"Technology transforms learning roles"

It is a project involving twenty-five countries, organisations and networks that aims to update the way we learn. We believe that leadership in learning should not come from one single person or institution, instead it has to be distributed. We believe that we have to overcome certain barriers that are to be found in education, such as the fact that teachers work in isolation, and not as teams. We have to create educational bodies that also train. For example, where teachers can share strategies, observe how their colleagues work and be observed, criticise and receive criticism, etc. This is all to enrich and improve their work. Teachers have to identify their students' strong and weak points, and redesign the way in which they learn. There is a lack of research into the work of teachers and we cannot access that research which has been done. We need knowledge repositories on their practice so that teachers can access this knowledge to improve and innovate in their work. Yes, I believe in a central learning environment where students can be with their friends. It has been shown to work. There are many schools that work very well and that are innovative. The challenge is for this education to reach all students, not just the lucky few. Yes, but they cannot be the only focus. There have to be other learning environments. Likewise, some students have a disadvantage, because they have a difficult environment at home which does not motivate them to learn. There is a mobile school in Portugal for students who work in circuses, and they can contact their tutors whenever they want via the internet. In Denmark, some schools combine formal education with the non-formal education students get in the workshops of local artists and craftspeople, in theatres, etc. The Institut Escola Jacint Verdaguer in Sant Sadurní d'Anoia is involved in the OECD's Innovative Learning Environments project. It is a pioneering school in the integration of ICTs. Technology has changed the way we teach and learn, and the roles of teachers, students and families. It has gone from being the last on the list for families, as it was during the 1990s, to a priority for them. Students achieve markedly better results than at the rest of Catalan schools and it is being studied by educational professionals due to these good results. (Here is a link to the full project.) Yes, it is vital because it transforms learning roles. It can change the person who is learning and the person who is teaching, improve access to knowledge, collaborative learning, assessment, etc. Yes, it is important that schools use technology as much as possible. It can be used in very different ways, from making films with students to classes via videoconference, Facebook groups, etc. Technology is fantastic for sharing knowledge, and that makes schools more effective and more efficient. There is a project in Colombia where the teachers, instead of travelling to different parts of the country to teach, share their knowledge through ICTs. Schools have to be interested in the digital world, but they do not have to reflect it because the digital world promotes very superficial values, as do most media. If you understand why you learn and how interesting learning can be, you will be more committed to lifelong learning. Likewise, it is important to create a good learning environment from the start in order to create the bases for this desire to learn throughout your life. Stimulate curiosity, enterprise, research, teamwork.... All these concepts are fundamental in learning in the 21st century.