Abstract:

The aim of this article is to update and describe the process of teachers’ professional development and opportunities in the context of the provision of information communication technology (ICT) competencies in Latvia. Society places high demands on teachers as they, specifically, have an important role in the education of school children, young people and adults. Teachers’ professionalism, and their ability to enrich the learning process with innovative approaches and methods, encourages the development of the education system, influencing the achievement of education goals and the quality of education. The technological challenges of the 21st century, and opportunities within schools, significantly influence teaching, the content of education and student learning. Today’s students’ skills in working with modern technology influence their cognitive interests and learning needs, transforming the acquirement of information and processing methods and techniques. Being involved in the world of technology provides diverse opportunities: it enables the exchange of communication and ideas, promotes self-expression and self-realization in specific areas of individual and social expression, and draws one into the development and testing of innovative ideas.

In the area of education, modern technology, in particular, can assist teachers in providing an individualized approach to each student, independently of the latter’s range of interests, level of knowledge and abilities in the specific subject to be learned. The quality of education and the preparedness of students for work and a successful life in the modern world, depends to a large degree on the extent to which a teacher is able to stay abreast with the times and to skilfully use these tools in their dialogue with students. These factors increase the importance of further education, as the need to master new technology and to adapt to a changing labour market increases each year. It’s no longer possible to maintain competitiveness today, if knowledge isn’t updated, and is why further education is becoming increasingly popular. Learning has become today’s keyword for a nation to be competitive in world markets, and creative, even outstanding employees are needed for it to be economically competitive. For education to be successful, creative, thinking educators – teachers, are required. They have to be involved in the educational process – in professional development which is provided through further education courses.

Further education must help teachers integrate into European and world education systems, which demand quick responses, adaptability to new demands and novel situations in school/university practice. This means that increasingly teachers need a range of diverse professional competencies, with ICT competency and the skill to use, find and create their own digital teaching resources, being an inseparable part.

Attention has been focussed in the research on the current situation relating to the professional development of teachers on ICT issues in Latvia, collating what is being offered in further education courses and investigating the improvements required, consistent with contemporary teaching processes – for both children and adults.

Keywords:

Information and communication technology, teachers, competence, competitiveness, life-long learning.