Action Enquiry for School Improvement ISM3205

SID 01652831/1

Computer Supported Collaborative WorkEnvironments:

A critical evaluation of student experience

ISM 3205 SID 01652831/1 2002

Action Enquiry for School Improvement ISM3205

SID 01652831/1

Research Area:

ICTs and their impact on education.

Research Focus:

A critical analysis of Computer Supported Collaborative environments (CSC),their use in student motivation and learning experience.

Title:Computer Supported Collaborative Work Environments:

A critical evaluationof student experience

Rationale:

The increasing pressure from all parties to use ICT effectively in the classroomand to ‘skill’ the flexible workforce of tomorrow is felt by all teachers. The recentgovernment initiatives such as the National Grid For Learning (Ngfl) andpublications such as ‘Connecting the learning society’ and ‘Transforming the waywe learn’ all point to case studies where ICT is used to great effect to enhancelearning and bring a wealth of resources into the classroom. The present andpast governments high hopes for a new education system with ICT at its heart isexpressed in these documents.

Action Enquiry for School Improvement ISM3205

SID 01652831/1

‘We intend to lift educational standards in Britain to the level of the best in theworld. This will mean making the most of technological change. Technology hasrevolutionized the way we work and now is set to transformeducation….Standards, literacy, numeracy, subject knowledge – all will beenhanced by the Grid and the support it will give to our programme for school improvement’

(Blair 1997)The present Labour government has put together a series of strategies to try tointegrate ICT into the education system. Leask (1998), as part of the TeachernetUK initiative, lists many strategies, which encourage whole system change atLocal, National and School level:

Local EducationAuthority (Lea)Department for Education and Science(Dfes)Internal schoolprocesses