ICT in Education

Glow was first conceived in 2001 as The Scottish Schools Digital Network. Predating SmartPhones, Twitter, Skype, Facebook, Flickr and Youtube, its concept was simple – to use online tools to support teachers and pupils to enhance Scottish education.  That core mission remains, but the online world has changed radically in the last 11 years and to remain relevant to its users Glow is changing with it.

In September 2011, Michael Russell, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning articulated his vision for the future of Glow, and in October that year the ICT in Education conference took place with the user community generating invaluable insights on how Glow could develop in future.

In June 2012, it was announced that the current Glow contract with RM had been extended through to December 2013. In addition, Microsoft had agreed to provide Microsoft Office 365 for Education for free to every pupil, teacher and parent through Glow; this was the first offer of its kind in the world for a national schools project.

To oversee the future of Glow and the next phase of its development, the Scottish Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, Prof Muffy Calder, has convened an ICT in Education Excellence Group, consisting of IT and education specialists and end users. The Excellence Group have the immediate task of scoping the long-term user-centred future of Glow.