Smart Schools. Lights and shadows on the policies of technological transference and teaching practices

Resumen

The present research has been conceived inside the framework of a nationwide investigation on Program School 2.0. Our attention focuses on the analysis of the implementation, in Comunitat Valenciana, of the program Intelligent Schools (IEC), which is the alternative to School 2.0. The main idea is to make it possible the access, from anywhere around the centre, to TIC´s as a supporting resource in the process of teaching and learning.So as to be coherent with project IEC, the school centre will be methodologically considered as the unit in the analisys of field work. The questionnaire was delivered to the 18 schools involved and, in 4 of them, the study of cases was carried out: two schools of elementary and primary education, and two schools of secondary education. The methodology used in the collection and processing of data has required both qualitative and quantitative techniques in order to meet the core of the investigation. Such core seeks to analyze how, by means of policies of technology transferred to the school system, the organization which develops school practice is transformed. The results highlight aspects related to the contribution of ICT´s to the up-dating of education. Teachers view the IEC program favourably since, with these technologies, they can get closer to what students demand nowadays, as well as their different rhythms and paces when learning. However, those interviewed showed some reservations to policies that are only supported economic resources. Of all analyzed cases, it can be seen that interactions in the organization interfere and determine the use of technologies, being the strategies of cooperation, interchange and negotiation key for the teachers to integrate technologies in their everyday activities.