Digital equity for families

Published 24/04/2024.  Last updated 08/08/2024

Background 

Midlothian’s Equipped for Learning project exists to equip all learners with digital skills for learning, life and work. A £10.5 million investment enabled 14,000 young people to receive a 1:1 device for learning. This case study looks at how families are supported to make best use of the devices and additional software to ensure equity and address disadvantage. 

Meeting the needs of all whilst keeping workload manageable, respecting individual learners and promotes inclusivity is challenging. Technology removes barriers to learning but only if educators have the knowledge, skills and time to ensure accessibility tools are bespoke. Stigma in using accessibility tools limits engagement when young people feel 'singled out' for support. This can be even more stigmatising for families living with disadvantage. 

Attainment Scotland Funding 

Equipped for Learning project from Midlothian Council: £5,000 to £14,999 

Rationale

Meeting the needs of all whilst keeping workload manageable, respecting individual learners and promotes inclusivity is challenging. Technology removes barriers to learning but only if educators have the knowledge, skills and time to ensure accessibility tools are bespoke. Stigma in using accessibility tools limits engagement when young people feel 'singled out' for support. This can be even more stigmatising for families living with disadvantage. 

What Midlothian council did

‘Read and Write’ is a literacy support tool that offers help with everyday tasks like reading text aloud, understanding unfamiliar words, researching assignments and proofing written work. It is owned by ‘Texthelp’. By taking an innovative, universal design for learning approach, accessibility tools have been strategically implemented for all users through the Read and Write toolbar. These tools are essential for some learners, but useful for all learners and the use of the toolbar was promoted for all pupils and all staff. 

Teachers were supported with simple, easy to use resources to embed use. Learners were explicitly taught how to use each tool effectively by realigning the digital literacy curriculum. 

A world-first ‘Free for Families’ agreement between Midlothian Council and Texthelp means families can now download ‘ReadandWrite’ at home for free on up to five devices. 

Work with Community and Life-long Learning Education (CLLE) to ensure access for adult learners is also underway. Whole school communities can now learn together through inclusive, accessible digital access. 

Impact 

Currently 12,700 active users which equates to 90.7% of all learners and teachers. There have been 814,000 separate instances of use in the last twelve months, equating to a 529% increase on usage from June 2022.  

These engagement metrics evidence embedded use of the toolbar. A working cohort of 440 young people for whom referrals were made for assistive technology reduced to 41 when ‘Read and Write’ was implemented in all classrooms and for all staff and learners. This is a reduction of 90.6%.  

There has been acknowledgement of the impact of digital tools and, accessibility tools in particular, in all inspection reports published since June 2023. 100% of staff would recommend the training to a colleague. 98% of staff said their knowledge and skills had improved. There were 250 downloads made by families in the first two weeks of the offer in November 2023. 

Poverty-related mitigations include:

  • provision of dongles/Wi-Fi hotspots for families with poor connectivity at home 
  • charging provision in school, ensuring teaching staff in secondaries have chargers so there is a discreet option in every class 
  • provision of devices to support the Free for Families offer and how it could be delivered through charity partnerships or funding is underway 
  • upskilling Home School Practitioners so they can support pupils and families to access ReadandWrite at home 
  • sufficient seed stock in schools to ensure access to a device if one is forgotten or damaged 
  • CLLE partnership working to help ReadandWrite reach families who might need it most 
  • supporting schools to make sensible decisions when devices going home is not effective, for example, keeping in school unless required or agreeing times in school when homework can be supported or managed differently
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Digital equity for families

Published 24/04/2024.  Last updated 08/08/2024

Background 

Midlothian’s Equipped for Learning project exists to equip all learners with digital skills for learning, life and work. A £10.5 million investment enabled 14,000 young people to receive a 1:1 device for learning. This case study looks at how families are supported to make best use of the devices and additional software to ensure equity and address disadvantage. 

Meeting the needs of all whilst keeping workload manageable, respecting individual learners and promotes inclusivity is challenging. Technology removes barriers to learning but only if educators have the knowledge, skills and time to ensure accessibility tools are bespoke. Stigma in using accessibility tools limits engagement when young people feel 'singled out' for support. This can be even more stigmatising for families living with disadvantage. 

Attainment Scotland Funding 

Equipped for Learning project from Midlothian Council: £5,000 to £14,999 

Rationale

Meeting the needs of all whilst keeping workload manageable, respecting individual learners and promotes inclusivity is challenging. Technology removes barriers to learning but only if educators have the knowledge, skills and time to ensure accessibility tools are bespoke. Stigma in using accessibility tools limits engagement when young people feel 'singled out' for support. This can be even more stigmatising for families living with disadvantage. 

What Midlothian council did

‘Read and Write’ is a literacy support tool that offers help with everyday tasks like reading text aloud, understanding unfamiliar words, researching assignments and proofing written work. It is owned by ‘Texthelp’. By taking an innovative, universal design for learning approach, accessibility tools have been strategically implemented for all users through the Read and Write toolbar. These tools are essential for some learners, but useful for all learners and the use of the toolbar was promoted for all pupils and all staff. 

Teachers were supported with simple, easy to use resources to embed use. Learners were explicitly taught how to use each tool effectively by realigning the digital literacy curriculum. 

A world-first ‘Free for Families’ agreement between Midlothian Council and Texthelp means families can now download ‘ReadandWrite’ at home for free on up to five devices. 

Work with Community and Life-long Learning Education (CLLE) to ensure access for adult learners is also underway. Whole school communities can now learn together through inclusive, accessible digital access. 

Impact 

Currently 12,700 active users which equates to 90.7% of all learners and teachers. There have been 814,000 separate instances of use in the last twelve months, equating to a 529% increase on usage from June 2022.  

These engagement metrics evidence embedded use of the toolbar. A working cohort of 440 young people for whom referrals were made for assistive technology reduced to 41 when ‘Read and Write’ was implemented in all classrooms and for all staff and learners. This is a reduction of 90.6%.  

There has been acknowledgement of the impact of digital tools and, accessibility tools in particular, in all inspection reports published since June 2023. 100% of staff would recommend the training to a colleague. 98% of staff said their knowledge and skills had improved. There were 250 downloads made by families in the first two weeks of the offer in November 2023. 

Poverty-related mitigations include:

  • provision of dongles/Wi-Fi hotspots for families with poor connectivity at home 
  • charging provision in school, ensuring teaching staff in secondaries have chargers so there is a discreet option in every class 
  • provision of devices to support the Free for Families offer and how it could be delivered through charity partnerships or funding is underway 
  • upskilling Home School Practitioners so they can support pupils and families to access ReadandWrite at home 
  • sufficient seed stock in schools to ensure access to a device if one is forgotten or damaged 
  • CLLE partnership working to help ReadandWrite reach families who might need it most 
  • supporting schools to make sensible decisions when devices going home is not effective, for example, keeping in school unless required or agreeing times in school when homework can be supported or managed differently
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