Education Technology in Schools

Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) ... more information

My colleague Andy Morgan has put together a useful briefing on the new statutory duties contained in the Carbon Reduction Commitment and what it means for schools. I have blogged about this before, but recommend you view the document that went out with last weeks e-bulletin for up to date details.

Key Points

• Each April the council has to pay for carbon (estimated £1.4m for KCC)
  
• This may come back to KCC in October dependent on our position in a 'league table' of carbon reduction.
• All Schools except PFI's count as part of the KCC estate.
  
• Schools account for 56% of KCC's carbon emissions.

I am still trying to find out:

• If a school operates Extended Services, has community use or rents out sports pitches with flood-lighting, and this increases energy consumption, is this a successful school or one failing to meet carbon reduction targets?
• Will each school be recharged for its carbon emissions every April and get money back in October or will KCC manage this?

OPEN ... Amazon for schools?

OPEN (Online Procurement for Educational Needs) is a web portal, a 'marketplace for schools' where schools can compare and then purchase educational products from a range of suppliers. There is a useful YouTube demo video that explains how it works (if you can get YouTube through your school broadband connection!).

OPEN consists of five elements.

• Electronic marketplace
• Purchase-to-Pay transactions.
• Secure access to user information
• Portal for suppliers to upload their catalogues.
• Sales ordering system.

Apparently OPEN allows users to access local contracts and e-catalogues for goods and services as well as opening access to regional and national contracts which might provide better value for money than existing providers.

Anyone who shops online will find the system familiar, with online shopping cart and the ability to make comparisons etc. There is also the feature to directly link with your SIMS FMS. (It does however require you to go looking for your online transactions).

Should schools use OPEN? Well setting aside from the fact that (other than the video demo) its hard to find out what suppliers and products are in it, (and its not immediately obvious how you get an account), its hard to say.

There are a number of niggling questions that I'm sure someone will be able to answer:

• Does Kent Commercial Services support OPEN? - KCS has its own supplies catalogue, but I can't find any information as to whether it has plans to support OPEN. How do local suppliers get on to OPEN?
• The DCSF press release states that schools should contact their Local Authority OPEN contact - do we have one?
• How does this support schools in meeting stringent EU procurement regulations and KCC financial requirements. It seems all too easy for schools to assume they can purchase directly from a web screen comparison.

Too many cooks ... salami-slice anyone?

Following weeks of colleagues trying to get a single Home Access for Targeted Groups ADSL Internet connection working in the home of a needy family, I decided to go to the house and see what could be done (if only to apologise in person to the family concerned).

Armed with test gear and tools, I was shocked at the impact of the salami-slicing of service responsibilities. It results in a culture of passing the buck and avoiding ownership of the problem, resulting in delay, inefficiency and work avoidance on the part of the firms involved, but more importantly, frustration, confusion and delay for the customer. More effort seems to go into shifting blame, avoiding accepting any responsibility and getting the customer to do all of the work for you.

Scenario

• T*****i provides ADSL.service on existing BT line.
  
• Sy*****x operates helpdesk and is our service provider (who sub the ADSL to Sy*****x.
• To date, there have been numerous changes of router, each requiring one of my team to visit and assist the client, and various guesses as to the problem, yet little in the way of logical fault finding from our service provider. The method of fault finding is to keep changing parts until dizzy rather than accept there may be a root cause!
• BT adamant that the line is OK when tested from India (despite the fact that the pole has an A1024 notice on it that means there is a known fault).
• Having tested all internal systems and tried to access ADSL Internet at the BT master socket on a laptop and failed, its clearly towards the exchange. (Yes changed routers, filters etc.).
• BT line has a problem with noise (although unlikley to affect availability, more likely to cause slow Internet speed).
• I can't detect the ADSL carrier so its probably a fault in the exchange DSLAM or T*****i service.

So, BT are at last visiting this afternoon, S******x on Monday ... just need T*****i to join the party and we might get somewhere. Anyway if they can't solve it Monday, I will insist on a temporary 3G dongle until it's fixed!!

How do you explain all this to the poor client?? When firms agree to use each others services there need to be clear escalation processes and a willingness to work together. This is an example of how it must never be done, but alas I fear that this is the dominant model in a commercial age!

Latest Episode: BT engineer called and agreed line faulty - has replaced corroded terminations and master socket - carrier LED now on - need to check Internet availability. Its taken five weeks of BT avoiding doing anything before we got the line fixed - progress at last? let's hope so!!

Closing comment: BT line was the fault. If they had agreed to come out five weeks ago when asked, we would all have been saved a lot of work and grief. How can it be that the first call to BT five weeks ago was met by threats of £200 call-out charges that effectively meant no-one would take the risk? The BT engieer was great, but the BT process that got him there is pretty awful.

Hat's off also to Sy+++++x who sent a dedicated engineer who went beyond the call of duty today!

Becta publish draft functional and technical principles ...

Stuff that's caught my eye 071109

Youth cannot live without the web - YouthNet charity report based on a survey of young 16-24 year olds

Tech addiction 'harms learning - report concludes that modern gadgets worsen pupils' spelling and concentration, encourage plagiarism and disrupt lessons.

Whitehall plans phone network collapse simulation

Besa predicts £9.8m drop in schools' ICT spending

Schools should be more like Tesco

Open Plan school hearing issue

Schools waste millions - report

Digital Learning Spaces - report

Social Media: youth participation in local democracy

Interactive games v real games ... Northfleet Tech' proves why it's got an ICT Mark!

Interesting way to get kids engaged with fitness ... see the BBC take on it by clicking HERE.

When you work in schools and discover the number of kids sat out of games with notes or without games kit, you can only applaud this innovative approach. ... and you know what? ... at the price of the kit this is a no-brainer. Hats-Off to Northfleet Tech!

Is it not a little unbalanced for the BBC article to give so much creedence to the voice of the Campaign for Real Education ...  who?? .. exactly! Is the quality of the Campaigns website an indication of their knowledge of technology (and in education?).

Technology doesn't turn a PE department into Second Life, it just adds another entry point for people who find physical activities a little scary.

Home Access! ... do you know what's going on?

On my travels it amazes me how little is known about a scheme that about to impact schools in a big way. Home Access is part of Becta's Next Generation Learning campaign and aims to address the perceived digital divide. An estimated one million children do not have a computer at home and 35 per cent of families have no home access to the internet. The aim is for every child to have equal access to the internet at home to assist with their learning.

The Home Access campaign targets families who:

• have home internet access but do not use the technology to benefit their children;
• can afford access but do not think technology has educational value;
• cannot afford home access or need support in obtaining it.

Three models of Operation

• Consumer – parent applies directly to the Home Access Grant Management Service (HAGMS).
• Aggregated – where schools offer to buy the computers for all of the eligible parents, rather than parents applying to the scheme direct (parent have the right to go direct. This model is promoted by the e-learning foundation.
• Targeted Groups – Decisions made by Local Authority as to who should benefit.

In pilot areas, low-income families applied to the scheme through a contact centre and completed a form. Once entitlement was established, the family received a Home Access Grant Card; a payment card loaded with an amount that covered the cost of an approved supplier’s package of computer, internet and technical support. This was then used in participating retail outlets (O2 shops etc.) Parents wanting a higher-specification could ‘top-up’ the grant to cover additional costs. This is the consumer model that will be the predominant method.

Under the consumer model, high profile marketing campaigns will communicate the benefits and educational advantages of home access – supported by dedicated advisers and a helpline. All packages must carry the @HOME logo to assure the educational and technical quality. The Home Access Grant Management Service will be run by Capita.

Impacts for schools

• Home Access is an opportunity for step-change in availability of the technology needed to raise attainment and increase participation through family learning. If successful, the majority of families with children aged between eight and eighteen will have a computer and Internet and will expect access to online resources and information.
• Parents are likely to increasingly evaluate a school by the quality of its online presence and its ability to accept mobile devices. Becta's Next Generation Learning campaign is targeting parent power ...!
  
• It's too late for schools to adopt the aggregated model, but there is still an opportunity to recommend one of the packages to their parents.
• Demand for the scheme is likely to be high. Pressure will increase for schools to provide online reporting, support online Assessment for learning and offer recommended resources / deals with content providers. Content providers are already gearing up to offer content such as revision and other resources directly to parents through online payment schemes or through schools. Schools will need a strategy for developing online services. This may include buying in content or teachers across schools collaborating in its production. The need for a payment card to buy resources may be the new digital divide!
• There is an opportunity to engage families through attractive sessions such as setting up your Facebook, e-bay, image manipulation etc. This could also impact on school network filtering policies which will need to be more adaptive and flexible.
  
• Most purchases in pilot areas Oldham and Suffolk have been for mobile devices with web and walk dongle connectivity. This doesn’t allow video or rich content and monthly bandwidth is easily consumed by software updates. This will affect what you make available through learning platforms and web sites.
• An opportunity exists for schools to reduce the cost of providing mobile computers with short product life-cycles and moving school provision from personal devices towards ‘appliance’ technologies such as thin client.
• Pressure will increase for schools to support externally provided mobile devices on their networks. Wireless will need to be substantially improved to cope.
• Teachers will need to may need to adapt their practice if children and young people bring devices to school. Banning them may not be an option! Charging and storage of pupil devices will be an issue.
• Children and Young People who have opted for mobile connectivity (eveidence shows this will be the predominant connectivity) need to download software updates at a wi-fi hot-spot. Most now block Microsoft updates as they affect service to other users. There may be a role for schools and libraries providing public access wi-fi to enable children and young people to access rich content.
  
• Schools will need to respond to e-safety concerns and have robust policies and procedures for detecting and dealing with inappropriate content brought in on uncontrolled devices.

So when does this all kick off? Launch in late December 2009 with a ministerial announcement at the BETT show is the word on the street, followed by a mass advertising campaign!

Becta held supplier presentations, so if f you want to know the details with good illustrations you can see how industry is being steered HERE.

CCTV in schools ... statement from Information Commissioners Office (ICO)

Jonathan Bamford, Assistant Information Commisioner today issued the following statement after an incident where CCTV captured pictures of school children changing.

“CCTV should only be used for a pressing need. It is perfectly reasonable for a school to use CCTV to help secure its premises, but it shouldn’t be left switched on capturing images of school children changing during the day. When a school is staffed and children are on the premises, cameras will not generally be required for security purposes. Organisations that do capture images using CCTV are required by law to adhere to the Principles of the Data Protection Act"

Guidance for organisations using CCTV

Kent ICT Mark schools ... numbers up!

Just seen my NAACE newsletter, and two more Kent schools have recently achieved the coveted ICT Mark. They are Hugh Christie Technology College and Swalecliffe Community Primary School. Knowing how difficult it is to achieve the coveted ICT Mark (judging by the number of schools in the UK that have it!) this is a great achievement for both schools and worth a 'bit of a do'.

Hugh Christie's managed ICT service is provided by Northgate Education and its pretty clear this has had a positive impact.

These bring Kent's total up to:

• 6 Secondary Schools (+ 1 Academy)
• 15 Primary Schools

ICT Targets ... now that's an interesting subject!

I had an enquiry from a Kent secondary school asking about current targets for ICT. It set me on a bit of a quest as 'deadlines' are often quoted and mentioned. I started by looking at data the government collects through the school census, as this is the only stuff they can actually check on. The answer is that through the school census they count computers and whiteboards ... and that's it!

Anyway, ... what are (were) the targets(?)!

• 2006 - 10Mb broadband for secondary and 2Mb for primary.
• 2008 - every child wirth a personal learning space (learning platform(?).
• 2010 (Sep) - Online reporting for secondary schools (although no-one seems clear as to what this will look like in practice), and no-one seems to know how they will measure school compliance.
• 2010 - compliance with the 'keeping data safe and secure' guidance (information management strategy framework).
• 2012 (Sep) - Online reporting for primary schools.

We asked Becta for clarification and have been told there are no 'hard targets'. Instead the emphasis is on achieving e-confidence through the Becta Self Review Framework which sets school appropriate targets for each element. A school's participation is of course reported to government through registration on the Becta self review framework online tool, and the success measure is therefore the ICT Mark! Simplez!

That being the case, they must be worried that the number of ICT Mark schools is so low!

ICT Suites ... an update!

As an update to my recent post on ICT suites, I've been checking out figures (Feb 2009) for computer locations in Kent Primary schools:

• 36% of desktops located in classrooms / teaching areas (not suites).
• 35% of desktops located in suites.
• 26% laptops / notebooks.
• 2% Tablets
  

Comparisons are odious ...

Just been reading the recently published Harnessing Technology Schools Survey 2009 and comparing with Kent's most recent figures for learning platforms:

• 61% of Kent Primary schools have a learning platform compared with 52% nationally.
• 83% of Kent Secondary schools have a learning platform compared with 75% nationally.

Of course, neither set of figures gives an indication of whether they are used effectively!

Where are all the ICT Mark schools?

I've been preparing reports today and comparing Kent's ICT Mark schools with neighbouring Local Authorities. Interesting observation, the number of schools with the ICT Mark is not increasing (In Kent, currently 5 secondary schools if you exclude one Academy and 14 primary schools) ... but other LA's are much worse!

• Essex - 2 Secondary, 3 Primary
  
• Suffolk - No secondary schools, 2 Primary
• Norfolk - No secondary schools, 5 Primary

This is meant to be the flagship delivery mechanism for improvement of ICT in schools. Why are schools not going for the ICT Mark? Is it too hard to achieve e-confidence? ... more urgent priorities take precedence?

Source: Next Generation Learning website.

Does this mean that schools are not bothering with the ICT Self Review Framework?