download ETAG reflections and recommendations here

ETAG

ETAG, the Education Technology Action Group was set up in February 2014 by three English ministers: Michael Gove, Matthew Hancock and David Willetts, chaired by Professor Stephen Heppell, and followed on from good work done by the DfE Further Education Learning Technology Action (FELTAG) Group. ETAG's wide remit covers schools, colleges and universities. Our conclusions and wide ranging recommendations have been both widely and favourably reported.

"Fundamentally, we concluded that the use of digital technology in education is not optional.

Competence with digital technology to find information, to create, to critique and share knowledge, is an essential contemporary skill set. It belongs at the heart of education. Learners should receive recognition for their level of mastery; teachers and lecturers should too.

Digital technology can and should bring joy and engagement: a delight in stellar progress, the exhilaration of unexpected challenges, some playfulness, the reaffirmation of a global audience.

Some things will need to move over, to be dropped, to change and to vary to allow all this to happen. We are calling for everyone to play their part in enabling this progress".

Although as we worked, our three ministers were moved on form their posts - such is politics - we were pleased that our report in all it's detail was warmly welcomed and embraced by the new Secretary of State for Education at the London BETT Show in 2015. Below is a graphic which represented our ETAG brief (drawn by ETAG member Brian Mathers)

But more formally our remit said:

"The Education Technology Action Group ETAG will aim to best support the agile evolution of the FE, HE and schools sectors in anticipation of disruptive technology for the benefit of learners, employers & the UK economy"

...and we were also asked to identify any barriers to the growth of innovative learning technology that have been put in place (inadvertently or otherwise) by the Governments, as well as thinking about ways that these barriers can be broken down.

In effect, Ministers want to know what we need to do to help grow the use of technology in learning, to make learning better. The word fun was mentioned too, three times!. We had an action plan, and after a year of work, produced a set of reflections with some very clear recommendations.

ETAG core membership:

ETAG's exceptional core membership were chosen to reflect a vast range of experience, and were active across the education and technology sectors including, of course, some oustanding current teachers.

• Professor Stephen Heppell (Chair) – Bournemouth University and UCJC Madrid,
• Mark Chambers – Naace
• Ian Fordham – The Education Foundation
• James Penny – European Electronique
• Maren Deepwell – ALT
• Professor Diana Laurillard – Institute of Education, University of London
• Stephen Wright – Federation of Awarding Bodies
• Phil Richards – Jisc
• David Hughes – NIACE
• Bryan Mathers – City & Guilds
• Bob Harrison – Education adviser for Toshiba Information Systems UK Ltd
• David Brown – Ofsted National Lead for ICT
• Professor Peter Twining – Open University
• Pauline Odulinski – Education Training Foundation
• Professor Angela McFarlane – College of Teachers
• Karen Price and Niel McLean – E-Skills UK
• Geoff Mulgan – Nesta
• Dominic Savage – BESA
• Dawn Hallybone – Oakdale Junior School
• Lizzie Noel – New Schools Network
• Gary Spracklen – IPACA
• Ben Rowland – Agilis Arch
• Oliver Quinlan – Nesta

You can monitor #etag in Twitter too.

much welcome, and we,coming, media cover age - see for examaple this useful summary blog comment by Merlin John

this www page created by Stephen Heppell on Wednesday, February 6, 2014 2:37 AM and last updated Friday, January 7, 2022 12:28 PM