In our latest research we surveyed primary and secondary schools teachers in the UK to find out what ICT provision looks like in their schools. The survey was wide-ranging covering a number of topics.
The full report can be downloaded for free here, and key findings can be found below.
Quality of ICT provision in UK schools is varied
Only around six-in-ten (59%) teachers report that ICT provision in their schools is either ‘good’ or ‘excellent’, suggesting that there is plenty of headroom for improvement. ICT provision tends to be rated as being best in terms of internet speed and reliability, and also in terms of access to IT support and expertise in the school.
Schools have a wide range of ICT priorities
Schools are prioritising different aspects of ICT provision. Some of the top priorities include:
•‘exploring ways to use digital tools and resources to enhance teaching and learning’ (31% say this is one of their school’s top three priorities)
•‘using AI tools to streamline administrative tasks’ (29%)
•‘strengthening pupil’s digital literacy’ (29%).
Using devices in-class comes with numerous challenges
Pupils themselves often use devices in lessons, with almost seven-in-ten (69%) teachers saying pupils do so every week.
However, using devices in-class presents numerous challenges. In the last term, almost all teachers have experienced issues when using devices in-class, notably devices not being charged (62% have experienced this in the last term), pupils becoming distracted (52%), and slow running devices (50%).
Teachers are increasingly using AI support
Teachers are increasingly turning to AI to support their work, with two-thirds (66%) reportedly using AI at least once a week to support their teaching. Teachers are especially likely to use AI to help create classroom resources (70% use AI to assist with this), to help with lesson planning (53%), and to develop models and exemplar material (45%).
Teachers would like AI to support with a number of specific tasks
When reflecting on what one task they would like AI to take off their plate, teachers’ answers could broadly be grouped into one of four categories:
1.Supporting teaching and learning tasks
2.Data collection
3.Turning data into insights
4.Reducing burden of non-teaching admin
Non-education specific AI-tools dominate usage
Of the wide range of AI-based tools available, it is non-education specific AI tools that teachers are most likely to use to support their teaching, notably ChatGPT (used by 78% to support their teaching) followed by Microsoft Copilot (31%) and then Canva (20%).
Few education-specific AI tools have high levels of usage, but Kahoot! (30%) and the AI components of Twinkl (24%) are seemingly the most widely used.
Schools are formalising how AI should be used
Schools have made a big effort over the last year to formalise how AI is being used for teaching and learning:
•Almost one-in-four (23%) teachers report having attended training on how to use AI to support their teaching (up from 18% last year).
•One in three (33%) teachers report that their schools have a designated person or team to oversee how AI is being used in the school (up from 14% last year).
•16% have a policy outlining how AI should be used to support teaching (up from 8% last year), with almost half (48%) of all schools currently in the process of creating such a policy.
Teachers do not know who to listen to for AI advice
Despite there being a wealth of well-known speakers talking about AI and its application for education, there are questions about how well this is cutting through with teachers. There are few people on teachers’ radars who would be considered authoritative voices on using AI for teaching purposes. Mr P ICT stands out as someone teachers turn to for ideas. This suggests there is an opportunity for AI experts to step into this space.
Oak National Academy continues to be used regularly by a minority of teachers
Oak National Academy continues to be used regularly by a minority of teachers, with roughly 8% of our participants reportedly using it on a weekly basis.
Oak is most commonly used for its ready-made resources for in-class usage (49% of teachers using Oak report using it for this task), followed by lesson planning (35%). At present, relatively few of the respondents who say they use Oak have used it for curriculum sequencing (7%). With the curriculum due an overhaul in the next few years, this is a usage where Oak might see a significant uplift.
Green Shoots Market Intelligence 