Fostering Information and Communication Technology Literacy: Insights from Telecommunications Services

Abstract

Rapid growth of information and communication technologies and an increasingly complex global environment have brought about the need for information and communication technology (ICT) literacy, the ability to effectively use information technology and critically evaluate its role in society. This paper presents a strategy for increasing ICT literacy at the undergraduate collegiate level and discusses the results of employing this technique in a technical, elective course in the School of Communications at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa for six semesters. Comparison of baseline and end-of-semester written assignments demonstrated an increased ability to consider multiple perspectives, gather and provide supporting evidence for assessments, and evaluate complex real-life situations involving ICTs. The author presents this strategy as a useful example that might be adopted or modified for use in a variety of college-level courses.