Information And Communication Technology Strategies Research Articles

Education Management Strategies to Maximize the Effectiveness of Information and Communication Technology Integration in Teaching and Learning Processes

The integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has become a key factor in driving this change. This research aims to elucidate educational management strategies to maximize the effectiveness of integrating information and communication technology in the teaching and learning process. The research method used in this study is a literature review with a qualitative approach. Data sources are derived from Google Scholar for the period 2004-2024. This research utilizes Google Scholar as the primary source to obtain relevant, credible, original, and publicly available articles for systematic analysis. The study results indicate that in the era of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) development, the integration of ICT in education is crucial to enhance learning effectiveness. To achieve this, focused and comprehensive educational management strategies are highly important. These strategies should be based on a strong understanding of the role of ICT in learning, integration of ICT into the curriculum, training and support for educators and students, development of technological infrastructure, development of supportive policies, inclusive and sustainable approaches in ICT strategy development, as well as collaboration among educational institutions, government, industry, and the community

The Impact of ICT Adoption in Enhancing Teaching and Learning in Primary Schools of Amathole East District, Eastern Cape

This study examines how information and communication technology (ICT) impacts the schooling environment within the primary sector in South Africa's Eastern Cape Province's Amathole East District. ICT adoption in education can fully modify the ways that instruction and learning are given to students, but it also comes with obstacles, especially in the rural primary schools in the Amathole East District. This research intends to shed light on the current ICT status adoption of Amathole East District's primary schools. Three primary schools were chosen, and three research participants from each school were chosen using the purposive sample technique. Data were gathered through focus groups and in-person interviews. The acquired data were analyzed and presented using a thematic approach. It was revealed as the findings that while teachers were willing to embrace ICTs into teaching and learning and had a good attitude toward technology adoption, they needed the necessary ICT competencies. Furthermore, several challenges and barriers were identified, and these included inadequate ICT infrastructure, a shortage of teacher training in technology integration and a lack of access to ICT tools. The study concludes that teacher training programs be expanded, invest in infrastructure development, and develop a comprehensive ICT policy framework. Taking the research's findings into account, the research offers practical recommendations in enhancing ICT adoption, investing in infrastructure development, expanding teacher development opportunities, to formulating a comprehensive ICT strategy framework so that schools are ready to run virtually in the event of another pandemic related to COVID-19.

Utilizing ICT to Strengthen Women’s Participation in Local Governance in Tripura

The paper examines women’s engagement in Tripura’s local governance, addressing barriers and advocating for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as an empowerment tool. It explores challenges faced by women, emphasizing ICT strategies, policy adaptations, and community involvement for inclusive governance. It highlighted the importance of digital literacy, infrastructure improvement, cybersecurity awareness, and sustained collaboration among stakeholders. The study envisions a more participatory society by leveraging ICT initiatives to women’s needs in Tripura’s governance. Through customized policies and community engagement, this paper aims to foster a more inclusive and empowered environment where women actively contribute to decision-making, propelling socio-economic development in the region.

Use of Information and Communication Technology Strategies to Increase Vaccination Coverage in Older Adults: A Systematic Review.

Coverage rates of routinely recommended vaccines in older adults still fall below the targets established by international and national advisory committees. As a result, related diseases still have a high incidence, morbidity, and mortality. Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) could provide useful tools to improve immunization rates by bringing information directly to the target user at a relatively low cost. The present research aims to systematically review recent literature on interventions applying ICT to improve the uptake of influenza, pneumococcal, COVID-19 and herpes zoster immunization rates among older adults. Studies published in English between 1 January 2000 and 10 November 2022 were identified by searching electronic medical databases (PubMed, Scopus) and were independently reviewed by two different authors. A total of 22 studies were included in this review. Interventions applied the following ICT tools: phone calls, text messages, messages sent via personal electronic medical records, automated phone calls, remote patient monitoring in a home telehealth program and emails. In terms of the vaccines promoted, 11 studies prompted the influenza vaccine, four prompted the influenza and pneumococcal vaccines, three the pneumococcal vaccine, two the herpes zoster vaccine, one the COVID-19 vaccine and one both the pneumococcal and herpes zoster vaccines. Overall, more than half of the studies (n = 12) found some level of effectiveness of these ICT strategies in increasing vaccination rates among older adults, while five studies were partially effective (for specific vaccines or population subgroups), and five reported no significant effect. Prevention programs using ICT tools could be effective in promoting immunizations among older adults.

Exploring the benefits of information and communication technologies (ICT) and gamification in strengthening reading skills: a systematic review

The aim of this study is to explore the potential benefits of utilizing Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and gamification strategies to enhance the reading skills of students. The research employs a systematic review approach based on the adapted methodology of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). Relevant literature on ICT, gamification, and literacy skills published from 2013 to 2023 was identified from various databases including Dialnet, Scielo, Redalyc, Latindex, and Jurn. The findings suggest that gamification methods have the potential to increase interest in reading, and the use of ICT mediums such as e-books and reading apps can offer valuable opportunities for student engagement in reading activities. However, the study also underscores the challenges of implementing ICT, including ensuring equitable access to technology and the establishment of guidelines that balance screen time with other activities. In conclusion, the research posits that the integration of ICT and gamification strategies into approaches aimed at improving literacy skills and fostering reading motivation among children and young adults holds promising potential.

The ICT strategy of Italian museums: institutional, supply and demand side drivers

ABSTRACT It is common wisdom that the diffusion of information and communication technology (ICT) in cultural institutions can influence their mission and activities, reshaping their role as producers and distributors of cultural content. Nevertheless, the extent of ICT facilities in European museums has been rather scarce, although recently it has grown faster in response to the new challenges brought up by the COVID-19 crisis. This paper aims at exploring the drivers of the ICT strategy adopted by museums and similar institutions (in terms of both in situ and online services), considering not only supply-side but also demand-side characteristics. To the best of our knowledge, such an issue has not been investigated so far in a systematic way. We use a novel dataset based on three waves (2011, 2015, 2018) of a census survey carried out by the Italian National Statistical Office on all the cultural institutes spread over the Italian territory. Results show that supply-side, demand-side and contextual factors are significantly associated with the use of ICT by museums and similar institutions. Interestingly, we find that the relationship between demand features and museums’ digital strategy is closely related to the type of services and to the presence of financial incentives.

Exploring application portfolio management in Indonesia: a case study of the Indonesia agency for the assessment and application of technology

Due to rapid information and communication technology (ICT) growth, government agencies must manage more digital apps to support public service operations and administration. In Indonesia, at least 400,000 applications have been received by various ministries and government agencies. This amount will hurt the ICT budget’s investment and waste if no approach is employed. Problems can be solved with application portfolio management (APM). Indonesian government agencies’ AMP implementation is unclear. APM is applied at the government research institute agency for the assessment and application of technology (BPPT) in this study. BPPT was chosen due to APM’s lack of ICT investment management. This research examined 41 submissions from the 2019 digital transformation initiative. APM selected two mapping models. The outcome indicates how APM may offer ICT strategies for current applications to government entities. This analysis mapped existing applications into two models: McFarlan’s strategic grid and gartner’s TIME model. Mapping findings from these two models-technical health evaluations and regulatory compliance-may be used for application sustainability suggestions. 11 treatments were advised for maintenance and investment, while 4 applications were recommended for removal. This research helps us understand how the Indonesian government institute maintains its application portfolio and how APM might be a valuable method for application management.

Exploring application portfolio management in Indonesia: a case study of the Indonesia agency for the assessment and application of technology

Due to rapid information and communication technology (ICT) growth, government agencies must manage more digital apps to support public service operations and administration. In Indonesia, at least 400,000 applications have been received by various ministries and government agencies. This amount will hurt the ICT budget’s investment and waste if no approach is employed. Problems can be solved with application portfolio management (APM). Indonesian government agencies’ AMP implementation is unclear. APM is applied at the government research institute agency for the assessment and application of technology (BPPT) in this study. BPPT was chosen due to APM’s lack of ICT investment management. This research examined 41 submissions from the 2019 digital transformation initiative. APM selected two mapping models. The outcome indicates how APM may offer ICT strategies for current applications to government entities. This analysis mapped existing applications into two models: McFarlan’s strategic grid and gartner’s TIME model. Mapping findings from these two models-technical health evaluations and regulatory compliance-may be used for application sustainability suggestions. 11 treatments were advised for maintenance and investment, while 4 applications were recommended for removal. This research helps us understand how the Indonesian government institute maintains its application portfolio and how APM might be a valuable method for application management.

THE STRUCTURAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ICT AND THE DEVELOPMENT PROFILES OF EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

The application of information and communications technologies (ICTs) in all spheres of human activities has a significant impact on the development of each country. A better understanding of the relationship between these phenomena can contribute to the policy of a more balanced and long-term sustainable development on the national level. In this regard, the aim of the paper is to investigate the link between ICT and development profiles, taking the European countries as an example. We use several composite indexes (i.e., the ITU ICT development index, the global competitiveness index [GCI], and the Legatum prosperity index [LPI]) to investigate these countries’ profiles and find a common structure among their respective relationships. We applied the partial least squares regression (PLS-R) model and included a new welfare index – the prosperity index, which integrates all the key dimensions of country development (economic, social, and environmental). Our main finding is that PLS-R models successfully extract important information on common structure vis-à-vis the observed countries’ ICT and development profiles. Certain ICT indicators – namely, Use of ICT and Price of ICT services – can be considered predominant indicators, given their impact on a set of competitiveness and prosperity features within a country. These ICT indicators influence certain competitiveness attributes - Technological readiness, Business sophistication, Institutions, and Innovation, and certain prosperity attributes - Governance, Economic quality, and Personal freedom of the observed countries. These observations may be of great importance, as policy-makers can leverage them when designing the appropriate ICT and development strategies at national level.

Impact of ICT Strategy on Intellectual Capital, Quality of Service, and Financial Autonomy in Polish Hospitals

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is crucial for the technological development of most areas of human economic activity. Appropriate ICT can positively influence the development of intellectual capital, knowledge management, enhancement of purely medical technologies, and the financial autonomy of health care units.The article aims to present and verify the model determining the impact of financial autonomy and the orientation of hospital managers on ICT strategy on the quality of medical services, and the development of intellectual capital of medical personnel. The research model was developed based on empirical studies conducted in Polish hospitals. This is the first study of its kind in Poland. Theoretical constructs of the model have been developed for the aforementioned phenomena. These constructs and their mutual relationships are the basis of the research model developed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). A survey was conducted among managers of Polish hospitals and used to create SEM measurement models. The survey was developed based on subject-based literature focused on similar research models and interviews with managers of Polish hospitals.The estimation and correctness of the model parameters were assessed using the partial least squares structural equation modeling (SEM-PLS) methodology. The hypotheses proposed in the paper have been acknowledged. The model meets the required quality criteria, and all model parameters are statistically significant.
 The appropriate use of ICT and the financial autonomy of Polish hospitals positively affect the development of intellectual capital and the quality of services provided. The research findings may be helpful for the knowledge management of hospital personnel.

English

Unions are prominent stakeholders in employment relations (ER), representing and protecting the rights of their members and other employees on labour-related issues that the workforce is overwhelmed with within the workplace. The purpose of this article was to examine global unionism to advise South African (SA) Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector labour unionism. It focuses on the recent trends of global literature review to answer five research questions. The rationale is to gain a more theoretical understanding of union roles, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions, global unionism, SA unionism, SA ICT unionism, union challenges and strategies. Globally, unionism drives advancements in socio-economic policies, calling for social dialogue between the tripartite alliances partners in ER: Unions, employers, and the government. However, SA ICT union leaders are weak when negotiating for equity, socio-economic justice, and the advancement of employees in their careers. This research study revealed that union challenges include poor social dialogue, ineffective strategies to sustain membership, inefficient partnerships, and non-collaboration between management and unions. By the results of this study, a strategic framework was proposed for union effectiveness to provide Human Resources (HR), ER and union leaders with a practical management tool. Thus, this study contributes by expanding the body of knowledge on global and SA ICT unionism.   Key words: Employees; employers; human resources; employment relations; information and communications technology; socio-economic advancement; social dialogue; South African; unionism.

Information and Communication Technology as a Veritable Tool for Administrators in University: From Teaching Perspectives to Challenge in Education

Information and communication technology (ICT) plays a critical role in improving educational quality. Because of its strengths in facilitating administration operations such as data storage, knowledge management, and decision-making, ICT solutions for administration and management are currently popular in universities. Here, to support teaching and learning processes as well as to achieve the veritable tools for administrators in private universities, the purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of how ICT applications are used, the tools used by the school administrator, and the efficacy of ICT applications for administrative and managerial tasks at universities. It is obvious that lack of commitment by Administrators; lack of ICT strategy; lack of competent staff to manage the ICTs and low skill level of the administrators led to the reasons for poor use of the ICTs in Universities. Other reasons that added to the underuse of the ICTs are insufficient budget and irregular power supply. This paper presents a survey of the literature on ICT applications and their efficacy in university administration functions. The findings provided insight into how administrators might improve and expand their use of ICT in daily administrative duties to make their work more efficient and effective. Finally, recommendations for university administrations to improve their ICT understanding and practice will be explored.

Impact of ICTs on Innovation and Performance of Firms: Do Start-ups, Regional Proximity and Skills Matter?

Managers need to better understand how information and communication technologies (ICTs) lead to informed decisions about the investment and advantages of such technologies. However, at best, the empirical evidence on the business value of technology is mixed in relation to small firms. A total of 43 firms satisfied the study’s definition of start-ups. The final survey included 54 questions on access to and use of ICTs, innovation, firm characteristics, as well as the participants’ demographics, of which 11 factors were analyzed as part of this study. We found compelling evidence to support the positive effects of ICTs on firm-level innovation and performance based on the primary survey data of 270 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operating in an Australian regional area. Moreover, we found that ICT strategies and skills are important factors that drive innovation and the overall performance of SMEs. In addition, various conditions, such as an agile workplace culture and international trade, can help firms improve their performance. Young businesses, particularly start-ups with ICT skills, show an improved innovation capability. However, remoteness appears to influence innovation negatively for nascent firms. Thus, managers should focus on improving ICT skills, strategies, and networking that help facilitate tangible ICT investments to foster innovation and growth.

The Use of Information and Communications Technologies by Library Users at the University of the Western Cape

Information and communications technology (ICT) has taken over all spheres of human endeavours. ICT has exerted a profound influence on traditional academic libraries. This study sought to investigate the impact of information and communications technologies (ICTs) on academic library services provision and operations, as well as how ICTs have influenced the use of library information resources by undergraduate and postgraduate students at the University of the Western Cape. The study draws attention to the importance of implementing ICT policies and practices for library operations and practices bounded by the technology acceptance model (TAM). Findings from the study indicate the emergence of ICTs in libraries has drastically changed the dynamics of library operations and services in areas including the online public access catalogue (OPAC), wireless networks, library marketing and online reference services. The findings also revealed that although the use of ICTs in academic libraries enables libraries to offer faster and more efficient services, challenges and obstacles are prevalent, including a lack of training in ICTs and insufficient ICT infrastructure. The findings suggest libraries should formulate and implement an ICT strategy. It is pivotal for libraries to formulate and implement an ICT strategic plan to be used as a guideline for ICT planning of short and long-term developmental programmes. The findings suggest sufficient funding and effective training programmes should also be of the utmost importance to ensure sustainability and relevancy.

Holistic Simulation Approach for Optimal Operation of Smart Integrated Energy Systems under Consideration of Resilience, Economics and Sustainability

The intermittent energy supply from distributed resources and the coupling of different energy and application sectors play an important role for future energy systems. Novel operational concepts require the use of widespread and reliable Information and Communication Technology (ICT). This paper presents the approach of a research project that focuses on the development of an innovative operational concept for a Smart Integrated Energy System (SIES), which consists of a physical architecture, ICT and energy management strategies. The cellular approach provides the architecture of the physical system in combination with Transactive Control (TC) as the system’s energy management framework. Independent dynamic models for each component, the physical and digital system, operational management and market are suggested and combined in a newly introduced co-simulation platform to create a holistic model of the integrated energy system. To verify the effectiveness of the operational concept, energy system scenarios are derived and evaluation criteria are suggested which can be employed to evaluate the future system operations.

Addressing territorial digital divides through ICT strategies: Are investment decisions consistent with local needs?

Governments around the world are investing a great amount of resources on the development of an information society. These investments are particularly important as an attempt to close digital divides among countries and regions within countries. However, there is no clear evidence that suggests that current Information and Communication Technology (ICT) policies are helping align investments with the actual needs of the local contexts. Based on data about the allocation of 2014–2020 EU Funds, this paper analyzes the relationship between local needs and investment decisions aiming at bridging territorial digital divides. The results identify four different regional strategies developed around four policy goals: broadband, digital inclusion, digital government services, and the use of ICTs in enterprises. The results also show that unlike the past 2007–13 period, the allocations to these goals appear to be consistent with the ICT local context, i.e. funding for a given goal is higher in the regions that need it the most. Therefore, our main recommendation for the European Commission and Member States is to keep existing requirements for developing evidence-informed “Digital Growth” strategies for the next 2021–27 period. We also suggest to strengthen existing support tools for regional governments.

Does innovation stimulate performance? The case of small and medium enterprises in regional Australia

AbstractResearchers have mostly estimated the performance–innovation nexus as a one‐way relationship at macro levels. However, the possibility of reverse causality has not yet been given the attention it deserves. In this study, we consider the adoption of information and communication technology (ICT) to innovate processes, products, marketing and organisations among small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Western Downs region of Queensland, Australia. We employed a simultaneous equation model to capture the joint determination. The results indicate the existence of a feedback effect on the performance–innovation relationship. Specifically, the effect of innovation can be attributed to marketing and organisational innovation. The use of ICT strategies and the Internet for business purposes have a significant effect on the performance of SMEs. A change mindset is also strongly related to using the Internet to search for business opportunities, while mindset and usage have some effect on innovation, particularly when the performance is not endogenous. Finally, the agricultural sector is found to lag in performance and innovation relative to the non‐agricultural sector. Previous models might have misspecified the performance–innovation relationship because the simultaneity bias was not accounted for; a situation that could mislead policy decisions. This study provides new empirical evidence on location‐specific research for strategic interventions.

Digitalization of immunization programmes in Europe: results from the EUVIS project

Abstract The second and final phase of the EUVIS (EUrope Vaccines ICT Strategies) project, coordinated by the School of Public Health of the University Vita-Salute San Raffaele in Milan (Italy), aims at collecting best practices on the use and impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and digital tools to increase vaccine uptake and ultimately vaccination coverage in Europe. The field of ICT has flourished in recent years revolutionizing the processes of gathering, spreading and utilizing health information among healthcare providers, citizens and mass media. In particular, we are interested in any digital technology that can improve vaccine uptake supporting actions aimed at both increasing the demand of vaccines (i.e provide access to information through telecommunications, networks, the Internet, wireless, mobile devices), and the supply of effective and efficient life-course immunization services (i.e ICT-based interventions to support immunization programmes delivery and their monitoring). Within EUVIS we have previously conducted a series of systematic reviews to pool available evidence from experimental studies on the impact of selected ICT-based intervention (i.e. e-mail reminders, personal health records, among others) to improve vaccine uptake and other associated outcomes. In the current study, second and final phase of the EUVIS project, we are conducting a survey at the European level to gather original data on the use and impact of ICT and digital tools within immunization programmes in selected countries. The survey tool was developed on the basis of findings from EUVIS phase one and experts' consultation; it consisted on a 55-item questionnaire, distributed to public health professionals working in health agencies, institutions and the academia to build “ICT and immunization” countries' profile, as well as to gather, pool and critically appraise data on perceived potential and challenges of immunization programmes' digitalization in Europe.

A multi-theory perspective on enablers of inter-organizational information and communication technology: A comparison of China and the Netherlands

Prior research on implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has predominantly been viewed from an intra- organizational perspective. This paper aims to extend this view by taking an inter-organizational perspective. By combining insights gained from two theoretical perspectives: transaction cost economics and relational exchange theory, we seek to understand enablers of inter-organizational ICT. Also, we investigate the effect of the socio-economic climate by comparing the country contexts of China and the Netherlands. We use survey data from 112 Dutch and 320 Chinese firms to test our hypotheses regarding potential differences between these countries. The paper helps in understanding the idea that enablers of Inter-organizational ICT implementation could depend on country context. In the Dutch context, the transaction cost based perspective provides a valuable explanation for the use of Inter-organizational ICT, while in the Chinese context, both transaction cost economics, and relational exchange theory based perspectives help understand enablers for Inter-organizational ICT. Managers of global companies can use insights from this study to help guide their implementation of ICT strategy. Particularly, it may be noted that, despite a desire for uniformity and standardization, there might be different ways of implementing ICT that are attributed to country contexts.

Döl kontrolü parsellerindeki yonca (Medicago sativa L.) Genotiplerinin Verim ve Kalite Özellikleri ile Genel Kombinasyon Yeteneklerinin Belirlenmesi

This study was conducted to analyze the differences in the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) between the population living in rural and urban areas in Ankara. The study is particularly important as it is an original research that lays down the groundwork for developing potential future ICT strategies for rural development by determining the difference in ICT usage between rural and urban populations. In the study 50 men and women each living in rural areas were surveyed as well as an additional 50 men and women each living in urban areas by using a custom-developed multiple-choice survey through purposeful sampling. Data collected were analyzed with SPSS statistical analysis software for both personal and gender factors. Khi-squire ( χ2 ) analyses were made to reveal the differences between variables. The results showed that there were significant differences between gender and location (rural vs. urban) in terms of education, income and employment in addition to preferred ICT tools and the use cases. Evaluation of the results revealed that the women living in rural areas utilize ICT less than those who live in urban areas and also increasing ICT security in rural-specific ways would make a significant difference.