The Dept of Education & Skills has announced a €200 million project to upgrade the ICT capabilities of Irish schools. The five-year digital strategy seeks to upgrade the state’s 4,000 primary and secondary schools, allocating €7,500 per school to spend as they see fit.
“This investment is long overdue, given that schools have received no State funding for computers and other IT equipment in the last five years,” said Clive Byrne, director of the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals (NADP).
“Providing an education system and a curriculum that truly reflects the digital era is crucial. Last year saw Ireland introduce coding for the Junior Certificate cycle. Students can choose to learn how to create code for short programming tasks and build Web pages. This is an important first step in ensuring pupils are equipped with important skills for their future careers. We now need to identify the best ways of ensuring ICT and coding is also incorporated into the Leaving Cert cycle, in order to ensure students are truly ready to enter third level and the workforce.
“To ensure the digital strategy can be successful, continuous professional development and upskilling for the teaching body is crucial. Moreover, schools need to be equipped with the right infrastructure and while we welcome the commitment to bring high-speed Wi-Fi to every school in the country, it’s important that we can walk before we run. Broadband connectivity for schools right around the country needs to be prioritised first. It’s vital that this deficit, particularly prevalent at primary level, is addressed in the first instance.”
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