historically provided the foundation for public education.