Teachers’ Guide

1.1 The importance of technologies

Information and communication technologies (ICT) are part of our society and students’ environment. Having the skills to use them has become a necessity to find a job in many areas. They involve both benefits and challenges that should question all education stakeholders.

In a school context, ICT are not interesting per se, their use by teachers and students, related to an educational situation is. Therefore, the challenge is to integrate ICT in educational practices. This integration depends on a structuration of technological skills and conceptual frameworks related to technologies on the one hand, with psycho-pedagogical approaches and conceptions on the other hand.

The potential benefits of the digital revolution in education are multiple: individuals can easily seek and acquire knowledge from sources other than their teachers and institutions, often for free; new groups of learners can be reached because learning is no longer confined to specific classroom timetables or methods and can be personalised; new education providers emerge; teachers may easily share and create content with colleagues and learners from different countries; and a much wider range of educational resources can be accessed. Open technologies allow All individuals to learn, Anywhere, Anytime, through Any device, with the support of Anyone. Most importantly, education and knowledge are able to travel far more easily across borders greatly increasing the value of and potential for international cooperation. Thanks to Open Educational Resources (OER), and namely MOOCs, teachers and education institutions can now reach thousands of learners from all continents simultaneously, showcasing that language is not always a barrier. Cooperation is enhanced by allowing learners, educators, researchers and institutions to create, share and discuss content with peers from all over the world. In addition to broadening access to education, wider use of new technology and open educational resources can contribute to alleviating costs for educational institutions and for students, especially among disadvantaged groups. This equity impact requires, however, sustained investment in educational infrastructures and human resources.

Online Resources

• TIChimie Activity ReportActivity report (May 2015) of the TIChimie project, which aimed to integrate ICT in pedagogical scenario for chemistry.
• Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the council, the European economic and social committee and the committee of the regions. Opening up Education: Innovative teaching and learning for all through new Technologies and Open Educational ResourcesThis Communication (2013) sets out a European agenda for stimulating high-quality, innovative ways of learning and teaching through new technologies and digital content.
• Importance of technology – How did technology changed our life – and what is the future?Article (2014) presenting the importance of science and technology in our daily lives.
• Importance of technology – How did technology changed our life – and what is the future?Article for schools that are delaying this imminent future of using technology in the classroom as the valuable learning tool it is and the reasons should do it.