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Bright horizons for Education Technology through 2020

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Education technology, or EdTech, is becoming increasingly embedded in every level of our education system. The growing EdTech revolution can be seen in classrooms and lecture theatres around the world, but the British government is proving to be among the most proactive in supporting its development and implementation.

The Department for Education recently published its strategy report for education providers and the EdTech industry, paving the way for unprecedented progress through 2019 and 2020. Given that we work with some of the world’s leading EdTech brands, we’ve spent the time digesting the (rather lengthy) report, so that we can bring you the three major takeaways…


Developing the infrastructure to support EdTech implementation and use

We live in an increasingly connected world. That said, some schools and colleges suffer from poor internet connectivity which hampers their ability to use EdTech seamlessly in the classroom. Despite a top-level government initiative to achieve nationwide full-fibre connectivity by 2033, the Department for Education have pledged funding to help hundreds of the most affected schools to reach this within the next two years.

The Department for Education has also identified cloud-based systems as a key resource for increased security, cheaper running costs, ease of work-sharing and remote access.


Providing educators with the skills and confidence to use EdTech resources

Some of the largest barriers to the adoption of digital technologies are teacher confidence, willingness and adequate training. The Department for Education is setting up a network of ‘demonstrator’ institutions to show good practice and online training courses to build skills and confidence in educators.


Promoting innovation and investment into the EdTech industry

The Department for Education has published a set of ten challenge objectives which it hopes the industry will solve by 2021, for example: ‘“Improve parental engagement and communication, whilst cutting related teacher workload by up to five hours per term.”

There will be innovation competitions related to these challenges to promote product development where solutions are lacking. These involve potential investment and access for EdTech producers to pilot programs and tester institutions for their products.

 

A positive landscape for Education Technology

The enthusiasm of the Department for Education towards EdTech combined with the innovation on display from producers and education institutions alike point to a brilliant few years of growth for Education Technology. Effective support is being put in place for educators, providers, SME’s and customers in such a way that educational outcomes and business are set to benefit.

The education technology space promises to be hugely exciting through 2020, and institutions looking to innovate their classrooms will have no shortage of options at their disposal. If you’ve got a spare half hour, you can read the full report here, and if you’d like to pick our brains on how best to approach PR and marketing in the EdTech space, drop us a line.

TMPR at Bett

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Last month, the TMPR team took a trip to London to attend the Bett (British Educational Training and Technology) Show. For one of our clients Promethean, it is an event that is 365 days in planning, every year. This was my first time at Bett, so I was keen to explore the new and existing products on the education market as well as see the year-long plan come together for Promethean.

In the ExCel in London, the Bett Show showcases everything that is new and exciting in the world of EdTech, so this year I went to see what Promethean had to offer and to explore the new innovations coming to market!

From robots, to entirely interactive lessons – the technology wasn’t like this when I was in school! It was interesting to see how technology is being embraced in the classroom and used to better enhance the learning materials available to students.

On stand, Promethean were looking to teachers and students to share their #ClassroomStories in their video booth. In a hunt for inspiring, funny or motivational memories, a Promethean ActivPanel was up for grabs for the winning story!

Also, I was lucky enough to have a chat with Sergey Karjakin, the youngest ever chess Grandmaster, who has been working with Promethean to promote chess in the classroom. Recently made compulsory in Moscow, Sergey was talking about the benefits of chess and how it can help children improve their logic.

Exclusively, for VIPs, Promethean also had preview demonstrations available in the Platinum Suite of the next version of ActivPanel that is currently in development – so watch this space!