... expensive machines. In 1970, the British Computer Society set up a schools' committee. Although the focus for discussion in this group was why children should learn about computers rather than how they could be useful in the curriculum, it did begin a debate that was to continue for the rest of the century. The first sign of government recognition of the potential of information technology (IT), as it was known, within education more broadly came in 1973 with establishment of the National Development Programme for computer Assisted Learning. This was a 4-year programme with a budget of £2 million. In 1980, the Conservative government established the national Microelectronics Education Programme. The aim of this programme was to help local education authorities (LEAs) to set up support services for schools. The Early 1980's saw a growing realisation that technology not only had the potential for supporting learning, but also provided a way to access ...

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