The ICT landscape
ICT in education has seen significant changes
over the last year. Schools, colleges and
universities are coming to terms with a very
different economic, political and technological
climate and environment.
Gone or reformed are the big state quangos,
ring-fenced funding and a strategy to harness
technology. The capacity and capability of
local authority interventions has also been
significantly diminished.
However, advances in technology – such as
faster broadband, new portable devices and
more robust wireless networks – have been
welcomed by some teachers and lecturers,
as they believe it will help them engage and
motivate learners in a variety of different
learning environments.
The digital lifestyle of today’s pupils and
students outside of the classroom has raised
their expectations about what they should find
inside. The pressure is on schools, colleges and
universities to ensure that they make the most
of technologies, to enhance teaching and
learning and avoid what Martin Bean, The Vice
Chancellor of the Open University suggests
is a “growing crisis of relevance” facing our
educational institutions.