Last summer, a report was published into how ed tech was viewed in the classroom.

The study, by BESA, found that teachers were the most valued source when it came to measuring the effectiveness of ed tech. Among the least influential were policy-makers and local authorities.

None of this should surprise us. Teachers’ expertise in pedagogy is why they fight unending battles with politicians over what works in teaching and learning, and what doesn’t, and they are usually proved right.

Teachers understand the value of research to help them be good teachers. They want to know what works and what will make them better at their job. Research evidence may not always tell policymakers what they want to hear, but for teachers’ it is a vital tool in their effectiveness.

Accessible research

How we make research accessible is, of course, another matter. A report published recently by the Education Endowment Foundation and reported on by Tes - “Teacher involvement in research has no impact on pupils’ outcomes” - found that membership of a learning community did not necessarily impact positively on teaching practice or make teachers any more likely to engage with research.

The reasons for this are many and varied. Accessibility to research can be challenging, even when the teacher has the time to study it. But who decides what is robust and reliable? And even if the evidence is valid and from a reputable source, how will a classroom practitioner know how to interpret and adapt it if they have never been taught how to do so?

Furthermore, with schools subjected to the government’s high stakes accountability measures, how long is it reasonable to wait before evidence-based practice is shown to yield results?

Ed tech support

With these challenges in mind, we launched EDUCATE at UCL’s Institute of Education a year ago. This unique programme aims to help and support entrepreneurs in ed tech by forging collaborations with researchers and educators, who will train and mentor them. A crucial aspect of EDUCATE is to provide access to research evidence. There is little point in developing a product or service for use in schools if it’s not fit for purpose.

What we found with our early cohorts of EdTech entrepreneurs was that even people who are highly intelligent, motivated and engaged in their jobs can find interpreting research difficult, particularly when they are pre-occupied with the actual running of their business. In the case of teachers, of course, this would translate as planning lessons, assessing pupils and generally managing a classroom.

We realised that, as educators, we do not spend enough time either being taught or learning how to understand what evidence is - and how we can use it to positive effect in our everyday practice.

At EDUCATE, our first three cohorts have concentrated on working with SMEs and ed-tech entrepreneurs. We now want to work more closely with teachers.

Part of school life

We know there is some excellent work going on in schools with ed tech. Whether it’s pupils learning how to use augmented reality in the classroom, or a school leader using technology effectively to work out the timetable or using it to communicate with parents, technology is no longer an expensive luxury hidden away in the computer room, but an integral part of school life.

Next week, EDUCATE will officially launch at the Bett Show. This feels timely. Schools are going through challenging times with excessive teacher workload, staff shortages, budgetary constraints and a lack of training and support in technology. Many professionals feel they lack the skills to use or teach technology effectively and, in some schools, there remains a continued lack of robust infrastructure.

Justine Greening’s announcement last autumn that flexible working for teachers might be a way of tackling workload and the recruitment and retention problem, provided an added impetus for bigger and better ed-tech development and use to support the profession. We hope that Damian Hinds will grasp the baton on this initiative. It is important for both education and ed tech.

Development opportunities

In the meantime, we need to press on with providing opportunities for effective ed-tech development, if the UK is to remain a world leader in the field. We will only achieve that by equipping our school teachers with the skills and knowledge they need to be confident and effective users of ed tech. and introducing them to a world beyond the classroom, in which they learn how to apply research to improving teaching or the day to day functioning of the school.

We need to train school staff to be more reactive to academic research - and to identify good evidence. EDUCATE provides professional development which can be used throughout the school. If you are a headteacher, it may help you to evaluate the use of ed tech in your school and make important decisions about its effectiveness.

The future of ed tech in the UK depends on us pooling our ideas, knowledge and expertise.

If you have an idea or concept for using ed tech in the classroom, EDUCATE wants to help you bring your ideas to life, for free, from its hub at the UCL’s Knowledge Lab. Visitors to the Bett Show can find us at HUB1 in the Bett Futures Zone or contact us via our website: educate.london

Rose Luckin is professor of learner-centred design and director of EDUCATE. “Enhancing Learning and Teaching with Technology - What the Research Says”, edited by Rosemary Luckin, will be launched at the Bett Show

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