NSW Government’s whiteboard strategy needs a solid foundation to prevent falling over
On top of the $1 billion commitment from the federal government to provide fast broadband connections to every school, and computers for every student, the New South Wales government is now making promises of its own.
Via the SMH (”Dial-up duxes“), NSW Premier Morris Iemma has indicated every school will be provided with a student portal and universal email system, and has also outlined a strategy for sharing and producing digital work.
“The $66 million interactive whiteboards strategy is meant to connect classrooms across the state and thus provide subjects not previously available at some schools due to small number of students. Combined with video conferencing, internet access and laptops, the boards will allow students to interact with experts in other locations and conduct online ‘field trips’.”
As I’ve said before, this strategy has many positive implications for schools in that it is providing them with opportunities they may have been previously unavailable to them.
In the same breath though I hope the government’s strategy was holistically envisaged from the outset and considers factors above and beyond the technology - particularly with respect to their whiteboard strategy. Otherwise educators are being presented with a solution and asked to find a need.
Paying for the tools is only a small portion of the picture. The rest involves how they are implemented at the school and classroom level. This is arguably the most crucial element, because a tool is only as skilled as the hand that wields it.
Educators must be provided with opportunities to develop holistic learning strategies that incorporate these technologies, encouraged to embrace these opportunities, and be supported by formalised policy frameworks and services that cover their use.
The prospect of teaching with technology is a powerful one; yet it also presents additional variables and considerations that many educators won’t be expecting. Without sufficient training in their use, and professional development in their curricular implementation, the learning curve may be a challenging one indeed. Without sufficient consideration to non-technological elements classrooms might not fully realise the possibilities the tools offer.
The end goal is the enhancement and empowerment of student learning. A truly innovative vision must be ever conscious of this fact and include elements that support the obtaining of this vision, be they technological components or human processes.
Like the whiteboards it seeks to provide, without an adequate framework sounding it the government’s whiteboard strategy won’t stand up.
References:
- Timson, Lia (2008). “Dial-up duxes“, Sydney Morning Herald, 10 March 2008
