My response to “Digital Literacy is a vital preparation for life”
14 Mar
Mark Steed, Principal at Berkhamsted School wrote a very interesting post about schools needing to take responsibility for Digital Literacy, as it is key to pupils' future success.
You can find the post here: .
Here is my response:
This is another very interesting post, thank you Mark. It led me to ask: how can school leaders ensure that digital wisdom becomes embedded in an academic curriculum? The use of digital tools in practical or vocational subjects is relatively straightforward. However, I think that the natives need both digital wisdom and digital dexterity to be able to go beyond understanding and manipulating the wealth of information and communication possibilities to generate original content in a more academic context.
Unfortunately there is a mismatch here in educational goals. On the one hand there is an accepted understanding amongst digital natives that interdependent sharing in data-rich media environments is the best way to learn. However, the primary outcome of school education (organised and maintained by a generation for whom learning with technology may have involved, at best, an Acorn Archimedes) upon which students' futures rest remains the centuries-old tradition of students sitting alone in an exam hall with a piece of paper and a pen.
It matters little that coursework may represent a high proportion of the final grade in some practical subjects here. Let's imagine that the academic subjects' national assessments reflect a digital learning experience. Then, and only then, will reaching the top of the league tables and providing a modern digital education share the same methodology. Until then, we must expect that some teachers will resist completely embedding ICT into their subject teaching; the pupils have got exams to pass!
The form of British examination system is the elephant in the room here. When does a young person, anyone for that matter, sit in silence without the aid of any digital support? It is not how we study at university and it not how we work. It is out of date. I cannot believe that we are still employing a C19 exam system in C21.
There is clearly a need for an effective system of assessment for school leavers at both 16 and 18 and for undergraduates, but at the moment this is the tail wagging the dog. It is no longer fit for purpose. If things stay the way they are, I can foresee a time when highly qualified graduates will not be employable because they do not have the skill set that many of their peers have.
I totally agree. The weight that the examinations system has in any discussion about progress, school improvement or national standards absolutely crushes the importance of a good preparation for life, work and success. Whose door do we need to knock on about this?
Laura
Similiar high stakes HSC exams here in NSW Australia.
Summative assessment is outdated. Formative trusting assessment of skills we need for life are now needed.
Unfortunately the “high stakes testing industry” is so entrenched in societies mindset, it will not cede territory won over the last two centuries easily.
Parents/media/tertiary expect it, governments demand it, teachers are slaves to it and students are victims of it.
Its what we know, what we’ve always had and can relate to, but it does not make it right.”It” is so broken, that’s really what needs fixing, urgently
For multiple choice questions that require a user to tick a box, then ICT exams are the way forward, both in terms of the suitability of the examination environment, and the sheer amount of marking work that can be automated. I took the “written” driving test examination 9 years ago, and they were already using a shockwave-based interactive exam back then, but this only worked because the questions suited the method of delivery.
It’s not always going to be suitable or advantageous though. I wouldn’t expect the results of a maths exam to be dependent on a student’s ability to render their working out using latex or mathml. The pen is still the weapon of choice when it comes to calculus.
There’s also power-cuts, system crashes and security to consider. In a room with 50 terminals, who gets the one with the flickering screen or the dodgy keyboard? What if RM do their usual thing and bribe the LEA into giving them the contract? That’s instant failure, right there!
Lastly. Exams and ICT already have some dodgy history. In 2000, when midland examining group became OCR, some ‘clever’ person decided to use search and replace on all the exam papers; turning every instance of “MEG” to “OCR”. This left a lot of physics students in turmoil trying to figure out what an Ocrawatt or an Ocrajoule was.
The above may not sound too relevant, but it illustrates my point – Mixing exams with technology is a potentially great idea, but it would need to be thought through carefully before being put into practice, and those implementing said solutions need to undertand the contextual requirements of the subject being delivered.
Great Blog Laura and topics being aired here really hit the mark. What we do need more than anything is informed debate and not a one-size fits all, whether that is for pupils, teachers’ CPD or in terms of assessment in our schools. That was why Fast Track has made the great impact it has on the 2000 plus teachers who have been on the programme sinec 2001- FT professional training and support has taken a personalised approach and allowed FTTS to find their own path, to decide on their leadership approach and style and to bespoke their training to suit their needs. Fast Track remains unique in comparison to some of the professional training that is on offer in the ‘leadership development’ field. Leaders of the future in education will need to be ever more resourceful and informed, with the confidence to take brave decisions that will turn round the lives of young people in their communities.