Harnessing Technology for Every Child Matters and Personalised Learning

Services for Children are changing in many ways, not least schools: new ones are being built; more practitioners fulfil diverse roles; the testing and assessment regime is changing; and new technologies enable us to teach pupils both well-established and completely new curriculum areas, in ways that are more engaging. Underpinning these transformations are three core policies: 'Every Child Matters,' 'Personalised Learning,' and 'Harnessing Technology.' Combined, they are at the heart of changes to children and young peoples' experiences of school. This book considers these policies and their interlinked relationship, making it an essential resource for training and practicing teachers, school leaders, and all those involved in educational transformation. To achieve the five outcomes of the 'Every Child Matters' agenda requires an approach that is pupil centred, with developments in new technologies making it possible to not only understand each individual more precisely, but also for them to learn in more flexible and personalised ways. Through innovations such as web based information sharing, learning platforms and e-portfolios, schools will be able to offer content appropriate to pupil's personal goals, breaching conventional orthodoxies of time and place. How far these policies will transform schools and services for children and young people remains to be seen. Consideration is given to the barriers to their success, the issues that impinge upon them, and questions asked about their capacity to bring about long-term, systemic, change.