National Education Technology Plan - Baker School District

Tear Down Those Walls:
The Revolution Is Underway
22
“Education is the only
business still debating the
usefulness of technology.
Schools remain unchanged
for the most part, despite
numerous reforms and
increased investments in
computers and networks.”
Walls – both physical and philosophical – have held back new,
more creative and more effective uses of the Internet in schools.
Virtually every public school has access to the
Internet. 40 Yet in most schools, it is business as
usual. Computers are enclosed in computer rooms
rather than being a central part of the learning
experience. Internet-savvy students are frustrated, as
is well documented in the 2002 report, The Digital
Disconnect: The Widening Gap Between Internet-
Savvy Students and Their Schools. 41
The problem is not necessarily lack of funds, but
Rod Paige
lack of adequate training and lack of understanding
U.S. Secretary of Education of how computers can be used to enrich the
learning experience. The good news is that things
are changing. States, localities and schools are creatively using
existing resources to restructure money within their existing
budgets to align technology with improved learning. These
examples show the benefits of realizing efficiencies and results
through systemic improvement. Creative new teaching models
are emerging – frequently in smaller districts – that embrace
technology to redesign curricula and organizational structures.
As the following examples from across the country demonstrate,
the results in educational achievement often have been significant.
The restrictive walls of the past are being torn down and a
transformation in teaching is underway.