More info can be found at:
http://www.nationalcollege.org.uk/programmes/slict/index.cfm
I have taken extracts from the article which I felt were the most interesting and relevant. I have highlighted the main words for scannability. Please let me know what you think. The full article can be found at:
http://www.teachingexpertise.com/articles/slict-how-to-integrate-ict-in-your-school-2495
SLICT: how to integrate ICT in your school
Our findings confirm those of many other writers in this area – that critical to the success of ICT development is a supportive managerial team informed by a knowledge of the educational potential of ICT.
Key factors to focus on to achieve ICT integration:
Teacher-level factors
- Confidence and competence with ICT
- Awareness of appropriate curriculum application of ICT
- Full access to appropriate software and hardware when required
- Time to develop new skills and applications
- Access to own personal laptop
- ICT ‘vision’ from senior management [as mentioned by Mandy last session]
- Whole-school policies focusing on using ICT across the curriculum
- Ethos that encourages innovation
- Programme of ICT training and curriculum support from the ICT coordinator
- Effective timetabling of rooms and equipment
- Ready availability of quality resources
- Onsite technical/network support [have not seen/heard of this in Welsh primary schools but it makes complete sense to have one. Takes the technical burden off of the ICT coordinator]
- Professional/subject networks that advise on effective ICT use, such as National Association of Advisers for Computers in Education (NAACE) and the National Literacy Trust
- Going to conferences and exhibitions, such as BETT and the Education Show
- Local authority support and training opportunities
- Commercial training, such as that provided by software producers
- Resources from national/government agencies, such as Becta, DfES/DCSF, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA)
HOWEVER.... ICT integration is a result of sometimes complex interactions between these factors, interactions that take place within particular institutional contexts. Put simply, what works for one school may be completely inappropriate for another.
Case study 1: How not to do it
The headteacher of a primary school in the Midlands who had attended the SLICT programme had come back to the school with a renewed enthusiasm for ICT.
Because the school had only rather old standalone machines, the head alighted on this as the place to start. Accordingly, he went ahead and ordered a new school-wide networked system that was being sold as a ‘complete educational package’, including a range of pre-loaded software.
While on paper this sounded like a great plan, a failure to seek out the views of key staff meant that the initiative went ahead without their input. What was not taken account of was the existing ‘affordance’ of the teachers’ (and ICT coordinator’s) familiarity with the existing technology, along with years of curriculum planning developed around favourite software that would not run on the new system. This, coupled with a number of fairly significant ‘teething problems’ resulted in a decrease in the use of ICT and a degree of demoralisation of the teaching staff who felt that the change had been imposed on them.
In essence, this head had mistaken an affordance (teachers’ confidence built on familiarity with existing technology) for a barrier (‘obsolete’ technology as holding up progress). Had the head sought the views of all of his staff first, a planned and gradual shift to a more modern system, supported by appropriate training, would almost certainly have emerged as a more appropriate strategy
The headteacher of a primary school in the Midlands who had attended the SLICT programme had come back to the school with a renewed enthusiasm for ICT.
Because the school had only rather old standalone machines, the head alighted on this as the place to start. Accordingly, he went ahead and ordered a new school-wide networked system that was being sold as a ‘complete educational package’, including a range of pre-loaded software.
While on paper this sounded like a great plan, a failure to seek out the views of key staff meant that the initiative went ahead without their input. What was not taken account of was the existing ‘affordance’ of the teachers’ (and ICT coordinator’s) familiarity with the existing technology, along with years of curriculum planning developed around favourite software that would not run on the new system. This, coupled with a number of fairly significant ‘teething problems’ resulted in a decrease in the use of ICT and a degree of demoralisation of the teaching staff who felt that the change had been imposed on them.
In essence, this head had mistaken an affordance (teachers’ confidence built on familiarity with existing technology) for a barrier (‘obsolete’ technology as holding up progress). Had the head sought the views of all of his staff first, a planned and gradual shift to a more modern system, supported by appropriate training, would almost certainly have emerged as a more appropriate strategy
Case study 2: Getting it right
The evidence from the SLICT evaluations also points clearly to the need for a collaborative/inclusive approach to ICT developments, as this case study illustrates.
This head of a secondary school in the north-east came back from SLICT as enthused as the headteacher in Case Study 1. This school too had no network (in this case held back because of a delayed move to a new-build school).
On return from the course the head immediately set about building an ‘ICT team’, working on the assumption that ICT in a school involves people at all levels. The team included the ICT coordinator, a middle manager, staff from different subject areas, a teaching assistant, the school secretary and an ICT technician. The aim was to produce a coordinated strategy in which all had a say, and all had a responsibility (and therefore stake) in its implementation.
The decisions of the team were communicated to all staff via a regular bulletin (produced by the secretary — who incidentally was later recruited to run Inset on the use of Microsoft Office-type software), to which all were invited to respond before any new policy was implemented. The teaching assistant displayed such an enthusiasm for ICT that she was appointed as the school’s first ‘ICT TA’. Working closely with the ICT coordinator, she was give special responsibility for supporting teachers across the school in developing curriculum uses of ICT.
All of the teachers that we spoke to were enthusiastic users of ICT, and felt encouraged and supported to ‘take risks’. As a result of this approach, ICT was well on its way to becoming truly integrated into every aspect of teaching and learning in the school, with the full endorsement and involvement of staff across the school.
The evidence from the SLICT evaluations also points clearly to the need for a collaborative/inclusive approach to ICT developments, as this case study illustrates.
This head of a secondary school in the north-east came back from SLICT as enthused as the headteacher in Case Study 1. This school too had no network (in this case held back because of a delayed move to a new-build school).
On return from the course the head immediately set about building an ‘ICT team’, working on the assumption that ICT in a school involves people at all levels. The team included the ICT coordinator, a middle manager, staff from different subject areas, a teaching assistant, the school secretary and an ICT technician. The aim was to produce a coordinated strategy in which all had a say, and all had a responsibility (and therefore stake) in its implementation.
The decisions of the team were communicated to all staff via a regular bulletin (produced by the secretary — who incidentally was later recruited to run Inset on the use of Microsoft Office-type software), to which all were invited to respond before any new policy was implemented. The teaching assistant displayed such an enthusiasm for ICT that she was appointed as the school’s first ‘ICT TA’. Working closely with the ICT coordinator, she was give special responsibility for supporting teachers across the school in developing curriculum uses of ICT.
All of the teachers that we spoke to were enthusiastic users of ICT, and felt encouraged and supported to ‘take risks’. As a result of this approach, ICT was well on its way to becoming truly integrated into every aspect of teaching and learning in the school, with the full endorsement and involvement of staff across the school.
What these contrasting stories show is that:
- identifying the real priorities for initial change is critical for success
- recognising the key affordances (enabling factors) and barriers is an essential starting point
- an inclusive/consultative process that takes into account the perspectives and experience of all who have a role in ICT development is key to success.
A developmental cycle
Our study showed that ICT developments could be mapped against a developmental ‘cycle’ beginning with reflection, that is identifying where the school ‘is’ in relation to ICT development and moving through:
Our study showed that ICT developments could be mapped against a developmental ‘cycle’ beginning with reflection, that is identifying where the school ‘is’ in relation to ICT development and moving through:
- Vision building: creating a coherent vision for future development
- Formation: developing a strategy/plan of action to realise the vision
- Implementation: identifying key personnel; putting the plan into action
- Integration: the positive changes taking place as a result of implementation
- Review: through a process of ongoing monitoring, evaluating what worked well and less well which eventually leads to
- Reformation: of the strategy, in the light of the review outcomes.
What is clear is that reflection represents a critical stage. If you don’t fully evaluate the school’s current situation (warts and all), then at best the resulting vision for ICT will be missing key areas for development, and at worst will be entirely off-target.
Hope you find this as interesting and useful as I have. There is more to the article so please have a read it fully by following the link at the top of this blog.
