FEATURE: CLASSROOM TECHNOLOGY
engaged in academic studies. The most frequently cited benchmark of evidence was simply customer quotes and basic school case studies. While there is merit in gathering feedback from end-users, and case studies can provide helpful insight, they should form part of a broad mix of evidence. On their own they are far from being a gold-standard benchmark and not enough on which to make an informed decision. Schools and teachers are now more
knowledgeable about how they can use EdTech and I urge them to challenge EdTech companies to show them the evidence.
5 More digital homework Remote learning made homework somewhat redundant! Teachers were also concerned about screen time - with children attending live lessons throughout the day, and then playing on their tablet or games console, the hours really added up. With the majority of students now back in
class, setting homework will again become the norm. Schools were already using EdTech to support homework setting but I believe this will increase, particularly in a subject like maths. Tools which can set and mark personalised
to actual learning. One of my concerns is that large group of learners in the middle. Most teachers will know those who have not engaged at all and those that have worked extremely hard, but it’s been much harder to know how middle range students are doing. Schools need to understand where children
have gaps in their learning and to undertake regular small assessments to understand their progress. Retrieval practice, particularly through low stakes quizzing, has become increasingly popular. EdTech tools are well placed to support this sort of quizzing. Our own experience at Sparx, is that teachers
are using it to enable low stakes quizzing and to assess progress. There are lots of EdTech tools offering this sort of support, and given the challenges of catch up learning, I feel we will see more assessment of this sort enabled by EdTech.
2 Greater learning continuity The past year means that most schools now have enough digital infrastructure to enable children to learn, whether they are at home or in school. This means the quality of education a child can receive if they need to have a long period of absence is much improved. This doesn’t resolve the big issues in ensuring children have access to devices at home, but does remove an obstacle to learning. Linked to this, lots of schools are looking at
creating banks of video lessons which can be used when a child is away or wants to catch up. Video lessons would also be useful when a teacher is absent. Coping with other school closures, from snow or power failure, would also mean greater continuity of learning and children being able to attend school virtually.
3 Edtech expert teachers Many teachers have reported that their technical confidence in using EdTech has increased dramatically in the past year. Teachers have rolled up their sleeves to create video lessons, deliver animated classes on teams, used visualisers to capture and share information, and captured
March 2021
voice notes to give feedback. Indeed, the Tes surveyed 2400 school staff who reported greater confidence, with 79% saying they were likely to use technology in their teaching practice once the situation normalised. In the past year teachers have ‘stress tested’
countless EdTech tools and resources. They are more adept at understanding what works and what they need. In commercial terms, we might say that the market is ‘maturing’. The result of this is that I think teachers are less likely to put up with ineffective EdTech which is to be welcomed. More EdTech expertise in the classroom also
means I think we’ll see a greater focus on the right tool for the job. ‘Less is more’ may well become a theme and rightly a demand for effective EdTech rather than just exciting bells and whistles.
4 Increasing importance of evidence Linked to teachers’ growing understanding of where EdTech can have the greatest impact, I think another change we will see is schools demanding more evidence. Proof that using an EdTech tool will help learners to progress quicker than if they’d not used it, is essential. At Sparx we have a longstanding commitment to understanding what makes a difference. Most recently researchers from the Faculty of Education at the University of Cambridge undertook an independent study to look at student progress using data from almost 4000 learners. I also helped to found the EdTech Evidence
Group which is celebrating its one year anniversary. Made up of nine leading EdTech companies, we want the EdTech sector to provide clearer and better evidence about what works. This is more important than ever when we
consider the challenges facing schools now. It’s essential they invest in EdTech where it will make a measurable difference to the outcomes of their students. Despite this a survey of EdTech suppliers, conducted by EdTech Impact, found that just 7% used Randomised Controlled Trials to garner evidence of impact. Third-party certification was used by 12% while 18%
www.education-today.co.uk 35
homework can also give teachers more insight into how a class or an individual student is actually doing. I think it is another area where we will see EdTech being used more widely. The forthcoming year will see schools
deploying EdTech more strategically, asking more from suppliers, and creating their own banks of digital resources. Undoubtedly there will be EdTech winners and losers. However, teachers will always be at the heart of learning. If the last year has shown us anything it is how essential teachers are to encouraging, motivating, nudging and even nagging children to learn, progress and reach their potential. EdTech is there to support teachers and
students, and enable them to work and learn better, but it’s about what EdTech can do to support teachers in their vital role that’s essential.
uMore information about Sparx including their latest research can be found here:
https://sparx.co.uk/
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48
