In 1997, the British New Labour Government launched an initiative called the National Grid for Learning (NGfL) to modernise primary and secondary schools in England with Information and Communications Technology (ICT), expecting that technology would `transform education' (DfEE, 1997, foreword by the former Prime Minister Tony Blair). A decade later, in 2008, Harnessing Technology Schools Survey 2008 (Becta, 2008b, p. 7), a government-sponsored nation-wide investigation, concluded that there had been `good progress... but no transformation'. This thesis is an attempt to explore what educational transformation is expected from integration of ICT, why educational transformation has not occurred so far and a possible direction towards which teachers, school leaders and policy-makers shall proceed to fulfil this aim. The research methodologies include literature review of government documents, surveys and academic research and an empirical study based on interviews with 8 PGCE tutors. Having defined the purpose of transforming education as developing learner-oriented pedagogy and personalised learning with ICT, my review of literature identifies various factors as important for sustaining the desired transformation. This requires better logistical support in schools in terms of ICT funding, coordinated access, collaboration and innovation. My review of literature particularly highlights subject paradigms and teachers' personal pedagogical beliefs as key elements in enabling transforming education with ICT. This implies, as discussed in my report of the empirical study, a curriculum-assessment institution that represents different paradigms in a balanced way and adequate teacher training that includes good role modelling and subject-specific training. Furthermore, evidence of the limitations of the traditional top-down approach to ICT funding, curriculum delivery and teacher training in achieving educational transformation suggests that a bottom-up approach might have a better chance of harnessing technology's educational potential
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:543375 |
| Date | January 2010 |
| Creators | Yang, Hao |
| Publisher | University of East Anglia |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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