Texas Long Range Plans for Technology: Educator Preparation and Development

As I read through the Educator Preparation and Development portion of TEA’s Texas Long Range Plans for Technology, 2006-2010 http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/technology/etac/LRPToct06.pdf all I keep thinking was YES, YES, YES!!! I feel that my Master’s classes have been driven by this plan for all Texas educators. I believe that due to my knowledge growth while in grad. school this information was common sense for me. However, had I read this two years ago, I would have thought “sounds great, but where do I start?”

It is crucial that our local school districts understand the need for technology integration into the existing curriculum and not as a separate “elective.” I can only speak from my personal experience and being an elementary teacher I can tell you that technology on my level is looked upon as an extension to the curriculum and not as an integrated part of the curriculum. I think that the tone of the district’s technology integration and growth is set by the administrators and trickles down from the teachers to the students. There is no doubt that the students are ready, but to often the teachers/administrators are the reluctant ones.

Professional development is the key to helping educators feel comfortable enough to integrate technology. School administrators need to prioritize the importance of training their teachers to reach the Target Tech level according to the Texas Teacher STaR Chart http://starchart.esc12.net/docs/TxTSC.pdf. Although I haven’t taught in two years, I remember being sent to the computer lab to fill out the STaR as best I could. There was no prior explanation of the chart and my concern was “making a good grade” so I allowed myself growing room, while still trying to appear that I was on track. I wonder now if this chart is explained to teachers so that they understand the relevance and importance of keeping track of their technological growth and integration level while teaching.

With the growth of Web 2.0, districts should take advantage of the many online tutorials and free webinars that are available to help educators become technology literate and to integrate technology across the curriculum.

As I read about other districts, I can see many that are making great advances in educational technology; however, there are many that still need help. In my school district, we have a technology director, who is on top of the technical side of technology; if the server is down, new software needs to be installed or your projector bulb needs replacing, that can be fixed. However, there is not an educational technologist or technology facilitator that helps all the teachers integrate technology into the curriculum in my district. The more I learn about preparing our students to survive in the world in which they live, there more I know that we need an educational technology specialist who can help train our teachers to integrate technology and better prepare our 21st century learners to not “simple survive, but truly thrive in the world that awaits them.”