Over the past few days, we have been looking out to see what the politicians are promising in regard to ICT in education and how they see (or don’t see) technology and e-learning enhancing the teaching and learning that’s taking place in our schools. Fianna Fáil’s Manifesto makes no mention of education or ICT. However, …
ICT in Education: What are the Political Parties Promising? Read More »
On Sunday morning last, those of you who tweet might have noticed a new hashtag appear with prominence in the twittersphere: #savewordle. Wordle, an online application (available at http://www.wordle.net) for generating ‘word clouds’, had been taken down and the founder, Jonathan Feinberg, had used the homepage of the site to appeal for “pro bono legal …
At the Learning and Technology World Forum (LATWF) in London last week, we were struck by how far ahead many western countries are moving when it comes to fully integrating ICT throughout their education systems. As an indication of how far things are moving regarding opening up access to technology in education, the UK Prime …
Our good friends at CESI are busy organising the CESI National Conference which will take place on 12th and 13th February 2010. The conference entitled “Creative Technology in Challenging Times” will highlight the varied and creative ways teachers are using ICT to enhance teaching and learning at primary and post primary level. To do this, …
In November 2008 the Minister for Education and Science launched a €1 million grant scheme for DEIS band 1 schools to help them acquire the Digital Schools Award. A great idea but with typical hamfistnedess only 100 of the 179 schools in this category were invited to apply. The social inclusion unit of the DES …
The 2009 Eircom Junior Golden Spider Awards are up and running and looking for nominations. The new Irish Student Internet Awards will celebrate innovation in web development and design by students with a grand awards ceremony in Dublin on 18th December. There are a number of categories including best concept, best web application and best …
So as the school year draws to a close what were the highs and lows for ICT in learning? I think we should all take stock of what has been a disappointing year for schools wanting to improve their integration of technology into the classroom. We are all aware of the lack of funding, policy …
Last week, Californian Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger told schoolkids to throw away their textbooks to help the state avoid bankruptcy. He referred to textbooks as being “outdated” and too expensive. California currently spends more than $400m annually on school textbooks. Instead of textbooks, the Californian Learning Resource Network will evaluate and list free and commercial online …
Last week, I had the pleasure of visiting the New York iSchool (thanks to Teachers Network for organising it). It was great to see 21st Century skills in a learning reality. This unique high school was established last Summer by the NYC Department of Education as part of their New Vision for Public Schools initiative. …
On the day when the Minister for Education and Science announced further cutbacks in schools which will target the most vulnerable children it is hard to be upbeat unless you are a banker getting bailout money today. The goodwill of teachers and their care for the children they teach is being preyed upon as the …
