Abstract

Aim: The article is an attempt to answer the question: in which direction will the transformations of schools under new technologies will be heading. An IT society is built on different paradigms than an industrial society, including a different axiological model. As a result, it requires a different education system than previously known and shaped according to the requirements of industrial society. In practice, it may mean the necessity of organising (creating) schools based on new assumptions.

Introduction: Contemporary IT civilisation is based on IT being the basic and primary tools of gaining and processing information as well as creating knowledge. It has been assumed that another technological revolution – known as cognitive – will opens schools to the intellectual achievements of a human being at a level and scope that has not been known yet. However, it requires the change of school itself as acquiring such a great number of knowledge is based on experience in applying rules and principles of gaining and processing information, great intellectual sensitivity, as learning is a manner of entering culture.

Methodology: The article is based on the analyses presently performed with regard to technological development and social transformations which cause this development.

Conclusions: The authors presented capabilities as well as threats resulting from unlimited access to the internet, social portals and virtual advisors and teachers. There was made an analysis of effectiveness of IT along with a description of prompts for their rational inclusion into education. There was also tackled the ethical dimension of using IT in education connected with seeking and finding, processing and sending information in the context of honouring rights of a human being to privacy and intellectual property as well as spiritual and emotional development. There was also tackled an equally important issue regarding IT and connected with values which shall be supported and developed by school regardless of times in which it functions and the means it uses. Finally, there are issues related to teachers themselves, their attitudes and approach to the technological reform of education. In conclusion, there is clearly underlined an indispensible role of a teacher in a didactic process and the fact that no IT systems, program solutions or even virtual teachers are not able to supersede live teachers, their words and gestures.

Keywords: education, information technology, e-education

Type of article: review article