The importance of IT education in modern life
Recently, the computer and educational press increasingly raise issues related to the problems of IT professionals: what is their professional training in the general education, what is their professional retraining, professional development, employment, payment conditions? Many questions concern these questions. The modern concept of the development of the knowledge-based economy is based on the fact that the economic potential of a society depends on the knowledge that individuals of this society possess. And since IT now forms the backbone of any developed economy, the knowledge of IT professionals, their work in the digital space is very important for the intellectual potential of society. Experts, who are related to IT, can have a serious impact on the economy.
Knowledge-based economy, or the information economy that is more familiar to us (which does not accurately convey the meaning of the term), involves the collection and use of knowledge to create innovative products and services. This approach in modern society determines the success of both enterprises and individuals. Employees accumulating knowledge (knowledge workers) is the force that allows implementing new technologies, new business processes, increasing competitiveness, creating new products and services.
Knowledge, skills and competence in the field of IT (e-skills) - this concept implies a set of IT knowledge and skills of three categories:
- professional e-skills - the skills necessary for research, design, production, management, consulting, sales, installation, administration and maintenance of IT systems,
- custom e-skills - the abilities necessary for the effective use of IT systems in professional activities not related to IT,
- e-business-skills - the ability to use the capabilities of IT, and primarily the Internet, for the application of new types of business.
Today IT influences all stages of creating products, including production, transportation and disposal. Accordingly, the requirements for the competence of employees in the field of IT are steadily increasing. According to analysts of ICT Skills Monitoring Group, the competitiveness of the industry is becoming increasingly dependent on computer literacy of the population. Despite the current decline in the IT economy in the world, the global need for IT professionals will exceed supply. Today it is obvious to all that world competition between countries will be determined by the pace of introduction of new technologies. Enterprises operating in international markets will make wide use of the opportunities to attract the right people to work from anywhere in the world. The desire to promote the employment of their compatriots will be inferior to the desire to hire qualified employees from countries with traditionally low wages.
Already in Europe there are alarms over the lag in competitiveness in the research sector, which slows down the process of educating new cadres. This process leads to a decrease in the profits from intellectual property, as well as the value of university research and the education process as such.
The new term e-skills means much more than learning new software technologies. Computer literacy directly determines the quality of life of all segments of the population. Access to online - the most rapid and unbiased information - is today one of the most important components of a democratic society, accessible only to a part of the population. E-skills provide the opportunity for continuous learning based on the Internet, communication with a huge audience, etc. An important advantage of employees with a high level of e-skills is the ability to use teleworking mode (partially or completely), which provides a more harmonious balance between work in the office and at home, allows you to combine work with household tasks, raising children, etc.