|
What is the survey?
"The Harnessing Technology schools survey is an annual, nationally representative survey intended to assess the uptake of ICT in schools across England. It aims both to give a broad overview of the 'state of the nation' of use of ICT in the school sector and explore, and further clarify, what it means for educational institutions, notably schools, to be 'e-mature'. The focus of the survey is particularly wide, with topics including ICT leadership, infrastructure and (effects on) learning and teaching.
The 2007 survey, which followed on from the Third Survey of Curriculum Online (2005), employed questionnaires for three target groups (school leaders, ICT co-ordinators and subject teachers) and data collection ran from November 2006 to January 2007.
Main findings include the following:
- The infrastructure (devices, network, connections) to facilitate full use of ICT in education seems to develop at a steady pace in most schools. Computer : Pupil ratios seem to plateau, and at most schools, satisfaction with quantity of devices is higher than before.
- Where schools invest in new devices, investment seems to focus on laptops rather than desktops, possibly indicating a wider shift towards more 'mobile technologies'.
|
- Interactive whiteboards (IWBs) are in place in almost all schools (98% of secondary and 100% of primary schools); they are intensively used, and, on average, highly rated by teachers on fitness for purpose.
- Learning platforms (LP) are climbing the adoption of innovation curve, albeit quicker in secondary schools (present in 46% of schools) than primary schools (present in 11%). As many schools prioritise learning platforms for future spending (26% of primary and 57% of secondary schools), the adoption of the device nationwide looks likely to continue to grow.
- The diversity of application of ICT resources in classrooms is relatively limited. ICT is mostly used for whole class activities, possibly referring to the use of the IWB, and for traditional purposes such as information gathering. Only a minority of teachers encouraged the use of social software by their learners.
- The use of e-assessment and e-portfolios is still fairly limited in many schools. Where e-portfolios are used, they are often not used for all learners.
- The majority of teachers feel that the use of ICT in the classroom positively impacts on the engagement / motivation and achievement of their learners. Perceived impacts are slightly greater for boys than girls, and slightly higher for engagement / motivation than achievement.
- A majority of teachers believe that use of ICT resources save, rather than cost them time; the IWB is particularly mentioned as a time saving device."
| The full report can be found here. |
|
