The Challenge Ahead: Information Technology in the Primary School Curriculum

The information technology (IT) revolution brought unprecedented opportunities to primary teaching. The communications explosion in the outside world rendered the ability to handle large amounts of information, the most crucial of life skills. However, the use of microcomputers in the classroom had been haphazard, and the introduction of IT requirements to the National Curriculum at the time demanded a more confident and coherent approach. First published in 1993, The Challenge Ahead tackles issues which may have impeded the progress of IT in some areas of primary teaching and discusses the concerns which many people had about the impact of these developments on children’s lives. Through case studies, the authors show how the development of learning processes can be enhanced and how IT can transform the learning experience of children with special needs. The contributors are united in the aim of the true educator: to assist all children in becoming independent thinkers and independent learners. IT, if used wisely, will bring us nearer to fulfilling that aim.