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Use of ICT in schools by professional teachers and the role of teacher unions Bert Imminga The Netherlands

About teacher union AOb (General Education Union): Biggest Dutch union for Education In total members – working in primary education – working pre-vocational + Senior general secondary education + Pre-university education – working in secondary vocational education –4000 working in higher professional education –No activities in Universitys; Other members: working elsewhere or not working

About AOb and its vision(2): AOb helps teachers: labour- /workingconditions also about content of teacher work: learning + teaching + learning of teachers + professional development of teachers + use of ICT in schools AOb has an opinion about Education and: –What is a professional school? –What is a professional teacher? –What is a competent teacher? In general, but we should also have an opinion in relation to the use of ICT

About Bert Imminga: Member of the board of AOb (2 days/week) Working in school (3 days/week) –Secondary vocational education: Basic vocational training Professional vocational training Middle management training My school : –has students –Age of students: 15 and higher –new buildings –many computers in many classrooms and electronic learning environments

Use of ICT in schools About the Dutch approach (1): Government Education policy:. Decentralisation and deregulation. Schools are lump-sum financed by the Government. Promotion of autonomy of schoolmanagement. Government is guarding quality by inspections and demands evaluations Management of school is responsible for ;. implementation of ICT-tools. life long learning of teachers. improvement of learning process

Use of ICT in schools About the Dutch approach (2): Schoolmanagement is in charge –Of the money; –Of the methods and the tools Teachers are complaining : –They want more influence about organising their work: –20 years ago: top-down approach of Government –Now: top-down approach of schoolmanagement

Use of ICT in schools About the Dutch approach (3): New Law is coming about good management in schools: schoolmanagement has to take care of enough professional space of the teacher. AOb wanted this Law and wants a professional charter in every school to describe terms of professionalism and professional space of teachers What is professional space of the teacher?: influence in the school of the teacher on: the concept and the practice of the policy about quality and education in the school.

Use of ICT in schools Professional space of the teacher: Teacher should have influence on policy about use of ICT in school Teacher is responsible for quality of learning and teaching, also with use of ICT Teacher can only be responsible if there is influence

Use of ICT in schools Professional space in boundaries 1: in collaboration with other teachers make policy about professional space 2: in collaboration with management practice professional space 3: in collaboration between teachers and management make rules about subjects of professionalism and influence on policy

Use of ICT in schools professional charter Professional Space + the boundaries will be specified in a professional charter There will be government-inspections about the development of professional space for teachers A professional teacher has not only rights, also duties ( eg: live long learning, also on pedagogical opportunities of use of ICT)

Use of ICT in schools Tasks of professional teachers: Prepare pupils for the future with modern tools So the challenges are: understand pupils (they use ICT and learn from it and participate in internet-communities) know the future (possibilities of ICT-use) in control of 21st century (digital) competences (for improvement of learning process)

Use of ICT in schools Learning and teaching in the future: Information (teachers pupils) Communication(teachers teachers) also(teachers pupils ) New : Collaboration (learning with teamwork between teachers-teachers and pupils-pupils and teachers-pupils; all content is on internet in 10 years ) Contribuation (pupils contribute to the learning- proces and learn not only in school, but also in internet-communities)

Use of ICT in schools Role of the teacher: Teacher is not owner of knowledge; pupil has many scources of knowledge (democratisation of knowledge); teacher has to stimulate creativity Use of ICT: Learn about ICT: how does computer work Learn with ICT: reading on computer instead of book (no improvement of learning process) New: Learn through ICT: teacher - pupil communication by P ersonal D igital A ssistant about tasks for pupil concerning open scource, wikipedia, while pupil is somewhere else (possible improvement, depending of teacher )

Use of ICT in schools Be prepared for the future: ECDL=European digital driving licence –Digitalisation of the office (computer, word, excel, pp) –No pedagogical / instructional purpose EPICT = pedagogical ICT licence –Only 7 European countrys (D, Gr, It, H, Nor, UK, Icel) –Should be many more countrys –All teacher unions should demand for EPICT (ask your government and EU-commission and etuce). –

Use of ICT in schools Role of teacher unions (1): Focus on content of work of teachers (what is good teaching? pedagogical / instructional) Focus not only on working conditions Ask schools to formulate vision on ICT Fight for influence of teachers on ICT-policy in the school; bottom-up is better than top-down; Stimulate collaboration in school; good teaching is teamwork

Use of ICT in schools Role of teacher unions (2): Most important is relation teacher – pupil so fight against people who want computers instead of teachers they dont understand pupils / future they dont understand the learning-process (you can teach them) Tell teachers to prepare for the future Go talk to teachers who refuse to learn and teach them about pedagogical use of ICT for improving the learning process because they dont understand pupils / future

Use of ICT in schools Role of teacher unions (3): Ask your Government: to support projects that focus on pedagogical use of ICT in education; implementation of EPICT; To facilitate exchange of good practice Learn yourself as teacher union : Formulate a vision on the use of ICT in schools With the help of teachers and experts Create platforms for exchange of good practice Evaluate the effectiveness of your policy on stimulating the improvement of the learning process by ICT

Samen jonge leden werven!