Math, Science, and Technology in RI Schools
Educational Technology in the Schools of RI
National standards for technology in schools have recently
been created. One set of standards, developed by the International Society for Technology
in Education (2000), focuses specifically on educational technology for students. The
following six standards have been developed along with specific performance indicators
organized by grades PreK-2, 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12:
1. Basic
operations and concepts
2. Social,
ethical, and human issue
-
Students understand the
ethical, cultural, and societal issues related to technology.
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Students practice
responsible use of technology systems, information, and software.
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Students develop positive
attitudes toward technology uses that support lifelong learning, collaboration, personal
pursuits, and productivity.
3. Technology
productivity tools
-
Students use technology
tools to enhance learning, increase productivity, and promote creativity.
-
Students use productivity
tools to collaborate in constructing technology-enhanced models, preparing publications,
and producing other creative works.
4. Technology
communication tools
-
Students use
telecommunications to collaborate, publish, and interact with peers, experts, and other
audiences.
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Students use a variety of
media and formats to communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple
audiences.
5. Technology
research tools
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Students use technology to
locate, evaluate, and collection information from a variety of sources.
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Students use technology
tools to process data and report results.
-
Students evaluate and
select new information resources and technological innovations based on the
appropriateness to specific tasks.
6. Technology
problem-solving and decision-making tools
The International Technology Education
Association (2000) with support from the National Science Foundation and NASA has created
an even broader set of technology standards for students. These national standards seek to
educate all students about the pervasive nature of technology, with a focus not just on
computers and related devices but the entire human constructed world of artifacts and
interactive systems. A set of 20 standards have been created organized around the themes
of the nature of technology, technology and society, design, abilities for a technological
world, and the designed world.
The International Technology
Education Association (2000) with support from the National Science Foundation and NASA
has created an even broader set of technology standards for students. These national
standards seek to educate all students about the pervasive nature of technology, with a
focus not just on computers and related devices but the entire human constructed world of
artifacts and interactive systems. A set of 20 standards have been created organized
around the themes of the nature of technology, technology and society, design, abilities
for a technological world, and the designed world.
The Milken Exchange on Education Technology (1999a) created an extensive taxonomy of
professional skills for the digital age classroom. Dimension 3 focuses on specific skills
that classroom teachers should exhibit in regards to technology use. It places these
skills on a continuum from Entry level through Adaptation to Transformation. The Core
Technology Skills defined by the Milken Exchange are:
1. The educator has a firm understanding of the principles of operation
of the computer system and peripherals. This understanding has translated into the ability
to adapt quickly to new technologies, as they become available.
2. The educator is familiar with technologies specific to the discipline
she teaches and is able to use these technologies successfully to support student
learning.
3. The educator has mastered the use of basic software applications and
is able to generalize these skills quickly to learn new applications.
4. The educator has sufficient skill and experience to make efficient
and effective use of complex electronic information resources.
5. The educator understands the power of computer networks and is able
to use those networks to facilitate communications, professional growth and student
learning.
6. The educator is familiar with multimedia and presentation
technologies and is able to guide students in the application of these technologies to
create knowledge products.
Over $7 million in Federal Technology Literacy Challenge (TLC) Funds have been awarded to
Rhode Island during the past four years. Released in the form of competitive awards, the
TLC funds have prioritized schools and districts with high numbers of students in poverty.
The Rhode Island General Assembly in 1996 appropriated $1.5 million in state grants
directly to every public school in the state. Subsequently, Article 31 funds targeted
specifically to technology were appropriated beginning with the 1997 legislative session.
The current annual targeted state investment in technology funding amounts to about $3.5
million. RI schools have also benefited from millions of dollars in technology and
technical support provided through a variety of RI foundations and companies including the
American Power Conversion, Champlin Foundation, CVS, G Tech, Hasbro Educational
Foundation, Raytheon, Rhode Island Foundation (discussed in detail below) and Textron. RI
Tech Corps was also established within this time period and has wired and provided
technical services of various kinds to numerous RI schools and districts worth hundreds of
thousands of dollars (www.tcri.org).
Rhode Island schools
participate in a partnership with Brown University, the University of Rhode Island, RIDE,
and the Office of Library and Information Services within the Rhode Island Department of
Administration, creating their own Internet Service Provider co-op, called RINET, to lower
access costs for Internet service (www.ri.net/RINET).
School districts along with their 328 schools, public libraries, as well as many private
schools, use RINET high-speed digital access to the Internet. Bell Atlantic has been the
major corporate partner in this venture, providing millions of dollars of waived line
charges under a negotiated agreement with the RI Public Utilities Commission. A majority
of K-12 educational professionals also dial in to the RINET system from home. Statewide
groups of K-12 educators such as foreign language teachers and science teachers, now
create, develop and discuss curriculum, professional development programs, and instruction
methodologies online. Teachers from schools throughout the state are part of this forum of
pedagogic and technical information and advice. These groups are aggressively pursuing an
online presence and have been rejuvenated by the total connectivity RINET has provided.
Connectivity, of course, is
just one part of the necessary fabric for effective use of technology to improve
education. Teachers also need extensive and targeted professional development. The Rhode
Island Teachers and Technology Initiative (RITTI) is a $5.7 million, three-year effort
sponsored by the Rhode Island Foundation, in collaboration with RIDE and URI’s School
of Education. Since 1997 the program has provided training and laptop computers to
approximately 2,400 public school teachers, representing about 1 in 4 teachers in the
state. The 153 Trainers in this program are teachers from across the state. Microsoft
Corporation is a significant partner in this endeavor, having contributed over $1.5
million in software applications.
The Rhode Island Foundation
believes that placing teachers at the center of school reform activity is crucial to the
improvement of education for students nationwide. RITTI teachers now populate every public
school in the state. The RITTI website features over 1,000 Internet-based lessons created
by RI teachers linked to the state’s content standards in specific subject areas (www.ed.uri.edu/rif99). Additional online
resources for RI educators are available on the website of the RI Education Exchange
supported by the National Center on Public Education and Social Policy at URI
(riedx.uri.edu). Self-interest groups within RITTI are organized around educational
topics. A host of other resources, including readily available technical assistance both
online and in person, are also available under project auspices. The Education Development
Center, Inc. conducted an independent evaluation of the program for Children &
Technology (Henríquez and Riconscente 1999). Portions of its conclusions are worth
noting:
[RITTI has been] effective in
addressing the needs of teachers with a broad range of instructional technology expertise.
As a result of their participation in the summer training sessions, the majority of these
educators report substantial increases in their ability to perform basic
telecommunications tasks, such as sending email and conducting Internet searches. They
also report dramatic improvements in their ability to make use of productivity and
production applications such as word processors, presentation software, and web authoring
tools. Even more significantly, the data indicate that RITTI educators are assuming
leadership roles in their own school communities. Not only do they perceive themselves as
technologically knowledgeable, they are supporting their colleagues’ use of
technology, developing strategies for integrating technology into their schools’
curricula, and making decisions about what hardware and software to purchase. Many of the
RITTI participants are serving on board and district technology committees and are
involved in making presentations about their technology work to school boards and other
community organizations. The fact that 95% of RITTI teachers are now using technology as a
regular component of their daily routines indicates that the program has succeeded in one
of its core mandates: enabling teachers to enhance their personal and professional
productivity through the use of technology.