The State of Technology in Education Report 2018-2019

The role of technology in education continues to evolve as new innovations emerge and schools increasingly embed ICT as part of teaching and learning strategies. But how can we effectively map this evolution and monitor trends to help inform future visions?

Now in its third year, our State of Technology in Education Report has established a clear picture of how the educational landscape is changing.

It provides valuable insights into the perspectives of not just school leaders, but also teachers and ICT managers, creating a holistic view of what edtech looks like in UK schools today.

With greater engagement and even more participants than previous years, the 2018 State of Technology in Education report has fast become a reliable and independent resource for benchmarking against peers. It helps us learn more about the potential and impact of edtech across the country.

As an education technology company, Promethean is committed to understanding the current and future needs of schools. We make significant investment in bringing this report to market with the aim of delivering insight, guidance and inspiration. In this year’s findings, over 54% of respondents recognise the potential of edtech in classrooms, and believe that technology is a great way to engage students (more than double what it was in 2016).

This demonstrates that edtech is now firmly embedded in UK classrooms. This brings the need to invest in training to the fore, and probably explains why more school leaders than in previous years have identified staff training as a funding priority.

The prominence of teacher workload in UK education has long been debated, so it’s not surprising that it has emerged as having a negative impact on learning. What is surprising, however, is the gulf of opinion that exists between senior leaders and teachers.

Given that technology in all walks of life is known to save time, simplify processes and spark innovation, could we be better leveraging this potential to ease the workload burden on teachers? These are just some of the main themes which captured my interest. There are many more insights that have come to light in this year’s report. I hope they help to stimulate debate, discussion and possibly support positive change in your own school environments.

Ian Curtis, Promethean Head of Europe, Africa and Australasia