The dissertation should layout all of the variables in the world of educational technology with defined emphasis on ICT, due to the complex nature to which technology can be referred to. Also with focus on the Primary education, again due to the complexities and pedagogical differences across ages groups, it must be taken note that dissertation explores further Key Stage 1 primary education.
The forces which sway technology in education can plainly be identified as the technology trend and advancements, the government (encompassing BECTA) and educational needs. Each area is muddied, intermingling and passing from one to another.
Educational need is difficult to analyse, one may assume that it is out of competing with the perceived heightened interactions that modern day children experience in they're daily lives (i.e. computer games & TV etc) that ICT has taken centre stage in today's classroom, with interactive whiteboards, laptops, desktop computers and interactive audio visual equipment/toys commonplace in nearly ever classroom across the UK. This may be so in regards to older students that may automatically get put of by "lo-fi" classroom learning, although again, pen and paper is still the main medium of communicating work in schools, that of course until later in secondary schools and beyond, which is dissertation does not discuss.
Essentially teaching is the conveying and passing on of information in a form easy to understand and absorb by the audience experiencing (listening/watching/touching). It is widely accepted that technology can enhance an experience when used in the right way, although much technology is designed in order to make our lives easier, for example watching a video about how chocolate is made, from the cow and coco bean, to the factory, to the super market shelves; may inspire and educate some children when watched, but it doesn't give the same amount of immersion as if the child went on a field trip to physically follow the path of chocolate. Today there are companies such as Education City and Espresso Education which have created an online database of different videos (such as the chocolate example), and mini educational games which children can work through interactively, giving the child response to his/her actions, and allowing the child to review and deliberate. These can be used in class on interactive whiteboard as a class, or small group activity, though these interactions are in no way that to rival computer games, they are still perceived as sterile by the children, which posing the question of direction, should classroom ICT interaction rival that of PS3 and box360, or should it set its own direction with focus on pedagogical interactivity.
There is a threshold of traditional educational ICT benefit in primary teaching, although there has been a push into increased interactivity of ICT, the tools are the same, and especially for KS1 students the uniform ICT individual point and click learning on desktop/laptop computers is a cognitive leap from reality, and is often just going through the motions rather than enhancement of learning. Although the argument could be made that children should learn to use the tools (traditional computer set-up) in which they will most definitely be using in their futures.
This is a vital highly political and economic point, the technological ICT tools which children use whilst in school imprint on them a brand, a piece of software, an email address, an operating system a way of doing things on a computer in the future.
A massive point for debate, who wants what out of educational ICT?
Schools - :
Priorities are:
Ease of use
Integration into current system
Tried and trusted solutions - no risk
To meet curriculum requirements
Accredited systems, platforms & technology
Buyers/Teachers in primary schools are likely not to automatically choose a product/system which is outlandish in its technology and claims to greatly aid learning, this is not because they don't care about the children. But simply put there isn't enough staff time in the average school to risk a product/system that is may well go wrong. Schools tend to choose companies which go the extra distance in their customer service, choosing local options, and tired and trusted vendors. They go with what they know, what may or may not have served them well. This coupled with schools swing towards trusted (i.e. larger companies) creates a market climate ruled by a few major players.
Large multinationals who control a massive stake in the market:
Have their technologies approved/recommended by BECTA
Create a climate of fear over the risk of smaller vendors
Have their technologies detailed in school curriculum
Help schools apply for "Grants" in order to purchase their products
Legally advertise and instill their brand in to a young audience.
Gain a "friendly company image".
It is of perceived great benefit to companies to slam their branding in the faces of children in order to create a branding relationship with them so they pester mum and dad for the next "Sony" branded video games console, or get accustomed to MAC OSX/Windows. The only real battle in this domain is between Apple and Microsoft's harvesting of new users. The educational marketplace is to all intents and purposes a small market, in addition to this it is highly competitive, these dynamics stifles smaller companies and allows larger multinationals for whom educational technology may not make big money for, to be in the market to monopolise and push their brand and image. Multinationals relationship with the government organisation BECTA is a key relationship to question as the motives and perceived motives may conflict and entwine. Above defines the market as a whole, where as in reality it should be explained in terms of service, hardware, and software - where quite often they interrelate, which invokes subcategories.
The British Government (i.e. BECTA):
To search for educationally beneficial technologies, working with schools and children
To accreditate companies with outstanding service/system/product/s
Conduct the marketplace
Equality for companies in the educational marketplace
It's hard not to be skeptical when to comes to analysing BECTA's role in the direction of educational technology. On the one hand they do outwardly appear to promote innovative solutions, and conduct independent studies into best practices, and investigating solutions such as Linux and open source. Where as on the other, educational technology is seemingly dominated by large multinationals with potential inward ties to examining boards and curriculum developers. Without resorting to slander, BECTA must be analysed without precursors.
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