Information and digital literacy in education via the digital path

Developing Enabling Policies for Digital and Open Teaching and Learning Resources shared at EdTech Winter Conference 2021 Prepared by: Catherine Cronin Short link to this document: http://bit.ly/Enabling-Policies-EdTechIE21 The National Forum ‘Guide to Developing Enabling Policies for Digital and Open Teaching and Learning.

We know that teachers matter more to student achievement than any other school-related factor, including services, facilities and leadership. Yet for years we’ve forced teachers to work in a system that values testing over teaching, resulting in little to no change in student achievement.

Blended Learning is not so much an innovation as it is a natural by-product of the digital domain creeping into physical spaces.

Broadly speaking, blended learning just means a mix of learning online and face-to-face, which means it’s likely your students are already doing some form of blended learning, and have for years.

As digital and social media become more and more prevalent in the life of learners, it was only a matter of time before learning became ‘blended’ by necessity.

In March 2020, UK higher education embarked on a sudden shift to digital learning. In the vast majority of cases, it wasn’t a designed and fully realised transformation of teaching and learning.

It was an emergency response to an unprecedented situation that relied on upskilling staff rapidly enough to enable them to deliver the remainder of their courses, and assess them, in as effective and equitable way as possible. 

The extent of this digital shift, and the tools, techniques and platforms used, varied not only between universities but also within them, depending on the demands of different departments and the confidence and capabilities of the staff.