Vol. 512 No. 8
139 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Education and Science if he will give details of the central support services provided by his Department to assist schools in operating and maintaining their computer resources; and if he will extend the scale and scope of these services to ensure that the substantial investment is used effectively within schools. [27353/99]
The National Centre for Technology in Education, NCTE, is developing a central support service to assist schools in operating and maintaining their computer resources. A schools help-line has been put in place at 1850 70 40 40 and a team of 20 IT advisers has also been put in place in the 20 full-time education centres. In addition, the NCTE is currently developing models for support at local level. These include SIP and other pilot projects specifically examining models to assist schools in operating and maintaining their ICT resources.
My Department has recently commissioned an expert study to examine future development of ICT in education and the potential implications for learning and teaching. This study will also provide information which will help in the further development of ICT support services for schools.
