Learning Objective

Demonstrate an awareness of the affordances of different technologies and decide which tools are most appropriate for different activities.

Terminology

Affordances of technologies:
What you can do with a technology or tool – relating to its specific functions. E.g. The primary affordance of a phone is to enable communication, although a ‘smartphone’ has other affordances such as connecting to the internet, taking photos, sharing content, etc.

Information and communication technologies (ICT):
Technologies used to create, store, manage and convey data electronically.

Technology/ies:
The use of practical applications to solve specific problems. Often used as a broad descriptor when referring to a range of tools. E.g. Educational technologies.

Tool:
Specific implement used to accomplish a task. E.g. Word processing software.

Online service:
Provision of an online tool for use by different groups of people. May be free (at the point of use) or have a subscription or one-off charge. May be accessible for all or restricted to particular communities, workplaces or groups. E.g. Facebook, Twitter

Digital technology:
Any technology that utilises digital data – represented by a sequence of numbers.

Hardware:
Physical components of technologies. E.g. phone, laptop, cables

Software:
Instructions, written in the form of code or program that perform specific functions in computers. There are a variety of different kinds of code or languages. E.g. Operating software like Windows that manage a computer and other programs. Application software like a word processor or spreadsheet program.

Copyright Licences:
A legal statement that identifies what permissions are possible for people using content, Some licences are very restrictive and others (like open or public licences) aim to facilitate use of content.

Mobile Apps:
Applications or software that is designed to be used on mobile devices

The Cloud:
A name to describe the provision of services through the internet. Includes saving content on huge data servers accessible through the internet.