COMPUTERS: AS DIGITAL FACILITIES FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND AS TOOLS FOR ENHANCED LEARNING IN HIGHER EDUCATION
Authors: Vlada Marin , Adascalitei Adrian 
Published: February 2023

Complexity of learning causes at all stages of development of human society, the search for new methods, new tools, new resources for relevant efficiency in education. Until now developed new theories and methods developed by educators and psychologists were reformed and modernized education systems of the countries have adapted curriculum learning goals were always set new directions in scientific research. Over time, changes in all scientific theories, methods and techniques of investigation of development of human knowledge that influence the overall development of human society. To achieve development and efficiency in life, one must continually adapt to the changes of knowledge. In education, particularly learning and improvement, the emergence of new information and communication technologies (ICT) to improve pedagogical theories and psychological forces pupils / students, teachers, parents and professionals to adapt to these changes. What do pupils and students? What do teachers and parents? What do experts? What are governments?

An Example. INTIME Project (1999-2001). "The mission of INTIME is to help educators improve student learning at all levels (PK thru University work) and in all content areas. We work with PK thru 12th grade teachers and university faculty to accomplish this mission. We use contemporary technology, high quality conceptual models, online streaming videos, case studies and probing questions analysis to help educators learn the skills necessary for improving student learning". Technology as Facilitator of Quality Education Model: A Model (by William P. Callahan and Thomas J. Switzer, College of Education, University of Northern):
o COMPUTER: means for forming a new vision of education, research and innovation.
o TECHNOLOGY: mediator of quality education.
o STUDENTS: active participants in their own learning process.

Computer Aided Learning
Many educational projects that use computer and software are the result of complex ideas and exploratory actions immediately after 2000.
Already there were many changes in education by supporting it with systems, programs and applications, including the development of IDD shape (Open Distance Learning).
At that time - the transition from Web 1.0 to Web 2.0 technology, the terms "e-Learning" and "Educational Software" appeared more often in various articles, studies, reports, etc..
Today, some experts in e-learning and educational software actually admit that at the time concepts were not clear and do not understand the context of their use in education and training.
After 10 years, by following some step-difficult-sometimes even e-Learning products and educational software incorporates not only expertise in informatics and IT professionals, especially teachers and teaching scenarios for learning: IAC (Computer Aided Training).

Systemic approach to learning and teaching strategy
Computer assisted learning systems approach to training enables a new vision that psycho-pedagogy one theorized in recent years, but which becomes operative when teaching strategy is combined with multimedia technologies. While in training designed as a system can be determined: for the system (training objectives), the processes by which it is achieved for (type of activities, learning situations in which students must participate to achieve the targets) and the results that they want to reach (translated into effective procurement categories of students), educational software design allows even cover the main elements of the system, helping to optimize the learning process.

News trends
New trends in education highlights the need for a teaching tool that involves both players learning process: teachers and students.Changing the paradigm shift from learning and knowledge acquisition in the development of skills, values and attitudes necessary focus on training activities and voluntary dominant active participation of students to the needs, interests and their learning profiles.
Differentiated Instruction and its contextualization is particularly useful support in using computers in the classroom.

The Power of Learning
"Teaching is more than imparting knowledge, it is inspiring change. Learning is more than absorbing facts, it is acquiring understanding." William Arthur Ward
Knowledge and lifelong learning frees you from ignorance and superficiality. Today, technology and software resources help business efficiency and a better job in this regard.

"Educational content it should encourage students to create their own knowledge by experiment, not by learning a text by heart." Radu Jugureanu

The responsibility for education is nowadays shared: collaborative demarches and adequate commitment from all stakeholders is very much increasing the effects of education as a whole, oriented towards preparing competitive human resources equipped with competences for the 21st Century: cooperation, communication, critical thinking, creativity, innovation.

In the United States and also in UNESCO strategies these are referred to as the 21st Century Skills. The European Union in the Lisbon framework outlines eight domains of Key Competences for Lifelong Learning. These 21st Century Skills are critically important to support the challenges of the modern workplace and its dynamic and the rapidly changing knowledge society. There is a growing and widely accepted understanding that a different set of skills need to be developed by our students in our school systems. Highly structured and disciplined schooling systems do not necessarily prepare students well for the dynamics and challenges of the 21st century workplace and society.

For Dr. Howard Gardner (American Psychologist and Educator), intelligence is (Building the 21st-Century Mind: www.howardgardner.com, Gardner, 2009):
o the ability to create an effective product or offer a service that is valued in a culture;
o a set of skills that make it possible for a person to solve problems in life;
o the potential for finding or creating solutions for problems, which involves gathering new knowledge.

Skills are critically important to support the challenges of the modern workplace and its dynamic and the rapidly changing knowledge society. There is a growing and widely accepted understanding that a different set of skills need to be developed by our students in our school systems. Highly structured and disciplined schooling systems do not necessarily prepare students well for the dynamics and challenges of the 21st century workplace and society. More self-motivated, individualized, group and collaborative learning processes, supported by ICT will contribute significantly to the preparation of a more agile modern workforce (Hamilton, & O'Duffy 2009).