Valuing Education Technology in Schools in Ireland North and South: a report for the Standing Conference on Teacher Education, North and South (SCoTENS)

Abstract

This report sets out the findings from a research project funded by the Standing Conference on Teacher Education North and South (SCoTENS), under the terms of its seed-funding small research projects scheme. The case studies reported here were undertaken in two schools, one in the Republic of Ireland and one in Northern Ireland. Similar case study reports have been prepared for schools in the USA, Australia, England and Portugal under other funding and organisational arrangements. It should be noted from the outset, that there is no intention to compare the schools from these different jurisdictions. Such a small sample could never fully represent the ‘typical’ in such complex education systems. However, although differing in scope and approach, there is a clear focus in both case studies on trying to determine the value that schools place on the role and integration of educational technologies in learning and teaching. The primary purpose of the case studies therefore was to develop an innovative method of assessing this value.