Professional development of school staff
In parallel with the curriculum for students, there must be professional development
of the staff within a school. The personal productivity and professional
practice of teachers are enhanced with the use of ICT. First, is an awareness
stage in which teachers and staff become ICT literate with regard to what
technology is available and how it might be used. Second, as teachers and staff
learn basic skills, they begin to apply various ICT tools to their regular tasks
and projects. Third, as teachers and staff become more capable and confident
with ICT, they begin to integrate and overlap both subject areas and tools.
Last, is a change in professional practice in which teachers are now enabled to
design lessons to incorporate larger, more complex, real-world projects using
ICT tools and resources. As ICT is introduced into school systems, there is a
tendency to move from discrete skills training to reflective practice and integrative
professional development. Budgetary allocation and provision for
release time for teacher professional development seriously impact on the
ability of a school system to incorporate ICT in a meaningful way.
Community involvement
Community involvement may include parents, families, businesses, industry,
government agencies, private foundations, social, religious and professional
organizations, as well as other educational institutions such as vocational
schools and universities. Community involvement can come in the form of
donations of equipment and resources, or may be in human resources provided
for training and technical assistance. As a community contributes to a
school, so the school can give back in many ways. For example, a school may
decide to provide community members with evening access to computer
labs, or have students offer training to parents. The use of ICT provides an
opportunity for a school and its students to interact with both local and
global communities. Interaction may range from building web sites for
community organizations, to sharing projects with remote schools.
Assessment
Assessment includes both assessments of students as well as overall evaluation
of a school system, two aspects that are intricately interwoven. An
improvement in the one should predicate an improvement in the other.
Means of student assessment should reflect choices in learning pedagogy
and an understanding of ICT in the curriculum. For example, in the
emerging and applying stages of ICT, assessment may be linked to pencil
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ICT DEVELOPMENT AT THE SCHOOL LEVEL
and paper tests, whereas in the infusing and transforming stag