Digital Learning

Encouraging Excellence with Digital Schools Awards

Schools need more than a good wi-fi connection and ICT lab to ensure students have opportunities to thrive and compete in today’s digital economy. Anna Doody and Ann-Marie Whelan report on a new initiative in Scotland that is helping schools maximise their digital potential and develop a whole-school digital framework to support innovation in learning.
Young pupils with tablets

A critical challenge facing the education sector is how to ensure that schools are developing the capacities of young people to take advantage of opportunities in the growing digital economy. In addition to preparing students for modern-day careers, effective use of digital technologies can also support a range of educational and social objectives, from enabling pupils of all abilities to learn at their own pace to helping teachers bring lessons to life through new and exciting techniques and encouraging students to explore and learn in ways that unlock their own creativity and understanding. 

The Digital Schools Award scheme was launched across Scotland in September 2016 by HP, Microsoft and Intel, run in partnership with Education Scotland and Skills Development Scotland to support schools trying to use technology more effectively in the learning environment. Open, and free, to all primary and secondary schools, the programme provides a roadmap and resources to schools that want to optimise their use of digital in the classroom. It recognises schools that demonstrate best practice and supports the efforts of those trying to maximise their digital potential.  

To achieve the award, schools must show that they have set out and adopted a whole-school digital strategy, that they are committed to ongoing professional education for teachers and provide evidence of how digital technologies are being used to enhance learning. 

The Digital Schools Award framework aims to help schools improve their digital approach in several areas, including Leadership and Vision, Digital Technology for Learning and Teaching, School Culture, Professional Development and Resources and Infrastructure. The framework targets whole-school deployment, as well as individual teaching and learning, to ensure digital technology is not focused on one person or department. Schools must achieve 70 per cent on a self-assessment questionnaire to be eligible for the award.  

At the beginning of May, 38 schools were officially awarded Digital School status, joining 43 that achieved accreditation last year. Among them were the first three secondary schools to achieve the award. 

Gryffe High School – Prioritising the Digital

As a starting point for participating in the Digital Schools Awards programme, Gryffe High School – a progressive secondary with over 80 teachers and more than 960 pupils – put together a digital team of staff and identified the school’s main priority areas. A key task for the team was to develop a digital policy, which has put a strong focus on staff CPD and investment in additional ICT rooms and the provision of laptops and tablets. 

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