ICT in Primary and Secondary Education

1
ICT in Primary and Secondary Education

• Michel Lanners
• Director of SCRIPT/MENFP
• Luxembourg, September 2006

2
Objectives of the governmental initiative
e-Luxembourg 1999-2004

• Initiate young people to the digital paradigm
  omnipresent in private, public and professional
  life.
• Train young people to use ICT in a pertinent way
  in order to select, exploit, valorize and share
  information.
• Reduce the digital divide by preventing the gap
  between those who can and those who can not
  master (and are therefore able to effectively
  use) ICT

3
Objectives of the governmental initiative
e-Luxembourg 2004-2009

• A holistic vision (gouvernance électronique)
  will be adopted concerning the strategy pursued
  in the field of information and knowledge
  society.
• Lensemble des domaines et acteurs concernés
  seront impliqués dans les actions à mener 
  administration publique nationale, communes,
  monde économique, citoyens, éducation, santé,
  social, politique, démocratie etc.  

4
Luxembourg initiatives in the field of
e-education

• Connect all the teachers and learners and enable
  them to work in networked communities
• Adapt, develop and promote pedagogical content
• Improve initiatives in the field of in-service
  teacher training
• Simplify and increase the efficiency of
  administrative procedures
• Upgrade and maintain infrastructures

5
Pedagogical benefits for pupils

• The use of ICT in their learning activities
  should stimulate individual and collective
  initiatives like
• autonomous work by developing efficient working
  attitudes (but no copy - paste)
• responsibility by developing critical thinking as
  expected nowadays by European citizen

6
Professional benefits for teachers

• The use of ICT in teaching should stimulate  
• motivation by developing and facilitating the
  working environment
• communication by increasing networking activities
  and by building up teamwork

7
Consequences at the level of equipment

• Pursue equipment policies by opting for the best
  solutions (from electronic school bags and PC
  trolleys to local solutions in schools)
• Create and manage a pool of technicians to assure
  technical maintenance in schools

8
Consequences in a pedagogical perspective

• Develop new didactical concepts
• to promote ICT in order to develop
  cross-curricular competencies
• to consider ICT as a tool and no more as an
  objective in the learning process
• Evaluate the impact of these initiatives on a
  regular basis

9
Consequences for the professional development of
teachers

• 2 levels of initial and in-service teacher
  training
• skills related to pedagogical practice
• evolved skills (competences meta)
• Basic skills in personal control of ICT-related
  tools are no more developed (word, office, excel,
  )

10
Perspectives (I)

• Keep the right balance of ICT related activities
  (no excess and no lack)
• Develop connectivity between classrooms and
  schools and between school and society
• Stimulate and assist the obvious changes in the
  role and function of teachers (shift from
  knowledge expert to learning expert)
• Develop a lifelong learning culture in the
  perspective of personal professional development

11
Perspectives (II)

• Assist the major reform process currently pursued
  by the authorities
• In giving a new sense to learning and teaching by
  fixing competence oriented standards
• In helping schools better to assume these new
  missions in a more autonomous and more
  responsible environment (new data needs)

12
Where are we going?

• General overview completed by the presentation of
  some challenging projects
• Growing importance of media education
• The PC turns 25