Interactive maps and SMS (Short Message Service) texts helped guide search-and-rescue teams and find people in need of critical supplies, as the Caribbean nation became a real-world laboratory for new communication tools.

“The Haitian experience strongly suggests that digital media and information technology can significantly improve relief efforts with the right on-the-ground coordination,” said Mayur Patel, Knight Foundation’s director of strategic assessment and assistant to the president. “Better integrating these tools into recovery efforts can help save lives in coming crises.”

Reports of trapped people and medical emergencies collected by text were plotted on an online map then used by relief workers.

International aid workers are scrambling to rebuild communications in Haiti following the devastating January 12 earthquake, while people outside the country are using high-tech means to raise money for relief.

The ITU (International Telecommunication Union) said Thursday it was immediately deploying 40 satellite terminals for basic communications, along with 60 other terminals with satellite broadband capability.

rganizations, are bringing in new equipment to reconnect citizens and aid workers with the rest of the world.

The traditional definition of literacy is the ability to read and write. With the rapid development of new technologies, the nature of literacy is undergoing a rapid metamorphosis

Currently, there are at least twenty-five million illiterate people in this country and this number is increasing rapidly

Educational technology is nudging literacy instruction beyond its oral and print-based tradition to embrace online and electronic texts as well as multimedia.

Computers are creating new opportunities for writing and collaborating.

The Internet is constructing global bridges for students to communicate, underscoring the need for rock-solid reading and writing skills. By changing the way that information is absorbed, processed, and used, technology is influencing how people read, write, listen, and communicate.

with young people having to tighten up what they say, they are learning to write very precisely, to focus on what they want to say.

While educators regard technology with varying degrees of enthusiasm, from those who are using the Apple iPod touch to teach reading to those who would struggle in creating a Gmail account, it is clear that technology is playing an increasing role in education.