Incorporating ICT in Practicum

When computers first began to appear in schools, their use was mainly confined to electives or to subjects such as Computer Studies, Computer Awareness, or Keyboarding as typewriters began to be phased out. Computers in schools today are no longer seen as necessarily a specialized subject, but rather the expectation is that computers will be used by all teachers and children across all of the Key Learning Areas (KLAs). The emphasis has moved from learning about computers to learning with computers. The focus has moved from the computer per se to pedagogical strategies using computers that enhance the teaching and learning process.

As a result of this changed emphasis, teacher education students need to have well developed information and communications technology (ICT) literacy skills that will enable them to effectively locate, retrieve, evaluate, manipulate, save, and present data in a meaningful form (Smyth, 1997). ICT is more than just another teaching tool. It has the potential to significantly improve the quality of children’s education as well as supporting teachers. It is able to be used by teachers to reduce their administration load and assist in their continuing professional training and development (Leask & Meadows, 2000). Increasingly, teachers need to be able to use technology to effectively communicate, collaborate, and support critical thinking and problem-solving (Rosenthal & Poftak, 1999).