Some of the latest initiatives include providing access to data for parents, incorporating five hours of high culture into the curriculum, the 14-19 agenda, new Ofsted emphasis on behaviour, extended schools and staff CPD.
That is in addition to existing programmes such as Every Child Matters, personalised learning, assessment for learning, provision of learning platforms, secondary curriculum review, Early Years developments and the Children's Plan.
It is vital that schools have strong systems in place to support the initiatives, and central to that is effective data control through ICT. All stakeholders need simple and secure access to immediate and accurate information in order to plan and implement meaningful strategies.
Making the most of IT in schools requires that it is fully embedded in all systems and that it is recognised as an essential tool. It should be seen by everyone as indispensable as a blackboard was in the past. Collecting and handling a school's information efficiently is an extremely powerful mechanism.
A robust and tested MIS, linked to a powerful learning platform that can deliver exciting and engaging learning materials in up-to-date and innovative ways can be the foundation for stable and secure systems that support school management and whole school improvement.
With data under control it is possible to detect patterns in behaviour or attendance to determine effective intervention strategies. Schools can identify which children are not reaching their full academic potential and take action before it is too late to make a difference.
More importantly, however, it is possible to establish baselines and monitor changes in order to prove that the strategies have been effective and that the school is improving.
Effective software enables senior management teams to benchmark themselves against key performance indicators as outlined in their school improvement plan. So the school can check that it is continually improving or can highlight when issues become a cause for concern.
With the process of school self evaluation and 24 hour Ofsted inspections it is imperative for a school to know where they are at any point in time and be able to provide evidence of progress and improvement brought about by actions that they have put in place. A powerful, centralised data store with easy access for those who need it is the mainstay of good school management at all levels.
Facility from Serco centres on a single database that stores attendance, behaviour, assessment, progress and personal data about each child. Information can be extracted in a simple-to-understand format through the web interface ePortal.
All stakeholders can have their own, secure log-in through ePortal so they can reach information tailored to their needs at any time from any web-enabled computer. Teachers have access to data on each class, year heads to sections of the school, heads and managers can reach summaries and overviews or drill down to specifics.
Parents can check that their children are in school, inspect behaviour reports, or monitor academic progress. In addition they can see details of their child's timetable and lessons, examples of work, share their curriculum or learning objectives and view homework tasks through the Facility Learning Platform.
That gives parents the power they desire to take an active part in their children's education, promoting a greater sense of involvement and engagement.
