ICTS IN EVERYDAY LIFE: USES, ADVANTAGES, DISADVANTAGES - TECHNOLOGY - 2024

The ICT in everyday life are present in such diverse settings as education, culture, medicine and finance. Information and communication technologies (ICT) are tools that facilitate both the issuance of information and access to it, as well as an adequate treatment that generates improvements in society.

Undoubtedly, ICT is one of the greatest changes that the 19th century has been able to experience in terms of networks and communications. They have been responsible for modifying the way in which people access or disseminate information, using the benefits provided by computers and the internet.

Education is one of the areas that has most integrated ICT. Source: pixabay.com

Information and communication technologies are characterized mainly by their interactive and instantaneous nature. In addition, thanks to these it is possible to generate a favorable scenario for the generation of content on a global scale, which is essential for the democratization of information.

ICT characteristics

ICT uses electronic equipment as a medium; such is the case of telephones, computers and tablets, among many others.

Likewise, they use the internet for the development of platforms, programs and means that allow the creation of a space for the exchange of information that is beneficial for innumerable uses and applications. Below we list the most outstanding characteristics of ICT:

- They promote the creation of new communication tools through the integration between new technologies and devices.

- They generate interactivity between users, facilitating communication and information exchange through the use of technological devices.

- They provide instantaneous communication, since they allow interaction in real time.

- They are used in different areas and activities of society, such as the economy, culture, the industrial sector, education and science.

- They are in constant growth and innovation.

Most common uses

Education

We can say that education has benefited the most from the emergence of these technologies.

Thanks to ICT, they have developed from virtual classes and collaborative spaces to free and massive online courses (MOOC, for its acronym in English: Massive Online Open Courses). This has made it possible to create learning communities that completely break with the traditional scheme of education.

Finance

Within the financial sector, ICTs have modified the interaction that customers have with banks. This can be seen from the use of the ATM to the creation of online banking.

This last platform allows users to request information, make payments, transfer funds, pay taxes and many other actions, without the need to go to the offices.

Such is the effect of ICT in this particular area, that currently there are banks or similar figures that do not have a physical location; they use only and exclusively ICT to carry out their activities and communicate with their clients.

One of the most recent advances in relation to the use of ICT in the financial field has been the creation of wallets (a kind of virtual purse for cryptocurrencies), which are used to make payments, allowing you to do without cards and use your mobile For this end.

Medicine

In medicine, ICT is widely used. They can be used in the creation of an administration system to manage health centers - such as the hospital information system, known by its acronym SIH-, or even in the development of medical teams that offer information about patients, either either for the generation of diagnoses or for the monitoring of their condition.

Among the most important medical equipment are body scanners, such as CT scanners or MRIs. These allow information to be collected from inside the body of patients and presented to physicians as images.

This technology facilitates the detection of anomalies that cannot be identified by external observation.

Culture

Traditional libraries have undergone an evolution as a consequence of the arrival of ICT. Thanks to the Internet, every day it becomes easier to review books, magazines, articles or any information of an academic nature.

On the other hand, the generation of audiovisual material has become a complementary element of great importance for the dissemination of cultural groups of various characteristics.

In addition, the ideal atmosphere has been created for the creation of new cultural proposals and products that are supported by ICT and whose development would not be possible in another field.

Advantage

In the educational field

The most representative advantages are related to the educational field. It is possible to say that ICTs have had a notable impact on teaching and learning methods.

These provide the teacher with various means and tools to facilitate the student's encounter with new knowledge, which has allowed to put aside the traditional method of using the blackboard and chalk.

Among the most prominent advantages of ICT in education are the following:

- They allow the use of images, videos and audiovisual material in general that promote interactive and dynamic classes. A more pleasant environment is created for the construction of knowledge.

- It is possible to use forums and social networks to facilitate interaction between teachers and students. This scenario breaks the physical barrier that implies that the classroom is the only place in which the teaching and learning processes take place.

- They allow obtaining diverse information and from different sources, facilitating the review and investigation of different authors on certain topics.

- They give flexibility to the educational process. Through the use of collaborative spaces such as the virtual classroom, ICTs allow students to access information outside of class hours; This makes it easier for each one to be more independent in their learning process.

- They contribute to the reinforcement of responsibility and discipline by leaving the learning process in the hands of the student, since in many cases the class schedules are not rigid. This gives the student freedom to study at her own discretion.

In the general field

- They break the physical barriers of interpersonal communication, instantly bringing people who are geographically distant.

- They provide people with an almost infinite source of information wherever they are, as long as they have internet access. Obtaining information and news through electronic devices facilitates contact with the most recent events in the world, also told by different sources.

- They allow you to carry out all kinds of banking transactions without the need to go to the branches.

- They facilitate the performance of administrative procedures and procedures in various sectors and areas of life, such as public administration, work, health, education and business, among others.

- They promote the creation of new jobs. An example of this are call centers.

- They allow connecting people from different parts of the world who have similar interests, since they facilitate the creation of educational, cultural and political exchange spaces, among others.

Disadvantages

In the educational field

The use of ICT within the educational field may not always be entirely beneficial.

These new technologies can offer new ways of carrying out educational activities that can be detrimental to some customs that traditionally generated good results. Such is the case with handwriting and assisted writing, which allows for the automatic correction of spelling errors.

Among the main disadvantages of ICT in the field of education are the following:

- The Internet presents an inexhaustible source of relevant news and information, but it also shows unimportant and banal information that can grab the attention of some people. Many may end up spending more time consuming such content rather than focusing on educational content.

- The possibility of accessing unverified news or from unreliable sources on the internet can cause students to consume poor quality information to learn about certain topics, which makes their learning disadvantaged. They may even learn misconceptions without knowing it.

- As there is no direct contact between students and teachers, a somewhat impersonal and distant environment can be created, which fosters demotivation and lack of enthusiasm in educational dynamics.

- Despite the fact that ICTs achieve interconnection between many people worldwide, there are still many others who cannot access it because they have low economic resources or because few technological advances are generated in their places of residence. This may delay your educational process.

- They can affect their own critical thinking. In many cases, some people expect all the information to be found on the internet, and downplay the creation of knowledge.

In the general field

- They represent a threat to social interaction between people. The use of ICTs is not limited only to communicating with people who are miles away, but they are used even among people who have the facility to interact in person.

- The emotional and affective content achieved by face-to-face interactions between individuals cannot be replicated by virtual media.

- It is essential to use the internet to be able to take advantage of the benefits offered by ICT. This implies that people who cannot access this service will be excluded.

- The use of ICT entails a significant expense. Although there are massive online courses that are free and most of the social networks are open access, the internet service and the equipment that you must have to take advantage of these platforms have a value that in many cases is high.

References

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