Technology has an important role to play in the classroom and in wider school life, but gaining true value from edtech requires more than simply making it available. To truly support teaching and learning, it’s important that schools ensure their technology investments align with strategic objectives and staff requirements.
This blog is the final instalment in a three-part series exploring school strategies. We began by considering how edtech can support school strategies, and then discussed how edtech can add value above and beyond lesson delivery – if you haven’t read these just yet, they’re well worth a look.
In this blog, we’re going to round off the series by considering how edtech can support real educational outcomes within the wider context of school strategy.
Marrying edtech with educational pedagogy
Whether your school’s strategic objectives focus on attainment, engagement, or other priorities, one of the best ways to improve outcomes is to think about how edtech fits alongside pedagogies. In doing so, you can lay the foundations for strategic delivery while improving results and helping students and teachers to develop lifelong skills.
Here are two concepts to consider…
- Digital literacy – by encouraging a fundamental level of digital literacy among staff and students, you can empower individuals to build on that foundation by developing their skills independently. If your staff can achieve digital literacy, they will be much better positioned to use edtech to support strategic implementation, and pass on those skills to students.
- Learner agency – by gently helping students to develop a sense of ownership over their education, you will encourage them to develop key skills that support lifelong learning. By making the most of accessible edtech solutions including educational apps that can be used independently, you can now promote learner agency more easily than ever.
While edtech can support the application of these pedagogies, it is vital that it is underpinned by training and support for the teachers using it and sufficient infrastructure to ensure seamless technological integration.
Ultimately, technology can play a key role in strategic delivery, and it’s up to each school to decide where it can add the most value for their individual objectives.
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