Children using ICT at Humbie Primary

EAST LOTHIAN CURRICULUM ICT TEAM WINS NATIONAL EXCELLENCE AWARD

East Lothian Council’s Education and Children’s Services Curriculum Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Team were representing not just the county but Scotland at the Becta ICT Excellence Awards in the Cutler Halls, Sheffield on 6 November 2008. Teams from authorities from all over the UK were entered for the prestigious Curriculum ICT Excellence Award, and East Lothian came joint-second out of all of them.

Becta, the government agency leading the use of technology in learning, organises the awards which recognise and reward those schools and education authorities that have shown how technology can be imaginatively used to enhance lessons and school life.

This year, with an increased number of entries and a noticeably higher standard across the board, Becta says that judging has been particularly tough. Despite the stiff competition, East Lothian Council managed to impress the judges by showcasing their ideas and methods of incorporating technology into the heart of school life. The judges said:

‘East Lothian is doing some exemplary work to support parental engagement in schools, particularly around e-safety. This is a small local authority, with 35 primary, 6 secondary and 2 nursery schools, but it serves a diverse population including a significant Hungarian community. (In fact it has used the presence of this community to encourage an international dimension on its blogging platform – every child in the authority is encouraged to write a blog.)

‘The authority has a clear vision of the role of embedded ICT in school improvement and ICT is part of the overall local authority strategy and plan. The area has a high level of computer ownership, but parental understanding of e-safety issues in particular was patchy.

‘East Lothian Council has developed an intelligent strategy, working with police and parents, as well as children, to promote a balanced understanding of the risks and simple measures to counter them, an approach designed to ensure that children feel confident rather than intimidated about their use of technology.’

Niel McLean, Becta’s executive director for institutional workforce and development, explained:

‘It is wonderfully inspiring to see the enthusiasm which East Lothian Council’s Education and Children’s Services Department has invested into putting technology at the core of their everyday activities.

‘It certainly is the way forward and I’m sure the schools and communities in East Lothian are benefiting from the rewards that technology can bring to education, whether that’s through interactive whiteboards, blogging and messaging facilities or podcasting.’

Education and Children’s Services Convener Peter MacKenzie added:

‘It’s great to see such major recognition of East Lothian’s ground-breaking and innovative use of ICT in schools in Scotland. We really believe in investing in ICT as a way of building education communities that enable us to share information, thoughts and good practice not just in the county between parents, pupils and teachers, but across Scotland and round the world. I’m very, very proud of what our team has achieved.’

ENDS

Issued by Jane Ogden-Smith, Public Information Officer, Education and Children’s Services on Friday 7 November 2008 Phone: 01620 827199/07990 540 738/ e-mail: jogden-smith@eastlothian.gov.uk

Notes to Editors

For more information about Becta, go to http://about.becta.org.uk/