This unit looks at how ICT systems affect everyday life. The unit explores how individuals as well as families, clubs and societies, work teams and community groups use ICT in their personal, social and professional lives. Some individuals and groups do not have access to ICT, yet ICT still affects their lives.
ICT may have negative as well as positive effects.

You will consider how developments in technology have influenced and may continue to influence areas, such as:

• business
• working styles and new employment opportunities
• legislation
• entertainment and leisure
• personal communications.

You need to produce an investigation of how ICT systems affect everyday life. You will need to produce a portfolio with reports on the impacts of ICT on:

• The way you do things at home and at school / college
• An adult in employment, including the way it has an effect on his/her working style
• A person with special / particular needs
• Your local community

When investigating each of these of these different aspects of ICT you will need to consider:

• The legislation that protects individuals and groups from the misuse of ICT

This may be done either as a separate report or added into each of the other reports where appropriate.

Available Technologies.

You will need to know about the wide variety of technology that is available to access and exchange information and carry out transactions.

You will learn about:

• internet technologies e.g. World Wide Web, e-mail, multimedia, encryption;
• internet connections e.g. modem, ISDN, ASDL, broadband;
• mobile telephone technologies e.g. SMS, WAP;
• digital broadcasting;
• personal digital assistants (PDAs) and organisers;
• storage media e.g. DVD, minidisk;
• touch screen technologies.

How ICT is used in business.

You will need to understand how ICT has affected how all sectors of the economy do business and how in turn this affects customers, including the effect of the speed with which transactions can be done.

For example:

• customers buying from home - on-line shopping and banking, comparing products and
  services such as travel, financial products, on-line auctions;
• technical services, customised databases, security;
• call centres and customer enquiries;
• advertising and marketing.
  

How ICT has affected work styles.

You will need to investigate how ICT has changed work styles.

For example, you could investigate:

• the places in which people work - where people work, how business practice has changed;
• people's work patterns - use of e-mail, mobile phones, laptops;
• what ICT skills and training employees require - specialist ICT packages, new technology;
• the way people interact at work - how does ICT affect communication between people e.g. using e-mails instead of talking directly to each other;
• the types of jobs available - eg ICT has automated many 'traditional' jobs from office work to manufacturing, but has created other specialist jobs such as website designers, software and hardware engineers.
  

Legislation.

Legislation is enacted by Government to protect people from the harmful effects of ICT.

You should be aware of legislation that covers working with ICT, including:

• Data Protection Act (1998);
• Computer Misuse Act (1990);
• Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (1989);
• Health and Safety at Work Act (1974);
• Health and Safety Regulations (1992);
• Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (2000).
  

You do not need to know the detail of the Acts or regulations, but you should understand the reasons for their introduction.

You should understand who is affected by the legislation, what protection it offers and what aspect of using ICT is affected.

You should also be aware of EU regulations on the use of computers and the Internet Code of Practice.

You should be aware that ICT has delivered many benefits, but that it has also created
opportunities, for example, for:

• international fraud;
• the misuse of personal information;
• intrusion such as 'spam', chat rooms, viruses.

How ICT has affected personal communications.

You will need to investigate how ICT has affected the way in which people go about their daily lives, for example:
The internet:

• people have a wide range of products and services to choose from;
• they have access to businesses all over the world;
• they can buy products on-line easily and have access to a range of 'internet only' special offers.
  

Mobile phones:

• contacting people 'on the move';
• personal security, including alerting emergency services;
• the cost and ease of keeping in touch with others;
• the use of WAP technology to access the internet;
• disadvantages of mobile phone use - eg high tariffs, overuse, nuisance of using phones in public.
  

Entertainment and leisure:

• the range of technologies available - eg DVD, CD ROM, Minidisk, MP3;
• how the development of ICT is affected by the consumer's changing needs and tastes - e.g. more realistic computer games.

Education and lifelong learning:

• access opportunities for people from varied locations;
• the range of learning opportunities available;
• access to up-to-date and comprehensive research materials.
  

How ICT is used in community activities.

You will need to investigate how ICT is used in community activities, including:

• Cyber cafés and other public access points e.g. public libraries;
• on-line discussion forums eg interest and pressure groups, lobbying;
• information services eg museums, libraries, finding a venue;
• public transport and travel information eg arranging itineraries;
• satellite positioning systems used in outdoor pursuits eg sailing.
  

ICT and people with special/particular needs.

There are large numbers of people who need to use ICT adapted to their particular needs, in
order to have improved quality of life.
You will learn how ICT can offer improved access to those with:

• sensory impairment;
• physical disability;
• limited mobility;
• learning difficulties;
• language difficulties;
• multiple disabilities.
  

You will investigate how ICT can enable people with special/particular needs to access and
exchange information and carry out transactions, using standard technology, such as:

• vibrate alert telephones and pagers;
• video conferencing;
• SMS;
• on-line shopping.
  

You will investigate what specially-adapted ICT hardware and software is available, such as:

• incoming speech amplifiers and induction loops;
• speech synthesisers and voice recognition systems;
• environmental control systems.
  

The changes that ICT brings to this group in society mirrors changes that the industry brings to other user groups, such as schools and colleges, rural groups, and official agencies.