Edu Tech Ireland

Background In 1997, the International Data Corporation (IDC), ranked Ireland in the third division (position 23) with respect to the country’s preparedness for the Information Age [IDC 2000]. Recognising that Ireland was lagging significantly behind, the Irish Government’s Schools IT 2000 initiative was launched in November 1997 to redress the balance in the area of education [DES 1997].

Since the launch of IT 2000 in 1997, the profile of ICT within the education system in particular has been raised significantly. Most schools are connected, by at least a dial-up line, to the Internet and over 40,000 teachers have participated in at least one course in computer literacy training

Progress Lord David Puttman (in his Keynote address at the Irish Teaching and Learning Festival, CityWest, Oct 15th 2010) referenced the following: 43% of Irish Classrooms now have an IWB, which is well ahead of the European average 7,200 boards were purchased in the last 12 months alone, which represents 20% of Irish Classrooms

Active learning using ICT Confucius I hear and I forget I see and I remember I do and I understand Aristotle "For the things we must learn before we learn them we learn by doing them“

Authentic- Tools such as Google Earth and Flickr allow children to experience places and cultures far removed from their own Constructive- ICT clarifies their understanding of the world but also allows more meaning to be attached to observations and experiences (photo,video,audio, etc.) Active- Active, meaningful, experimental Co operative- IWB, social software,other schools

Interactive Whiteboards (CBI’s) Versatility, with applications for all ages across the curriculum (Smith A 1999) increases teaching time by allowing teachers to present web-based and other resources more efficiently (Walker 2003) more opportunities for interaction and discussion in the classroom, especially compared to other ICT (Gerard et al 1999). increases enjoyment of lessons for both students and teachers through more varied and dynamic use of resources, with associated gains in motivation (Levy 2002).

Benefits for teachers enables teachers to integrate ICT into their lessons while teaching from the front of the class (Smith H 2001) encourages spontaneity and flexibility, allowing teachers to draw on and annotate a wide range of web-based resources (Kennewell 2001) enables teachers to save and print what is on the board, including any notes made during the lesson, reducing duplication of effort and facilitating revision (Walker 2002) allows teachers to share and re-use materials, reducing workloads (Glover & Miller 2001) widely reported to be easy to use, particularly compared with using a computer in whole-class teaching (Smith H 2001) inspires teachers to change their pedagogy and use more ICT, encouraging professional development (Smith A 1999).

Benefits for students increases enjoyment and motivation greater opportunities for participation and collaboration, developing students’ personal and social skills (Levy 2002) students are able to cope with more complex concepts as a result of clearer, more efficient and more dynamic presentation (Smith H 2001) different learning styles can be accommodated as teachers can call on a variety of resources to suit particular needs (Bell 2002) enables students to be more creative in presentations to their classmates, increasing self-confidence (Levy 2002) students do not have to use a keyboard to engage with the technology, increasing access for younger children and students with disabilities (Goodison 2002).

Resources Scoilnet: Scoilnet is a portal website that aims to support Ireland’s education community by providing educational resources,curricular support, information and advice to students, teachers and parents. It is a key initiative of the Department of Education and Science. Primarily, it is aimed at teachers, students, parents and school managers in the Irish education system. However information and resources may have relevance to the global education community.

Current State of Technology? Usage of educational technology has increased and developed clearly. Why? An example: Technology Enhanced Learning: Students’ views ( user feedback on technology enhanched learning in higher education in Ireland ), "More than 80% of students agreed that the use of technology effectively enhances the learning experience and increases satisfaction with their course of study. Conclusion?

Future Development "The main reasons for this drop in interest seemed to stem from the lack of ongoing investment in ICT resources and the provision of continuing professional development." "lack of familiarity of ways in which the technology could be integrated across the curriculum affected the quality of pedagogical leadership provided by them (principals)" "this research highlights the need for alternative models of support and leadership" "In recognising the failures of past initiatives future initiatives should not be presented as ICT initiatives but instead as initiatives in teaching and learning with relevance for all teachers." "It is evident from this investigation that future ICT policy needs to be cognisant of the past, particularly in relation to how national ICT initiatives are mediated within schools and the powerful influence of existing uses of the technology on external ICT initiatives."

References BELL, M. A Why use an interactive whiteboard? A baker’s dozen reasons! Teachers.Net Gazette, 3 (1) (2002). Retrieved September 17, 2012, from /mabell.html DES [1996] Submission by the Department of Education to the Information Society Steering Committee. Dublin: Department of Education and Science. GERARD. et al Using SMART Board in foreign language classrooms. Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education International Conference, San Antonio,Texas, 28 February–4 March GLOVER,D. and MILLER, D Running with technology: the pedagogic impact of the large- scale introduction of interactive whiteboards in one secondary school. Journal of Information Technology for Teacher Education, 10 (3), pp GOODISON,T.A.M Learning with ICT at primary level: pupils’ perceptions. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning 18, pp KENNEWELL, S Interactive whiteboards – yet another solution looking for a problem to solve? Information Technology in Teacher Education, 39,Autumn 2001, pp.3-6.

LEVY, P Interactive Whiteboards in learning and teaching in two Sheffield schools: a developmental study. Sheffield: Department of Information Studies, University of Sheffield. SMITH, A Interactive whiteboardevaluation.MirandaNet. Retrieved September 17, 2012, from SMITH, H SmartBoard evaluation: final report. Kent NGfL. Retrieved September 17, 2012, from /report.htmlhttp:// /report.html WALKER,D Quality at the dockside. TES Online. pp