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National Educational Technology Plan

The first goal of the National Educational Technology Plan deals with the learning component and states that learners should have engaging and empowering learning experiences in every aspect of their life that will prepare them for a future in a digital world.  The second goal deals with the assessment component and states that it will use technology to measure and assess data needed to provide information regarding areas of improvement.  The third goal relates to the teaching component and states that professional educators will be provided with the necessary tools that connects them to data, content, resources, expertise, and learning experiences that enable and inspire more effective teaching for all learners.  The fourth goal relates to the infrastructure components and states that students and educators will have access to a comprehensive infrastructure.  The fifth goal relates to the productivity component and state that the education system will redesign processes and structures to take advantage of learner outcomes while making efficient use of time, money, and staff.

The plan emphasizes the importance of focusing on what and how we teach to address the needs of multiple learners therefore inspiring all students to achieve.  The plan also emphasizes the need for continuous and life-long learning for both teachers and students.

There are some issue and concerns that I have with the plan regarding funding.  I believe there should be a backup plan in place in case funding is unavailable for technology in some districts.  There should be something in place to assist technologically disadvantaged districts and areas.

District Technology Plan

Houston Independent School District’s technology plan consists of several goals that include the four key areas of the Texas Long Range Plan for Technology.  The goals include ensuring that students are technologically literate, access to technology, promoting the safe use of technology, professional development opportunities for educators, encouraging community interaction through technology, increasing management efficiency and expanding the reach and capacity of the district’s technology infrastructure.  The professional development opportunities that are available include on-campus trainings and district trainings.  Some of those trainings include how to use: the smartboard, the mimio, Microsoft Office products, and PLATO software program for mathematics.  The campus’ Dean of Instruction is the person in charge of coordinating professional developments.  In terms of financial and time resources to ensure that each staff member is kept up-to-date depends on the school.  If the school has funding available for teachers to attend professional developments that may cost money then teachers have access to those professional developments.  On my campus, teachers have to be approved to attend professional developments and it’s based on the number of teachers that may be requesting that same training and the number of teachers that may be off-campus that day. 

Each campus in my district has a campus technology coordinator that ensures that both the hardware and software are working properly.  The technology coordinator also is responsible for making sure that the technologies are current so that students receive quality instruction through the proper integration of technology.  There is a sufficient budget to support the non-discount element if the amounts of new digital tools are reduced at each campus.  The evaluation process that enables the school to monitor the progress toward specified goals takes place at the campus level.  When the technology coordinator conducts inventory, the technology equipment is checked and updated for the most current version of the software and hardware.

Technology Assessments

In order for teachers to deliver quality instruction to students using technology,  they must be assessed on their technological knowledge and abilities.  If it is determined that the teacher is unable to grasp critical 21^st century teaching skills, then they will be unable to successfully integrate technology in the curriculum.  Because we live in a digital society, it should be mandatory that teachers are advanced in technology and can educate our students on technology applications so that they may be prepared to compete in a digital world.

One of the pros of technology assessments is that the more familiar and confident you are in your technological abilities the more likely you will integrate the use of digital tools in your lessons.  You will most likely be able to ensure that your students are technology literate by educating them on the role that technology plays in society and how it shapes the way we communicate and conduct business.   Once students observe and understand how important technology is and how frequently it is used in the classroom, they will be able to take the initiative to become advanced in using digital tools.  Technology assessments also allow the teacher to understand areas of proficiency and areas where improvement is needed that can be addressed by participating in professional developments.  These assessments can also provide school stakeholders with the information that they need to ensure that teachers get prescriptive training that will allow them to be proficient in all areas of technology.   Most importantly it is our duty as educators to fully understand that we must prepare our digital learners for their educational path and future career in a digital world.

The cons of technology assessments are that there is not prior knowledge of a teacher’s technology infrastructure and not every teacher is able to attend professional developments.  Some teachers have no control over the integration of technology in their lessons because their district or campus lack the funding needed to provide technological support for the classroom.  Because of a school’s  lack of funding to provide quality instruction to students through utilizing technology, it would be unfair if we held teachers accountable for something that is beyond their control.  It is also assumed that teachers are able to attend professional developments but that also depends on whether or not training is offered, and if it’s offered if they have their school officials’ permission to attend.  I strongly believe technology assessments are needed to provide teachers with results that can help them grow in their educational career.

My Web Conference Experience

Last Tuesday was the first time that I used the web camera and microphone on my computer and also my first time participating in a web conference.  I had the opportunity to meet my professor and classmates and learn more about the class’s expectations.  During the conference, I felt like I was actually a part of a classroom environment and it made me feel more comfortable about the class being online.  Communicating with my professor and classmates has been the greatest experience since being a part of the education technology leadership program because we were able to share information and ideas about past experiences.  Attending the web conference allowed me to think about the benefits of using a web conference versus meeting as a class in person and has shown me that technology is revolutionizing the way we communicate and conduct business.  I look forward to many more opportunities to speak with my professor and classmates about upcoming assignments, completing the internship, and successfully fulfilling the requirements for the class.