The EducationGuardian has an eight-page special section about ICT today. Entitled ‘Screen Check’ it looks at both the proliferation of technology in schools, some facts and figures, and some ’soft data’ (in terms of perceived impact) from teachers… :)

First of all some interesting stats to give some background to what I’ll be quoting from the articles:

• 83% of primary schools and 99% of secondary schools have an ADSL or leased line connection to the Internet.
• 85% of primary school teachers and 94% of secondary school teachers use ICT daily at school.
• 46% of primary school teachers and 59% of secondary school teachers share resources electronically.
• 89% of homes have a computer.
• Year 6 pupils spend an average of 297 minutes per week using ICT outside school lessons per week – 93 of these minutes being put to ‘educational use’.
• Year 11 pupils spend an average of 460 minutes per week using ICT outside school lessons per week – 152 of these minutes being put to ‘educaitonal use’.
• 31% of Year 6 pupils, 34% of Year 9 pupils, and 41% of Year 11 pupils have ‘independent home computer access’ (e.g. in their bedroom)
• 87% of KS2 pupils said ‘Teachers are the best source of ICT help at school’, as opposed to 46% of secondary school pupils.
• 41% of primary schools and 71% of secondary schools have employed wireless networking.

The most interesting statistic of those above, but perhaps the least surprising, is the discrepancy between Key Stage 2 and secondary school students’ confidence in teachers’ ability to solve their ICT problems or frustrations. I like to think that I can solve most of the problems that come up during a lesson when using ICT in various ways, but then I have spent most of my life surrounded by technology. I can see how daunting it must be for teachers of an older generation with less of an interest in educational technology when students ask something they didn’t even know was possible! :p

The main story in the Screen Break section is about the ‘ICT revolution’ in education:

Revolution is a much overhyped word when used of information and communications technology, which is always shaking up something. But most teachers will admit that the introduct of new technology in the classroom is causing one of the biggest ever changes in their profession.

One of the biggest anecdotal factors is that the use of ICT adds interest, enjoyment and motivation to lessons which may otherwise have been a bit dry. Unfortunately, however, being driven by a results-orientated ‘business’ model, it is the effectiveness of ICT in producing grades that is measured. So, for example, when one looks at KS2 SATs average test results in schools using interactive whiteboards compared to those who don’t, one doesn’t see a huge difference:

With interactive whiteboards: Maths (66.5), English (55.7)
Without interactive whiteboards: Maths (66.5), English (55.1)

These could both be explained by statistical anomalies, so the reason for using interactive whiteboards (or any ICT for that matter) doesn’t come from improved test scores. This all comes back to the purpose of education, which I’ve mused about on more than one occasion. As I’ve said in those posts and elsewhere, I believe part of the problem to be twofold: ICT being used in traditional ways rather than a new pedagogy being developed, and a lack of confidence on the part of teachers. This is shown by the fairly alarming statistic that 95% of respondents to the Guardian’s survey said they saw ICT as ‘the key to their students future’ whilst 33% still didn’t use any ICT in their teaching.

Some have, quite rightly, I think highlighted a social justice issue. For example, Alan Rutter, who teaches at the Robert Ferguston school in Carlisle, comments:

There’s a big question mark about equal access…, particularly as ICT is moving into home learning. Do we want to advantage children from middle-class homes with all the gear at the expense of children who don’t?

This is a large stumbling block and one that needs to be addressed, I think. When the kit needed to extend learning beyond the classroom costs a significant amount of money, often pricing it out of the reach of all but middle-class families, cries of unfairness and clamours for equal access are likely to begin. However, there have always been inequalities in the education system: some pupils have parents who have read to them since they were born and are eager and willing to hear their son or daughter read, whilst other parents either don’t have the time or don’t have the inclination. There are many factors which one could isolate as being ‘unfair’, but the only way to provide a truly level playing field would be to clone embryos and bring them up in sanitized environments with the state as parents/guardians. And that’s a bit too far along the lines of Plato’s crazy thinking in The Republic for me, thank you very much! :s

There are a number of ‘expert views’ by various people in the Screen Break section. One is by Stephen Heppell who points out insightfully that much of the online content available is about ‘downloading’ rather than ‘interaction’:

The problem with broadband today is the lack of symmetry. It’s basically about content being downloaded; it’s a one-way delivery service that brings content to children. But this is a 20th century model, when the 21st century of communication is about two-way interaction.

We still have this ‘big thing’ mentality with broadband. The irony is that, at present when it comes to broadband in schools, the technology is broad, but the educational opportunities are very narrow.

One of the things is points out is the overly-strict filtering systems put in place within educational institutions – often by the regional broadband consortium. As this system is not school-specific nor able to change rapidly, it leads to a situation where potentially useful sites are blocked – for example searches including ‘essex’ or ‘dickens’. I know from my experience that services such as MSN Messenger and other communications tools and websites are blocked due to the potential for their nefarious, dangerous or harmful use. And that’s all very laudable. But what about their educational possibilities and uses? Imagine an MSN Messenger conversations between students in schools in different countries – or Skype calls, for that matter. I think educational institutions need to stop focusing so much on the potential problems of ICT and more on the opportunities it affords…

With almost three-quarters of secondary schools having wireless networking capabilities (often because of electronic registration) opportunities to provide integrated ICT in lessons – for example through the use of wireless laptops or PDAs – are already here. What is needed is teacher training (in terms of professional development), adequate, proactive and thoughtful technical support, and – most importantly – a new pedagogy to bring education into the 21st century. :D

Related links:

• EducationGuardian: Who’s Teaching the Teachers?