Good Practice - Case Study

Round Diamond

School No: 157

Advanced Technologies - Innovations

Section of a film produced by children to support historical research:

Hertfordshire school puts others in the picture about the future of education….

Charles Clarke, the Secretary of State for Education, has clearly put Information and Communication Technology (ICT) at the heart of educational policy. In a recent speech to a national education conference (BETT 2003), he asserted his belief that "ICT enhances the process and the product of education", and stressed the governments commitment to raising standards in schools through the use of ICT in subject learning.

Hertfordshire schools are already taking up the challenge of using technologies to raise standards, and are drawing national attention for their innovative use of ICT.

National recognition for the use of ICT

Round Diamond Primary School in Stevenage is one of the Hertfordshire schools which is rapidly gaining national interest for their innovative use of technologies. Recently, the school was the subject of an article in the Guardian. The article, which focussed on national good practice, highlighted the school’s successful use of ICT to support Literacy.

ICT co-ordinator Paul Turner at BETT 2003

Prize winning innovation

The school invests heavily in technology, purchasing computers and software, as well as funding courses at Wheathampstead Development Centre to ensure staff remain highly skilled and informed about the potential of ICT. They have also looked for external support of their ICT development. Last year, the co-ordinator applied to join a digital video pilot project, which was being run by BECTA, the public body appointed to provide support, research and leadership on educational ICT.

The bid was successful, and the school took delivery of an Apple computer and multimedia equipment, which they were asked trial for a year. This was soon put to good use. Children throughout the school have experimented with the use of film and animation across the curriculum. Some projects really stimulated pupils. Year 2 pupils created excellent films on the local area, and year 6 pupils used film making to support development in RE. The latter was so successful, the school were able to win the Hertfordshire’s Outstanding Innovation Award at this year’s ICT conference. A double celebration was on the cards at the school when the Year 6 teacher, Debbie Potter, scooped the Runner Up prize in the Key Stage 2 Best Practice competition! Doug Dickinson, a key figure in educational ICT, was able to present the school with their trophies, and clearly expressed his delight at the work of the school.

‘Distinguished Educators’ at National Conferences

The school is now moving to embrace yet more initiatives to ensure that learning continues to be an inspiring, exciting process at the school. Paul has recently attended an LEA course on the use of interactive animation software, and has been exploring the use of animation to support subjects. Paul sent examples of exploratory pupil work to the software manufacturers, which impressed them so much that the school was asked to attend two national conferences to give a pupil demonstrations of the school’s work to ICT professionals. These were extremely successful, with the children’s’ seminars drawing attendees from all over the country.

The school has also recently contacted Apple computers, to inform them of their school’s good practice in ICT. The company were interested in developing links with Hertfordshire schools, and are now considering identifying two of the school’s teachers as ‘Apple Distinguished Educators’. This would facilitate the development of the school’s expertise, and provide opportunities for the staff to share it with local schools.

Sharing a vision for ICT raising pupil achievement

The school has worked hard to gain this national recognition for its good practice. The Headteacher, Deborah Godbold, and the ICT co-ordinator, Paul Turner, have put the use of ICT at the heart of the school’s practice. Teachers are encouraged to use a range of technologies to support their pupils learning, and to share their ideas and expertise with other members of staff.

OFSTED recently confirmed the belief of staff at the school that their dedication and innovative use of ICT is having a huge effect on pupil motivation and standards in the school. This excellent, innovative use of technologies is being seen across the county, and Hertfordshire is clearly being recognised as a national source of best practice in the use of ICT.