TEACHERS’ ANNEX A1
(ENGLAND,
NORTHERN IRELAND & WALES)
THE USE OF ICT IN SUBJECT TEACHING
EXPECTED OUTCOMES FOR TEACHERS IN ENGLAND, NORTHERN IRELAND & WALES
DEPARTMENT
FOR EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT
DEPARTMENT
OF EDUCATION FOR NORTHERN IRELAND
WELSH OFFICE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
THE
USE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
IN
SUBJECT TEACHING
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NOF-FUNDED
TRAINING
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EXPECTED
OUTCOMES FOR TEACHERS
INTRODUCTION
Information and
Communications Technology (ICT) is more than just another teaching tool. Its potential for improving the quality of
pupils’ learning and the standards that they achieve is significant. Equally, its potential is considerable for
supporting teachers, both in their everyday classroom role, for example by reducing
the time occupied by the administration associated with it, and in their
continuing training and development.
With the introduction of the National Grid for Learning, it becomes even
more important for all teachers to be confident and competent in using ICT
effectively in their teaching.
This document
sets out the expected outcomes for teachers participating in the NOF-funded ICT
training initiative. It is based on the
standards required of all newly qualified teachers.
The principal
aim of the ICT training based on these expected outcomes is to equip teachers
with the necessary knowledge, skills and understanding to make sound decisions
about when, when not, and how to use ICT
effectively in teaching particular subjects.
Although this document applies to all teachers, the knowledge,
understanding and skills required will differ between specialisms, subjects or
phases. Some examples are given in this
document to illustrate particular points, but it is the responsibility of the Approved Training Provider to ensure
that training is firmly rooted within the relevant subject and phase,
rather than teaching how to use ICT generically or as an end in itself.
This document
covers the wide range of ICT now available, e.g.
computers, the Internet, CD-ROM and other software, television and radio,
video, cameras and other equipment. While it is recognised that many teachers
will also be responsible for developing pupils’ IT capability, that is not the
focus of this document.
For teachers of pupils up to the age of 11, the
expected outcomes apply to:
· English,
· mathematics,
· science,
· the compulsory contributory subjects of the Northern
Ireland Curriculum,
· and where relevant, Welsh.
Particular emphasis should be given to how ICT can
support the teaching of literacy and numeracy in England, and the School
Improvement Programme in Northern Ireland.
For teachers of pupils aged 11 and above, the expected
outcomes apply to their specialist subject(s) from English, mathematics,
science, history, geography, modern foreign languages, design & technology,
information technology, music, art, physical education, religious education,
business studies/economics, Irish and Welsh.
Every attempt has been made to “future-proof” the content
of this document, but ICT is changing rapidly and it will be necessary to keep these outcomes under close
review. The use of jargon and technical
language has been avoided, but the correct terminology has been used where
appropriate.
The expected outcomes are described in two sections.
|
Section A |
EFFECTIVE
TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT METHODS This section
focuses on teaching and assessment methods that have a particular relevance
to the use of ICT in subject teaching.
Teachers must have opportunities to practise, in the classroom, those
methods and skills described in this section and to discuss their progress
with trainers and with their peers. |
Section B |
TEACHERS’
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF, AND COMPETENCE WITH, INFORMATION AND
COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY This section
sets out the knowledge and understanding of, and competence with, ICT
necessary to support effective teaching.
Teachers should become competent in using this knowledge in their
subject teaching. Approved training
providers will decide how best to incorporate the content of Section B into
the training. However, while some of
the content may require distinct training, most should be integrated with
aspects of section A. |
The expected
outcomes do not attempt to cover everything that teachers need to know if they
are to use ICT effectively in their subject teaching. Approved training providers may include other aspects of ICT,
which are not specified, in relation to particular subjects.
The expected
outcomes do not prescribe the way in which providers deliver the training, nor
specify the materials or activities which should be used as part of the
training. However, training must meet
the requirements set out in the specification for the approval of training
providers. Providers should devise
training which is coherent, intellectually stimulating, professionally
challenging and related to teachers’ roles and responsibilities.
It is important to
guard against an over-interpretation of the content of this document which
would set expectations which are beyond what is realistic or manageable, e.g. in Section B, the content listed in
paragraph 11 should be interpreted at a level appropriate for a general ICT
user and not at a level which would be required by a network or system manager. The
content specified should therefore be interpreted at a level which supports
effective teaching by any non-ICT specialist.
Teachers should develop the knowledge and skills necessary
to access and exploit, electronically, the information and sources which will
support their continuing professional development including the National Grid for Learning. Training should provide the foundations from
which teachers can continue to keep up to date with ICT and its application to
subject pedagogy, in order to enhance their teaching skills, stimulate pupils’
intellectual curiosity and raise pupils’ standards of achievement. Teachers should have the opportunities to
apply, in a sustained way, in the classroom the knowledge, understanding and
skills set out in this document.
Throughout the
document, the examples printed in italics are for clarification only. The numbers and letters throughout the
specification are for reference purposes only, and do not necessarily indicate
a particular sequence or hierarchy of knowledge, skills and understanding.
Context
In England
and Wales, this document corresponds closely to the knowledge,
understanding and skills expected of all newly qualified teachers in the
future, as set out in the Initial Teacher Training National Curriculum for the
use of information and communications technology in subject teaching.
In Northern
Ireland, the two sections of this document correspond closely to the
teacher competences in education technology laid out in Annex 5 of the Northern
Ireland Strategy for Education Technology:
Personal
Competence: Section
B11
Subject
Competence: Sections
B12-17 inclusive
Teaching
Competence: Sections
A1-9 inclusive
Section B10
describes the overarching ability of teachers to evaluate their own application
of education technology in the classroom.
The teacher competence model in Northern Ireland anticipates that
teachers will develop personal skills in a minimum of four basic ICT tools,
including word-processing, electronic communications and data-handling, in
addition to one which is chosen by the teachers and is relevant to the age
range of the pupils they teach and their specialist subject(s). Section A is also relevant to the focus on
education technology which beginning teachers are expected to take in relation
to their early professional development.
THE
USE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
IN
SUBJECT TEACHING
A. EFFECTIVE
TEACHING AND ASSESSMENT METHODS
1. Teachers should know when
the use of ICT is beneficial to achieve teaching objectives in the subject and
phase, and when the use of ICT would be less effective or inappropriate. In
making these decisions, they should
know how to take account of the functions of ICT and the ways that
these can be used by teachers in achieving subject teaching and learning
objectives. This includes:
a. how the speed
and automatic functions of ICT can enable teachers to demonstrate, explore
or explain aspects of their teaching, and pupils’ learning, more effectively;
b. how the capacity
and range of ICT can enable teachers and pupils to gain access to
historical, recent or immediate information;
c. how the provisional
nature of information stored, processed and presented using ICT allows work
to be changed easily;
d. how the interactive
way in which information is stored, processed and presented can enable teachers
and pupils to explore models, communicate effectively with others and present
and represent information effectively for different audiences.
Teachers should understand the implications of these
functions for achieving teaching objectives in the relevant subject(s), e.g. in mathematics and science, the use of
a calculator or a spreadsheet may remove the tedium of repetitive calculations
and enable pupils to focus their attention on an emerging numerical pattern or
the relationship between successive readings. However, teachers should
be aware that, in this example, pupils’ skills in mental or written calculation
are not being developed and therefore the activity may not suit the particular
teaching objectives in hand.
[Further details of the functions of ICT are given in
section B13]
2. Teachers should know how to use ICT
effectively to achieve subject-related objectives, including:
a. using ICT because it is the most effective
way to achieve teaching and learning objectives, not simply for motivation, reward
or sanction;
b. avoiding the use of ICT for simple or routine tasks which would
be better accomplished by other means;
c. where ICT is to be used, what appropriate
preparation of equipment, content and methodology is required;
d. avoiding giving the impression that the
quality of presentation is of overriding importance and supersedes the
importance of content;
e. structuring pupils’ work to focus on
relevant aspects and to maximise use of time and resource, e.g. teaching pupils to refine searches rather than allowing pupils to
search freely on the Internet or on CD-ROM;
f. having high expectations of the outcomes of
pupils’ work with ICT, including:
§ expecting pupils to use ICT to answer valid questions
appropriate to the subject matter being taught;
§ when appropriate, requiring pupils to save work, and
evaluate and improve it;
g. making explicit the links between the ICT application and
the subject matter it is being used to teach as well as the impact of ICT on
everyday applications.
3. For those aspects of lessons where ICT
is to be used, teachers should be able to identify in their planning:
a. the way(s) in which ICT will be used to meet teaching and
learning objectives in the subject;
b. key questions to ask and opportunities for teacher
intervention in order to stimulate and direct pupils’ learning;
c. the way(s) in which pupils’ progress will be assessed and
recorded;
d. criteria to ensure that judgments about pupils’ attainment
and progress in the subject are not masked because ICT has been used;
e. any impact of the use of ICT on the organisation and conduct
of the subject lesson and how this is to be managed;
f. how the ICT used is appropriate to the particular
subject-related objectives in hand and to pupils’ capabilities, taking account
of the fact that some pupils may already be very competent, e.g. because of home access or through
participation in extra-curricular activities, and some may need additional
support.
4. Teachers should know how to organise classroom ICT
resources effectively to meet learning objectives in the subject, including how to:
a. use ICT with the whole class or a group for introducing or
reviewing a topic and ensuring that all pupils cover the key conceptual
features of the topic, e.g. through the
use of a single screen or display;
b. organise individuals, pairs or groups of children working
with ICT to ensure that each participant is engaged, that collaborative effort
is balanced, and that teacher intervention and reporting back by pupils takes
place where appropriate;
c. make ICT resources available to pupils for research or other
purposes which may arise either spontaneously during lessons or as part of
planned activity, ensuring that the resource is used productively to achieve
subject-related objectives;
d. position resources for ease of use, to minimise distraction,
and with due regard to health and safety;
e. ensure that work done using ICT is integrated with other
work, allowing ICT to support teaching rather than dominate activities, e.g. providing sufficient desk/floor space
around the hardware to enable the ICT to be used with other materials;
providing space to write as well as input from the keyboard; positioning ICT so
that pupils are able to sit facing the teacher when required.
5. Teachers should be able to recognise
the specific contribution that ICT can make to teaching pupils with special
educational needs in mainstream classrooms based upon the need to provide access to the curriculum in a manner appropriate to pupils’
needs and to identify where ICT can provide subject-specific support.
6. Teachers should be able to choose and
use the most suitable ICT to meet teaching objectives, by reviewing a range of
generic and subject-specific software critically.
7. Teachers should know how to contribute
to the development and consolidation of pupils’ IT capability within the
context of the subject being taught through:
a. explicit discussion and, where necessary, teaching of the IT
skills and applications which are used in the subject;
b. using terminology accurately and appropriately, and
explaining to pupils any terminology which arises from the application of IT to
the subject;
c. using ICT in ways which provide models of good practice for
pupils, and ensuring that pupils employ correct procedures when using
applications.
8. Teachers should understand how to
monitor and assess pupils’ learning in the subject when ICT is being used, and
how to evaluate the contribution that ICT has made to the teaching of their
subject(s). They should be able to:
a. monitor pupils’ progress by:
i. being clear about teaching objectives and the use of ICT in
achieving them;
ii. observing and intervening in pupils’ ICT-based activities
to monitor and support their progression towards the identified objectives;
iii. asking key questions which require pupils to reflect on the
appropriateness of their use of ICT;
b. recognise standards of attainment in
the subject when ICT resources are used, including:
i. recognising how access to computer functions might change
teacher expectation of pupil achievements, e.g.
automatic spell-checking, image-making, graphical representation;
ii. identifying criteria by which pupils can show what they
have learnt as a result of using ICT-based resources from the Internet or
CD-ROM, and insisting that pupils acknowledge the reference sources used in
their work e.g. requiring pupils to
interpret and present the information gained from a CD-ROM for a specific
purpose rather than simply cutting and pasting and/or printing off information;
iii. how to determine the achievement of individuals when the
“product” is the result of a collaborative effort, for example, through
observation, record keeping, teacher intervention and pupil-teacher dialogue;
iv. how to ensure that assessment of ICT-based work reflects
pupils’ learning and the quality of their work within the subject(s) rather
than just the quality of presentation or the complexity of the technology used;
c. use formative, diagnostic and summative methods of assessing
pupils’ progress in the subject where ICT has been used, including how to set
up ICT activities with targeted objectives for assessment and make provision in
those activities for all pupils to demonstrate achievement, conceptual
understanding and learning through the use of ICT.
9. In addition, teachers of pupils aged
3-5 should understand the importance of introducing pupils in nursery and
reception classes to the use of ICT and recognise the contribution that ICT can
make to this age group, including how to:
a. encourage pupils to become familiar with ICT and positive
users of it;
b. ensure that all pupils have opportunities to use ICT, and
that their experience takes account of any home use or other previous
experience of ICT;
c. identify and teach the skills necessary for handling input
devices effectively, e.g. switches,
mouse, keyboard;
d. use ICT to support the development of language and literacy,
through the use of programs which develop reading and writing, e.g. to reinforce letter/sound correspondence,
and encourage pupils to engage with stories, songs and rhymes presented on the
screen, as well as through the use of high quality educational broadcasts;
e. use ICT to support the development of numeracy through the
use of computer programs and robots which develop and reinforce the use of
mathematical language, and the recognition and exploration of numbers, simple
mental operations and patterns;
f. use ICT to support pupils’ creative development through the
use of computer programs which encourage them to explore and experiment with
pattern, shape, pictures, sound and colour;
g. encourage pupils working collaboratively with ICT to share
responsibilities for making decisions and reaching conclusions, e.g. as they progress through a simple computer
adventure game.
B. TEACHERS’
KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF, AND COMPETENCE WITH, INFORMATION AND
COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
Knowledge, understanding and skills in using ICT in
subject teaching
For many teachers,
their own knowledge and understanding of ICT may not be sufficient to ensure
that they understand how to use ICT in ways which support good teaching,
including, for example, good pace, challenge, questioning and high expectations
of pupils. They may not be sufficiently
competent or confident in using ICT to secure progress in pupils’ learning
within the phase and in the subject(s) they teach. It is likely that most teachers will be familiar with more
traditional forms of ICT, e.g.
television, video, tape-recorders, and will have experience of using them
in teaching. The content of Section B,
therefore, gives greater emphasis to computer-related ICT because it is new,
and because teachers’ knowledge, understanding and skills in this area will
vary considerably.
10. In relation to the ICT content set out in
paragraphs 11 to 18, teachers should be able to:
b. understand
and use correctly the specialist terms associated with the ICT used in the
subject which are necessary to enable them to be precise in their explanations
to pupils, to discuss ICT in relation to the subject at a professional level,
and to read inspection and classroom-focused research evidence with
understanding.
11. Teachers should be competent
in those areas of ICT which support pedagogy in every subject, including that
they:
a. can
employ common ICT tools for their own and pupils’ benefit, e.g. word processing, e-mail, presentation
software, data handling and can
use a range of ICT resources, at the level of general users (rather than as network or system
managers), including:
i. the common user interfaces, using menus, selecting and
swapping between applications, cutting, pasting and copying files, and cutting
copying and pasting data within and between applications;
ii. successfully connecting and setting up ICT equipment,
including input devices, e.g. a mouse,
touch screen, overlay keyboard, microphone and output devices e.g. printers, screens and loudspeakers;
iii. loading and running software e.g. a CD-ROM;
iv. file management e.g.
organising documents and folders;
v. seeking and using operating information, including from
on-line help facilities and user guides;
vi. coping with everyday problems and undertaking simple,
routine maintenance, with due consideration to health and safety;
vii. understanding the importance of passwords and the general
security of equipment and access to it.
b. know and understand the characteristics of
information, including:
i. that
information must be evaluated in terms of its accuracy, validity, reliability,
plausibility, bias;
ii. that
information has to be stored somewhere, it takes up memory (storage space) and
that there are implications when saving and compressing files;
iii. that ICT
systems can present static information or changing information;
iv. that
information can be directly and dynamically linked between applications;
v. that
applications and information can be shared with other people at remote
locations.
a. know how to use
ICT to find things out, including:
i. identifying sources of information and discriminating
between them;
ii. planning
and putting together a search strategy, including framing useful questions,
widening and narrowing down searches;
iii. how to
search for information, including using key words and strings and logical
operators such as AND, OR and NOT, indexes and directories;
iv. collecting
and structuring data and storing it for later retrieval, interpretation and
correction;
v. interpreting
what is retrieved;
vi. considering
validity, reliability and reasonableness of outcomes;
b. know how to use ICT to try things out, make things happen and
understand how they happen, including:
i. exploring alternatives;
ii. modelling relationships;
iii. considering cause and effect;
iv. predicting patterns and rules
recognising patterns, and hypothesising;
v. knowing how to give instructions;
vi. sequencing actions;
vii. defining conditions e.g. “if this happens, do that..”;
viii. understanding
how feedback works and the
difference between things that do and do not rely
on feedback;
c. know how to use
ICT to communicate and exchange ideas:
i. presenting ideas, including: identification of audience
and purpose; deciding the best means with which to communicate;
ii. exchanging ideas, including identifying the most
appropriate medium, and information.
13. Teachers should know those features of ICT which can be used,
separately or together, to support teaching and learning in the relevant
subject(s) and phase, including:
a. speed and automatic functions - the function of ICT which enables
routine tasks to be completed and repeated quickly, allowing the user to
concentrate on thinking and on tasks such as analysing and looking for patterns
within data, asking questions and looking for answers, and explaining and
presenting results, as appropriate to the
subject(s) and age of pupils taught, including how ICT can be used to:
i. measure
events at long or short time intervals in order to compress or expand events
which would normally take very short or long periods of time, and illustrate
them to pupils at speeds appropriate to their pace of learning;
ii. measure
and record events which might otherwise be impossible to gather within a
classroom environment;
iii. explore
sequences of actions and link the sensing of events with the control of
actions;
b. capacity and range - the function of ICT, as appropriate to the subject(s) and age of
pupils to be taught, to access and to handle large amounts of information;
change timescales, or remove barriers of distance; give teachers and pupils
access to and control over situations which would normally be outside their everyday
experience, including:
i. the range of forms in which ICT can present information;
ii. the range of possible appropriate ICT sources, including
local sources such as CD-ROM, and remote databases such as the Internet and the
National Grid for Learning;
iii. how to judge the accuracy of the information and the
credibility of its source;
iv. how ICT can be used to gain access to expertise outside the
classroom, the school and the local community through communications with
experts;
c. provisionality - the function of ICT which allows changes to be made
easily and enables alternatives to be explored readily, and as appropriate to the subject(s) and age of
pupils taught:
i. how to make best use of the ability to make rapid changes,
including how to create text, designs and models which may be explored and
improved in the light of evaluation;
ii. how to judge when and when not to encourage exploration and
change using ICT;
iii. how saving work at different stages enables a record to be
kept of the development of ideas;
d. interactivity - the function of ICT which enables rapid
and dynamic feedback and response, as
appropriate to the subject(s) and age of pupils taught, including how to
determine the most appropriate media to use.
14. Teachers should understand the potential of
ICT to make the preparation and presentation of their teaching more effective,
taking account of:
a. the intended audience, including matching and adapting
work to subject matter and objectives, pupils’ prior attainment, reading
ability or special educational needs; recognising the efficiency with which
such adaptations can be made using ICT;
b. the
most appropriate forms of presentation to meet teaching objectives, e.g. illustrating or explaining using: text;
sound; still or moving pictures; live video links; illustrations, graphics or
animations; numbers, graphs or charts, separately or in combination.
15. Teachers should:
a. in relation to the phase(s) and subject(s) to be
taught, understand the IT requirements of the statutory curriculum for pupils
and the application of IT as a key skill;
16. Teachers should know how each of the
following is relevant to the age range of the pupils they teach and their
specialist subject(s):
a. generic procedures and tools, including:
i. understanding the key features and functions used within
the subject;
ii using ICT to prepare material for pupil use;
b. reference resources, including:
i. how to search reference resources;
ii how to incorporate the use of reference resources into
teaching;
c. the information and communications
technology specific to the teaching of the subject(s);
d. the contribution made by ICT to the professional, commercial
and industrial applications of their subject(s);
e. the major teaching programs or “courseware”
to ensure that material is matched to the pupils’ capabilities:
i. where content and activities are presented in sequence to
teach specific topics;
ii. where teaching activities are combined with assessment
tasks and tests.
17. Teachers should be aware of:
b. legal
considerations, including those related to:
i. keeping personal information on computers,
as set out in the Data Protection Act;
ii. copyright legislation relating to text,
images and sounds and that relating to copying software;
c. ethical issues including:
i. access to illegal and/or unsuitable
material through the Internet;
ii. acknowledging sources;
iii. confidentiality of personal data;
iv. the ways in which users of information
sources can be (and are) monitored;
18. Teachers should know how to use ICT to improve their own professional
efficiency and to reduce administrative and bureaucratic burdens, including: