- Funding Programme
- Year
- 2021
Digital transformation in the Flemish education system: reforming ICT teams at school
The European Commission supported the Flemish Department of Education and Training in the development of a strategy and guidelines to support schools in primary, secondary and adult education with the transition towards effective use of ICT for teaching and learning.
Context
The focus was on raising the profile and competences of ICT coordinators, a school-based role created in 2003 but often lacking effectiveness and coherence in practice.
At present, many ICT coordinators report being alone with the responsibility for a broad range of ICT tasks at their school. Other schools have already switched to a more valuable model of ICT teams in which, besides the ICT coordinator, other colleagues also take on tasks, such as learning environment management, social media coordination, media coaching, etc. At the same time, technical, pedagogical, and administrative ICT tasks are more evenly distributed allowing to share the workload more effectively and to develop and attract specialists with different profiles. Such a model is also in keeping with modern forms of distributive, team-based school leadership.
The goal of the reform was therefore to enable schools to develop team-based approaches towards ICT co-ordination and digital education.
Support delivered
The European Commission engaged the services of an international consulting agency to implement the project in close co-operation with the Flemish authorities, more specifically the Knowledge Centre for the Digisprong (‘Digital leap’) initiative, which is part of the Flemish Department for Education and Training. The project team consisted of both international and Belgian experts thus combining European expertise with thorough knowledge of the Flemish education system. Project activities included a mapping of the current state of play of ICT co-ordination at Flemish schools, and peer exchanges with governments from other EU Member States (Spain, Portugal, Estonia, Netherlands). In close consultation of stakeholders such as the Flemish education networks and association of ICT co-ordinators, the project developed guidance materials for schools, and pilot tested them in selected schools across Flanders. The materials were presented to school staff through roadshow events in all Flemish provinces.
Results achieved
Key results of the project include practical tools for schools to use, and recommendations to the policy level on the implementation of the reform:
- A task overview for ICT coordinators that clearly defines what ICT coordination entails, that can contribute to strengthening the position of ICT coordinators and that can support the evolution towards team-based ICT functioning.
- A study of the characteristics of strong ICT teams with the aim of proposing a new model of team-based ICT coordination.
- A set of guidelines for more team-oriented ICT coordination at school.
- Policy recommendations on the implementation of the new tools.
On 19 October 2023, results of the project were presented and discussed at the Education Committee of the Flemish Parliament receiving positive feedback from Members.
The results will guide planned investments and recruitments under the Flemish Digisprong initiative for digital education, which were initially funded through NextGenerationEU under the Belgian Resilience and Recovery Plan, and are now being continued with funding from the Flemish authorities.
Useful links
Project website (in Dutch, with additional links to EN versions of the project reports): https://www.vlaanderen.be/kenniscentrum-digisprong/themas/ict-coordinatie/digitale-transformatie-in-het-vlaamse-onderwijssysteem-hervorming-van-ict-teams-op-school
Direct link to EN versions of the project reports: https://www.vlaanderen.be/kenniscentrum-digisprong/themas/ict-coordinatie/digitale-transformatie-in-het-vlaamse-onderwijssysteem-hervorming-van-ict-teams-op-school#reports-english-version
Project video (EN version):https://www.vlaanderen.be/kenniscentrum-digisprong/themas/ict-coordinatie/digitale-transformatie-in-het-vlaamse-onderwijssysteem-hervorming-van-ict-teams-op-school#projectvideo-english-version
More about the project
You can read the documents related to the project here: