Smart future: The new education IT strategy will be implemented from the coming school year.

A new education IT strategy will be implemented from the coming school year. It is student-oriented and aims to enhance community-wide support for sustainable development in IT education. Some $211.7 million has been allocated for it.

The Education & Manpower Bureau today issued a policy document titled Empowering Learning & Teaching with Information Technology focusing on the further integration of IT into learning and teaching.

7 strategic goals outlined

The seven strategic goals set in the policy document are:

* empowering learners with IT;

* empowering teachers with IT;

* enhancing school leadership for the knowledge age;

* enriching digital resources for learning;

* improving IT infrastructure and pioneering pedagogy using IT;

* providing continuous research and development; and,

* promoting community-wide support and community building.

For students, an 'information literacy' framework will be developed to set clear targets for the acquisition of the skills, knowledge and attitudes needed for lifelong learning and creative problem solving in the information age.

The bureau will also develop assessment tools for teachers and help develop e-learning platforms in schools.

Professional support for teachers offered

To undertake the challenge of using IT for curriculum and pedagogical innovation, teachers will be given professional development opportunities and support.

Schools will be given the flexibility to allocate resources to support school-based IT plans. All recurrent IT grants for schools will be merged, reducing the constraints on the use of such grants and enlarging the scope of permissible use to allow schools the flexibility to deploy resources.

Dedicated IT leadership training for school principals will be piloted and online communities will be set up to support the training.

IT infrastructure in schools will also be enhanced to better support learning and teaching. Schools will be assisted to upgrade and replace obsolete or unserviceable hardware and migrate to wireless systems.

'Electronic learning credits' scheme to be piloted

Regarding digital resources for learning, incentive schemes will be launched to encourage the private sector to develop quality e-learning materials and software.

An 'electronic learning credits' scheme will also be piloted to encourage schools to acquire electronic and interactive learning materials, and strengthen Education City's role in sourcing, editing and disseminating digital education resources.

To foster community-wide support and community building, partnership with the private sector, non-government organisations and parent-teacher associations will be promoted.

Research and development will be supported to sustain the IT in education strategy and to monitor the effectiveness of IT in education implementation.

For details of the new strategy, click here. Enquiries can be sent to iterc@emb.gov.hk.