Educational research into using ICT to reduce teacher workloads – a selection of abstracts and further sources

Educational research into using ICT to reduce teacher workloads
– a selection of abstracts and further sources
Introduction
This document presents a selection of research into reducing teacher workloads through ICT.
Rather than being an exhaustive literature review, the collection of 14 abstracts should be
seen as a starting point for those interested in the topic.
While research on the nature and extent of teacher workloads is extensive, there is
considerably less on the role ICT can play in reducing workloads. Much of the research is in
the form of Government-funded projects, supported by case examples and articles in
newspapers, the professional press and on-line. There is very little from academic literature
and refereed journals. One reason for the lack of academic research in this field may be that
measurement of time saving can be problematic, especially when comparing the effects of
two or more approaches to a given task. Activities can be interrupted and the onset of fatigue
is often not assessed.
As a result, there is far more advice than evidence on using ICT to reduce workloads.
Examples of good practice are often anecdotal and the benefits ICT is said to have brought in
these cases are rarely quantified. In many of the examples it is not clear whether the switch
to ICT has reduced workloads or merely changed how and where tasks are undertaken. For
this reason, it is important to treat the findings with caution and exercise judgement in
assessing their wider applicability.
Most of the major pieces of research in this field deal with workloads in general, with specific
mentions of the role of ICT. This reflected in the selection of literature cited here. Other
selected documents consider the potential for a particular application of ICT to reduce
workloads.
Becta’s Evidence and Research team welcomes discussion on this topic through the
Research Network, and indeed, suggestions for further additions to this bibliography.
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Abstracts
ACCOUNTS COMMISSION FOR SCOTLAND and HM INSPECTORS OF SCHOOLS 1999.
Time for teaching. Edinburgh: The Scottish Office.
A report examining how schools in Scotland carry out their administrative tasks. The report
argues that improving the way administration is handled in schools would lead to significant
savings of teachers’ time; the time released by streamlining administration could be used on
tasks which are central to teaching, to raising attainment and to improving the overall quality
of provision. The findings are based on examples of good practice found in some Scottish
schools. The report recommends that schools use both administrative staff and ICT more
effectively, while authorities should help by supporting schools in implementing the
recommendations as well as by reviewing their own practices. It also recommends that
discussions about the ways in which schools are structured should take account of the
administration issues raised by the study. The report includes checklists for schools and
education authorities to help them review their approach to administration.
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BETTER REGULATION TASK FORCE 2000. Red tape affecting headteachers. London:
Cabinet Office.
This review identifies areas of regulation which distract primary and secondary headteachers
from their core responsibilities and suggests possible improvements. It focuses on red tape
arising from statutory obligations, DfES guidance and LEA requirements, and considers the
ways in which governing bodies and LEAs impact on headteachers. The four main areas of
concern identified in the review are lines of accountability, the complexity of funding
arrangements, reporting requirements and the lack of administrative support. The review
recognises the role ICT can play in reducing red tape and recommends the DfES establish
and implement an effective ICT strategy for the management of schools.
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BRITISH COLUMBIA TEACHERS FEDERATION. Teacher workload
http://www.bctf.ca/info/research/workload.html [Accessed 11 November 2002].
A portal providing annotated links to research on teacher workloads from Canada and around
the world, including some from the UK. The sites, comprising primarily of surveys, studies
and press reports, have been selected on the basis of credibility and comprehensiveness
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BUSHWELLER, K. 2000. The smarter office: how school districts are automating
administrative tasks. The Electronic School, March 2000. http://www.electronicschool.
com/2000/03/0300f2.html [Accessed 11 November 2002].
Article describing a pilot project of the Schools Interoperability Framework (SIF) in Ballston
Spa Central School District, New York. SIF is a technology industry initiative to build software
systems that break down the traditional administrative barriers between different school
departments. The SIF model allows each school department to choose the software and
supplier which suits it best while allowing departments to share data The article outlines the
benefits that SIF has brought to Ballston Spa – reductions in paperwork and data entry,
greater access to and more sophisticated use of information – but also considers some of the
problems and issues associated with its implementation, such as the need for data security.
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DEPARTMENT FOR EDUCATION AND SKILLS 2001. Information management supporting
success: making it a reality. London: DfES.
A guide for using ICT more effectively in the management and administration of schools. It
outlines the benefits of effective information management, current and future data collection
requirements, and the DfES’ aims for information management. The guide contains two indepth
examples of good practice, one from a small, rural school, the other from a larger
primary school with a well-developed information management strategy. The examples
describe how using ICT in management and administration has helped to reduce workloads
within the schools.
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HOLDICH, C.E., 2002. Assessing aspects of children's written grammar: automating the
process. Computers and Education, 39 (1), pp. 37-50.
An evaluation of experimental software which analyses pupils’ written grammar. Teachers
regularly assess pupils’ writing to provide feedback on their strengths and weaknesses.
Computerised analysis of the grammar used in children’s writing could significantly reduce
teacher’s workload. Text analysis to date has been mainly geared towards adults, yet a
computerised analysis of pupils’ grammar could be profitable and was undertaken. This took
into account how children’s writing abilities develop, and the criteria which are used by the
National Curriculum levels of attainment for the National Tests. Ten features of grammar
were chosen for analysis and stories representing the range of attainment reached by the end
of Key Stage 2 were analysed. Positive and negative grammar features within the stories
analysed were successfully distinguished by computer. Nevertheless, teachers will still be
needed to make an assessment of qualitative genre details for a balanced assessment which
includes all elements that contribute to effective writing.
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GREENE, K. et al. 2002. Administrative support staff in schools: ways forward. Slough:
National Foundation for Educational Research.
Examines the impact of administrative support in schools. The report looks at how
administrative staff support teachers in their work and how effective use of ICT can improve
administration. Based on a literature review, case studies and surveys, the report examines
the administrative tasks undertaken by both teachers and support staff, and the use of ICT
among both these groups. It considers how re-allocation of tasks and better training could
improve administrative efficiency and the impact this might have on pupils’ learning and the
work of teachers and administrative staff. The report concludes that while the impact of
reducing teacher administration on pupil performance is so far not significant, there is scope
for a more detailed examination of this. The report makes a number of recommendations
based on its findings, including making more effective use of ICT to reduce the amount of
time teachers spend on the administrative aspects of their work.
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PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS 2002. Good practice in cutting bureaucracy: Reducing
bureaucratic burdens Phase 2. London: DfES.
Reports on a project commissioned by the DfES to investigate, test and implement a holistic
approach to reducing bureaucratic burdens in a range of schools. Phase 2 focused in
particular on the introduction of ICT and electronic data handling and the transfer of tasks
from teachers to support staff. The researchers worked with six schools drawn from Surrey
and Birmingham LEAs, producing 12 project descriptions of particular bureaucracy-cutting
initiatives. These include: electronic pupil profiles, using ICT in curriculum planning, and
electronic recording and monitoring of pupil performance. As well as the specific benefits to
each school, the report outlines the wider applicability of each of the initiatives, concluding
that more effective use of ICT saves teachers’ time, thereby boosting morale and reducing
stress. The report also found an number of other benefits, including an improvement in
teachers’ ICT skills and confidence, increased communication and collaboration between
staff, and more accurate record-keeping.
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PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS 2001. Teacher workload study: final report. London: DfES.
Final report from a project commissioned by the DfES in March 2001 to identify the main
factors that determine teachers’ and headteachers’ workload, and to develop a programme of
practical action to eliminate excessive workload and promote the most effective use of all
resources in schools in order to raise standards of pupil achievement. The report is based on
fieldwork in over 100 schools, discussions with many national and local bodies, an exercise to
benchmark teachers’ hours against other UK occupations and against overseas teachers, and
a national seminar with key stakeholders. The report outlines a wide range of both ICTrelated
and non-ICT-related measures to help cut workloads, including better access to
school networks and web-based teaching resources. Included are three case examples and
a draft framework implementation model for reducing teacher workloads.
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RAY, B. and PATTERSON, S. 2001. Paperwork on the fly: PDAs prove useful for busy
educators. http://www.emtech.net/pda_on_the_fly.htm [Accessed 11 November 2002].
A case study of teachers’ experiences with Personal Digital Assistants at Westlawn Middle
School in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. All teachers in the school were provided with Palm Pilot
handheld computers and various software programs to assist them in keeping up with
paperwork and student assignments. The report describes how teachers have used the
PDAs to take notes, record disciplinary incidents, track students’ work and grades, and to
share work information with one another, while using Hot Sync hardware and software to
synchronise data with home and classroom computers. The report considers the future
potential of PDAs in education, concluding that because of their portability, low cost and ease
of use, PDAs may be a more useful tool than laptops in helping teachers manage their
administrative burden.
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SCHOOL TEACHERS’ REVIEW BODY 2002. Special review of approaches to reducing
teacher workloads. London: TSO.
A supplementary report to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Teacher Workload Study examining
approaches to remodelling the teaching profession to reduce workloads. In particular, the
report looks at teachers’ professional time and how it can be guaranteed, continuing
professional development, and work undertaken outside of teachers’ contractual hours. It
includes a section on the contribution ICT can make, focusing on the potential for ICT to
reduce the burden of administrative tasks. Appended with a list of 25 common tasks that
need not be routinely performed by teachers but should be carried out by administrative staff
or through the use of ICT.
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SELINGER, M. and YAPP, C. 2001. ICTeachers. London: IPPR.
A pamphlet consisting of two articles on the state of ICT use in schools, with a particular focus
on how the use of ICT needs to be broadened both to improve pedagogy and reduce the
burdens on teachers. The first article considers how technology could transform the structure
of schools and the nature of the learning relationship, boosting morale and freeing up
teachers’ time for planning, training and evaluation. The second article suggests that the job
of teacher has become too broad and argues that the pervasive deployment of ICT could help
re-define roles while enabling teachers to provide a more flexible learning experience.
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TELEM, M. and BUVITSKI T. 1995. The potential impact of information technology on the
high school principal: a preliminary exploration. Journal of Research on Computing in
Education, 27 (3), pp. 281-296
This study looks at the impact of information technology on the role of the high school
principal. Findings suggest that the introduction of a management information system into the
school resulted in changes in the clerical, managerial control, and strategic aspects of the
principal’s role. Forty-three tasks representative of this role were investigated, all belonging
to five domains: instruction administration, instructional processes, interactions between
groups and individuals, school finance and logistical support, and interactions with groups and
institutions in the community. The study concludes that the introduction of a management
information system improved principals’ access to and analysis of school data and increased
their independence as information users.
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ZIPIN, L. 2002. Too much with too little: shift and intensification in the work of ACT teachers.
http://www.aeuact.asn.au/resources/Wkld_Report.pdf [Accessed 11 November 2002].
An Australian study reporting on a small scale consultation on the nature of teachers’
workload through focus groups with preschool, primary, high school and college teachers.
Four focus groups of eight to ten participants (one for each school sector) were convened in
November 2001. The focus group questions targeted four key domains: factors of work
change and intensification; school governance and teacher empowerment; the interface
between teachers’ work and changing social context factors; and impacts of work change and
intensification on teachers’ health, emotions, professional identity and social relations (both
within and beyond school). The study shows how changes in the teaching profession and the
demands being made on teachers (include those made by the introduction of technology)
have affected teachers’ lives, illustrating how inappropriate deployment of ICT can increase
both workload and levels of stress.
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Further Sources
ASSOCIATION OF TEACHERS AND LECTURERS 2001. Time well spent: work that
teachers value. London: ATL.
ATKINS, J. and ROBINSON, K.D. 2001. Teacher professionalism and workload: “client-side”
advice. London: National Union of Teachers.
BECTA 2002. Connecting schools, networking people. Coventry: Becta.
BECTA 2001. Using ICT to enhance home-school links. Coventry: Becta.
BECTA 2001. Management information supporting success in primary schools. Coventry:
Becta.
CABINET OFFICE and DFEE 2000. Making a difference: reducing school paperwork .
London: Cabinet Office.
COWEN, R. 2001. How ICT will change public education. Computer Education 99, pp.18-23.
DFEE 2001. Code of practice on Local Education Authority–school relations. London: DfEE.
DFES 2002. Bureaucracy cutting toolkit. http://www.dfes.gov.uk/cuttingburdens/index.shtml
[Accessed 11 November 2002]
DFES 2002. Transforming the way we learn: a vision for the future of ICT in schools. London:
DfES.
EASTHOPE, C. and EASTHOPE, G. 2000. Intensification, extension and complexity of
teachers' workload. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 21 (1), pp.43-58.
FREEDMAN, T. 2001. Managing ICT. London: Hodder & Stoughton.
FREEDMAN, T. 2001. How to manage the predictable. Interactive June/July 2001, pp.11-12.
GALTON, M., GRAY, J. and RUDDOCK, J. 1999. The impact of school transitions and
transfers on pupil progress and attainment. Research report no. 131. London: DfEE.
IRVING, J. 1998. Information technology and school administration. In: H. HORNE, ed. The
school management handbook 5th ed. London: Kogan Page, 1998.
KYRIACOU, C. and STEPHENS, P. 1999. Student teachers' concerns during teaching
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LEWIS, R. 2000. Information and communications technology in LEAs: use of ICT for
management and administration. Slough: National Foundation for Educational Research.
LOVELESS, A.M., WILLIAMS, C.M. and KUTNICK, P.J. 2000. Evaluating Teachers’ Use of
Portable Computers in Administration and the Curriculum. Paper presented at the British
Educational Research Association Conference, Cardiff University, September 7-10 2000.
LOWE, J.L. 1999. The electronic road ahead. In: Teaching with technology. Annapolis
Junction: National Education Association of the United States. Available at:
http://home.nea.org/books/twt/ [Accessed 11 November 2002].
MALE, D.B. 1999. Special school inspection and its effects on teachers' stress and health,
workload and job-related study. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 14 (3),pp.254-
268.
MAYO, J. 2000. Effective reporting in education. Public Services Productivity Panel Report
27. London: HM Treasury.
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DfES.
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http://top.ngfl.gov.uk/content.php3?content=content/b956245287.html [Accessed 11
November 2002].
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY FOR WALES 2002. Tackling teachers' workloads in Wales. Press
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[Accessed 11 November 2002].
O'DONOGHUE, T.A. and CHALMERS, R. 2000. How teachers manage their work in inclusive
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SCANLON, M. 1999. The impact of Ofsted inspections. Slough: National Foundation for
Educational Research.
SLOANE, D.E. 2001. Why I like teaching online. ADE Bulletin, 129, pp.63-64.
SOFTWARE AND INFORMATION INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION 2002. Schools interoperability
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TIMPERLEY, H.S. and ROBINSON, V.M.J. 2000. Workload and the professional culture of
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