1B_4 Activity 5: Myths of Computer Literacy

Integrated approach is the best way to introduce students to ICT. Students need to be able to see connections between the content in all subject areas and real life. It emphasises learning by doing, learner-centered learning in learner-interest contexts. This is the only way in which they would view learning as a meaningful activity. Professor Bransford put forward the view that  if children learning formation out of contexts they would not easily and readily be able to transfer information and skills to real life contexts. Therefore, educators need to re-assess the nature of the learning process in their classes because the integrated approach places information technology in a pivotal role in the learning process and its success will be determined by the ability of educators to set appropriate tasks to suit the needs of the learning environment.The ideas postulated by Eisenberg and Johnson (1996),

“It has become increasingly popular for educational technologists to advocate integrating computers into the content areas. However, when learners learn isolated skills and tools without a basic understanding or rationale for their use in problem-solving endeavors, these skills are of little value. Therefore, it is critical that we teach learners how to use computers in a way that allows them to be creative, flexible, and purposive in their pursuits. While there are specific skills that learners should learn, the transfer and application of skills from situation to situation should be recognized as the most beneficial part of any curriculum. As most technology scholars note, learners develop true ‘computer literacy’ when they have genuinely applied various computer skills as part of the learning process.”

  provide much food for thought. Therefore we must all aspire to facilitate an integrated, collaborative approach to teaching and learning. Using the Internet alone will not ensure that this happens - to be truly effective we need to ensure that our students also have access to interdisciplinary skills across the curriculum. To implement this may require changes in how teaching and learning occurs with, for example, much more collaboration between teachers of all disciplines, integrating learning across the curriculum can also involve the community as a learning environment and the downloading of Internet-based materials.