Tools of the (ICT) trade

In the run-up to ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN 2011, a series of pre-conference workshops will be held at the Hotel InterContinental Berlin on Wednesday November 30th. Each of these workshops presents a fresh look at ICTs, e-learning, or new learning cultures, and the speakers will be sharing their insight, expertise and research findings. Anyone involved in ICT planning and implementation in the education sector will find the Tools & Frameworks for Assessing and Developing ICT Competencies and Standards for Teachers workshop to be particularly enlightening.

Mary Hooker, the workshop leader, has worked in the public education sector for over thirty years – first in Ireland and then for 17 years in Africa. She is currently Research Manager at the Global e-Schools and Communities Initiative (GeSCI), a not-for-profit organisation helping developing countries to formulate sound strategies for integrating more ICTs into their education systems. Working with the UNESCO ICT Competency Framework for Teachers (ICT-CFT), Hooker has created a toolkit for the assessment of ICT strategies and standards in mainstream schools, technical schools and vocational education and training institutions.

Mary Hooker

Hooker calls for the prioritisation of ICT competence in teachers. Since ICTs are an integral part of life in the 21st century, institutions and individuals need to produce and gather information easily in what we call “the knowledge society.” Teaching methods must catch up with the digital age to equip students for the knowledge-based market place of tomorrow. This is the task that faces our teachers. The ICT-CFT outlines the expected standards of competence that will be needed for pre-service, in-service, and qualified teachers. The required ICT knowledge, skills, and behaviours are specified in the framework document, to some extent harmonising the assessment of teacher competence on an international scale.

Having considered the issues from a global perspective, Hooker has also looked at case studies in Tanzania and Nigeria. She presents a case for contextualised ICT competencies for educators and trainers.  The toolkit developed for lecturers, trainers and teachers includes points that require critical reflection by education policy planners in government ministries and in institutions of higher education, research and consultancy.

This workshop includes a plenary session and group work. Important sessions include a practical simulation session on the need for contextualising teacher assessment and teacher development. Details on how to sign up for this and the other ONLINE EDUCA BERLIN 2011 workshops are available on the registration page.