Scottish Government

Progress with the use of ICT in learning and teaching (provided by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education ( HMIE))

Primary schools

• The majority of primary schools had an area set aside for group work on computers, most of which gave improved pupil access to ICT resources.
• The majority of schools had a programme for ICT in place, often following a scheme developed by the education authority.
• In most schools the teaching of ICT was good or very good but overall too few primary schools ensured that systematic and reliable records of pupil's achievements in ICT were in place.
• Pupils in almost all schools made good use of word processing and pupils at all stages could access information on CD-Rom and the internet.
• Only a few schools had developed effective procedures for assessing the quality of the pupil's experience of ICT.

Secondary schools

• In most secondary schools, the ratio of computers to pupils was in line with national expectations and the majority of schools had established one or more computer suites.
• Most schools provided S1/S2 pupils with a basic course in ICT skills and from S3 onwards, the development of ICT skills was restricted largely to business education, computing and technical education departments.
• Teachers were found to be making greater use of ICT in their teaching and this had a positive impact on pupil motivation and engagement.
• A number of secondary schools inspected were now using ICT effectively in their administration, communication and guidance systems.

Further education

• Colleges continued to enhance the ICT resources available for teaching and learning.
• Student use of the internet was extensive and college-sponsored use of e-mail was growing.
• Colleges continued to increase the range of certificated learning in ICT.
• Little progress had been made in delivering programmes through virtual learning environments.
• College intranets were becoming significant carriers of learning materials and access to web-based resources.
• A number of SFEFC-sponsored ICT projects had provided gains for the FE sector.

Communities

• The availability of ICT-based learning facilities in libraries, learning centres and other community venues continued to increase.
• The use of ICT was widespread and increasing in both adult learning and work with young people.
• ICT played a role in effectively supporting learning and teaching.