Advanced ICT Research Articles

ANALYSIS OF CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY IN THE DIGITAL ERA: FUTURE PERSPECTIVE

Abstrak. Technology has become an integral part of human life, aiming to enhance efficiency and effectiveness. Modern businesses also operate within a digital environment that connects individuals and organizations. The digital world is a global phenomenon, fully driven and supported by new technologies. Digitally and fundamentally, the millennial generation must be able to utilize digital technology, have the tools and infrastructure to leverage it, and effectively use social media as a marketing tool for their companies.The approach taken in composing this article involves carefully gathering information from reputable national publications and employing a qualitative research approach. The purpose of this analysis is to identify the challenges and opportunities arising from the rapid innovation in ICT and to explore how future developments are likely to shape global society. The main challenges include the significant digital divide between developed and developing regions, concerns over data security and privacy, and the need to strengthen the workforce’s readiness for digital transformation.On the other hand, ICT advancements present substantial opportunities for the future. Technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and blockchain enable the creation of new innovations, accelerate digital transformation processes, and enhance operational efficiency across various industries. Moreover, these technologies have great potential to support the growth of the digital economy, create new job opportunities, and improve people’s quality of life.

Sustainable integration of mineral resources, low carbon transition, and economic resilience in China

Mineral sustainability has become a crucial topic for economists in recent decades. This study provides key insights into China's sustainability challenges, particularly regarding ferrous mineral production, economic resilience, and low-carbon transition goals. Using data from 1980 to 2022 analyzed with the ARDL technique, the research highlights significant negative impacts of ferrous mineral production, economic uncertainty, and carbon emissions on green energy progress. This underscores the need for urgent actions to enhance sustainability in the mineral sector and support green energy initiatives. Economic instability hampers long-term green energy development, making economic resilience essential. Sustainable population management is also crucial due to its effects on green energy advancement. Conversely, ICT advancements offer promise for sustainable development. China should implement a comprehensive policy framework focused on sustainable mineral use, carbon reduction, and economic stability, including measures such as promoting electric vehicles and improving green tax efficiency.

The Future of ICT Integration in Antiguan Secondary Schools: A Post-Covid Perspective

In this article, specific findings from a larger mixed-methods study that examined the leadership strategies Antiguan school principals employed to integrate technology into the curriculum are examined. In particular, the goal was to provide a greater understanding on some of the potential future applications of ICT integration in curriculum delivery, as identified by educators and school administrators. This study was anchored by the International Standards for Technology in Education (ISTE) model, an established technology leadership theoretical framework, as well as a technology integration framework, TPACK. Qualitative data were gathered from school principals and teachers through the use of semi-structured interviews (N=27). Furthermore, the qualitative data were manually coded and subjected to thematic content analysis. Regarding the future of ICT Integration in Antiguan Secondary Schools, several themes emerged such as, the need for increased online instruction, integrating AI technologies, as well as the acquisition of more advanced ICTs. The development of a contemporary technology use policy for secondary schools is one of the recommendations, along with pre- and in-service training for principals and educators.

Strategies to Teach English as a Foreign Language in Merdeka Curriculum: A Systematic Literature Review

This study uses a qualitative methodology and literature review strategy to explore various approaches to enhance students' English acquisition as a foreign language. Two distinct teaching approaches are identified: Teaching-Centered Learning and Student-Centered Learning. Effective teaching methods include teacher training, participation in English teacher meetings, creating a stimulating learning atmosphere, implementing differentiated learning, and conducting assessments. To address challenges, educators may adopt a novel approach to teaching English, such as the Merdeka curriculum, which incorporates the unique traits of each student based on their Pancasila profile. This curriculum is closely intertwined with ICT advancements from the Industrial Revolution, enhancing students' motivation and engagement in teaching and learning. Instructors must exhibit a proactive and inventive approach to create a captivating educational experience, fostering student engagement and enjoyment. Digital resources like YouTube, SMART-board, Twitter, and blogs can be utilized in the educational process to improve student involvement and efficiency while adhering to the updated curriculum standards.

Mutual influence of quality education and ICT skills in promoting economic growth

Aligned with the fourth UN Sustainable Development Goal, this study examines the potential correlation among education quality, ICT skills, and economic growth. Utilizing the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) methodology, we analyze dynamic fixed-effect panel data spanning 2010 to 2021 across 26 low-income, 20 middle-income, and 15 high-income countries. Our results indicate a positive impact of ICT skills and education quality on economic growth, for all country groups, with education quality enhancing this effect compared to ICT skills alone. The interaction between these factors underscores their complementary role in fostering economic growth. Notably, the impact has become more pronounced in recent years, attributed to advancements in ICT facilitating improvements in education quality. When examining income levels, low-income nations exhibit more substantial coefficients for ICT skills and education quality than middle- and high-income countries, emphasizing the significant potential for progress in low-income contexts. Our findings withstand various robustness checks, affirming their reliability and providing compelling policy implications for the roles of education quality and ICT skills in propelling economic growth.

Relational inequality in a (deeply) educationally polarized society: feasible strategies in the longer term

Abstract Fifty per cent of young people in the UK will now go on to university. We focus here not so much on the consequent divisive material inequality but on relational and epistemic inequality, the inequality of respect and esteem adversely felt by the less educated. The huge advances in ICT have radically changed workplaces, creating more relational and ICT-intensive environments, in which social skills typically acquired at universities are central. In response to this we envisage an on-going growth in HE participation, the result of which if sufficiently large over time will be the spreading of respect and esteem. But we argue that success depends on a transformation of the HE system in the UK: we need more 2-year vocational colleges (especially in health, care and education), widely located; and we need 3-year degrees and professional schools to teach students to work cooperatively, in a more multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary way.

OPINION LEADERS' ROLE IN STRENGTHENING AGRICULTURE EXTENSION IN INDIA

The kinetics of mechanisms involved in the diffusion of innovations has led to the conceptual framework of diffusion studies as we see of now. The concept of opinion leaders and innovativeness and how their influence can drastically bring about changes within a social contagion has been widely studied throughout many fields, but it has been still under-utilised in agricultural sector. For this reason, a study was conducted in the Punjab state of India, where 3 villages were selected through multi-stage sampling. All the farmers in these 3 villages constituted the sampling frame totaling to 214 farmers. A sociometric survey was conducted in order to identify the opinion leaders within the 3 villages. The specific characteristics of opinion leaders like cosmpoliteness, information seeking behaviour and higher Socio-economic characteristics were identified and they were compared with that of the followers. Both the opinion leader's Socio-economic characteristics and their sources of information differed significantly whereas the exposure to mass media channels were found to be similar, thanks to the advancements in ICT. Specific traits such as opinion leadership, personality strength scale and influence were found to be high among majority of the opinion leaders. While the adoptive behaviour of the opinion leader seems to categorise majority of them into medium category, indicating to their innovativeness as early adopters rather than innovators.

Digital Agriculture using advanced ICT and Agricultural Information Systems- The general and financial aspects in Indian Context

"Agricultural Informatics is a modern and interdisciplinary field of practice and study. It has incorporated from the information technologies, basic technologies and various aspects of agriculture, and horticulture. Agricultural Informatics sometimes refereed as ICT in Agriculture, Agricultural Information Systems, Agro Information Technology, etc, It is dedicated in transforming agriculture sector supported by information driven systems which are supported by ICT). Agro Informatics is responsible in delivering as well as accessing information. The applications in Agro Informatics in agriculture enhancing agriculture production, nationally and internationally and as a result new practicing concepts been developed called Digital Agriculture and Smart Agriculture. In addition to basic Information Technologies Agricultural Informatics is also supported by different other emerging sub components such as Big Data, Data Analytics, Cloud and Virtualization, Internet of Things, Wireless network with Converged Network, Usability and HCI, UXD, Sensor and Multimedia Systems. Different economical and financial issues are alarming and growing internationally in respect of Agriculture and environment. A proper Agro Informatics practices can lead the development a healthy and sophisticated agricultural systems, and proper applications helps in reaching the status of Digital Agriculture and Smart Farming supported by government, administration, universities, agricultural institutes and associations. This paper highlights the basics of Agro Informatics and Financial aspects related to the Smart Agriculture in Indian context. As a review based work existing works complied and reported here."

Developing a Model to Predict Self-Reported Student Performance during Online Education Based on the Acoustic Environment

In recent years, great developments in online university education have been observed, favored by advances in ICT. There are numerous studies on the perception of academic performance in online classes, influenced by aspects of a very diverse nature; however, the acoustic environment of students at home, which can certainly affect the performance of academic activities, has barely been evaluated. This study assesses the influence of the home acoustic environment on students’ self-reported academic performance. This assessment is performed by calculating prediction models using the Recursive Feature Elimination method with 40 initial features and the following classifiers: Random Forest, Gradient Boosting, and Support Vector Machine. The optimal number of predictors and their relative importance were also evaluated. The performance of the models was assessed by metrics such as the accuracy and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC_AUC-score). The model with the smallest optimal number of features (with 14 predictors, 9 of them about the perceived acoustic environment) and the best performance achieves an accuracy of 0.7794; furthermore, the maximum difference for the same algorithm between using 33 and 14 predictors is 0.03. Consequently, for simplicity and the ease of interpretation, models with a reduced number of variables are preferred.

Analysis of e-government and digital society indicators over the years: a comparative study of the EU member states

PurposeBenchmarking e-government and digital society developments using relevant indicators provides crucial insights into what aspects to consider while building a resilient digital society in which digital public services are delivered effectively and sustainably. The purpose of this paper is to analyse selected indices and indicators over the years and provide findings and recommendations on what indicators contribute most to the development.Design/methodology/approachA mixed research approach was used to conduct the research and collect, analyse and interpret data. A qualitative analysis involving the search, decomposition and comparison approaches to identify e-government and digital society reports, indices, rankings and indicators was followed by a quantitative analysis comprising of regression and cluster analyses.FindingsThe findings revealed that changes in the mix of indicators used by e-government and digital society indices can be attributed to advances in ICT and channels through which people communicate and receive information. The authors found that digital and telecommunication infrastructures and the quality of their parameters such as broadband have the biggest influence on progress of the e-government and digital societies developments and contribute most to clustering of the EU member states into groups.Originality/valueThe paper provides insights into how the structures of related indices changed over the years and how different indicators contribute to benchmarking of e-government and digital society developments by means of their weights. It provides governments with recommendations on which indicators to focus most.

Secondary use of helath data in EU: Exploring the legal challenges of the upcoming European Health Data Space Reguation in light of the findings of the TEHDAS project

Arguably, big data, data processing with advanced ICT solutions and data sharing were accelerated during the end of the 2010s, also fuelled by the COVID-19 pandemic. This latter can be reasonably considered a booster in health care for data-driven digital solutions and regulations, which led to issues concerning both primary and secondary use of digital (electronic) health data. There is an ongoing and comprehensive regulatory effort within the European Union to address the evoked challenges. Regarding the healthcare sector, the European Health Data Space Regulation can be considered a flagship legislation. The main ambition of the European Commission is, on the one hand, to create a common space where natural persons can easily control their electronic health data and, on the other hand, to make it possible for researchers, innovators and policymakers to use these health data sets for common societal purposes in a trusted and secure way based on a specific cross-border digital infrastructure. A European Union project, the Joint Action Towards the European Health Data Space (TEHDAS) has been initiated to support the establishment of the EHDS as regards the secondary use of data. Our analysis identified two important topics: legislative barriers to the secondary use of health data and challenges for citizens’ empowerment, including data altruism. The legal complexity of the ongoing strategic legislative initiatives within the EU poses several challenges for future application. Firstly, there can be a terminological issue based on the lack of a common definition of secondary use of data. Secondly, the regulation of the Member States adjusted to their national health and data utilisation systems can be diverse. Both of these may hinder the desired EU-level harmonisation regarding data-sharing. In this context, the division of regulatory competencies related to health care and the chosen legal basis can be decisive. Overall, the EHDS might be a regulation that can challenge the current legal paradigm of competence distribution among the EU and the Member States regarding digital transition, including data usage in health care. As for the citizens’ empowerment, the goal of an EU-wide ecosystem of health data utilisation requires individuals who are aware of the economic value of their health data and, via practising altruism, want to use these data also for the common good. Specific provisions of the EHDS, such as the right to data portability or the option for opt-out, are definitely for the empowerment of citizens. But, these can also reduce the potential health care-related benefits of data utilisation at both, individual and population level. Altogether, a concert of requirements should be fulfilled for meaningful citizens’ participation, engagement, and practice of data altruism, supported by the complex interplay of the relevant regulations.

Disaster Risk Reduction with Smart Flood Management in Kendal Watershed, Kendal Regency, Central Java Province

Indonesia is prone to natural, non-natural, and social disasters due to its geographical, demographic, and sociological conditions. Based on the Indonesian Disaster Data (DIBI) dashboard of the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), from 1815 to 2019, floods occurred more frequently than other disaster events, accounting for 30%, with the majority recorded in Central Java. Despite the government’s various efforts to mitigate floods, the trend indicates an increasing frequency and degree of severity every year. Moreover, disaster risk reduction remains unintegrated and relies on conventional methods, resulting in suboptimal flood risk reduction. To deal with this issue, the smart city concept that also comprises smart flood management (SFM) is being developed as a risk reduction measure. A smart city Smart city is an urban management system that integrates existing resources, including big data and ICT advances, to generate new ideas in addressing urban problems. In this study, a qualitative descriptive method was employed to evaluate the implementation of DRR strategies by comparing the contributing factors of flooding and existing flood risk reduction policies in the Kendal Watershed and then recommending appropriate solutions through smart flood management approach to lower the flood risk. With SFM, a smart city design was conceptually built by combining three components: infrastructure, technology, and collaboration. Local governments can incorporate this new design into flood disaster management in areas with similar characteristics.

Designing a Hypothetical Learning Trajectory Using Prezi Presentation and GeoGebra Application on Flat-Shaped Triangle Geometry Materials

Technology plays a crucial role in enhancing the quality of math learning. In addition to adapting to the rapid advancement of ICT, technology serves as a visualization aid for abstract mathematical concepts, facilitating understanding. Prezi presentations and GeoGebra application are technological tools that can be used as a medium for learning math. Prezi Presentation is used as a presentation medium, while GeoGebra functions as a dynamic tool to enhance the understanding of geometry. They both positively impact the development of mathematical thinking, facilitate meaningful learning experiences, and can be used as alternatives in designing a hypothetical learning trajectory for concepts related to triangle types. This study aims to design a Hypothetical Learning Trajectory (HLT) using Prezi presentation and GeoGebra for the material related to triangle types. The HLT tailored to suit the characteristics of students, making it easier to construct independent understanding related to triangle types through the use of dynamic technology such as Prezi and GeoGebra. This study uses a design research approach consisting of three phases: introduction, design experiments, and retrospective analysis. This was carried out solely in the preliminary phase to develop the initial prototype of the HLT focusing on the concept of triangle types. The HLT will be further examined in subsequent research and retrospectively analyzed to develop the Learning Instructional Theory (LIT) as the final product. Keywords: flat-shaped triangle geometry materials, geogebra application, hypothetical learning trajectory, prezi presentation

Digital capital accumulation in schools, teachers, and students and academic achievement: Cross-country evidence from the PISA 2018

The global unpreparedness for digital education became evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. To reassess the effectiveness of educational technology, we analyze PISA 2018 data using a framework of digital capital, encompassing the accumulation of technology and digital competencies embodied as hardware/software infrastructure and user competencies. We investigate the relationship between digital capital accumulated in schools, teachers, and students and academic achievement. Our results show that not all advanced ICT development in a country necessarily translates to teachers’ ICT integration in the classroom and students’ digital competence. Students’ digital readiness significantly affects their achievement, and when coupled with teachers’ ICT integration, students’ embodied digital capital has an even greater relation to academic performance.

The Effect of Motivating Factors Influencing the Use of ICT on Adoption of the New Technology by the Real Estate Professionals in Abuja, Nigeria

Recently, real estate professionals are now faced with new strategies and more effective ways of managing and storing information for faster and more effective management. The aim of the paper is to explore the Effect of motivating factors influencing the use of ICT on adoption of the new technology by the real estate professionals, with a view to understanding how new technologies influence the modern real estate professional practice in Abuja Nigeria. The paper determined the motivating factors influencing the use of ICT in modern real estate profession in the Abuja. The study used quantitative design and data were collected through questionnaire survey from 260 real estate professionals, the study adopted convenient simple random sampling technique and SPSS software version 22 was used for data analysis and the results were presented in tables. The study observed that the motivating factors influencing the use of ICT in modern real estate profession were enhanced quality of customer services, improved decision making, the competitor’s pressure, increased productivity of staff and reduce overall cost ranked first to fifth respectively. The paper concluded that top three motivating factors enhanced customer service, improved decision making, and increased staff productivity, all focus on internal improvements within the real estate firm. This concludes that firms are primarily motivated by the benefits of ICT for their own operations rather than external pressures. Motivating factors influencing the use of ICT in modern real estate profession has a large effect size on the adoption of new technologies in the real estate profession. This implies that increasing motivating factors influencing the use of ICT in modern real estate profession can significantly promote the adoption of new tools and technologies by professionals. Real estate professionals should invest in training and education on advanced ICT tools and applications relevant to the real estate industry, such as virtual tours, property management software, and data analytics platforms. The paper recommended that the policymakers and industry should Provide access to affordable technology solutions and promote collaboration between technological companies and real estate firms.

CHEAT DETECTION IN ONLINE EXAMINATIONS USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

With increasing use of ICT and technical advancements in the education sector, distant and online education as well as examinations are being carried out frequently. However, online examination, as a method of assessment offers the risk of an unmonitored setting where students have full access to external resources. Online-proctored exams are the most efficient way for educational institutions to ensure academic honesty and ethics to counteract this. Typically, proctoring requires human assistance in the form of online proctors who remotely monitor students' performance. Yet, due to the rising demand for personnel and the intrusive nature of human proctoring, it is imperative to explore other areas. To tackle this pressing issue, this research work aims to devise a novel architecture that, through the development of a robust and automated Artificial Intelligence system, enables students to take exams remotely and reduces proctor involvement. The method overcomes the shortcomings of the previous automated proctoring system by combining important components of online exam cheating detection with cost-effective and efficient hardware. By proposing a Hybrid of FaceNet Model, Lucas Kanade Algorithm, and Active Appearance Model for Face Detection and Activity Monitoring of the student, the proposed system extracts semantic indicators to evaluate whether an applicant is cheating in an online examination. The proposed Cheat Detection system's experimental results measured via an F-score of 0.94 demonstrate its efficacy, and promising performance compared to the standard baseline techniques.

Digital technology adoption for village public administration—Evidence from Indonesia

Village administration in Indonesia has changed its scope and operation with the integration of digital technology into public services at various levels. These conditions prompt questions about the successful digital transformation of public administration services. Digital transformation encompasses not only technological aspects but also socio-cultural factors. This paper reports the study related to implementing ICT-based applications in village administration policy in Indonesia. The study involved 315 village officials from 167 villages in 16 sub-districts within Toba district, North Sumatera province. A village administration software prototype was developed and introduced to the villages’ officials during the study. This study aims to gain insights from the officials’ response regarding digital technology-supported village administration. The research revealed that many village officials must gain the necessary knowledge and skills to conduct administrative tasks digitally, as they still rely on traditional, non-digitized methods. Recommendations include increased support and assistance from the Regency Government to help villages understand and implement digital administration and capacity-building activities to familiarize village officials with ICT advancements. The study also found that digital transformation in village administration remains challenging, with digitization and digitalization processes often overlooked. Addressing these challenges requires additional training and improved infrastructure availability. Finally, we propose a conceptual model of digital transformation for public administration at village level as generic components for digital implementation of village administration.

Linkage and Advancement Services for Sustainable Digital Literacy Skills Among Undergraduates in Bayelsa State

In the contemporary educational landscape, the integration of digital literacy skills stands as a pivotal determinant of academic success and professional preparedness. The study explored how the linkage and advancement services can sustain the acquisition of digital skills among undergraduates in Bayelsa State, Nigeria. A descriptive survey research design was adopted for the study. Two (2) research objectives were formulated to guide the study. The population of the study comprised of all principal officers of the ICT units, Linkage and Advancement units, and undergraduates from the seven tertiary institutions in Bayelsa State. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the quantitative data. Experts in Measurement and Evaluation and the field of Education will validate the instruments for data collection. The data gathered was analyzed using descriptive through Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26. Findings revealed that the extent to which linkage and advancement services enhance sustainable digital literacy among undergraduates in Bayelsa State is low. It was recommended that the tertiary institution management ensure that Linkage and Advancement services are harnessed for sustainable improvement of digital literacy among undergraduates in Bayelsa State.

THE LINK BETWEEN E-GOVERNMENT AND RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE FIELD OF ICT

The research presented in this article had as objectives carrying out a review of the specialized literature in the field of E-government and the research and development in the field of ICT. To highlight the relationship between E-government and the ICT upsurge opportunities offered by frequent technological breakthroughs, correlation analyzes were carried out using the secondary data made available by the Eurostat databases. Three research hypotheses were formulated and the second research hypothesis, the one regarding the readiness of public sector to upgrade to Digital Transformation (DX) in terms of monetization of digital assets, a weak positive or strongly negative relationship between e-governance activities and companies’ IT research and development expenditures is validated in the case of most European countries. At the opposite pole it was revealed that there are also countries where investments in the development of IT infrastructure led to the upsurge of e-government infrastructure, as a starting point in promoting the increase in expenses with acquiring new IT terminals and services upgrading, as a leading example for countries with lower expenditures on ICT sector development. The other two research hypotheses regarding leveraging the strategic advantages of digitization in terms of state of knowledge and research staff, have been revealed that most European countries, including Romania, have a strongly negative relationship to present e-government services development, requiring future analysis of upstream and downstream use of advanced ICT techniques implemented in e-government development feedback based on reliable data.

Integration of GIS Systems with Advanced ICT Solutions in the Field of Local Government Management

The authors have been researching the use of GIS systems in local government for a number of years. Geographical systems are an important element in supporting decision making as they map urban (rural, local) space at multiple layers and levels. GIS systems have long since gone beyond the level of mere cartographic records. The integration of such solutions with local government management information systems is commonplace. However, new technologies are emerging around GIS systems, such as artificial intelligence, augmented reality, digital twins, which have enormous potential to make even better use of their capabilities. Integration with new ICTs on a synergistic basis can be expected to deliver even better results. This paper identifies the main needs and areas for the integration of GIS with modern ICT in urban management. A survey was also conducted in selected provincial cities in Poland. The results of the analysis showed that some new ICTs are already highly integrated with GIS (e.g. IoT). Others, despite their potential (e.g. AI), are still waiting to be fully exploited in the field of local government management.