This strange term may soon become very familiar!
InukTIC’s Roots
In the last few years, there has been a flurry of initiatives to encourage IT integration in colleges for reasons that go beyond the development of academic content. Students need to process and present information on the computer whether for employment or further education in almost any field. Integrating IT allows them to nurture the acquisition of on-line research skills and develop their competence in information management. Students have also acquired necessary virtual collaborative strategies through teamwork on-line.
Given these facts, the IT Representatives’ Network has developed a Guide for Integrating ICT into a Program which contains a link to an ICT and informational student profile (‘profil de sortie TIC et informationnel’) that explains the computer and IT skills students need to master as part of their college education. Although this information can be used by the individual teacher, we strongly encourage its adoption within a program in order to more effectively distribute the teaching and to also allow students to hone their skills in several contexts.
Realizing that teaching IT skills can be daunting, InukTIC as well as your college’s IT Rep have created strategies to help you!
The InukTIC Project
Nearly two years ago, cégep Lévis-Lauzon had the brilliant idea to submit a project to the Inukshuk Wireless Learning Plan to make a website dedicated to providing resources for student acquisition and mastery of the skills in the ICT and informational student profile in partnership with the IT Representatives’ Network and in cooperation with CCDMD and the Vitrine Technologie-Éducation.
InukTIC logo
The dream becomes a reality on October 2, when the French language side of the InukTIC site will go on-line making thousands of learning objects related to the acquisition of IT and computer skills available.
- InukTIC’s goal is to serve the entire Quebec College Network, public and private as well as English and French. Although the site is only in French for the moment, an English version is envisioned.
- The easy-to-use site offers student-oriented on-line learning objects.
- Students can hone their research skills to the standards of the exit profile using either a keyword research function or a research menu based on the skills of the exit profile itself. Once found, results can be critically evaluated and then be viewed using multimedia software. Students can also create a file to record their browsing history which will then allow them to grade the usefulness of the resources that they have viewed.
- Teachers can access modules about various pedagogical approaches and can refer students to sections of the site as part of a task to accomplish. Mastering certain abilities could lead to IT certification by the college.
- Modules can be used for continuing education in colleges as well as by university and secondary levels and by virtually anyone, be they ‘officially’ a student or not, who is interested in improving their IT and computer skills. Registration at InukTIC is open to the general public.
Are you interested in learning more about InukTIC? Visit the IT Rep Site (for the moment, the information is only available in French) or speak to the IT Rep at your college. These are excellent ways of learning about InukTIC’s usefulness in integrating IT into your course or your program.
The Launch of InukTIC
If you would like to be notified when the English version of InukTIC goes on line, leave us a comment below with your name and the college that you teach at; we will keep you informed.
We are hoping that InukTIC’s launch will encourage further development of pedagogical materials for teaching IT and computer skills.
