Making the leap: technology at the heart of policy reform
Patrick Brazier
Patrick became Chief Executive in August 2017 having been Director of Education Services. Having spent his career to date delivering life-changing education programmes around the world, Patrick's vision is for Education Development Trust to continue to deliver on its mission and transform even more lives around the world by improving education. He is rigorous in ensuring that our work meets our exacting values of excellence, integrity, collaboration and accountability – and that we work hand in hand with our clients to ensure the impact of our work is long term and sustainable.
28 November 2019
Our Chief Executive, Patrick Brazier, addressed government leaders during the annual Innovation Africa conference recently in Accra, Ghana. Alongside Ghana’s Deputy Minister of Education, Honourable Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum, Patrick discussed the potential of education technology in school systems.
Whilst technology has the potential to enhance almost every aspect of a school system, there have been multiple failures in past reforms. Simply providing technology to students and teachers is not enough; the wider methodology and format of training also need be considered.
Strong evidence tells us that an individually tailored learning experience within education technology can significantly improve learning levels. It’s also worth considering what will be expected of teachers as a result of the education technology and training provided, and then to be clear with teachers what the expected outcomes are.
Also, it is important to look at how curriculums might need to evolve in order to support computer science, not only in development of students’ technical understanding but to realise the additional potential this type of education can have on other valuable skills such as problem-solving and thinking skills.