Aaviksoo: Education's Embrace of IT Could Be Closer
Information technology has not translated into benefits for the educational system, which has changed the least of any walk of life in the last 100 years, said Education and Research Minister Jaak Aaviksoo at an international education forum in London.
Aaviksoo's main point at the World Education Forum, which wound up today, was that the time-worn model of education did not support use of IT.
"Expectation with regard to ICT has been very high in many countries, including Estonia. But it would be fair to say that nowhere in the world has there been success in achieving a major breakthrough," he said. "The problem is perhaps on the conceptual or philosophical level, that we are trying to use today's IT resources to implement a 19th century educational paradigm, one of conveying knowledge."
Aaviksoo said it is common knowledge that success in education springs from developing skills, not knowledge. Thus the educational system no longer needs a "hoary model" of teacher at blackboard.
"The changes in education in the last 100 years have been less than in other areas. We are certainly not farming the fields, building cars or roads as we did 100 years ago, but everything in schools takes place the same way, although from time to time new gadgets are introduced."
He said Estonia, having less inertia than other areas, could set the pace. "I think the challenge is quite great for the whole world and maybe as a small country we will succeed in getting some things done easier than a large country."
Kristopher Rikken