Technology in Education (Edtech) resources is a market that is growing at 17% per annum and estimated to be worth $252 billion by 2020. The Irish government is providing €210 million in ICT infrastructure grants before 2022. A lot of money is being invested and big corporates and governments, with very different agendas, aren’t looking to throw money away. So what is really going on here? If ICT is receiving such immense attention and investment, then why are we not seeing the benefits yet? Why are some schools seeing it as a burden, rather than the phenomenon that governments and large corporates can see?
The Digital Strategy for Schools provided Irish schools with a vision for integrating ICT across the curriculum. The more recent Digital Learning Framework, being trialed in schools this year, provides more concrete criteria for what it means to be a digitally proficient school. Digital Schools of Distinction have had a clear road-map for success with ICT for some time now. So is ICT really failing in schools? That’s the big question.
The only straightforward answer available is that ICT is not only not failing in schools that are approaching it in the right way, it is relieving traditional barriers to learning, relieving workloads and creating schools that provide real 21st Century Learning. The Irish Times recently published an article highlighting how 46% of parents believe that poor internet connectivity hinders their children’s educational achievements; while 67% of parents said that good connectivity was a factor in their choice of schools.
Simply put, ICT is a complicated area and with issues such as budgets and time to train staff remain an obstacle for most schools. It will be down to each individual school to address these issues and do the best they can with what they have. This is why Digital Schools of Distinction include leadership and management, as well as ICT culture as two of their five criteria.
The road to success is very similar for all schools, although the obstacles they encounter along the way will differ greatly. Everyone is starting at the same point which is reflection and planning. What have you achieved to date? What do you want to achieve? What areas of ICT will be your immediate priorities? What hardware and what training will get you started? Don’t fall into the trap of simply buying iPads, or buying interactive whiteboards, or anything else without first thinking how, when, where, why are you going to use them. All purchases need to be part of a clear ICT development plan - when they are, you will succeed and thrive with ICT.
So, now it’s time to write a development plan for the school, even a simple one to get started. Once it’s down on paper (or onscreen) it will appear achievable. Now it’s time to create stepping stones to that success. Don’t forget, the fact that all schools are on the same journey means there is plenty of help out there. Get in touch with other schools that have had success and see how they did it. Get in touch with Digital Schools of Distinction or the PDST for free advice.
The vast majority of us use technology for many (increasingly, nearly all) aspects of our lives, we would be lost without its amazing benefits; research, connectivity, communication, collaboration, creativity. To think that these benefits, or lack of them, won’t affect the education of our children would seem a bit far fetched.
ICT doesn’t fail in schools; schools, like any student that fails in their first attempt at a test, just need to be patient, review where and why things went wrong and keep on going until they succeed.
Click here to get in touch with us to receive free advice on developing ICT strategy and planning at your school.
Recent News
