The research of Lithuanian education community was conducted to determine the potential information needs of the users of educational portal www.emokykla.lt and to offer development policies for the portal.
The main target group of the study were teachers, employed in educational institutions that provide secondary education. During the study focused groups were organised. In addition to this, a survey of 1010 teachers was conducted. The study mainly focused on information needs of teachers in the context of curriculum.
Other target groups whose information needs had been analyzed in the study were students and parents of the students. In the survey, 267 students and 400 parents with school-age children had been interviewed.
Other methods were used in the study as well: expert evaluation, analysis of information received from education system planners and implementers, analysis of information from secondary sources. In addition to this, analysis of educational portals in Scotland, Denmark and New Zealand was also conducted.
Based on the analysis conducted, proposals how to develop emokykla.lt as a country‘s digital resources system for secondary education were made. Two alternatives for the development of the portal were stated. The major one offers to reconceptualize emokykla.lt information portal, based on the assumption that different target groups, using the portal, have different objectives and needs for specialized information. The technical performance and the convenience to use the portal, as well as institutional management of the portal, were also assessed in the study. Based on the results of assesment, recommendations how to improve management of the portal and provide up-to-date and clear information for the Lithuanian education community were provided.
The results of the study were presented to the representatives of Ministry of Education and Science of Lithuania and other concerned institutions.
Contractor of the study - Centre of Information Technologies in Education.