Idea submitted by Guy Giles of Looking Local
There is a range of e-learning portals and online education services which cater to the wide spectrum of learning levels, requirements and capabilities; this is a situation one would expect in light of the maturity of the Internet and with around 70% of the population having access to the web.
However a significant minority of people, in fact 30% of adults in the UK (around 17 million in total) and 35% of families have no to the web access at home. These are often the people who need government services the most, people who would welcome additional support in learning whether informal or more formal.
Whilst there is often Internet access in local libraries and via UK Online centres and Internet cafes/shops, this may not be the ideal setting to undertake education programmes. Online learning can be involved in nature, require multiple and ongoing access, benefit from being undertaken in a peaceful setting and preferably at the learners’ preferred choice of time.
Looking Local specialises in publishing information on digital interactive TV, mobile phones and via consumer electronics that are popular and easy to use, such as the Nintendo Wii. By using these alternative channels we are able to reach into millions of homes and deliver useful, real time, end-to-end services.
Looking Local proposes that whatever ideas Teach Us a Lesson takes forward, that these applications, ideas, developments, initiatives be made available (where appropriate) via digital interactive TV, mobile and other consumer platforms, as well as online. This would allow for fair access to the new developments and allow people from across the digital divide – many who may not have English as a first language, who are technophobic or unable to use a PC for a variety of reasons – to access these services in the comfort of their own home, using a device they are comfortable with.
This sits squarely with BECTA’s e-strategy in terms of engaging hard-to-reach learners, particularly in the realm of giving them more choice as to how and where they learn. However DiTV in particular, and mobile to a lesser extent, could also offer more motivating ways of learning and use technologies that people are happy and able to use.
Already over 55% of homes have access to digital interactive TV, a figure that will increase as we head towards digital switchover completion in 2012. And with over 90% of the population owning a mobile phone, there is a huge opportunity – and need – to reach people with useful educational service, anything from revision reminders to local listings of informal adult education groups, by platforms other than the web.
DiTV and mobile have the ability to integrate video and text to offer a holistic and interactive approach to learning as well as examination. As DiTV boxes are connected by a phone line, broadband or cable, the opportunity for real time learning has already been investigated and a case proven. We are also currently seeing increasingly sophisticated set top boxes coming on to the market; hence the opportunities are constantly growing and need assessing.
Assessing the Opportunity of Multi Platform Delivery:
Digital interactive TV, mobile phones and alternative platforms offered by consumer electronics allow an organisation to widen their reach and include people across the digital divide. These channels should be part of any approach to ‘electronic’ service provision, particularly now in light of the digital switchover and pervasiveness of DiTV, mobile phones and the range of alternative electronic access devices.
How educational services would best be deployed on these channels is something that would need to be investigated, and the different capabilities and interaction that each device offers and encourages, would inevitably mean a different – but integrated and compatible – solutions for each platform.
Looking Local is well placed in the market having run a digital interactive TV portal for over six years and provided mobile services for nearly four years, focusing solely on government and public sector services.
Benefits of using a range of platforms to deliver educational services include:
- Attracting and engaging new learners by using familiar and widespread technology
- Keeping learners interested by using a mixture of media and tools
- Supporting outreach learning
- Providing consistent delivery to allow self-paced learning
- Knowing that learners are learning and completing learning activities via the management information (MIS) and feedback
- Aiding revision and testing
- Offering ongoing progress tests
- Providing personalised content
- Giving the educational providers constant feedback as to the value of their materials
- Link to other useful services such as job searches, video content and informational guides
- Marketing further training, organisations and courses
- Integrating third party learning modules/offerings
We would recommend a review of public facing, popular education applications and how they could work on alternative platforms, such as:
- Finding local courses
- A review of the most popular adult learning courses currently offered online with a view of implementing them on new channels
- A reality check as to what would migrate to DiTV and mobile well
- How schools could supplement their Home Access programmes, particularly for families where English is not the primary language
- How schools could offer information, prospectus information, school made films to parents and students
- Looking Local is already working on how to integrate online admissions with one large metropolitan authority and this is work we would like to widen to a national level
- Success stories of using alternative platforms to improve education and learning (such as Teachers TV) could be investigated to understand how they could be augmented to offer more interactivity and widen choice as well as if they can be replicated to inform and improve other areas of education provision
National Indicators:
Looking Local has reviewed the national indicator list and believes it can help organisations to meet over 50% of NIs, particularly in the realms of collating and providing access to information/ services as well as consultation. Already a number of local authorities that we are working with have implemented services and information to work towards increasing access to information and services to meet NI targets.
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