Blog #3 - National Technology Plan

The U.S. Department of Education’s publication entitled “National Educational Technology Plan: Transforming American Education: Learning Powered by Technology” sets goals for 21^st Century education as it impacts student technology skills and knowledge acquisition in today’s educational setting.  The plan sets forth goals necessary for the success of education in the United States and outlines strategies we need to implement in order to compete in our global society.  The report states, “To achieve these goals, the National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) calls for revolutionary transformation rather than evolutionary tinkering” (2010, p. V).  

Using technology for collaboration and assimilation of knowledge is vital if America is going to be able to compete in a global marketplace.  In many ways, the Texas Long-Range Technology Plan mirrors the National Technology plan.  The goal is for our schools to use technology media as a dominant force in education.  Students should work collaboratively to seek solutions with technology as a vital and integral part of the learning.  Our schools need to reflect the world outside of the school building.  We must prepare students to transition into careers that will require extensive technological knowledge.  Both the National and the Texas plans give clear directives that will help educators to meet the challenges of our 21^st Century learners.  It will be imperative that we fund our schools so that technology is available for learning. 

The report states, “Above all, we must accept that we do not have the luxury of time. We must act now and commit to fine-tuning and midcourse corrections as we go. We must learn from other kinds of enterprises that have used technology to improve outcomes and increase productivity” (2010, p. 3)  The future of our educational system requires that we view education in new ways.  The National Educational Technology Plan details many thought-provoking ideas for educational transformation using technology integration and innovation.

U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology. (2010). Transforming american education: learning powered by technology Retrieved from http://www.ed.gov/sites/default/files/NETP-2010-final-report.pdf