Recently, the Department for Education (DfE) has released a strategy to improve education and attainment through the use of education technology (EdTech). The DfE will set out £10 million in budgets and plans to support innovation and use
Recently, the Department for Education (DfE) has released a strategy to improve education and attainment through the use of education technology (EdTech). The DfE will set out £10 million in budgets and plans to support innovation and use tech to increase attainment in schools, colleges, and universities.
All information and quotations are from this document.
The aims of the strategy are:
“to support and enable the education sector in England to help develop and embed technology in a way that cuts workload fosters effciencies [sic], removes barriers to education and ultimately drives improvements in educational outcomes. In parallel, we will support the development of a vibrant EdTech business sector in the UK to provide proven, high-quality products that meet the needs of educators and foster a pipeline of fresh ideas.”
The DfE also wants to address the barriers to good use of technology in education. The key ways they intend to do this is through addressing:
- a need for modern infrastructure in schools with slow internet connections and outdated devices and networks.
- increasing the digital capabilities and skills including:
- Confidence and skills to use tech efficiently within schools.
- Supporting leadership staff to instigate change and empower teachers and lecturers to be confident users of EdTech.
- a need for digital procurement capabilities to allow education providers to make the right choices in selecting and buying EdTech products and services.
- addressing concerns about privacy and data security and how education providers and students are being protected.
They also aim to secure digital infrastructure for schools and EdTech suppliers. They intend to this by addressing poor internet connectivity and aiming for all schools to have access to modern broadband infrastructure, and reducing cost and increasing flexibility by encouraging education providers to mov