The ability to use IT appropriately and effectively in the classroom must be thoroughly embedded in the pedagogy of teacher training institutions. For this to happen, these institutions need to adopt interventionist strategies for staff development so that learning through IT is a process that all student teachers experience, evaluate and learn to manage in the classroom situation. This is a report of a single school case study in the United Kingdom in which the entire staff contributed to the results. The study finds that the majority of staff accept the National Curriculum directives to teach information technology across the curriculum and acknowledge the value of information technology within the curriculum. However, many staff lack the confidence and skills to deliver information technology within their subjects.
Training is seen to be a major requirement and in-school training is highly valued and preferred.
Case study material is presented to illustrate the conditions under which the development of e-mail flourished with one particular group of modern languages student teachers. Conclusions are drawn concerning the utility of the cascade model of curriculum development in extending electronic communication.