The Impact of Information and Communication Technology on Adult Development
Chapter One
Purpose Of The Study
The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of information and communication technology in adult development in Lagos state. Other specific objectives are:
- To determine the usefulness of Information and communication technology resources on adult development in Lagos state.
- To determine the efficiency and effectiveness of Information and communication technology on adult development in Lagos state.
- To determine the challenges associated with the application of Information and communication technology in the practice of adult education.
- To determine the extent to which information and communication technology is utilized in adult development.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter will review related and relevant literature in order to give justification to the study. The review will be carried out under the following sub-headings.
CONCEPT OF ADULT EDUCATION
In an attempt to examine the concept of Adult Education, I think it is important to offer first a mundane explanation of what Adult Education ordinarily is. One finds that when a student’s of adult education is asked what Adult Education is, he starts trying, often clumsily to recall one or some of the formal definitions and is unable to give an intelligent ordinary explanation of what the discipline is all about. Yet, the students could easily say that, just as the education of children and the youth goes on in any society. Conspicuously because formal institutions at various levels are associated with the sector of education, so also does education of the adults goes on in most societies. Unhappily, in this case, not so conspicuously (but not any less intensely) because the ways in which sector of education is carried out are diverse, even diffuse and not as concrete as those of youth education. Okenimkpe (2004)
I could remember vividly during my first year in university of Lagos when my lecturer will ask me to define adult education. As a novice, so I’ll say. “Adult Education is the education provision for the adult or I will say adult education is the act or process of educating the adult. And so, from my definition one could see that I try to merge the key concept together i.e. (Adult and Education) to generate a sentence that will form a whole. But now if I want to define the concept in just a simple form then I will say Adult Education is an education provision for early leavers, or those who do not have a taste of formal education and the adults (lettered and the unlettered). As I move on in the study of adult education, my knowledge and scope begin to expand to give a comprehensive view of the concept which I say “Adult Education serve as tool for conscientizing and liberating people irrespective of your age, status and sex from shackles of ignorance in becoming useful to yourself and family as well as contributing to the development of your society and the nation at large. In other word different perspectives can be chipped-in in giving a definition of the concept as there were no universally acceptable definitions of the concept of Adult Education.
For the purpose of this research work, I think I need to save my breath and offer some of the formal definitions of the concept. Therefore, the two United Nations education scientific and cultural organization (UNESCO) definitions (1976 and 1997) will be examined.
“The term adult education denotes the entire body of organized educational processes, whatever the content, level and method, whether they prolong or replace initial education in schools, colleges and universities as well as in apprenticeship, whereby persons regarded as adult by the society to which they belong develop their abilities, enrich their knowledge, improve their technical or professional qualification or turn them in a new direction and bring about changes in their attitudes or behavior in the two folds perspectives of full personal development and participation in balanced and independent social, economic and cultural development”.
CHAPTER THREE
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Introduction
This chapter deals with the methods the researcher will use in conducting the research. These include:
Research Design
The survey design was employed in this study. This design was used to gather data from members of the selected population with the aid of the questionnaire so as to determine the current status of the issue under study from the respective institution.
Population of the Study
University of Lagos, adult education department was chosen as a case study for this research work since the research work focused on the impact of ICTs on adult development in Lagos state.
The population of the study covers all the professional and paraprofessional of University of Lagos adult education department.
CHAPTER FOUR
PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS OF DATA AND DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS
INTRODUCTION
This chapter analyses the data collected from the field. This is done by using the statistical technique of frequency distribution and simple percentage. Questionnaire was the only instrument used for data collection. The findings are presented in the tables below.
CHAPTER FIVE
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
SUMMARY
The primary aim of this research is to ascertain the impact of information and communication technology in adult development in Lagos state. The chapter elucidates the summary of the findings, recommendations and conclusion.
Adult education in this contemporary time has been seen as a field of study that embraces the overall development of individual and the society, not only that, it is a problem solving discipline that gives unlimited educational opportunities to both late comers and early completers to realize their potentials through literacy, remedial and continuing education programmes. Therefore, for adult education to achieve these goals and objectives there is the need for information and communication technology because society today is in the era of technological period whereby tasks hitherto done manually at homes, offices, institutions, industrial set-up are being automated on daily basis worldwide.
From the findings, information and communication technology has been seen as a powerful tool for extending educational opportunities, both formal and non-formal to previously undeserved constituencies scattered and rural population. Also from the findings, it was discovered that information and communication technology has impacted enormously in the delivery of adult education programmes via its usefulness on the operation, services and activities of adult education as a discipline.
The study makes us to realize that the use of ICT resources in terms of its resource sharing capabilities, level of automation etc were very effective and efficient in delivering adult education programmes. More so, we realize from the study that ICT resources like video-conferencing, World Wide Web, internet, search engines and online data base etc were effectively utilized in the delivery of adult education programmes.
From the findings of the study, it was known that the major reason attached to the use of ICT resources by the respondents is as a result of its simplicity, easiness and effective facilitation and delivery of adult education programmes.
Some identified factors acting as an impediments to the impact of ICT on Adult development were; inadequate funding which has given birth to some other problems like inadequate and unreliable ICT infrastructures, lack of training facilities, inadequate personnel, automation at infancy level, lack of technical know- how etc. And some that are caused by the government for example epileptic power supply which has become a thorn in the flesh of an average Nigerian organization or establishment which also disrupts or acts as a breakdown to computers. Also interrupted network caused by poor electronic gadgets and so many others that also hinders the positive impact of ICT on adult development.
CONCLUSION
It is evident from the findings of this research work that information and communication technology has contributed immensely to the delivery of adult education programmes. There is remarkable rise in the use of ICT, many of adult education programmes and activities are now ICT driven talk of Correspondence education (Distance and Open University), Extension education programme etc. This has led to the speed on acquisition, processing, programming and dissemination operations. Information and communication technology has also help to curb the problem of information explosion in this information era, it has help to improve the planning, running, management and administration of Adult Education programmes.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Arising from the findings and conclusion are the following recommendations.
- More generous financial support should be made available by the government to provide the basic ICT infrastructural facilities.
- Short computer training and retraining programmes should be organized from time-to-time to assist adult facilitators, educators, Extension Agents etc who do not have knowledge and computer skills. This will also aid awareness of computer potentials and capabilities.
- Effective and efficient power supply should be provided to check the menace of frequent electricity power failure and more so electricity gadget should be worked on so as to avoid interrupted network. In the same vein, the government should address the problem of erratic power supply more seriously not through military order but through research and development.
- Since information and communication technology has come to stay, educators both Para-professionals and professionals that are not computer literate should take positive steps to remedy their deficiency so as to flow along with the reforms. By this, adult education programmes and services will become ennobled through the acquisition of adequate ICT knowledge/skill and its full application in and outside the university or else they will become irrelevant in this era of information and communication technology.
- The assistance of some donor agencies such as Education Trust Fund (ETF), United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), UNICEF etc must be actively enlisted.
- Adult education programmes involved in ICT usage should be automated in order to facilitate and create an avenue for effective services.
- Orientation programme on the use of computer and ICT generally for adult education programmes should be conducted and made compulsory for new entrants into the profession.
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