Leveraging on New Technologies and Their Impact on Teaching and Learning in Higher Education

In this digital age, there is little that escapes technologies. They influence the way we work and communicate, and are a mainstay for many businesses today. Higher education is similarly affected, as many of the latest teaching and learning innovations are built on the internet and web-based technologies. A well-equipped information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure is therefore essential for higher education institutions. ICTs provide the resources needed to complement the university’s pedagogy and delivery system, and they are important enablers for revitalising higher education and for inculcating a new teaching and learning culture amongst academics and students. For an open and distance learning (ODL) institution like Open University Malaysia (OUM), technologies are indeed integral and represent the vital link between what is necessary and what is innovative. It is through technologies that OUM has been able to spread its wings in Malaysia and internationally as well. This paper will illustrate the leverage of new technologies in a higher education institution as exemplified by OUM. A university’s ICT infrastructure must be continuously enhanced and improved in order to develop best practices and maximise the benefits of technologies in a holistic and comprehensive manner. Thus, this paper will also describe the way forward for higher education institutions looking to adopt even newer developments in technology. (Authors' abstract