Appendix C - Cross-Curricular Outlines

Information Technology

What is Information Technology?
Information technology is the use of tools and electronic devices that allow us to create, explore, transform, and express information.

Why Integrate Information Technology into the Curriculum?
As Canada moves from an agricultural and industrial economy to the information age, students must develop new knowledge, skills, and attitudes. The information technology curriculum has been developed to be integrated into all new curricula to ensure that students know how to use computers and gain the technological literacy demanded in the workplace.

Overall, students will acquire skills in analysing and evaluating information, word processing, database analysis, information management, graphics, and multimedia applications. Students will also identify ethical and social issues arising from the use of information technology.

With information technology integrated into the curriculum, students will be expected to:

• demonstrate basic skills in handling information technology tools
  
• demonstrate an understanding of information technology structure and concepts
  
• relate information technology to personal and social issues
  
• define a problem and develop strategies for solving it
  
• apply search criteria to locate or send information
  
• transfer information from external sources
  
• evaluate information for authenticity and relevance
  
• arrange information in different patterns to create new meaning
  
• modify, revise, and transform information
  
• apply principles of design affecting appearance of information
  
• deliver a message to an audience using information technology

The curriculum organizers are: Foundations, Explorations, Transformations, and Expressions

Foundations: the basic physical skills, intellectual, and personal understandings required to use information technology, as well as self-directed learning skills and socially responsible attitudes

Explorations: defining a problem to establish a clear purpose for search strategies and retrieval skills

Transformations: filtering, organizing, and processing information

Expressions: designing, integrating, and presenting a message using text, audio and visual information, and message delivery

This information is derived from the draft Information Technology Curriculum K-12 currently under development.

Table of Contents

Province of British Columbia
Ministry of Education
Curriculum Branch © 1995 Copyright

Maintained by: Fine Arts Coordinator

Revised: November 8, 1995

Ministry of Education Home Page