ict within education

Due to the growing interest and capabilities of ict, and the growing need for the younger generation to be taught how to make use of ict, the best possible way to take advantage of all this is to infact include the ict within the education.  There are many advantages of this such as first hand experience for the students with many of the hardware and software they’ll possibly be using in future employment, and it also means the students and there teachers wont be bogged down in cumbersome paperwork ect, as all the work will be saved on to a regularly saved backup system.

There are various elements of ict within education, but the key one of these would be the computer itself. A student having access to a computer opens up man y possibilities and opportunities, this can include things such as access to the internet for research or to in fact use the hardware to do their work. The computer then gives them the opportunity to safely save their work or print it off to hand in ect.

Another aspect that appears to be playing a lead role within education is the use of smart boards by teaching staff. These are large electronic screens that replace the need for a white or blackboard as they are much more capable. They enable the teacher to write whatever they desire on the screen aswell as the screen allowing the students to view whatever the teacher themselves is looking at, this means that the teacher can show the students his examples online and other resources such as web pages without the need of printing out paper to use on a projector. The disadvantages of using these however is they can be a great effort to install and will then require trained staff to maintain them in case of failure, they can also be expensive to purchase at first.

The software available to these students also provides great assistance to their education, enabling them to carry out more tasks successfully. For example the Microsoft office word program allows students to type fast and effectively abolishing the issues of handwriting and even providing a spell check and grammar check service,  to ensure no mistakes are made. Aswell as this program there are also many other elements of software that can be useful to students such as photo editing software for art students or spreadsheet and numerical based programs for business entrepreneurs or mathematicians. I myself come into great contact with the word processor, as my ict and business subjects both require that I write copious amounts of work with which my projects are based, but wit business a frequently must use the spreadsheets pf Microsoft excel and with media I have come in to contact with photo editing software. From my experiences with all this software I have a great belief that they enhance the learning opportunities of the students that use them as they enable them to do more work easily, quickly and efficiently.

A relatively new service that has been introduced to the education front is the VLE or virtual learning environment. It is essentially a hub of connection between student and teacher, as it allows the teachers to set work and then that said work can then be handed in by the student. These services also allow the student to access any work they have saved on the school files.

There are however disadvantages to using ict as the sole method of education as there are the initial cost problems to purchase the actually hardware and software, followed by further payments resulting from instillation and maintenance. There is also the problem that could arise if the ict hardware or software does malfunction then the students wont b able to access, or in fact loose all their work.

To conclude I believe that although ict is essential to the education of the younger generation it should not be used as the sole method, as there are still causes of concern with hardware/software crashes ect, and that a balance between more original paper based methods will also be necessary to the education service.

Online Entertainment

In the modern day and age the internet plays an almighty role in providing pleasure and entertainment for almost everyone with access to the internet. The usage of the internet for entertainment also spans across a variety of generations due to the wide range of content on the internet, and with the development of online channels such as iplayer, there is almost something for everyone readily accessible.

For many years an extremely popular use of the internet amongst particularly younger people and children  is to play online games. Due to the popularity of online gaming a wide abundance of games and gaming sites has been developed and this furthermore enables more of A variety in games thus attracting more users. It is a result of the large number of cookies online that make the gaming areas of the internet a great success, as they enable you to save and store data related to your games , so they can be continued anywhere as long as you have internet available to sign into your account. The online gaming phenomenon however does generally only remain within the younger generations and is not as appealing to older members of society, this means that although they  are very popular, they aren’t the most popular entertainment service amongst the whole internet.

A relatively new, yet highly successful service available on the internet provides you with the functionality to watch television programmes online, the two best known of these providers is the BBCs “iplayer” and channel4s “4od”. One of the key reasons for their success is that they enable their users to catch up on their favourite programmes if they miss them online. They also offer online shows , that hence the name, are only available to view online, this adds another dimension to their service, which will attract more customers willing to watch these programes in the only place they are available. I my self have had the experience of using these type of sites on countless occasions, especially “4od” as i frequently would watch some of their programmes which they saved on their site.

Another example of the internet dipping into another method of entertainment is the availability to listen to the radio online, with radio stations frequently having their own websites. The most notable of these i belive is the radio one website, probably due to the fact this radio station is aimed at younger people, and it is generally the younger generations who make up the majority of internets population. These sites however offer more than just simply a place to listen to the radio as they provide many things such as podcasts and online features such as charts and playlists, this is where the majority of radios entertainment online is discovered.

The main provider of entertainment on the internet however, i do believe is from googles website youtube. Its a site that allows user to upload videos of near enough anything for other users to watch. The genres of the videos on the site are what i belive to be the key to its success, as you have a range that includes music, to tv programes, clips saved off radio shows/podcasts and the users home videos that get uploaded. This means it has aspects from near enough every form of modern entertainment that it can utilize. The site however does come under scrutiny as a result of some of the videos that get uploaded, with the main issue being one of copyright, as many people will upload music videos ect that they do not have permission to do so. Youtube however does clearly state that if the content it is copyright they will do their best to remove it, but due to the large amount of videos on the actual site.

I believe that a large proportion of our generations entertainment is effected if not based upon the internet, which once again implies how much we are reliant upon the internet, but i do however believe that it will never be the sole provider of entertainment due to the large availability of things like television, as well as entertainment that does not require technology, such as sports ect. But despite this i do believe as power and knowledge if the internet grows and expands, the availability of entertainment online will increase.

ICT within employment

In the recent  years of the computer generation, which have seen widespread success and large numbers of people participating in the use of computers and the internet, the necessity and opportunity for employment within the computing area has risen dramatically. The internet is now frequently associated with the largest and most successful business’s and plays often the key role within the structure of a business thus expanding its global necessity.

As a result of the expansion and requirements of the computing and internet within employment, the very first occupational availability will be computer technicians and servicemen, as in the scenario of failures and malfunctions, someone will be required to repair the damage. The jobs available do not stop and are not always as obvious as this and a large percentage of jobs will now in fact use computer technology without even realising it.  I myself in my job have to essentially rely on the use of a computer as i work at the till in a well known retail store, this ensures that everything i do within the basis of a transaction is monitored and carried out by means of computer and i believe it to be extremely important and useful as not only does it make the given task quick and efficient, but the computer its self will not make any errors, the it will calculate using the data provided, and extensive steps have been carried out to ensure that no incorrect data is entered into the computer. The issue that has been raised with contention to jobs like this however is will the manpower behind them be replaced with the machines they were originally in fact working with, this have been proved in the case of various high street supermarkets, who now offer the ability to use “self checkouts” which is essentially the computer running the checkout instead of a person. The opposing theory to this however is that some will have to be employed to maintain these computers , but again this might not be one of the original workers  so there will still be redundancy made. There are some jobs however which keep on their human workforce to work such as factories, as the person will be better suited with quality control than the computer, by doing this the factory is ensuring that the 2 personas are working hand in hand to maximise their profit and success. This i believe is the role every business and company should participate in, as it wields many job opportunities and means that no one will have to be laid of and become unemployed.

As the workplace becomes more entwined with the presence and requirement of computers there will be more training required, this means that employers can choose to train their staff in order to keep them on, or many employers will look to they younger generation as due to the computer “boom” , they all not receive a copious amount of education within the computer world, so from school they are already more experienced and learnt than many of the already existing work force from older generations.

In the future however there is an increasing fear that the need for people within many work forces will no longer be there due to the increasing use of computers and artificial intelligence within the work place but i do believe however, that the education provided within schools and colleges of an ict basis will essentially act in ensuring that many jobs will remain available for people, such as maintenance, building and designing of the computers, which will thus ensure than people remain a necessity 

E Government

E government

E government is an online service provided by the physical government in order to maintain a connection with the population. It also enables a relationship between various governments and government bodies as well as providing  much needed information applying to a variation business and there essentials.

 There are a wide range of services available within britains e government, Direct.gov,  each contained within separate sections of the site covering topics from going abroad to motoring. It is essentially all the information they store and distribute all available in one place, thus making it easier for the public to obtain this knowledge. The fact its available online also makes it easy to obtain any of the information provided as the vast majority of the population have readily available internet access, and as it is all in one place it ensures that the maintenance will be easy and efficient as the government will not have to recall any of the distributed data in order to correct and repair any errors.

There is also a search bar made immediately available to the user enabling them to instantly find issue they wish to regard. As well as saving the time and effort taken in order to browse the site till the desired information is required, it will save more time more time as apposed through physical documents. These are the key elements to the sit as it is all about making information as well as laws, rules and regulations available for the public to see.

Aswell has have information based upon the different sections themselves, such as “motoring” there are also 5 different “genres” available to the user that will help sieve the information into what is relevant you to. The sections are ; young people, Britains living abroad, caring for someone, disabled people nad parents. So the user is then able to select which ever group they find themselves under to gain access to the information that will be related to them.

The information provided by the site is in depth and up to date to easily compensate for any scenarios such as government price cuts. Within the motoring department there is readily available information regarding everything from sales concerning vehicles to driver safety.  Within each section there are also  mini subheadings, this ensures that you are precisely clear on what information you are regarding. All the information supplied about motoring within these sections Is essential and any lack of compliance with the majority of these regulations could result in fines and imprisonment, so therefore it is essential that this is fully read and understood, this therefore is another reason for the easy navigation of the site, so it can all be easily understood.  As it is the governments official site, it also means that within the motoring section, there is the ability to check up your cars history, gaining knowledge of every service your car has undergone, and the tax status ect, this is extremely useful particularly if you have not time to participate in the manual search for this information.

Another key element to the governments website is the disabled persons section, this is essential not only for the people around them but for the live of the person themselves, as it will contain information on how to gain access to the allowances that they require to help maintain a decent standard of life, it would also be essential for employers to have an up to date knowledge of the subject of disabled people so they can not only ensure their business is “disabled friendly” but in case that a person with a disability is employed. The information regarding all of this is available for use within the click of a button.

Other than the distribution of the governments policies and schemes, I believe the alternative key use is for the user to be able to gain access to forms of which they will require for everyday life, this includes the ema section and printing off the application form as well as the necessary documents required to apply for a provisional drivers licence , and I use these two examples are they are both infact the elements of the sight from which I have come into contact with. I found locating both sections extrememly easy and efficient with thanks to the search bar made available and once I had found the section, gaining access to, and then printing the documents required was almost instant.

Overall I belive that the governments website is an essential to the everyday life of a nations citizen as it contains not only essential personal forms , but it also holds intimate information regarding all the governments laws aswell as general information which will be required to be understood, in order to help he country with crime, as well as the over all quality of life.

online education

Education online

Due to the nationwide availability of the internet it is now extremely common that a wide variety of subjects can be learnt through the use of online education services. As a result of the wide variety of services available online, the amount of information that is dispersed amongst the various networks is overwhelming and there will be data relevant to almost any subject or scenario.

One of the more popular education services online is the one offered by the bbc , bbc bite size. This is effectively a large database of knowledge relevant for students studying gcses and a levels. As well as just knowledge pages however it also offers online tutorials on various methods of working things out such as mathematical problems , how to plan and write your answers/essays and various tests to ensure you have learnt and understood the information they provide. The key to the success of bite size is based upon the key aspects that is not only free to use and there is no need to sign up , but all the information is extremely relevant to all the individual examination papers and courses so everything the student needs to learn is available all in one place.  This was the site that I believe contributed greatly towards my gcses particularly within English as the in depth yey easily understandable

Another service available online that is useful to those studying for gcse and a level is in fact the edexcel site which as one of the main exam boards used amongst schools will hold essential information based directly on the exam. This therefore ensures that the content of the site is perfectly relevant to whatever topic you have chosen to read up upon, or obtaining practice papers so that you can practice the work as you learn it.

Another site that has recently gained some recognition for its value to education is the media site “youtube”. The site itself is an extremely large collection of videos from almost every possible genre, and the education side of the site will then offer the user to search for their current issue and then youtube will display a variety of videos based upon the users search, and these videos can contain content such as documentaries to instructions and videos showing how to undertake the searched task. Youtube however remains blocked in many schools across the nation as a result of the many other videos that can be found on the site, many of these being completely irrelevant or indeed even vulgar or decidedly undesirable. Myself, I generally use youtube at home for listening to music, but I have however used it to obtain new information on the different subjects at school which I study, and I believe the videos I found to be extremely helpful, so I think there should be a service created to filter out the unwanted media on youtube so that schoolchildren can obtain access to the valuable resources available.

For many of todays students, the main source of information they come across is the site “wikipedia”. Although an essentially brilliant site due to the vast crevasse of information available within its databases, covering almost every topic imaginable, there are however some issues that arise with this site. The two key issues are that of plagiarism, and then the sometimes inaccurate or completely false information provided. These problems are based upon the same issue, that the information can be edited by anyone signed up to the website. This means that students reading this information may in fact be learning something completely incorrect, yet as its off a well known website the naivest students will completely trust the date they are absorbing. To counter this I belive it is essential the students carry out further research , just to ensure that they are infact obtaining legitimate information.

The key issue with all online education however is the ever growing problem concernind plagiarism. This is when work is copied and the person copying then claims it as their own without crediting the original captivator of the work. In schools this is genereally punished with the immediate removal of the grade and in more dire circumstances the student may be removed entirely form the exam board. Despite these threats and punishments many students still continue to copy work of the internet as it saves them time and effort and they generally believe they will get away with it, all this is increasingly not the case. When I have obtained information from the internet I always ensure to credit it to the person I got it from, this means that I am not copying their work but merely using it to back up my own point im producing, and all the exam boards will readily accept this.

Overall I belive that online education is an essentially important form of information as any question can be answered within the confinements of the internets databases but is essential for all students using these services to continue further research, to ensure that they are in fact learning the correct things for their education.

Online Banking

Online banking is essentially a service that simply offers you the opportunity to manage you bank on the internet, be this for just checking your account balance to actually carrying out an online transaction. It is however unnecessary that you have an online bank account to use a debit or credit card and both this can still be used to make online purchases to great avail. It is also possible to use your phone to call/text (sms) your bank, so it can be handled no mater where you’re located, and many banks now days have secure applications available to be used on phones meeting the essential requirements.

There are however flaws when using online banking services such as fraud, yet the main issue gained with the use of online banking is phishing. This incorporates the use of fake deals and scams on the internet in order to capture the victims personal details , such as all there bank details and then they can proceed to withdraw money ect. The key to the success of this criminal offence is the trust they obtain from their victims on order to convince them to subscribe to their scams.

Therefore this means that security is essential within online banking and it must be maintained at the highest standards and one of the key entrepreneurs of online banking security is paypal, not only do they run on a https server ( hyper transfer text protocol secure) which means they are nearly impossible to hack but they ensure that none of your details are released to any third parties or even the buyer/seller your interacting with.

As a result of the significant rise in online banking all of the main high street banks have since began running offering online services. As they are the main banks and therefore store online money (credit) and various details about many of there users, it is a must that the security is impenetrable and this is contrived in many ways. The first of these is once again the https (https://olb2.nationet.com/AppServices/SignOn/SignOnProcess/Default.aspx?ID=35) on which their online site is run, this again ensures that no one online can gain access to what you are doing. When signing into your account and carrying out transactions, the data sent between your computer and nationwide is then encrypted, this scrambles all the information so that it can only be deciphered by the nationwide security centre, thus hackers cannot witness the information you are sending to the bank.  When signing up to the bank there are also various steps that ensure it is in fact you that are using the site to gain access to the bank and not anyone else , the first of theses methods is the distribution of customer numbers, and this is the number they give to you when you when you register with their service. They then proceed to demand memorable data, which is a memorable date, a memorable place and a memorable name personal to you that you denote on first signing up with the bank. The final area of information they require is your pass number , they only ask for three random digits from your pass number for you to sign in and  Your pass number will be sent to you after you have registered. It will be a random six digit number generated by Nationwide.

There are also solely online banking services which don’t own a high street chain. The main example of this is the egg bank company. Although they work on a near identical service to other online banking services  with the essential basics such as being able to check your balance online , but you cannot physically put money into your bank via cash or cheque , and it can in fact only receive payments from places of work using the bank details much like any other bank and money can therefore only be inputted into your account with the use of card , and as many people still neglect online banking through the unorthodox fear of the hackers and phishers online.

Overall I believe online banking to be a success as it enables people to check their balance without going to the actual physical building as long as they have assured access to an internet connection. There will still be issues with security and fraud but as long as you only enter your details in registered websites and don’t all victim to the fairly blatant attempts of a phisher, your details will remain safe thus ensuring your bank remains safe.

e commerce

Online shopping

advantages

disadvantages

·         Convenience ·         Transport csts ·         Wider access ·         Wider range ·         24 hour shopping ·         Cheaper ( business don’t need to hire as many staff for stores) ·         Cheaper ( customers can get special deals and special offers) ·         No retail staff ( many people find these irritating) ·         Reviews ( different customers opinions) ·         Don’t have to pay it all off at once

·         No socialising ·         Delivery times and charges ·         Security ( the lack of it ) ·         Cant try things on ,  lack of physical contact ·         You need to know what your doing ·         Scams ·         Refunds ·         Product substitution

A year after the web had initially been created in 1990 the web opened for commercial use. Online banking and early retail services then began to arise in 1994 with sites such as pizza hut making appearances.

Now days’ online shopping, although not as big as normal shopping, still plays an important roll in today’s world. Many people like to use online shopping for the general convenience of the service.  These include things such as not having to go to collect your purchase and the wider range of stock available in online stores.

Security

There are however still issues with online shopping, with the key one of these being the security within transactions. Many people will choose not to use phone shopping as there is an increased risk  of there bank details been obtained by an unwanted party who will then use it to gain access to the funds in your bank.  This is only really an issue to the user when debit cards are concerned, credit cards on the other hand operate using the banks money, and thus it’s a problem related directly to the bank. There are special secure sites, denoted by “https” that prevent any information being displaced for safer transactions and their high levels of security ensure that hacking is virtually impossible. The most common site for secure transactions is paypal which takes hold of your money and waits until the good have been sent before the money is sent instantly into the sellers account. Paypal also offers the option to hold a certain amount of money ( denoted by the account holder) much like a bank until you choose to use this capital on a transaction.

Amazon

Amazon is an online shopping service well known on the market for their extensive range of books.  One reason for the key to this success is infact because books are the most purchased item on the web, this is due to the fact that you always know what your getting with a book and the content will always remain the same, whereas purchasing clothes is a risk because you never know what they will look like in physicality. Amazon however does not solely rely on just book sales. They have attempted to reach every aspect of the retail world to enhance profit figures to a max, and there is also the opportunity for people to sell their own items on amazon, at a fixed price unlike the auction style of the competitor ebay. Amazon also appeals to many customers as it is a secure site, therefore the customers who don’t generally trust online shopping may feel more appealed to amazon. The store itself is also only available online so all their stock is located in one massive warehouse. This means that any deliveries to a certain area can all be shipped at the same time, saving more fuel than of 5 items were being shipped to the same destination from 5 separate locations. This itself would appeal to more economically aware users.