Four related, yet distinct, areas of technology in education are information technology, educational technology, information literacy, and computer science.
- Information technology (IT) includes network and servers and computer hardware and software maintenance and repair.
- Educational technology applies technologies and methods to improve teaching and student learning.
- Information literacy is “the ability to know when there is a need for information, to be able to identify, locate, evaluate, and effectively use that information for the issue or problem at hand” (from National Forum on Information Literacy).
- The academic study of Computer science is explained below.
Computer Science concepts are important for the development of our children. Computer science goes beyond using technology. It goes beyond keyboarding or using applications such as word processors, spreadsheets or databases. It goes beyond using computers to enhance learning in other academic disciplines (just having computers in the school does not teach students the fundamentals of computer science). Thinking that computer science is the same as technology is like thinking that English is the same as using books, or that Science is the same as using laboratory equipment.
An official description (from the Association for Computing Machinery) is “Computer science is the study of computers and algorithmic processes, including their principles, their hardware and software designs, their applications, and their impact on society.” This is a good description that requires knowledge of the concepts. It may be more helpful to know benefits for students.
Students who study computer science learn a number of vital skills that can be transferred to any subject area and contribute significantly to their performance as professionals:
- Problem solving skills: Problem definition, solution design, implementation, testing, revision; Creativity, perseverance, teamwork
- Design skills: Designing and working to specifications
- Logic and reasoning: The ability to analyze a problem and break it down into a logical sequence of steps
- Computational thinking: Drawing on fundamental concepts in computer science to analyze and solve problems; Thinking at multiple levels of abstraction.