ICT in Schools
The effective use of ICT plays a central role in all the key education policies being taken forward by the Department of Education (DE), including the revised curriculum and the revised literacy and numeracy strategy. Ensuring that young people acquire the skills to use ICT effectively, confidently and safely is a key priority for DE.
Classroom 2000 (C2k)
The C2k service provides every grant-aided school across Northern Ireland with a modern, connected ICT infrastructure.
C2k’s new Education Technology contract – Education Network for Northern Ireland - EN(ni) commenced on 1 April 2012 and will deliver Europe’s first Education Cloud environment to schools across Northern Ireland.
EN(ni) will deliver the hardware and software required by schools, along with secure Internet access; increased bandwidth; a Help Desk and user support; and a new elearning platform called Fronter.
It will give teachers and pupils access to learning resources from across the world and will bring these resources into the classroom. Access to the ‘digital classroom’ and its e-learning tools, lessons and resources will be possible from any internet connected device, 24 hours a day - allowing teachers, pupils and parents to work in partnership to support learning. The communications and e-learning elements of the service will support collaboration between schools and will offer pupils a richer learning experience.
Since 2000, DE has invested over £470 million in providing the ICT infrastructure in our schools through the Classroom 2000 Project making Northern Ireland a recognised leader in the use of ICT in education.
Further information on the C2k Project is available on our C2k webpage or by accessing the C2k website.
eSchools Data Warehouse
The online data warehouse became operational in September 2009. The warehouse stores data collected from schools and education and library boards and issues reports which assist schools with self-evaluation and school improvement. More detailed information is available in the eSchools Data Warehouse section.
EmPowering Schools
The emPowering Schools Strategy of 2003 set out a broad vision for enhancing teaching, learning and leadership in schools through the use of educational technology. The strategy links to the ICT Self-Review Framework designed by Becta to enable schools to take a whole-school approach to the use of ICT and benchmark their performance against established best practice. Since the closure of Becta on 31 March 2011, Naace has continued to develop and run the ICT Mark.
Information about the benefits of the Self-Review Framework and how a school may access it is available on the Naace website.
Circular 2007/24 - Use of Information and Communications Technology in Schools PDF 208 KB issued to all schools in November 2007. The circular set out the necessary actions to further the development of ICT as a teaching and learning tool.
ICT safety in schools
DE has worked closely with key organisations involved in child protection to provide guidance for schools on the safe use of the Internet and other digital technologies.
The guidance is available online and links are provided to a range of information and resources for schools to use when drawing up their policies on the acceptable use of the Internet.
WiFi
Wireless connectivity will be used increasingly in schools in Northern Ireland in order to maximise the use of the new ICT equipment which is being provided. More information can be accessed in our WiFi section.
