Are IT budgets always too small?

Will even larger IT budgets for schools solve even the most common problems they encounter? Will even more investment in equipment and networks that quickly become outdated help students and teachers improve standards? The UK is Europe's leading nation in equipping classrooms with digital equipment and doubled the budget for education over the last decade. But according to the OECD Report 2010, few improvements in learning outcomes can be directly linked to this investment. Yet, more ICT (read IT) is recommended. Who is driving this on-going IT saga? Are today's education professionals IT addicts rather than more skillful educators? Or are they right to push for even more investment, as there is no way back?

From: Education Executive
business management magazine written exclusively for school business managers and bursars

ICT budgets too small
Survey shows education professionals want more investment
Released 24/03/201

This is according to research conducted by NETGEAR at BETT 2010, the world's largest educational technology event. Over a third of respondents attribute the lack of investment to the restricted budgets allocated by LEAs and the Government, with 22 percent stating that the high cost of networking technologies is preventing educational institutions from sufficiently investing in these areas.
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Remote access (17 per cent), training (17 per cent) and purchasing up-to-date equipment (13 per cent) are currently seen as the top priorities for investment; however these are just pieces of a puzzle when installing a successful IT infrastructure.
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Over half of respondents stated that, once an education establishment has implemented these technologies, insufficient resource is allocated to maintaining their networks. Schools, colleges and universities are therefore looking to identify the right solution to suit their specific needs; at the lowest possible cost. 11 percent believe the confusing choice of networking technologies available is a key hurdle that must be overcome to achieve this.

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