The National Educational Technology Plan presents a model of learning powered by technology, with goals and recommendations in five essential areas:
1. Learning
2. Assessment
3. Teaching
4. Infrastructure
5. Productivity
Learning: Engage and Empower
Students today live in a world filled with technology that enables them to have access to information and resources at any time. They are able to pursue their passions, either it be creating multimedia content and uploading it to YouTube, or participating in online social networks to share ideas or collaborate…the opportunities are endless. Learning, described in this model calls for engaging and empowering learning experiences for all learners. The focus of this model is geared to what and how we teach to match what people need to know, how they learn, where and when they will learn, and who needs to learn. For students, using technology, not only outside the classroom, will prepare them to be successful members of a globally competitive workforce.
Assessment: Measure What Matters
Learning requires new and better ways to:
· Measure what matters
· Diagnose strengths and weaknesses in the course of learning
· Involve multiple stakeholders in the process of designing, conducting, and using assessments
Technology-based assessments that measure how students think with multimedia, interactivity, and connectivity allow us to assess these types of skills. Currently the standards and assessments that measure 21st century competencies are being developed. Technology-based assessments combined with learning systems can be used to detect and adjust the conditions of instructional and learning practices. It will also determine what students have learned for grading and accountability purposes. Student-learning data can be compiled and used to help improve learning outcomes and productivity.
Teaching: Prepare and Connect
Professional educators play a big part in transforming our education system. In order to shift to a model of connected teaching, the model of learning requires using technology to help build the capacity of educators. In a connected teaching model, educators have access to content, resources, and systems that enable them to create, manage, and access engaging and relevant learning experiences. More effective in-person courses, workshops, and online environments that offer resources and collaboration opportunities replace ineffective professional development for educators. Without connected teaching, our education system would not have access to effective teaching and learning resources.
Infrastructure: Access and Enable
In order to expand beyond the traditional classroom setting a comprehensive infrastructure is necessary. A comprehensive infrastructure would allow students and educators access to resources at any time. Students will be able to participate in online learning communities, capture and share knowledge based on multimedia, and break away from the rigid information transfer model. An infrastructure for learning enables a much more motivating intertwinement of learning.
Productivity: Redesign and Transform
To achieve our goal of transforming American education, we must apply technology to implement personalized learning. Due to the hard economic times we must leverage technology and provide decision makers with the financial performance of our education system at all levels. We must do this in order to meet our goals for educational attainment within the budget. The fundamental purpose of our education system has not changed, but the times we live in have, so we should change the roles and processes of schools, educators, and the system itself to reflect this.
Technology can enable transforming education, but only if we commit to the change. In order to accomplish this, schools must be incubators of exploration and invention, educators must be collaborators in learning, and students must be fully engaged in school.
No comments:
Post a Comment