:::: Education on Effective and Productive Utilization of ICT ::::

+ About Project

	Information and Com- munication Technology for Hope
	Read more >>

Prepared by the project team every other week, the blog is the first place to get notified of the project progress and opportunities to get involved.

Read Blog >>

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has become one of the most important driving forces in today’s economic and social development. Especially in the Asia Pacific region, where the speed and scope of ICT's advancement far exceed those in other parts of the world, we have witnessed increased opportunities for prosperity and growth.

Despite the benefits that ICT has brought, it also poses new challenges. Increasingly, we hear about cybercrimes, Internet addiction and online privacy risks, which may overshadow economic and social empowerment. In the information age we live in today, it is no longer enough to bridge the digital divide in ICT access and skills– we also need to consider how best to utilize ICT effectively and productively, while minimizing the unfavorable side effects that accompany ICT's rapid advancement.

In response to this need, KT Cultural Foundation, in partnership with the APEC Education Foundation, is setting out on a journey toward inter-economy educational collaboration on effective and productive ICT utilization. This new initiative will develop educational programs for novice ICT users and early learners in the APEC region, to help curb ICT's adverse effects at their earliest evolutionary stage, and guide users to maximize ICT's full potential as a powerful tool of development and empowerment.

Project Target

Novice ICT users and early learners are disproportionately vulnerable to ICT's negative effects because they are exposed to multimedia's dynamic and compelling characteristics rapidly, with no gradual accumulation of knowledge and experience. Furthermore, when ICT is developing at breakneck speed, as it is in many developing countries, the changes new users face are even more drastic, making it important to develop timely and appropriate measures to minimize ICT's adverse effects.

Project objectives
	Develop an education program on effective and productive utilization of Information Communication Technology and promote its general application in APEC member economies
	Contribute to bridging the digital divide within APEC economies by developing an ICT education programs for new ICT users
	Provide education programs customized to differing local circumstances including the ICT infrastructure

The project focuses on the following three programs.

Content Development for Effective and Productive ICT Utilization
Developing learning materials for novice ICT users including children and adolescents, as well as teaching materials for teachers and parents, to bridge the digital divide and maximize ICT’s true potential as a great enabler

2008 APEC ICT Poster Competition
“Information and Communication Technology for Hope”
Providing interested students, teachers and ICT practitioners an opportunity to convey their thoughts about how we can use ICT to better our lives while curtailing the negative side effects that accompany it.

Poster Exhibitions and Content Distribution across the APEC Region
Supporting localization of program's concept and distributing content via on- and offline networks and training sessions

Join us in our Network of Experts for more information on the project, including opportunities for content localization and training sessions and poster exhibitions in your region. Click here to Join.