Becta highlights use of ICT in education
By James England, Business Development Director, Epic.
The British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (Becta)
recently published a report "Using technology and e-learning to
support the 14-19 agenda". This was written in response to the Tomlinson
report on 14-19 curriculum and qualifications reform and looked
at how ICT could support the educational partnerships that would
be required to support a diploma-based framework.
Within this framework, Becta highlight key areas in which ICT can
support 14-19 education and also the issues that need to be addressed
in order to enable the local and regional partnerships that are
required to support a broader-based curriculum. These issues include
the necessity for national infrastructure, standards, learning platforms
and management information systems. Also, there are challenges such
as embedding e-learning cross-sector and ensuring a consistent experience
for learners completing similar courses in different kinds of establishment
with differing learning cultures.
So now that 'A' Levels are here to stay, and that changes to the
14-19 curriculum aren't as wide-ranging as Tomlinson proposed, does
this mean that the requirements for ICT in 14-19 education are any
less? And does Becta need to look again at the areas where ICT should
support 14-19 education? I don't think so. These areas identified
in Becta's report are those which are as relevant in the current
educational structure as under a unified qualifications framework
- management and leadership, administration, teaching and learning,
student tracking as well as student and staff support.
Indeed technology can continue to support (and even drive) the
devolution of systems from an institutional level to multi-institutional
and regional levels. Within our continuing system, 14-19 learners
will be exposed to increasing vocational and academic opportunities
and will experience those different learning institutions and learning
cultures that they would under a unified diploma framework. This
means that learners require, and should expect ever more flexible
content, systems and structures to support and manage them in preparation
of their next step, be it Higher Education or the world of work.
The
full document is available for downloadable on the Becta website
|
