Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 10 July 2012
177 Deputy Regina Doherty asked the Minister for Education and Skills the position regarding the policy of implementing the smart school initiative that every classroom here is to get a teaching laptop, software and digital projector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33476/12]
View answerBetween November 2009 and November 2010, my Department distributed some €92m directly to schools and VECs under the national ICT Infrastructure Grant Scheme. The main priority under this scheme is the equipping of each classroom with a teaching computer and digital projector. Once the baseline is in place schools can allocate any remaining funding under the scheme to other ICT equipment and software for educational use. A number of key support measures were taken to help schools get best value in the use of these devolved grants — in particular, the inclusion of schools in national purchasing frameworks for desktops, laptops, digital projectors and printers, the delivery of a national series of e-learning seminars for school leaders, and the provision of extensive guidance and training on the use of ICT in the classroom.
My officials are currently examining ways of assessing the impact of this funding. A survey will be carried out in the Autumn which will ascertain the availability of infrastructure and the integration of ICT in teaching, learning and assessment. Ireland's levels of ICT integration will be also benchmarked against international comparisons.
