In many cases the motivational impact of introducing gaming technology or the extended learning opportunities provided by Netbooks and Virtual Learning Environments will be enough for many schools to justify the investments made in them. A school may be confident that they have embedded the concept of ‘total cost of ownership' into their approach to ICT but it is still crucial for them to update their thinking around the components that contribute to it. Any teacher who has experienced the use of Netbooks in their class will understand that their use is fundamentally different to the use of laptops. This means that as well as the raw cost of the technology, re-training needs to be factored into the investment equation along with data storage and battery charging facilities.
It's important for schools to be aware when considering new software that the costs involved can be just as significant as those associated with introducing new hardware. At MGL we have worked with a number of schools who underestimated the cost of introducing a Learning Platform. The cost of software, infrastructure and training is usually successfully factored in but the cost of updating and producing content can be underestimated and the cost of embedding the VLE in marking, assessment and appropriate use policies is often ignored. Whilst understandable, oversights such as these can create significant barriers in the use of facilities with the knock-on effect being cost overruns and a lack of impact upon standards.
There are classrooms across the country where the interactive whiteboard is used as a digital display because the teacher hasn't been trained in how to make it interactive or where laptops are abandoned in cupboards because parts can't be sourced. As the new term develops and the temptation to introduce new technologies becomes too great to resist, make sure that your school isn't one of them.
Carl Gilbertson. Director, MGL
0151 473 5975
