A comparative study of information technology (IT) strategic planning between independent and government schools in Singapore

This paper investigates the type of IT facilities, programmes and planning available in various schools to determine if educational disparities exist with the integration of IT in schools. The study involved 7 schools - 3 independent, 1 autonomous and 3 government schools. Autonomous school here is categorised as government school. The study also adopted the one-to-one interview technique in its data collection. As far as possible, 2 interviews were conducted in each school - one with the principal and the other with the IT coordinator of the school. All the participants, consisting of principals, a vice principal, heads of department of IT and heads of department of media and resources, were interviewed for about an hour. The interview technique was able to elicit relevant information concerning the background information about the school, the current status of IT and long term IT planning for the school. Overall indications pointed to educational disparities between independent and government schools. Independent schools were found to be ahead of the government schools in the rate of IT development, being better equipped in hardware infrastructure, IT programmes and activities. The paper concluded by examining the implications of these inequalities and factors that determine the development of IT in schools. Some of the implications discussed were that students in private schools were more confident and competent in handling the state-of-the-art technology and were more prepared for the job market than those students in the government schools. Factors which affected the development of IT in schools included leadership, technical support, software quality, physical facilities, student cohorts and the role of teachers.Master of Science (Information Studies