High Level Group High Level Group

iTEC High Level Group

iTEC has established a High Level Group of decision shapers to ensure that those scenarios’ that are successfully validated in the large-scale pilots are mainstreamed and impact upon the educational reform agenda at national level. As one of the project’s main objectives is to develop teaching and learning scenarios that can consequently be adopted and implemented by Ministries of Education in Europe, members of the High Level Group act as information brokers in relation to the Ministries and also provide advice and recommendations to project partners on how iTEC results can influence ICT policy development.

The High Level Group members are (click here to see the full profiles):

  • Gavin Dykes (General Secretary), United Kingdom
  • Eduardo Marçal Grilo (Chair), Portugal
  • Emanuele Fidora, Italy
  • Herbert Gimpl, Austria
  • Øystein Johannessen, Norway
  • Toine Maes, The Netherlands
  • Bálint Magyar, Hungary.
  • Maciej Marek Sysło, Poland
  • Alain Séré, France
  • Dr. Antreas S. Trakoshis, Cyprus

 


 

First High Level Group report - November 2012

The first report from teh iTEC High Level Group is now available. The HLG has reviewed iTEC project content and progress and developed recommendations for mainstreaming and up-scaling associated practices. As the iTEC project has moved from a centralised approach towards a bottom up approach, the HLG has developed its most recent recommendations to support that bottom up approach. The peer-learning workshop held in September 2012 allowed a detailed reflection on progress and practices and contributed to development of recommendations. The recommendations focus on practical developments that are intended to encourage teachers to reflect on their work, to share and learn from other teachers and to build communities of practice.

In brief, the recommendations are associated with: Establishing a review framework; Intervening at the level of initial teacher training through focused pilot actions; and Supporting MoEs in spreading iTEC practices. In addition, the HLG recommends changes in initial teacher training and continuing professional development that strengthens awareness of the opportunities and leading practice and pedagogies associated technology for learning.

Download the full report here



Peer learning workshop - September 2012

Over 20 participants attended the Peer Learning Workshop in September 2012. Participants included HLG members, EUN Steering Group representatives from Ministries of Education, representatives of Promethean and SMART, teachers working on iTEC pilots and representatives of the iTEC team. The workshop was designed to engage participants in discussion, and to ground that discussion in the reality of practice as demonstrated by the participating teachers. It was then intended to build towards discussion and analysis of mainstreaming and up-scaling issues through experience from Ministries and HLG members.

Read the workshop report in the first High Level Group report


 
High Level Group Meeting - May 2012

The first in a series of recommendations from the High Level Group aimed at stimulating the policy debate on how schools in Europe can mainstream innovative use of ICT in the future classroom. Download the document here



High Level Group Meeting - June 2011

At its first meeting in June 2011, the High Level Group particularly reviewed the iTEC Evaluation Plan and considered the feedback received from the Pedagogical Board. The initial observations and recommendations from the High Level Group were as follows:

  • The HLG agreed with the feedback obtained from the Pedagogical Board and particularly the suggestion that scenarios developed in future project cycles should be more diverse and less focused on project-based learning. Consideration should also be given to developing scenarios that will help Ministries of Education across Europe to address common educational problems that in some countries may already be part of the existing political agenda.
  • iTEC scenarios do not have to be developed from scratch. The project may benefit from giving more consideration to innovative designs for the future classroom that are already being piloted or implemented in some countries or are in the process of being validated by some ICT suppliers.
  • High Level Group members and project partners should pool their resources in order to more specifically identify the key decision shapers (e.g., civil servants, teacher union leaders and journalists) in each country where an iTEC pilot is taking place.
  • The iTEC evaluation plan is addressing the right research questions but the project should also:
    • Be clear in terms of the extent to which it is trying to support and help teachers to do their jobs more effectively and/or whether it is also engaged in trying to change current practice. This issue is likely to have a major impact on the extent to which iTEC scenarios can be mainstreamed within the lifetime of the project.
    • Explore to what extent the evaluation activities can measure the impact of the iTEC scenarios on students’ learning.
    • In Year 3 and 4 of the project, look at those schools that implemented the initial scenarios to see if any of these scenarios are still in use. This could provide the project with valuable information on how scenarios work and develop over time.