Office for Standards in Education (Ofsted) was also and to give British education a differentiating edge
an outcome of this Act. The National Curriculum over competitors around the world. Many of the
had a huge impact on publishing and curriculum programs created were indeed highly creative and
resources: the subject matter year-on-year was very educational. They were often developed by
formulated and so this would now have to be the teachers who understood the needs of the
focus of companies. This resulted in duplication of classroom, but who also had some computing
resources, but what it also did was to differentiate skills. BETT, now the biggest education technology
between different teaching and learning styles event in the world, was founded by BESA at this
rather than content. The National Curriculum told time to give educators an awareness of what
teachers what to teach and by when, but never technology could do for them and to encourage
told them what to buy or how to teach their innovation in new companies to make the most of
subject. Local Management of Schools gave them increasing demand.
freedom with the delegation of funding from LEAs.
Educators could now make their own choices. The The debates that followed the introduction of the
Education Show was created by BESA at this time National Curriculum were very heated as the full
to give teachers a sense of what was available with implications of the plans became apparent. There
their newly found money
_
to create informed was a very significant focus on English,
consumers
_
and it also provided a route to market mathematics and science throughout all the age
for companies. groups, and this posed some new challenges,
especially at primary school. Publishers were very
The perception of education as delivering active, producing new resources that supported the
specifically for the needs of society was borne out new curriculum.
by other initiatives too
_
The Technical and
Vocational Education Initiative (TVEI) was an Other changes were set in motion too
_
the
initiative launched in 1982 to serve the technical examination system changed from GCE and CSEs
and vocational educational needs of 14
_
18-year- to a single test that was administered at 16:
olds, and was administered by the Manpower GCSEs. These were designed to be a common
Services Commission. Other links across exam, taken by all students with pass grades that
Government were also a reflection of the times. ranged from A* to F. A levels were also changed to
The Department for Industry was keen to support have AS levels to offer extra challenges for the
the development of the BBC Micro computer as a brightest students.
model for UK industry. The BBC together with
some private electronics companies were involved
in setting up the programme to deliver early
microcomputers to homes as well as to schools.
This was the first of many initiatives that were
designed to stimulate the UK computer industry
19
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