07 June, 2006 - Xchange 2006, Minister de Valera highlights potential of ICT in Education

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science, Dublin,  Síle de Valera, T.D. and Mr. Will Haire, Permanent Secretary, Department for Employment and Learning, Belfast,  today addressed the Xchange 2006 International ICT Conference.   The conference will explore ICT in education policy and practice.  The theme of this year's conference is 'ICT in Classroom Practice'.  Delegates from Ireland, the United Kingdom, Europe, and the USA will attend the conference.

Speaking at the conference today, Minister de Valera said 'Ireland, North and South, has undergone major socio-economic and political changes over the last decade.  These years have seen economic growth and considerable social change. These developments are taking place in a rapidly changing and knowledge-based society, where the use of modern information technologies influences and alters the way we live, work and interact socially.  All this provides new challenges for us as educators but it also provides exciting opportunities to identify the best ways to use ICT to make the places and occasions of learning more rewarding, challenging and creative. Many of the challenges we face today on this island are ones that we face in common. This includes facing up to the challenges and opportunities of globalisation.  On both sides of the border, we are seeking to put the appropriate building blocks in place to keep pace with demands of a global economy that places a higher premium on knowledge, innovation, research and development.'

Minister de Valera congratulated the organisers, British Educational Communications and Technology Agency and wished this year's conference every success.

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