MODULE 1: INTRODUCTION TO INFORMATION AND Communication
COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY • The transfer or exchange of information from person to person or from
Overview
ICT, or information and communications technology (or technologies),
is the infrastructure and components that enable modern computing. The
term is generally accepted to mean all devices, networking components,
applications and systems that combined allow people and organizations (i.e.,
businesses, nonprofit agencies, governments and criminal enterprises) to
interact in the digital world.
Diverse set of technological tools and resources used to transmit,
store, create, share or exchange information. These technological tools and
resources include computers, the Internet (websites, blogs and emails), live
broadcasting technologies (radio, television and webcasting), recorded
broadcasting technologies (podcasting, audio and video players and storage
devices) and telephony (mobile, satellite, video-conferencing, etc).
Lesson 1.1: Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
Information
• Information is a processed data
• Aids decision-making
• Could be visualized as a commodity, which could be or solid.
• Any potentially useful fact, quantity that can be expressed uniquely with
exactness. Information is whatever is capable of causing a human mind to
change its opinion about the current state of the world.
one place to another.
• A process: a transfer of information, ideas, thoughts, and messages.
• Involves a sender, a receiver, a code and a language that is understood by
both the sender and receiver.
Technology
 The use of scientific knowledge to invent tools that assist human beings
in their efforts to overcome environmental hazards and impediments to
comfort
Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
• Umbrella term used to encompass all rapidly emerging, evolving and
converging computer, software, networking,
• VLAN_network_04telecommunications, Internet, programming and
information systems technologies.
• It is an extended term of Information Technology (IT).
• It stresses the role of unifies communications and the integration of
telecommunications, computers, as well as necessary enterprise
software, middleware, storage, and audio-visual systems, which enables
users to access, store, transmit, and manipulate information.
• - Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is a broader term
for
Information Technology (IT), which refers to all communication
technologies, including the internet, wireless networks, cell phones,
computers, software, middleware, video- conferencing, social
networking, and other media applications and services enabling users to
access, retrieve, store, transmit, and manipulate information in a digital
form.
 It is the study or business of developing and using technology to process
information and aid communication.

IT VS ICT
 IT refers to an entire industry that uses computers, networking,
software, and other equipment to manage information.
 ICT can be seen as an integration of IT with media broadcasting
technologies, audio/video processing and transmission and telephony.
 ICT is an extended acronym for IT.
History of ICT
ICT, or information and communications technology (or technologies), is
the infrastructure and components that enable modern computing.
Although there is no single, universal definition of ICT, the term is
generally accepted to mean all devices, networking components, applications
and systems that combined allow people and organizations (i.e., businesses,
nonprofit agencies, governments and criminal enterprises) to interact in the
digital world
Impact of ICT in The Society
Positive impacts of Information and Communication Technology
• Access to information: Increase in access to information and services that
has accompanied the growth of the Internet. Some of the positive
aspects of this increased access are better, and often cheaper,
communications, such as VoIP phone and Instant Messaging.
• Improved access to education, e.g. distance learning and online tutorials.
New ways of learning, e.g. interactive multi-media and virtual reality.
• New tools, new opportunities: ICT gives access to new tools that did not
previously exist: digital cameras, photo-editing software and high quality
printers, screen magnification or screen reading software enables
partially sighted or blind people to work with ordinary text rather than
Braille.
• Communication: Cost savings by using e.g. VoIP instead of normal
telephone, email/messaging instead of post, video conferencing instead
of traveling to meetings, e- commerce web sites instead of sales
catalogues. Access to larger, even worldwide, markets.
• Information management: Data mining of customer information to
produce lists for targeted advertising. Improved stock control, resulting
in less wastage, better cash flow, etc.
• Security: ICT solves or reduces some security problems, e.g. Encryption
methods can keep data safe from unauthorized people, both while it is
being stored or while it is being sent electronically.
• ICT allows people to participate in a wider, even worldwide, society.
• Distance learning: students can access teaching materials from all over
the world.
• ICT facilitates the ability to perform ‘impossible’ experiments’ by using
simulations.
• Creation of new more interesting jobs. Examples would be systems
analysts, programmers and software engineers, as well as help desk
operators and trainers.
Negative impacts of Information and Communication Technology
• Job loss: Manual operations being replaced by automation. e.g. robots
replacing people on an assembly line. Job export. e.g. Data processing
work being sent to other countries where operating costs are lower.
Multiple workers being replaced by a smaller number who are able to do
the same amount of work. e.g. A worker on a supermarket checkout can
serve more customers per hour if a bar-code scanner linked to a
computerized till is used to detect goods instead of the worker having to
enter the item and price manually
 • Reduced personal interaction: Most people need some form of social
interaction in their daily lives and if they do not get the chance to meet
and talk with other people they may feel isolated and unhappy.
• Reduced physical activity: This can lead to health problems such as
obesity, heart disease, and diabetes.
• Cost: A lot of ICT hardware and software is expensive, both to purchase
and to maintain. An ICT system usually requires specialist staff to run it
and there is also the challenge of keeping up with ever-changing
technology.
• Competition: this is usually thought of as being a good thing, but for
some organizations being exposed to greater competition can be a
problem. If the organization is competing for customers, donations, or
other means of funding nationally or even internationally, they may lose
out to other organizations that can offer the same service for less money.

References
• Luna, A., Marbella, C., Mayor, J., Reyes, S., Sagum, J., Santos, J., Sapino, R., and Usero,
S. (2021). Living in the IT Era. Instructional Material for Students.
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/jh-cerilles-statecollege/btte-english/module-living-
in-the-it-era/16912330
• Polytechnic University of the Philippines (2020). Module 1 Living with IT ERA.
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/polytechnic-university-of-the-philippines/living-in-
the-it-era/module-1living-with-it-era/10177565
• Polytechnic University of the Philippines (2020). Module 1 – The Current State of ICT
Technologies.
https://www.studocu.com/ph/document/polytechnic-university-of-the-philippines/living-in-
the-it-era/module-1the-current-state-of-ict-technologies/13704247

Activity 1.1
1. Name one positive impact of ICT that you are experiencing today
and explain.
2. Give one negative impact of ICT that you are experiencing today
and explain.