Executive Summary of The National Educational Technology Plan

The National Educational Technology Plan dedicates a section to discussing teaching and learning and a section to professional development. The Plan states that the “challenge for our education system is to leverage the learning sciences and modern technology to create engaging, relevant, and personalized learning experiences for all learners that mirror students’ daily lives and the reality of their futures.” (p. vi). The goal of the National Educational Technology Plan Technical Working Group in the area of teaching and learning is for professional educators to be “supported individually and in teams by technology that connects them to data, content, resources, expertise, and learning experiences that can empower and inspire them to provide more effective teaching for all learners.” (p. 39) The working group recognizes that today’s teaching is practiced in isolation and the PD provided is fragmented with little opportunity to integrate learning into practice. There is little incentive for educators to improve or time to implement new learning. The working group recommends a “connected teaching model” to replace isolation. Educators must be fully connected 24/7/365 to data, tools, and resources. When connected, educators are expected to provide relevant learning experiences for students. Professional learning should no longer be fragmented but instead connected and continuous. Face-to-face PD can be blended with online follow up, support, and collaboration. One of the barriers is that current educators may not feel comfortable with using technology as professionals in other industries. This technology gap has a direct impact on curriculum development. This is why colleges of education, professional learning providers, and school districts must take on the responsibility to introduce and expect educators to participate in connected learning. “Professional learning should support and develop educators’ identities as fluent users of advanced technology, creative and collaborative problem solvers, and adaptive, socially aware experts throughout their careers.” (p. 44) Online learning communities break down the barriers of isolation that educators operate in now. Educators can collaborate with peers around the world.
“A highly instrumented classroom is a place where technology-based systems provide educators with real-time insight into how every student is thinking that, when combined with analytic tools, helps educators make better decisions about how to adapt instruction to students’ needs.” (p. 41) At my school, we are implementing the TI Navigator system which does exactly this. It is a student response system in real-time and teachers can evaluate students’ responses and modify instruction on the spot to address students’ gaps in understanding. I believe our school is on the right track but I also know that if this learning is not fully supported with internal and external coaches, we will not be able to sustain this technology and its benefits through time. Our leaders recognize the benefits but they must also continue to provide the funding and support for long-term success.