QCA Schemes of Work for ICT

“Information and communications technologies (ICT) are the computing and communications facilities and features that variously support teaching, learning and a range of activities in education”.

ICT provides us with an insight into the world of bounties we have today. Without it, we could not possibly understand the many difficulties that we endure in day-to-day life, without realising, we spend more on maintaining our technological gadgets, than we do ourselves. We waste money by indulging ourselves in the latest must-haves, draining more and more funds as time goes by, until a time comes where our expenditure catches up with us.

Technology is a saviour for many today; as it provides us with the essentials we need such as contacting people easily, check for live updates on topics which are easier said than done in normal circumstances and many, many more. A simple human brain cannot comprehend how much ICT has improved the future, if we sit, explore and evaluate these changes, as I am anticipating, we can only then understand how much we rely on such a simple, but simultaneously, complex thing.

In the following unit I propose to examine the many facilities that technology has provided us with and look at the good and bad consequences that they have on today’s society, by examining current behaviour and comparing it with behaviour of all age groups of the past as well. Hopefully I will create a strong connection for us to realise that all our lives today are filled with technology, and to make a change would definitely benefit all of us for the better.

AO4-How does the Internet impact on society?

The Internet is a communications device which connects millions of people around the world through its many methods, whether it is by E-mail, Video Conferencing or even Telephones. The Internet is the base for many activities such as these, and several of these have good effects on its users while others have bad effects on them, the reasons of which will be explored in the following. In this report I will be exploring the good and bad effects that the Internet has on Society today and why some have the feelings about it that they do not hesitate to make evident.

Positive effects of the Internet

* The most common way the Internet is used is for research, whether it be by schoolchildren or by adults. It is seen as the most powerful educational tool ever known to man; it preserves history in such a way that the past will never be forgotten, it gives grandparents a piece of mind when they know their grandchildren have got a technique to read up on ancestral times. This is seen as a good thing because the Internet is providing the foundation for children to have a better education and get a deeper insight into their past.

* When the Tsunami took place on December 26, 2004, the volume of donations given by ordinary people through the websites on the Internet is said to have outweighed that of Asia’s own government, this, although not seen, brings communities closer together. When others see their fellow human beings suffering, only then do they realize that their new state of living is an everyday thing for some, although not recognized this helps to bring people back down to earth, and promotes them to be grateful for what they do have.

* The Internet has been proved to be free of state regulation, where censorship-in most cases-does not exist, where the people who want to make a difference can do it, mainly by the freedom which comes with the beneficial value of the Internet. If the internet, was always used for reasons like this then it would have had a positive impact on the nearby community, reducing the level of drug dealing, kidnapping and break-ins, also it would reduce the number of financial emergencies which take place more and more nowadays.

* The social lives of Internet users are not just communicating with telephones and mail anymore. Going “on-line” is the new way with which they like to communicate with people. Chat rooms on the Internet are open for people to talk and mingle with people who may live on the other side of the world, the other side of the country or even the other side of the street. This is a source of socializing with others; it is a good way to get to know people from other religions, cultures and faiths.

Negative effects of the Internet

* While the computer is seen as a good thing, the Internet for some dampens its value. Their reasons include topics to do with safety or more specifically; pornographic sites, piracy, fraud and other nasty things. These people also believe that the Internet is a strong Big-Brother type society, and that you are always being watched. These elements change the overall behavior of the youngsters in society, creating harder circumstances for others to deal with. This is influenced by the pressure which youngsters feel to impress their peers; they feel this is the way forward.

* Although the Internet is seen as a place where users can have their freedom of speech, it can be recognized at a later stage that this is not always a good thing. This sometimes amounts to Internet users believing they are superior to others in the community, therefore having rebellious outcomes, many of which lead to long term bitterness.

* Another shocking act which is carried out via the Internet is Buying and Selling, this is seen as an innocent act for online e-Bay users, however what they don’t know is the Internet is the door to Drugs, Weapons, Illegal organs and much, much more. This is seen difficult to deal with in society, as it reduces the trade income of shopkeepers. It is seen to reveal your dark side due to the unethical websites it provides, to make it easier to commit crimes such as hijacking someone’s personal savings, or even breaking and entering for some.

* Another reason why the Internet is used is for entertainment. Downloading games and movies, music, visiting chat rooms and finding out about current world and sports news are some of the common uses and although these all sound completely innocent, downloading can sometimes occur to be a problem, because the website which the content is downloaded from, 9/10 times is unregistered, hence allowing the user to unknowingly download illegal content. Also when downloading from the Internet, viruses may be downloaded with the content, which may result in the user’s entire hard drive being erased.

* There are also a lot of issues related to privacy. Electronic messages sent over the net can be easily snooped and tracked, revealing who is talking to whom and what they are talking about. It is very easy for complete strangers to locate all information about you and steal your identity, thus accessing all bank accounts and creating-in most events- a very big financial crisis for the original owners. Another event which violates user-privacy is when people hack into e-mail accounts, this prevents the address owner from any control over their account and instead it is being controlled by someone else.

Overall, the people who think the Internet is a bad thing believe that all it has done is gradually build up a platform for more and more crime over the years, damaging the traditional teachings that at one point were so heavily enforced. However, it also helps people to become good citizens and value the community they are in, if not do something and take action on the horrendous behaviour that is taking over the communities of today by storm. The bad behaviour of the youngsters is scaring the OAP’s who believe that the internet is nothing but a waste of valuable time and money.