The National Grid for Learning Progress Report Three
Chapter 4: Learning and Teaching Scotland and the NGfL Scotland Team
The NGfL Scotland team, appointed in 1999, and based within Learning and Teaching Scotland (LT Scotland), plays a vital role in the NGfL Scotland initiative. It provides key curriculum and technology advice and has a remit which relates closely to the NGfL Scotland goals and the National Priorities.
The team is managed by the LT Scotland Director of ICT and Learning and has been further strengthened in 2002/2003 by the addition of a number of content editors and development officers with responsibilities for particular projects such as Masterclass and Connecting Communities. This year the team has also been joined by a liaison officer charged with the task of strengthening links between NGfL and Becta ( www.becta.org.uk).
The work of the NGfL Scotland team covers the three key areas of infrastructure, staff development and the provision of educational content. The team works with people involved in early years education and school education, as well as working with the community capacity building sector through a range of projects designed to support informal and lifelong learning.
The infrastructure role involves working to encourage partnership and collaboration to avoid duplication of effort and funding across education sectors. At present, a member of the NGfL Scotland team is seconded to provide specialist support to the rollout across Scotland of the Scottish Schools Digital Network (SSDN), ( www.ssdn.org.uk).
The NGfL Scotland team continues to provide advice and support on the latest available technologies and how they may be used to enhance the delivery and hosting of content within the evolving SSDN network environment.
The focus of the Staff Development role has changed from a concentration on the New Opportunities Fund (NOF) training for teachers and school librarians to Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and the development of communities of interest supported by online collaborative working environments. 2002/2003 has seen the successful creation of the Masterclass initiative and the Heads Together online community. A future development will be the development of a Masterclass initiative for early years practitioners.
Through its Content role, the NGfL Scotland initiative stimulates and supports the production and availability of high quality educational content and web services on a range of websites. However CD-ROM multimedia products are still created when that is the most appropriate medium. During 2002/2003 much work has been carried out on the Digital Content Procurement process, in order to develop efficient needs identification for content and to establish a framework of companies able to provide a range of products and services to meet the needs of learners and teachers.
The Communities role is to develop and extend the use of ICT to promote lifelong learning, social inclusion and the enhancement of the school and family learning process. NGfL Scotland is currently managing a two-year programme called Connecting Communities, which aims to train 2,500 community practitioners by March 2004. The dissemination of information is vital to the Communities role.
The Web Services role involves managing the effective design, construction and delivery of a range of online resources for learners and practitioners ( www.ltscotland.org.uk/ngflscotland/). At the same time the team ensures that the service complies with all relevant national initiatives and policies. Integration of the LT Scotland, NGfL Scotland and the Scottish Virtual Teachers' Centre websites under the one URL (www.ltscotland.org.uk) is currently ongoing. All the LT Scotland website templates now adhere to accessibility guidelines for people with disabilities. The NGfL Scotland team is also developing additional interactive web services which more closely match the needs of its disparate user groups.
The NGfL Information Service role is important in order to disseminate information about the NGfL Scotland initiative and promote its use across all sectors of education and lifelong learning in Scotland. Communication of relevant information and findings of NGfL events and projects is through Connected magazine ( www.ltscotland.org.uk/connected/). The magazine promotes practical applications of ICT for learning and teaching and has a growing reputation as a forum for controversy and lively discussion over the role of ICT. It is produced three times a year, with a circulation of 35,000 and is available as an e-zine on the NGfL website.
The NGfL Scotland e-mail bulletin ( www.ltscotland.org.uk/ngflscotland/emailbulletin/index.asp) is distributed each week, providing free news and updates on developments in education and ICT to several thousand subscribers. It is copied to many more readers and is now a well-established means of disseminating information and encouraging participation. Four new monthly e-mail bulletins have also been established, focusing on Digital Inclusion (www.ltscotland.org.uk/communities//email_bulletin.asp), Early Years (www.ltscotland.org.uk/earlyyears/Emailbulletin.asp), National Qualifications (www.ltscotland.org.uk/nq/emailbulletin.asp) and 5-14 news (www.ltscotland.org.uk/5to14/emailbulletin.asp)
The NGfL Information Service responds to the NGfL enquiries helpline (0141 337 5117) and e-mail box ( ngfl@LTScotland.org.uk). It has been well used, with more than 500 enquiries from September 2002 to August 2003, on a wide variety of questions. During 2003/2004 a system will be developed to log, track and catalogue the enquiries and use the information to develop a Frequently Asked Questions service on the NGfL Scotland website.
Additional information services include maintaining and updating the Scottish Schools Online public database, accessed via Parentzone ( www.parentzonescotland.gov.uk/), and now containing school examination results.
NGfL Scotland staff frequently attend and speak at conferences and seminars on the progress and developments in ICT and learning and teaching. These events continue to provide a forum for information exchange and discussion about NGfL Scotland services.