S ir Jim Rose aims not just to change the subject matter that pupils are taught at primary school, but also how children learn. That is why he has placed computer-based learning at the centre of his review and why he wants to replace the teaching of traditional subjects in separate “silos” with a cross-curricular approach.

The thinking goes like this: today’s computer-literate youngsters are improving their technological skills so fast that they should be given advanced knowledge earlier to make sure that the world of education keeps pace with the technology revolution.

The real issue is not whether children present their work as podcasts or on PowerPoint, but whether they can be taught how to use and interpret information from the internet in a way that will allow them to develop their own, original ideas.

Unlike their parents, today’s children, brought up with the internet, do not necessarily work or think sequentially or in convenient compartments. They have become adept at listening to MP3 players, playing a computer game and texting their friends at the same time.

The cross-curricular approach is perfectly suited to a generation whose brains have got used to leaping around, taking in visual and verbal cues and reassembling them in the order that makes most sense to them and, crucially, that links in with other information they have collected.

British state schools are already well advanced in their use of new technology, particularly with interactive white boards and learning platforms. Gordon Brown has already said that he wants England to be among the first countries where all children have internet access at home for educational purposes.

It is not just the pupils who will benefit. Sir Jim wants children in the last two years of primary school to be taught by teachers who are subject specialists. One way to achieve this could be through buying in expertise from outside. Another will be to provide more specialist training for teachers, available online.

To parents who despair that their children already spend too much time in front of a computer screen, supporters of Sir Jim’s approach have a simple answer: kids like it. Computers enthuse them to learn.

There is also an emerging body of evidence to suggest that, used wisely, online learning can boost achievement.

But Christine Blower, of the National Union of Teachers, is among those who are cautious. “I think primary schools and Sir Jim Rose have to be a little bit careful about elevating ICT to the level of literacy, numeracy and personal health,” she says.

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