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ICT Implementation in Education
FINLAND
Finland is considered to be a European leader in implementing ICT in education. 90% of primary schools and 95% of secondary schools are connected to Internet - the highest level in all of Europe1 . In 1995 the Finnish Ministry of Education launched its first "information strategy" (annual budget 45.5 million), aimed at steering the development of the national information society in the field of ICT and research. This was followed up in Spring 1999 with the launching of a new information strategy for the period 2000-2004 (annual budget 50.5 million). As a means of implementing the visions outlined in its second strategy, the Ministry is enlisting the resources of a number of educational partners, including the autonomous municipalities which run a vast majority of primary and secondary education establishments. Further to the example given by Nokia, it also calls on the business sector to play an increasing role. Finland further intends to take advantage of domestic and EU instruments for ICT implementation in schools. Special Focus is being placed on content production, notably in the crucial area of learning materials.
The stated vision underlying the information strategy: In today's Information Society in which the demarcation between the learning environments at home, school and workplace is disappearing, increasing attention must be focused on net-based learning and school/work relations in teaching. This calls for new, more varied methods in the planning, implementation and evaluation of teaching. At the same time, citizenship skills must meet the needs of a networking, constantly changing and internationalising way of life. These skills include technical, communication and consumer skills, and the capacity to influence Information Society policy. As more and more tracks are becoming available in lifelong learning, it is also increasingly important to guide pupils to develop the ability to "learn to learn". In terms of positive information society development, this necessitates not only intensified use of ICT, but also the development of an operational culture in educational institutions.
Three main action lines are being taken:
- training of teaching personnel and development of an information strategy
- creation of a multidisciplinary Research and Development network as a means of identifying and disseminating new, widely applicable practices, but also for educating and training the information industry and digital communication professionals (growing concern about workforce shortages in ICT industry)
- creation of a virtual school as a means of establishing adapted learning environments based on new information and communication technologies.
One major aim in Finland is to launch a multidisciplinary graduate school in learning environment research which will primarily include educational science, psychology, media sciences, applied linguistics, computer sciences and information research.
- Teaching personnel and the information strategy
All teacher education units should devise an information strategy by 2001, and all educational establishments by 2002. The aim is that a large number of teachers will have at least basic ICT skills. In teachers' initial and further education, the emphasis is on the role of the whole school community in the development of educational ICT. In-service education should not only upgrade the individual teacher's professional skills, but should also serve the whole work community.
Teacher training will be provided by universities and polytechnics in collaboration with the National Board of Education, and is planned as a three-step process:
- Every teacher must acquire knowledge about common uses of computer, mastery of basic applications including email and Internet, and an understanding of the principles of the educational uses of ICT.
- At least half of the personnel working in education should master skills for using ICT for educational purposes i.e. versatile use of email, the www environment and groupware: generic tools, pedagogical applications and digital material in the subject taught, and principles of digital learning material production. They should also be capable of following hardware and software developments, and have an awareness of the social problems and challenges involved in ICT.
- About 10% of teachers should master specialised knowledge: content-specific and professional applications, the production of digital learning materials, institutional information management and the ability to assist, support and train colleagues, develop the school community and act as part of an expert network.
- Multidisciplinary R & D network
This is intended to cater to the needs of virtual universities and schools, as well as the whole information strategy. It will support the development of net-based study arrangements and develop new learning environments of high pedagogic quality. More particularly, it will:
- Forecast developments at home and abroad and keep Finnish research at top world level
- Offer research-based views on how network schools should be developed
- Make proposals for development of mainstream school forms by means of new technologies
- Promote research interaction between partners involved in the project and with international centres in the field
- Help commercialise digital learning materials and use them in teaching
- Assist in the development of alternative evaluation models and in research-based monitoring of the information strategy.
- The Virtual School
This is aimed at providing anywhere, anytime access to study opportunities of a high pedagogical quality for students of all ages via the virtual network. But it is also intended as a means of:
- developing and diversifying cooperation between educational institutions and society, notably the world of work
- creating development networks which produce and supply educational and advisory services and materials, including international services
- studying and developing the principal practices of relevant pedagogy
- helping schools develop their activities towards a virtual school
- identifying and solving technical, pedagogical, social and administrative problems relating to new forms of study and learning
- providing a forum for the development of teachers' and students' ICT skills
The virtual school has already facilitated important changes in certain upper secondary schools2 . In the aim of encouraging the development of independent learning strategies and increasing personal responsibility for education, schools in several areas in Finland now allow students to follow a module-based cursus not tied to year classes. In this way students benefit from a much broader choice of subjects, sometimes selecting modules from local business training programmes, other educational institutions or disseminated through the virtual school net. Only about 60% - 65% of the curriculum remains compulsory in such schools. Obviously, assessment methods have been largely modified to accommodate to the greater flexibility, with the emphasis on self-assessment but also including verbal reports, assessment interviews and portfolio assessment.
In the framework of the virtual school project, schools are supported in hardware and software acquisitions on the condition that they undertake strategic planning, build supportive service and develop learning materials.
All teacher education units should devise an information strategy by 2001, and all educational establishments by 2002. The aim is that a large number of teachers will have at least basic ICT skills. In teachers' initial and further education, the emphasis is on the role of the whole school community in the development of educational ICT. In-service education should not only upgrade the individual teacher's professional skills, but should also serve the whole work community.
Teacher training will be provided by universities and polytechnics in collaboration with the National Board of Education, and is planned as a three-step process:
- Every teacher must acquire knowledge about common uses of computer, mastery of basic applications including email and Internet, and an understanding of the principles of the educational uses of ICT.
- At least half of the personnel working in education should master skills for using ICT for educational purposes i.e. versatile use of email, the www environment and groupware: generic tools, pedagogical applications and digital material in the subject taught, and principles of digital learning material production. They should also be capable of following hardware and software developments, and have an awareness of the social problems and challenges involved in ICT.
- About 10% of teachers should master specialised knowledge: content-specific and professional applications, the production of digital learning materials, institutional information management and the ability to assist, support and train colleagues, develop the school community and act as part of an expert network.
This is intended to cater to the needs of virtual universities and schools, as well as the whole information strategy. It will support the development of net-based study arrangements and develop new learning environments of high pedagogic quality. More particularly, it will:
- Forecast developments at home and abroad and keep Finnish research at top world level
- Offer research-based views on how network schools should be developed
- Make proposals for development of mainstream school forms by means of new technologies
- Promote research interaction between partners involved in the project and with international centres in the field
- Help commercialise digital learning materials and use them in teaching
- Assist in the development of alternative evaluation models and in research-based monitoring of the information strategy.
This is aimed at providing anywhere, anytime access to study opportunities of a high pedagogical quality for students of all ages via the virtual network. But it is also intended as a means of:
- developing and diversifying cooperation between educational institutions and society, notably the world of work
- creating development networks which produce and supply educational and advisory services and materials, including international services
- studying and developing the principal practices of relevant pedagogy
- helping schools develop their activities towards a virtual school
- identifying and solving technical, pedagogical, social and administrative problems relating to new forms of study and learning
- providing a forum for the development of teachers' and students' ICT skills
The virtual school has already facilitated important changes in certain upper secondary schools2 . In the aim of encouraging the development of independent learning strategies and increasing personal responsibility for education, schools in several areas in Finland now allow students to follow a module-based cursus not tied to year classes. In this way students benefit from a much broader choice of subjects, sometimes selecting modules from local business training programmes, other educational institutions or disseminated through the virtual school net. Only about 60% - 65% of the curriculum remains compulsory in such schools. Obviously, assessment methods have been largely modified to accommodate to the greater flexibility, with the emphasis on self-assessment but also including verbal reports, assessment interviews and portfolio assessment.
In the framework of the virtual school project, schools are supported in hardware and software acquisitions on the condition that they undertake strategic planning, build supportive service and develop learning materials.