EduTec_Innovators

Prospectus
Project: eStream Increasing the use of Streaming technology
in
School education in Europe 2003 - 2006

Project Source: http://estream.schule.at/

eStream - a transnational project which aims at promoting the use of Streaming technology
in school education. This includes technical and organisational aspects as well as the
usability and the didactical impact. The eStream partnership, composed by institutions from
6 European countries, targets at all staff involved into school education, teachers, decision
makers, experts and educational multimedia publishers.

Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 4
The New problem ................................................................................................................................... 4
Description of audience ......................................................................................................................... 5
List of ideas ............................................................................................................................................. 5
Challenges and Possible Solutions ......................................................................................................... 6
Additional Information .......................................................................................................................... 6
References: ............................................................................................................................................. 7

Introduction
The eSTREAM project was supposed to have been implemented from October 2003 until
October 2006. It was funded for 3 years by the European Commission and originated as a
result of the eEurope Action plan, and more specifically, the eLearning Action plan which

indicated that the integration of ICT and multimedia in teaching and learning was at the
time a Europeanwide political priority in the next years.

There is a need to gather more insight into the educational impact of streaming media and
broadcasting technology. Media education and the training of teachers in using multimedia
resources effectively, will be crucial in order to make successful use of digital media in
classrooms.

The New problem

Increasing the use of Streaming technology in school education in Trinidad

The advent of internet services in schools introduced new methods of teaching and learning.
Children in Trinidad and Tobago are also provided with free laptops on entry into the
secondary schools. They may or may not have had prior training in the use of these
computers. The schools have also been equipped with internet and computer laboratories.

The teachers have the technology at their disposal but need to discover on their own, how
the emerging technologies can enhance the learning process and improve eLearning in their
daily practise. In order to introduce and use digital media in the classroom successfully, one
of the prerequisites is the need to educate and train teachers in using multimedia resources
effectively.

On the other side of the coin, policy makers and pedagogical experts are faced with the
problem of planning the deployment of the technology and advances, and developing
methodologies to incorporate these into the teaching practices of the education system.
There is also the need for the education developers and multimedia producers to
understand how the resources could be used more effectively in the learning process.

Description of audience
The target audience in the project is mainly educators and policy makers, since it intends to promote
the exchange of experiences and to share good practice on the use of Streaming media for
education in classroom practise. The project is intended to raise the awareness among educators
and to promote a better understanding for the educational potential of Streaming media.

However the project is also aiming at testing and evaluating the value added on different
teaching approaches and didactical strategies, when using streaming media in the
classroom, in different eLearning contexts. The audience could also be considered to be
policy makers since the project include another goal which was the intention to yield data
on the use of streaming media for educators. This would provide for the advancement of
the technologies used in schools. Policymakers would liaise with the educators and be in
touch with their needs.

List of ideas
1.

Future Classroom Lab

2.

Introduction of Teleconferencing

3.

Introduction of learning management systems in schools

4.

Introduction of Internet in all schools = may already be in place in some

5.

A virtual classroom for teachers and policymakers

Challenges and Possible Solutions

The time frame to undertake a project of this nature is a constraining factor. Some persons
in the team do not have experience in the secondary education system, whilst others do not
have the experiences in the decision making aspect. However since this is a team effort,
and some members of the team are educators whilst others work in the public service, we
hope to combine these areas of expertise and overcome any problems with which we are
confronted.

Data collection may also be an issue since none of the team members work in a secondary
school and do not have the insight in the operations of these schools except as learners.
However this can be overcome by meeting with educators and gaining the necessary
background through discussions, interviews etc.

Additional Information
The focus of this project is on the use of technology and may make suggestions that can
actually be implemented in Trinidad and Tobago. However with a little tailoring the
suggestions may be possible to be implemented in many of the other Caribbean islands
which may faced with a similar problem.
Data collection will involve both primary and secondary data, from our course of study as
well as from actual implementation that have been successful in other areas.

References:
BESA, Thursday, 21. March 2013 Planet PC http://www.besa.org.uk/news/planet-estreamliving-schools-lab-project accessed Friday 22nd November 2014

eStream Increasing the use of Streaming technology in school education in Europe 2003 2006
http://estream.schule.at/ accessed Saturday 21st November 2014