Title registration for a systematic review: Free provision of information and communications technology (ICT) for improving academic achievement and school engagement in students aged 4-18: a systematic review

Improving educational attainment continues to be an ongoing aim for education policies across the OECD member countries, further brought into focus by the international comparison league tables published by this organisation (OECD, 2010). From a national policy perspective, improving educational outcomes for young people is seen as important for a country’s future competitiveness in the international market, for social policies aiming to reduce social inequalities, and as an essential element in school standards development. For local policies, it is the most important competitive tool for schools who want to attract keen families and students to their education community. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, it is imperative to young people themselves, whose chances of employment and economic independency hinges on their success and engagement at school. Schools have long been providing information and communications technology (ICT) to pupils, as means to introduce students to the use of ICT, to enhance their learning experiences in other subjects, and as an advertising tool to attract the most eligible students. Increasingly, as ICT equipment becomes more affordable, some schools are purchasing ICT in order to improve students’ attainment, for example by providing each student with a tablet, offering reduced-rate internet subscription or by ICT-immersion programmes, which embed all classrooms with communications technology and computers. Often these programmes are particularly focused on reaching out to pupils who are under-achieving or who are at a social disadvantage that reduces their ability to obtain ICT privately. Due to the fast developments in ICT, public institutions will always be behind in terms of what kind of technology they can afford to offer their students. There is potential for vast spending on ICT, and it is imperative for teachers, education policy makers, and local planners to know whether and how money spent will impact on the learning of pupils who receive it. This review aims to identify studies that have evaluated the impact of ICT immersion programmes and programmes that have provided ICT equipment to students aged 4-18. The outcomes of interest will be attainment in core subjects: maths, science, reading, writing, history and languages, and impact on students’ engagement in school. If a study contains cost information, this will be collected and considered for a cost-effectiveness estimate. While the main aim of the review is to consider impact on all students within the specified age range, the review will consider the impact on socially disadvantaged students in particular

Identifying an educational response to the prevent policy: student perspectives on learning about terrorism, extremism and radicalisation

School responses to the Prevent agenda have tended to focus primarily on ‘safeguarding’ approaches, which essentially perceive some young people as being ‘at risk’ and potentially as presenting a risk to others. In this article we consider evidence from secondary school students who experienced a curriculum project on terrorism, extremism and radicalisation. We argue that a curriculum response which addresses the acquisition of knowledge can build students’ critical capacity for engagement with radicalisation through enhanced political literacy and media literacy. We further argue this represents a genuinely educational response to Prevent, as opposed to a more restrictive securitised approach

The impact of the prevent duty on schools: a review of the evidence

The UK has emerged as an influential global player in developing policy to counter violent extremism, and therefore it is important to consider the emerging evidence about the impact of this policy in education. The Prevent Duty came into force in the UK in 2015, placing a legal responsibility on schools and teachers to implement anti-terrorist legislation and prevent young people from being drawn into extremism or radicalisation. This article reviews all of the material based on empirical studies in England involving school teachers and students published between 2015 (when the Duty was introduced) and the beginning of 2019 (27 articles and reports in total) to consider the impact of the policy on schools. The key themes emerging from our analysis of this evidence base are related (1) to the ways the policy is interpreted within Islamophobic discourses, (2) the emergence of Britishness as a key feature of fundamental British values, and (3) the implications of framing Prevent as a safeguarding issue. We argue that the evidence gives support to those who have been critical of the Prevent Duty in schools, and that it seems to be generating a number of unintended and negative side effects. However, the evidence also illustrates how teachers have agency in relation to the policy, and may thus be able to enact the policy in ways which reduce some of the most harmful effects