First Impression of Information Technology Professional and Society - Essay Example

1. First impression of ITPS. As a student I have had the privilege of learning about Information Technology Professional and Society and it has had a positive impact in my life. The knowledge that I had about Information Technology before I studied it was not wide and reflective as I have come to realise. Being a student and still acquiring all the knowledge on how professionals are supposed to conduct themselves in the society and their responsibilities is a good opportunity. Getting to learn about this at an early age is very beneficial as by the time I will be venturing in the field I will have the appropriate skills to serve the society as best as I can. With times changing I have been able to learn that there are legal and social issues that have emerged in information and technology. Just like other professions there are codes of ethics to be observed in the information Technology field. Learning about these factors and aspects molds me appropriately as I will be able to apply them as an IT profession. Throughout the semester, the topics that we have been taught have been to help us conduct ourselves accordingly in the field through the code of ethics taught to us. The lectures have been reflective and have encouraged participation among the students. The participation helped the students express what they had understood and gave the lecturer a chance to expand on areas that seemed rather difficult or problematic to the students. By encouraging participation from the students through speeches and study groups, the students were able to conduct research for themselves and present it to the class. This has really improved the learning process and understanding for the students. This method of teaching and learning was able to help me greatly as I engaged myself in most of the discussions. The studies conducted in groups helped me learn more and understand better in areas where I felt I did not quite understand. The presentations I presented in class also helped build on my social skills and the way I conduct myself in front of people. This method was most beneficial as it brewed some little competition among the study groups, which was a healthy thing because it stirred excitement among the students. 2. Things That I Already Knew. Since Information Technology Professional and Society has always been apart of my interest for a long time, I have been able to learn a few things that would be efficient in my profession. I searched for information on the impact of Information Technology on the environment from the internet. I was able to get information that was reflected during my learning and the lectures conducted in class. I was able to retrieve this information from Australian Computer Society (ACS), where the information was wide and very helpful. The website provides a wide range of information for the reader and the information is detailed appropriately. Effect of Information technology on environmental sustainability is what is mostly discussed here. This is because environmental sustainability is an important part of the community and society as a whole. The work that has been implemented in its sustainability is wide and I got to learn of the contribution of IT in the sector. Since IT is becoming a big part of our daily activities, the professionals are trying to come up with measures that will see the environment protected and better maintained. Some of the measures being taken by governments are; Measures to maintain environment sustainability through IT Including purchasing guides and checklists to maintain the environment. Implementing a performance audit for friendly environment Installation of networks and online databases Trading of used electronic equipments. Encouraging recycling of waste products through ICT The information collected from the website said that most governments other than the Australian government have already started on new developments that are likely to improve the environment (Worthington, 2008). The information I retrieved from the ACS website was very beneficial and important too. Other than that it was very wide and reflective, therefore, I have been using the website to conduct important researches for study groups and personal studying as well. 3. Things That I Hoped to Learn. When I enrolled to study ITPS, I did not expect to learn all the things that I have. As I did not have wide knowledge on the topic, I hoped to learn what I had come across on various sites on the internet. As mentioned earlier IT has always been an intriguing subject for me and what I have learnt in ITPS has been more than I had expected. Since ITPS was a compulsory subject I had no problem with that because I wanted to learn more about it. I had expectations on learning about the codes of ethics applied in ITPS according to the Australian government. I also hoped to learn how IT can be applied in the entertainment industry especially in downloading specific things from the internet. The reason I hoped to learn this is the fun nature of the topic, given the interest that young people take on the topic. Law is applicable in every field and I wanted to know what laws I am supposed to observe as an IT profession. The regulations that one should observe so as to make sure they do not cross the limit and serve the society appropriately. This would be important because I intend on putting my expertise to work in Australia. 4. Things That I Expected to Learn I had several expectations on what to learn in ITPS. How one can be able to acquire genuine software and the safety of the software, this is due to the fact that I have fallen victim before to counterfeit software in the past. As an IT profession what would be one of my responsibilities to the society and how am expected to carry them out. The knowledge I had on IT professionalism was very minimal and I expected to get a wider perspective on the topic. During one of the lectures I discovered that the work of an IT profession is busy and requires skill so as to be able to serve people and leave them satisfied. The manner by which one conducts themselves is equally important. 5. The Things I now Know That I didn't Know Before Throughout the semester I have learnt many things concerning ITPS that I did not know before. The codes of ethics reflected during the semester were wide and showed how a profession is supposed to conduct themselves in specific environments. Violation of these codes have serious consequences, therefore, should be observed at all times. Privacy is a big part of IT and that as a profession one should be able to observe the privacy of others. This is very common in hackers, since they can be able to violate a person’s personal files. Learning about the history of information technology was fascinating as the lecturer let us conduct researches where we made our presentations in class. The history is not a common part that one often looks at but the knowledge it relays is interesting. The fact that we also conducted online discussions proves further how technology has evolved. Learning and applying IT at the same time changed how I viewed IT because I only thought it was applicable mostly in the society and never thought of school. 6. My Learning Framework in ITPS The wide ranges of topics learnt in ITPS have been very reflective and beneficial in various ways, the discussions conducted especially led to debates even the tutorials and lectures were equally captivating. During one of the study group discussions the topic that I found most intriguing was the freedom of information versus freedom of security discussion. Everybody had their point of view and had a chance to talk about it. Most people are well aware of IT professionals having the skills to acquire access to records and information, which may be helpful to development of the society. This usually reflects on government information, which they can easily acquire but their freedom of information is sometimes hindered by security of information. This is sometimes considered as violation of privacy and it is wrong according to the code of ethics. At some point I agree that freedom of information should be exercised. If the information retrieved from the government records will be able to benefit development then it should be okay. While such information can be accessed from government files and records, it only means that other personal information can also be easily accessed. Personal information should remain just that personal and not for access to the public. Therefore, I have to agree that security of information should also be observed at times. Learning about ITPS has been one of the greatest steps and experience I have had in my life. It has exceeded all the expectations I had before I started learning. Therefore, I would love to recognise all the lecturers that have taken part in molding me and helping me achieve much more than I had hoped for. The methodology used in teaching was very helpful to me as I was able to express areas which I experienced difficulty with during discussions. In turn the teachers would use this opportunity to make me understand. This was very beneficial especially to me since I improved on many faulty areas. Reference List Tom, W. , 2005. Measures to support environmentally friendly ICT. [Online] (Updated August 2005) Available at : http://acseducation.edu.au/mod/resource/view.php?id=2651 [Accessed 26 May 2010]. Read More