A Flowing River

Technology no longer optional

The State Board of Education recently adopted a rule in response to SB 815 that requires that schools teach all the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) in both the foundation and enrichment curriculum areas. This requirement means that the Technology Applications TEKS that are provided for elementary grades (K-5) are no longer guidelines but are requirements. This means that in-service teachers at those grade levels must also have those Technology Applications skill levels in order to teach and reinforce the Technology Applications TEKS.
Source: Texas Long Range Plan for Technology 2006-2020

Find out what this means for your campus. Review the Technology Applications: TEKS Benchmarks and explore the K-8 SAISD-adopted, state approved curriculum. You can also listen to Anita Givens, State Director for Educational Technology, speak to the necessity.

• Listen to Part 1
• Listen to Part 2

What is going on in Washington? Anita Givens, Senior Director of Instructional Materials and Educational Technology at TEA, opened the meeting with a report from her recent visit to Washington D.C. Several agencies got together to discuss how to ensure that all students have the opportunity to be competitive in a global world. Technology was the underpinning of all conversations among representatives from ASCD, NCSL, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, the USDOE, state educational technology directors, state legislators, superintendents, federal policymakers, and others.

What do students need to be competitive today? The consensus is that 21st Century skills is the answer (see www.21stcenturyskills.org). We know that more and more foreign countries send their students to the U.S., get high degrees in our universities, and run our businesses from their countries. Teacher quality has taken a different direction: the focus needs to be on teaching meaning and thinking skills rather than content.

In response to this situation, states need to increase technology literacy. The goal is for all students to be technology literate by the time they leave 8th grade but NCLB does not specify how this will be measured. Monitoring of student progress is the responsibility of each state but all have to report progress to the USDOE. Most states have a definition of technology literacy. We all have to approach this in a similar way. Assessment of 21st century skills needs to be done in context. We are very fortunate in Texas because we have adopted the Technology Applications instructional materials and they include assessments. Next fall TEA will ask districts to report on the status and will collect data.

Changes in the new plan include:

- The Leadership, Administration and Instructional Support strand will replace Administrative Support
- A technology allotment of $123 per student (now it's $27, lower than ever before)
- A technology support allotment of $35 per student
- A requirement for teacher competencies and certification
- The creation of a statewide broadband access (just like another utility)
- The need to restore the Texas Library Connection