1. Tool for improving
technology usage in schools
Jarmo Viteli, UTA, TRIM
Raisa Valtaoja, Tampere, OTE
Heikki Sairanen, UTA, TRIM
Mikko Vuorinen, UTA, TRIM

2. Introducing Opeka
• A national coordination project OTE and TRIM research
center in University of Tampere has developed a
completely new type of tool for mapping learning
technology ecosystems, Opeka.
• The tools allows individual teachers in various schools
to evaluate their usage of learning technology in their
everyday use and also provide insight into the usage
patterns of the whole school.
• Opeka has a new learning analytics based approach
which offers a completely new way of looking at
technology usage in schools by offering modern
visualization of the collected data.

3. E-Maturity
• In the core of Opeka is a query system in which logged-
in users can fill out a questionnaire that consists of
familiar and also a variety of new question types.
• For example there are multi choice questions that also
include an option to add a new answer that will also be
shown to users that fill out the questionnaire in the
future.
• Opeka also evaluates individual schools on e-maturity
that is a system developed by the city of Tampere for
evaluating the usage and availability of learning
technology.

4. Developing the school as entity
• School is an ecosystem
– Adaptive, interactive, autonomous, dynamic process
• It must be evaluated and developed as an entity
• Opeka evaluates the e-maturity levels of the school
– created by Region of Tampere
– based on National Plan for Educational Use of Information and
Communications Technology
• School can create its
development plan
– Based on evaluation
– Aiming the national objectives Knowhow
Skills
Role

5. Using Opeka in the development
process of ICT in education
National Plan for
Educational Use of ICT
Municipalities’ own plan
for Educational Use of ICT
School’s own plan for
Educational Use of ICT
Evaluation

6. What is Opeka?
• Web-based tool
• Teacher fills an online questionnaire about
his/hers ICT usage in education and ICT skills
and competent
• Question modules :
– Digital learning and teaching culture
– Educational technology (hardware and software
used in education)
– Teachers’ ICT skills and needs for supplementary
education
• Teacher gets a summary about his/hers ICT
usage compared to others after answering
• Schools and municipalities get their reports at
the same time
• Development in spring 2013:
– Swedish and English

7. Opeka development partners
• Developed by TRIM research center in University of Tampere
– Research Director Jarmo Viteli, reseacher Heikki Sairanen, software
developer Mikko Vuorinen
• Part of the national coordination project OTE – Koulun laitteet
ja ohjelmistot tehokäytöön funded by FNBE and coordinated
by City of Tampere
– Coordinator Raisa Valtaoja
• Cooperation with city of Tampere (eVarikko, centre of
educational technology) and region of Tampere
• Team of experts from cities of Tampere, Turku, Helsinki,
Espoo, Vantaa, FNBE

8. Opeka Usage so far
2012 2013
(May-December) (January-March)
2380 answerers 515 answerers