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“It has only been through the KidSmart initiative that many pre-school settings have learnt how Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) may be integrated right across the pre-school play based curriculum. I have been incredibly encouraged by IBM's support.”
- John Siraj-Blatchford, University of Cambridge
“The IBM KidSmart Early Learning Programme has been a major catalyst in improving practice in the use of ICT in early childhood settings. It has further enhanced the awareness of practitioners and policy makers of the need for sustained training in ICT education for the early years workforce across Europe and beyond.”
- Iram Siraj-Blatchford, Institute of Education, University of London
New research in six European countries has confirmed that IBM's KidSmart Early Learning Program for young children has had a strong impact on effective teaching and learning in its target schools.
The two-year study, which was led by John Siraj-Blatchford of the University of Cambridge and Iram Siraj-Blatchford of the Institute of Education, University of London, was commissioned by IBM and conducted by independent researchers in France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom.
The study found that KidSmart has led to substantial improvements in teaching and learning using ICT within a year, greatly benefiting teachers and their pupils.
An international information and communications technology environmental rating scale was applied to demonstrate levels of practice and provision, ranging from inadequate (level 1) to excellent (level 7). Researchers said a level 5 rating represents "good" practice that would satisfy the requirements of most countries' early learning objectives.
While none of the pre-schools achieved "good" against the ICT rating scale criteria prior to the implementation of KidSmart, after just one year all of the schools sampled in Italy, Portugal and the United Kingdom achieved such a rating. Portugal scored "very good" and France achieved "good" on two of three elements measured by the rating scale. Spain and Germany doubled their scores over 18 months and improvement is continuing.
"This evaluation of the KidSmart program demonstrates strong value in introducing ICT-based learning into early education and recommends widening availability across the early education sector," said Hans-Ulrich Maerki, Chairman and General Manager, IBM Europe, Mid East and Africa. "IBM is committed to build on KidSmart's success and its contribution to Europe's long-term economic prosperity. We will continue with this highly successful program and expand it across Europe by donating 2,000 more early learning computers to pre-schools in 2005."
More than 20,000 KidSmart Early Learning Centers have been donated by IBM worldwide - 5,500 of them in Europe. In addition to these colorful computer learning centres, KidSmart provides award-winning educational software and teacher training, which enables teachers to maximize the use of information and communications technology to teach young children. The KidSmart units are located primarily in disadvantaged areas in line with IBM's policy of helping to address social needs and reduce the "digital divide" between children from low income families and those with greater opportunities.
IBM implements KidSmart in partnership with early learning organisations -- usually Ministries of Education -- that provide high quality teacher training, participate in the selection of schools and contribute to the evaluation process. The program also provides advice to early education teachers and the parents of young children on the appropriate use of information and communications technology through a website at www.kidsmartearlylearning.org, which is available in Chinese, Japanese, Brazilian, Portuguese, English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.
The study has shown that teachers participating in KidSmart and training are more confident in their approach to using computers in the classroom. In Portugal, for example, the number of teachers who said they were "very comfortable" with computers increased from 18 percent to 70 percent after just six months' participation in the program.
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