You would think that providing timely information would be just the thing to get you applauded. However, as the song from Porgy and Bess tells us, it ain’t necessarily so. It really all depends on what the information is, and to whom you’re making it available.
Read MorePlanning a digital strategy without a planned budget
In my experience, few headteachers feel comfortable about a rolling commitment to spending money in a particular area, and even if they do sign up to the idea, circumstances can change.
Read More4 Reasons that doing IT on the cheap is an error of judgement UPDATED
I’ve read about schools beating the budget blues by building their own visualisers, interactive whiteboards and computers. In my opinion these measures are a mistake. When it comes to education technology, the focus should be on value for money and cost-effectiveness rather than simply saving money.
Read More
Photo by Stevepb on pixabay.com. Licence: CCO
Creating a culture of innovation, part 5: Budgets
In part 5 of this series on creating a culture of innovation, we consider another aspect of delegation, and a special type of fund.
Read More
Picture from pixabay.com Licence: CCO
More money for computing -- but how much?
More money for training teachers of Computing -- woo hoo! But is it in millions or billions?
Read More7 reasons to have a Computing wishlist
How do you decide what to spend money on when it comes to ed tech? Do you have a list of things you’d like to buy, or do you decide on an ad hoc basis when you read review of software and so on? Do you know how you would spend a small amount, like £10, or do you take the view that unless you’re allowed to spend at least £500 you don’t want to know?N is for … New Technology: 5 Reasons You Should Buy It
I suffer from an unfortunate form of doublethink. In my personal life, I tend not to be an early early adopter. That’s because I rarely have an urgent need for whatever it is the new technology has to offer. However, when I was head of department in a school, and then when I ran a team of advisors and technical support staff in a local authority, I was very keen to spend money on brand new stuff.
Why?
4 Reasons why doing IT on the cheap is an error of judgement
I’ve read about schools beating the budget blues by building their own visualisers, interactive whiteboards and computers. In my opinion these measures are a mistake, for the following reasons:
Managing ICT on a budget
Tomorrow evening, at 7 pm UK time, I’ll be hosting a discussion on managing ICT on a budget. If you have any top tips you’d like to share, or are looking for some ideas on how to make your budget go further, why not pop along?
Read MoreCity Learning Centres: The end?
Becta. The Harnessing Technology grant. Building Schools for the Future. The once-familiar landmarks of the English educational technology landscape are disappearing or gone. The indications are that they are being followed by City Learning Centres. These CLCs, set up around a decade ago to both provide facilities for local businesses and serve as beacons of innovation and excellence to the schools in a locality, are being closed down, threatened with closure, or reduced in staffing and funding. The question is, though: should we mourn?
Budgeting for educational technology
When the Principal chewed me out for having put in a purchase order for toner cartridges, I guessed that was probably not the best time to present to him my refurbishment plan which involved buying interactive whiteboards. The school was generous in its funding of ICT, but I had been given only a consumables budget, not a capital one. This made planning ahead almost impossible.
Read More25 ways to make yourself unpopular: #2 Provide timely information
You would think that providing timely information would be just the thing to get you applauded. However, as the song from Porgy and Bess tells us, it ain’t necessarily so. It really all depends on what the information is, and to whom you’re making it available.
Technology and the Budget
I haven't looked into these claims, but according to the Department for Children, Schools and Families, there's a lot of money to be saved through the use of technology:
- £650 million from greater use of collaborative procurement in schools. DCSF will provide support to schools through its procurement programme, enabling schools to use secure electronic procurement through the Educational Procurement Centre. DCSF will also support up to 250 groups of mainly primary schools each year to benefit from a shared schools business manager.
- £50 million through schools lowering energy usage, using energy display meters which will be available to all schools that want them, enabling schools to typically reduce energy consumption by between 5 and 15 per cent.
On the first point, there has been quite a lot said recently about Gordon Brown, the Pime Minister, wanting to increase the facilities offered by government departments to enable people to conduct their business with officialdom over the internet. Again, I haven't delved into it, but at first glance it seems like a welcome development to me. There is little more depressing and time-consuming than waiting in line in a government building, trying to get something done: doing it online is a far better prospect.
I have serious doubts about the idea of energy meters. I can imagine kids (especially boys) wanting to see how far they can make the number rise! I can see such things working in a domestic environment, where the effect of doing X on energy consumption is fairly immediately apparent, and where everyone has a personal interest in using the information to reduce energy consumption. But in a school environment? I have my doubts.
I'd be interested to hear what others think of this idea.