Gordon Brown's speech to the Learning and Technology World Forum

At the Learning and Technology World Forum held prior to BETT this week Gordon Brown outlined his perspective on education, focusing on the impact technology has had, and will have, on it. Within this speech he officially announces the Home Access Grant, reiterates the parental engagement expectation and personally congratulates one of Redbridge's own teachers.

The whole video is 20 minutes and linked below. The full text for the speech is available here. If you haven't time to watch the whole presentation you may want to jump to some key phrases:

14 mins 20 secs
"...we want every family to become a broadband family. We want every home where there are children linked to the school. For those finding it difficult to afford this I want to announce the nationwide rollout of our Home Access Programme to get laptops and broadband at home for 270,000 families in the United Kingdom. It means that all families can come together, learn together and reap the rewards together."

15 mins 50 secs
"We realise that for parents to influence and engage in the education of their children they need rich, varied and easily accessible information on the progress, on the behaviour and on the attendance of their children at school. And that’s why we’ve said from 2010 all secondary schools in our country and from 2012 all primary schools will guarantee reporting online to parents. So the mother who’s worried about her son struggling with his reading can find out more about how she can help, the dad who works long hours and can’t make a parents’ evening can keep in touch with his daughter’s progress at whatever time of the day or night that he is free."

17 mins 20 secs
"Dan Lea is a primary school teacher from here in London who won the UK’s Teacher of the Year Technology Award and whose innovations include teaching children to blog as a way of documenting their learning and sharing their projects instantly with family, friends and peers. Dan - congratulations on behalf of all of us for your great success."



Congratulations Dan on your now established international recognition. If you are a Redbridge school and have further questions on either the Home Access Grant, or your own parental engagement strategy please do get in touch.

Alex Rees
alex.rees@redbridge.gov.uk