National and State Technology Standards

      1. As you read the Introduction to the National Education Technology Plan, what did you determine to be the purpose of the National Education Technology Plan? How does it affect teachers and students, people like you and me? (feel free to be critical if you like).

From my understanding, the purpose of the National Education Technology Plan (NETP) is to help students succeed towards a better career after school. Their goal is help reform education with the help of purposeful technology. This will prepare students to become familiar with 21^st century technology, and help them become successful after graduation. The importance of education in today’s economy is crucial in helping our nation progress. Therefore, educators must foster creativity and innovation in classrooms, to be able to compete with students all over the globe. With the help of technology, this will allow learning to be more progressive, and efficient. The NETP strives to create college graduates who are competent in the workforce.

I believe that this plan is achievable, and relative to today’s society. Educators have already welcomed technology into their classrooms such as iPads, computers, Smart Boards, etc. This plan affects both teachers and students, and their methods of teaching. I think that technology will bring a very visual aspect of learning inside the classroom, and also provide an efficient way to learning. However, some teachers might criticize that this might hinder someone’s creativity because everything is offered through the Internet, and web applications. Like any invention, there are pros and cons and it depends on the individual on how they are able to handle technology in their learning.  

2. As you read the Introduction to the National Education Technology Plan (NETP), what were the main assumptions under which the plan was developed?  (you may copy and paste the main assumptions, and then answer the question below in your own words).

•       Many of the failings of our education system stem from our failure to engage the hearts and minds of students.

•       What students need to learn and what we know about how they learn have changed, and therefore the learning experiences we provide should change.

•       How we assess learning focuses too much on what has been learned after the fact and not enough on improving learning in the moment.

•       We miss a huge opportunity to improve our entire education system when we gather student-learning data in silos and fail to integrate the information and make it broadly available to decision-makers at all levels of our education system—individual educators, schools, districts, states, and the federal government.

•       Learning depends on effective teaching, and we need to focus on extended teams of connected educators with different roles who collaborate within schools and across time and distance and who use technology resources and tools to augment human talent.

•       Effective teaching is an outcome of preparing and continually training teachers and leaders to guide the type of learning we want in our schools.

•       Making engaging learning experiences and resources available to all learners anytime and anywhere requires state-of-the-art infrastructure, which includes technology, people, and processes that ensure continuous access.

•       Education can learn much from such industries as business and entertainment about leveraging technology to continuously improve learning outcomes while increasing the productivity of our education system at all levels.

What are some concerns administrators, educators, or even students might have with these assumptions?

            I believe that teachers are experts in motivating children to learn. The assumption of student failure due to the lack of engagement from students’ minds and hearts, will definitely stir some conversation. There are teachers who work tremendously hard to help students learn and motivate them to succeed. Secondly, engaging in real learning experiences is not available to everyone. It is indeed very crucial for students to have real life experiences outside of school, to help them apply their learning. However, not all school systems, or not all families have the luxury to provide these experiences to students. The assumption of how we assess students is definitely a big issue in today’s school system. Every teacher that I have spoken with is not a huge fan of standardized testing, and constantly putting children under pressure to meet scores and progress. There is also an issue of hiring competent teachers in today’s school system. Although we believe that both education and experience is important in hiring teachers, school systems prefer to hire teachers with little or no experience at all, for budget cut reasons. I think that this might be a hindrance to today’s society.

3.  As you read the Executive Summary, the NETP presents a model of learning powered by technology, with goals and recommendations in five essential areas. (You may copy and paste the areas directly from the document and then answer the question below in your own words).

1.0 Learning: Engage and Empower

All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and out of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society.

2.0 Assessment: Measure What Matters

Our education system at all levels will leverage the power of technology to measure what matters and use assessment data for continuous improvement.

3.0 Teaching: Prepare and Connect

Professional educators will be supported individually and in teams by technology that connects them to data, content, resources, expertise, and learning experiences that enable and inspire more effective teaching for all learners.

4.0 Infrastructure: Access and Enable

All students and educators will have access to a comprehensive infrastructure for learning when and where they need it.

5.0 Productivity: Redesign and Transform

Our education system at all levels will redesign processes and structures to take advantage of the power of technology to improve learning outcomes while making more efficient use of time, money, and staff.

What are the “21st century competencies” - see the section titled “what and how people need to learn”- listed in the summary? How will technology support the growth of these competencies?

21^st century competencies are skills that help individuals thrive in today’s technological world. We must include these skills in our everyday curriculum to provide students the necessary skills that will help them progress. These skills include: critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, and multimedia education.  These skills, along with education must be incorporated in our lesson plans and curriculum, as we help children problem solve during Math or Science periods. We can also foster collaboration during a Social Studies project by organizing Service Learning. Multimedia education can be woven into English Language Arts, by bringing in books on tape, or movies about book authors. As teachers, we can encourage critical thinking by studying art or paintings. There are endless ways that teachers can include these skills in the classroom.

4.  As you read The State of Ohio's Educational Technology Plan's "purpose and mission" (page 6), how do you believe it aligns with the National Education Technology Plan? In which respects are the two plans perhaps not aligned?  Why?

The purpose and mission of Ohio’s Educational Technology Plans share the same idea with the National Education Technology Plan (NETP) where they believe that the importance of technology in education will help students progress and become competent in today’s society. This organization is able to reach out to those who need access to technology in classrooms. However, it seems to me like the Ohio’s Education Technology Plan is still making constant changes to ensure the success of this program. Their mission sends out the message that their mission statement is flexible and that it is living document where changes can me made throughout the process.

5.  As you read Ohio’ s State Educational Technology Plan outlined on page 8, how do you believe this outline aligns with the "model of learning powered by technology, with goals and recommendations in five essential areas" proposed by the National Education Technology Plan?  In which areas are the two plans perhaps not aligned?  Why?

Both plans include the integration of technology in education, and the importance of providing learning opportunities to students. It also includes the importance of professional development that educators and administrators need to undergo especially when becoming technological-savvy in the classroom. It is important for us to become educated and experienced in using these devices for a better learning experience. One aspect where these plan did not align was the area of assessment. The NETP emphasizes that importance of assessment in the educational system, the Ohio’s Education Plan does not include that.

6.  As you read Ohio’s State Educational Technology Plan's "measurements of success" (page 16), what barriers do you see to fulfilling this plan? Provide four reasons why it may not be possible to reach these "measurements of success" in the state of Ohio.

I see a couple of barriers in being able to fulfill this plan. For online courses in a high school setting, there might be a few issues where it may hinder their learning. The issue of online classes and being able to monitor cheating is a major issue in education. I believe that students can be exposed to online work, but have a security monitor to what they may write for papers. Submitting transcripts and grades online may be a little difficult for teachers who have trouble working the system. Technology will always have flaws along the way, and this can become a barrier. However, I see that the measurement of success is set on a high standard, which can be a great measurement to student success.