- What is Curriculum Online?
Curriculum Online is an online catalogue of priced and free digital
learning products at http://www.curriculumonline.gov.uk to support
the teaching of the Curriculum in England up to and including
Key Stage 4. The catalogue is provided by the DfES as part of
a programme to give £330m, between 2002 and 2006, to maintained
schools in England to spend on software and web services.
- Are you giving money to my school for Curriculum
Online products?
Each LEA in England has been given money using the Standards
Fund (Grant 618) for the following types of schools and other
educational establishments -
- Maintained primary schools
- Maintained secondary schools
- Maintained nursery schools
- Maintained nursery places in the independent sector
- Special schools
- Pupil referral units
The funding is known as electronic Learning Credits (eLCs)
but is paid as cash to LEAs based on the number of schools in
their area and the number of pupils at those schools. Each maintained
school is entitled to £1000 as a starting point plus nearly
£10 for each pupil at the school. Independent schools
with maintained places will not receive the £1000 baseline
figure but will receive the pupil allocation of nearly £10
for each maintained place.
In total the DfES is giving out £330m in the following
batches:
| Amount |
Issued |
To be spent |
| £30m |
7 Nov 2002 |
By 31 Aug 2003 |
| £100m |
30 May 2003 |
By 31 Aug 2004 |
| £100m |
From April 2004 |
Date of issue to end of Aug 2005 |
| £100m |
From April 2005 |
Date of issue to end of Aug 2006 |
LEAs must either give out the money to their schools or hold
the money centrally with the schools' agreement to make bulk
purchases. Likewise, schools may combine eLC allocations for
larger purchases.
If you don't know if your school has received its allocation
of eLC money, you should first check with the budget holder
at your school. Then, if necessary, talk to your LEA and speak
to the individual or team who distributes Standards Fund money
received from the DfES. If you still cannot find the answer
please contact the team at the DfES by completing an enquiry
form on the Curriculum Online website or by telephone on 0870
000 2288.
- Why do we have to spend our allocation by
31st August?
As with all Standards Fund money it must be spent by the end
of the academic year to ensure its effective use. If the money
has not been spent by the deadline, the DfES will reclaim the
money from LEAs so it can be redistributed to other areas.
- What am I allowed to buy using eLC money?
Electronic Learning Credits (eLCs) can only be spent on digital
learning products advertised on the Curriculum Online website
at http://www.curriculumonline.gov.uk.
Currently the site is displaying over 20,000 digital learning
products, of which over 5,000 are free of charge, with this
number growing on a daily basis. Each product will have been
certified as eligible for Curriculum Online by an approved supplier
using their definition of a digital learning product.
We currently have a large number of products available from
the COL site. You may purchase
any of these directly from our site here.
-
What is a digital learning product?
A digital learning product is broadly defined as an item of
software or a web service that is specifically targeted to support
the teaching of the Curriculum in England.
The product may include items such as user manuals, technical
support and the cost of distribution. It is unlikely though
to include any items of hardware as these are not allowed unless
they cost only a small fraction of the cost of the software
and are sold as a package.
- Why can't I buy hardware such as a digital
camera?
Curriculum Online is aimed at raising standards in Curriculum
subjects by giving teachers software and web services that will
help them teach in the classroom.
If your school needs hardware or any other item that is not
provided, please talk to your LEA to see if other budgets are
available.
- How do I find and buy a product that is
advertised on Curriculum Online?
Use the search facility to find products by selecting from
various criteria including Key Stage/School Year, Subject and
QCA Schemes of work. You can also look for cross curricula topics,
SEN products, key words and the various methodologies within
the "more search options" facility.
The search results give further details of the product and
link to the websites of suppliers. Follow the link to the supplier's
website to find out how to order the product.
If the product is priced, you should tell the supplier if you
are using your eLC money for the purchase. Using eLC money to
pay for products does not alter the supplier's ordering, distribution
or invoicing system nor does it prevent suppliers from offering
discounts to customers.
When you have received the product, the supplier will invoice
your school directly. The expenditure must be recorded in your
school's accounts under Standards Fund Grant 618 and may be
audited at a future date.
If the product is offered free of charge, details will be displayed
on either the product details page and/or the supplier's site
describing how to obtain the product.
- I'm a teacher and I need some further information,
where can I find it?
The Teacher Centre on our site contains a lot of useful information
including:
- Advice on the technical requirements of using Curriculum Online
products
- Guidance on the use of digital products in the classroom
- The process of adding a product to our site as a teacher (links
to the pages)
You can access the Teacher Centre by clicking on the link on the
left hand side of the screen.
If you have a query that cannot be answered from the information
in the Teacher Centre, please contact the Curriculum Online team
at the DfES by telephone on 0870 000 2288.
- Can you help me use the Curriculum Online
website?
You can access
the COL web site by clicking here.
At the top of every page there is a "Help" button which
will give more information about the displayed page.
For example:
- From the search page if the 'help' button is clicked, information
will be displayed on how to use the search;
- From the product information page if the 'help' button is clicked,
information will be displayed on the layout and contents of the
product information page.
It is understood that many teachers are finding the site time
consuming and difficult to use.
They are currently redesigning the site to solve these problems
and the new site should be ready in Autumn 2003.
If you have a query that cannot be answered from the information
in the Help pages, please contact the Curriculum Online team at
the DfES by completing an enquiry form on the Curriculum Online
website or by telephone on 0870 000 2288.
- Can I buy COL products direct from www.specialneed.co.uk?
Absolutely - You may order software to be funded by eLCs
now direct from us - just click
here to go to our online shop .
- How do I purchase products using my eLCs
from www.specialneed.co.uk?
The eLCs are simply a means of funding. You simply place an order
for your software in your normal way from our
online shop. Please be sure to state that it is an eLC order
when you checkout.
As you browse our
online shop you will see that products that have been certified
for COL will have the COL logo displayed on the product page.
These are products that you can purchase with your eLCs.
