CombinedPerilsandPromises

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THE PROMISE AND PERILS OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY


 * //NOTE TO THE READER:// This essay offers an examination of technology in today's educational environment and gives practical information to those interested in these ideas. It is a living document and you are welcome to edit it. The initial draft was written by a team of 17 students and the professor over a three-week period. A second cohort of 21 students and their professor worked on creating a structure and further developing the ideas. This will be a continuing process so each year this essay will transform. One of the many goals of this learning adventure is to help student prepare for writing their literature reviews by working on one as a collective. ||

Cadre 11 is editing a new version of this page--so I will try to lock this page. THIS IS NOT THE PLACE TO BE WORKING FOR CADRE 11. YOUR ESSAY IS HERE.


 * 1) INTRODUCTION
 * 2) THE PROMISE OF USING EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY
 * 3) Benefits to the Learning Process
 * 4) Collaboration within and beyond the Classroom (Anne)
 * 5) Communication and Rapid Access to Resources
 * 6) Provides embedded Assessment of Learning (not written)
 * 7) Creates a New Generation of Social Networks
 * 8) Provides Skills for the Future
 * 9) THE PROBLEMS OF USING EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY
 * 10) Risks in the Learning Process
 * 11) Replaces Social Interaction
 * 12) Technology Acquisition Decisions,Training, and Access Issues
 * 13) The use of Technology Assessment Data Takes Training
 * 14) Security concerns introduced by Networking
 * 15) **Decreases Employment Opportunities** - **Georgi**
 * 16) MOVING PAST PROMISE AND PROBLEMS TO IMPLEMENTATION
 * 17) Learning Environments
 * 18) Distributed Learning> >>
 * 19) A Level Playing Field
 * 20) Training Programs
 * 21) Formal, Ongoing Assessment
 * 22) Planning for the Future (not written)
 * 23) EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY MODELS
 * 24) Community Models
 * 25) School Models
 * 26) Classroom Models
 * 27) Professional Development Models
 * 28) CONCLUSION
 * 29) REFERENCES
 * 30) LINKS

 =**1.0. INTRODUCTION**= tech·nol·o·gy: a scientific method of achieving a practical purpose ( [|http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/technology)]

Throughout the history of man, technology has fostered growth, prosperity, conquest, and renaissance. From turning stone to bronze, ore to iron, and iron to steel, the evidence is widespread. In today’s fast paced world, technological progress, changes, and advances are happening everyday. With technology and various innovations, it has brought the movable type and the printing press, which has altered the balance of power from the few to the many. It has freed the mind and body from countless usurpations of natural rights and modern justice. Technology has also wrought havoc on mankind in the form of war and destruction of entire peoples and native lands. It has reverted the balance of power away from the many, and towards those that can control and use it effectively. At the present, technology is re-inventing the way we do business, creating a global economy. In addition, the impact of advanced technology has increased computer usage at all levels as evidenced by the popularity of video games, increased interest on the part of students using computers to enhance learning, and business/school partnerships forming with such companies as Digital Equipment Corporation, International Business Machines, and Tandy/Radio Shack. Educators are now in a position to develop and implement programs and enter a new age of educational responsibility and decision-making (Senese).

Technology is propitious in nature and has countless applications in educational settings. It can be used to promote communication, increase collaboration, and create social circles that are not hindered by time or space. These attributes can span a campus or a community, or can be without borders, even global. However, like other innovations throughout history, technology can be a double-edged sword. Its use can have a negative impact on learning spheres. Its high cost may be prohibitive to some involved, negating the egalitarian philosophy of education. Current pedagogy does not make full use of all available instructional technologies and its proper function is not always reliable. The span and scope that students can reach with modern advents on the Internet, such as instant messaging (IM), ( [|VoIP])Voice over Internet Protocol, chat rooms, and digital imaging allow for compromises in student safety and reduce a school’s ability to monitor inappropriate or dangerous behavior. Technology presents both promises and perils. This site presents both sides as a launching point to creating better dialogue about how the application of technology can improve education.  = = We rely on [|technology]to help improve education across different contexts. From schools to the society at large, and to the problems that may arise from the use of technology, we put a heavy burden on technology and its potential. These wide-ranging and profound expectations should be examined closely and reflected upon... Specifically, we should consider:
 * What are the benefits of technology?
 * Where has the use of technology taken us in the past and what directions are necessary for our society to pave in the future?
 * What are some of the challenges posed by technology and how can work around them?
 * Who is driving the "technology bus" and where does professional development enter the discussion?
 * What models or examples should inspire and inform educational technology?

Within this paper, we will explore answers to these questions as we explore the promises and perils of technology.  =2.0 THE PROMISES OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY=

Educators, inventors, and leaders have long looked toward technology to increase students' ability and motivation to learn. In 1922, [|Thomas Edison]predicted that motion picture promised to revolutionize education. More recently, President George W. Bush’s [|No Child Left Behind Act]stated that states schools should use technology as a tool to improve academic achievement and that using the latest technology in the classroom should not be an end unto itself, educators have looked toward technology to increase students' ability and motivation to learn. Technology increases collaboration among learners by improving communication and allowing students to establish connections with peers, experts, and professional learning environments.. Furthermore, technology diminishes physical barriers to learning and allows the establishment of online virtual communities where new skill sets are created and forged.

We look first at the role technology plays in maximizing learning. The second point discusses ways it encourages collaboration both locally and over distances. This leads into a discussion of communication technology and the way it improves the communication in the classroom and with those beyond the classroom. This communication has resulted in a surge of social networks reach serve as potential resources in education. We end with the role in which technology plays supporting an educational environment that fosters a [|framework for 21st century skills].

 (**//my sense is this section is weak... There is lots of evidence that computers increase reading and writing skills there is some evidence that it helps in problem solving. Game and simulation have been recently used to really impact learning. This is the place to make the strongest argument for why you might want to use technology. I reorganized the paragraphs which helps but this is place you would contribute.- Here is a site with studies of research that find some effect on writing but not strong effects. You have to pay attention to the type of technology --there is little effect for integrated learning systems...the types that people feared would replace teachers http://www.sri.com/policy/csted/reports/sandt/it/ All of these reports have summaries. mr)//
 * 2.1 Benefits to the Learning Process

[|George Lucas]describes "mutually satisfying instructional mechanisms" that offer the student more responsibility and influence over his or her own educational experience. "Innovative classrooms are abuzz with productive discussions and the excitement of learning" (Lucas, 2002). The internet offers students access to information not found in the physical classroom. Students gain access to some of the most sophisticated labs and expertise through collaborative online networks. They can also experience virtual field trips to places they never imaged or dreamed existed (such as the Norko watering hole in South Africa through a 24 hour a day webcam).Technology, according to Cuban, allows students "direct access to facts, ideas, and primary sources, links images and concepts to sound and film and motivates students, especially those who would otherwise not be engaged" (2001).

In a recent controlled experiment Roschelle and his colleagues (2007) compared the math curricula used traditionally in Texas with a an innovated SimCalc computer tool approach. They found that students who use SimCal gained 46% while those using traditional learning materials had an average gain of 19%,. Statistically, the size of the SimCalc effect was measured at 0.84, which is considered a large effect in education. However, a recent U.S. Department of Education evaluation of 15 alternative technology-based products did not find any significant efforts. //(there are lots of studies that show increase in writing skills-mr)//

Maximizing learning in the physical classroom could increase the intelligence level of students as Eric Jenson suggests in his book, __The Learning Brain.__ Many researchers confirm that the more often a certain neuropathway is used, the stronger the pathway becomes in the brain. By using pathways over and over in the brain, other pathways develop as off shoot connections to the main pathway, thus providing a larger percentage of brain use.

Technology attracts students to the learning process and allows for a more customized experience by supporting different learning styles to emerge such as audio, visual and kinesthetic. Tools such as [|video cameras]and consumer-grade [|video editing]software are technologies that can improve education by maximizing learning. Moersh suggests that performance assessments that emphasize "components of content, process, and product" can use [|multimedia]capabilities of modern computers to encourage higher order thinking (Moersh, 2002).

//Does discussion of tools like bugscope go here? What about all of the application on Edutopia?//-mr

 "Technology allows for greater cooperation, communication, and creativity of groups all over the world" (Rheingold, 2002).
 * 2.2 Encourages Collaboration (**//I think the first paragraph is getting at community of practice. Some of you had great examples of communities of practice and how technology makes a different way of working possible. )//

Collaboration is essential in ensuring skillful educators and educated children. The internet increases availability of digital video tools used by learners to explore and encourage collaborative work, and offers a solid primer of what collaborative work entails. Through collaboration there is greater opportunity for community involvement where students, parents, and teachers become life long learners exchanging thoughts, ideas and roles. All this is possible because of the [|digital age], removal of artificial and geographic barriers and greater availability of learning communities to connect. Collaboration is essential in ensuring skillful educators and educated children (Edutopia, 2002).

Technology can help to change the "teacher/learner dynamic," allowing students greater control of their learning (21st Century Skills Report, 2002). Changing the child/adult dynamic, technology promotes cross-generational [|collaboration]that is more comfortable for the student.

Technology based communication allows all types of individuals to share their skills and ideas with students without having to be physically present. Physical and national borders are removed enabling cooperation and educational opportunities across the world. Students can experiment with databases like [|Online Medical Diagnosis] and [|WebMD] to prepare for a virtual visit from a doctor or nurse. Students collaborate with etimologists from natural science museums or use tools like bugscope. In the corporate world, collaboration is available through tools such as web conferencing. Web conferencing allows attendees to simply enter a URL or website meeting address to enter the live meeting or conference ([|www.wikipedia.com]). This tool allows participants to share ideas freely while sitting in the comfort of their home or office.

//learning circles and other iearn projects could be used to develop this last paragraph (check Iearn.org )// mr



**2.3 Improves Communication**
Technology improves [|communication]in all settings including education. Schools' increasing online presence allows for additional modern and convenient means of communicating with parents (Cuban, 2001). Technology and the internet also promotes greater cooperation, communication, and creativity of groups all over the world (Rheingold, 2002). Schools are no longer isolated bodies of knowledge. Connected by the internet, individual schools form communities of knowledge, sharing research, curriculum and methods with their global colleagues.Increased communication has far reaching influences including sweeping improvements in the practice of medicine (nanomedicine), and [|Artificial Intelligence]which offers insight into human intelligence (Pesce 2000). The very world in which we dwell and its "noosphere”, or collective human intelligence are built upon the [|World Wide Web], cellular phones, voice or Short Messaging Service (SMS) [aka: text messaging], and Global Positioning System (GPS).

//so what is the value of this improved communication?// -mr



**2.4 Creates a New Generation of Social Networks**
//**(this is a great topic but it needs some development it has a bit of a pasted together feel...don't you think? I don't get the what the reference to Dede is saying. I reworked the taspcott citation but either more needs to be said or it should be dropped. Where is the discussion of my space and ebay and amazon and all of the great examples of social networking. )**//
 * Technology is used to create new [|social networks]. The web community, without borders or barriers to socializing or learning with and from one another, provides enormous opportunities for today's learners. The students who benefit can just as easily be on a distant continent or in a different time zone as in the same learning environment as other social network participants.**


 * DeDe suggests the idea of interfaces he calls "Alice-in-Wonderland" that allow multi-user environments or a "costume party" environment that can be provided for both student and adult in the virtual worlds of MUVE or Second Life that allows instructor, student and parents to be on the same plane.**
 * The partnerships cited in George Lucas’ Foundation's [|Edutopia]illustrates many examples of successful partnerships between K-12 schools and the business community. “Volunteering really enriches the way I feel about my job”, says Pat Jacobs, a scientist in the Coatings and Colorants division who also directs the Pittsburgh effort. “You get so serious here at work working against deadlines. To be able to enjoy science from a child’s point of view is really renewing” (Lucas, 2002).**


 * Tapscott provides an example of kids who asked speakers if they had email addresses and then used them to pose their questions which he claims if fracturing the power dynamic that exists between children and adults (Tapscotte, 1998).**(Sonja)



**2.5 Provides Skills for the Future**
//(how about all of the talk about 21st century skills..doesn't that go here?-mr )//

Educational technologists emphasize the hands-on experience of learning that technology offers. "Rather than reading about physics or math, Resnick prefers children (and adults) to participate in an exploration that will feel much like play but will result in the acquisition of a broader base of knowledge — learning by doing" (Pesce, 2000). Dede speaks of a necessary shift from "problem solving" towards "problem finding" to prepare our learners for the future. According to Dede, a great deal of what we do in schools is teaching students to work with "pre-digested" information. The world that awaits our students will require them to "understand complex phenomena" and "problem find" prior to "problem solving". As young students are exposed more and more to the physical and virtual worlds of technology, vocabulary and high level critical reading skills will be developed. Students will embody a better comprehension of the differences between personal reading and technical reading for their lives. Students will also be able to interact with a common language of their adult counterparts through computer programs and instructional tasks. DeDe notes that students "will encounter richer, more uniform levels of discourse across the multiple adults involved in their learning outside of school...exposure to complex oral and written language... in a community setting enhances the development of reading skills and literacy. Technology is a great way to place students into ’real-world’ simulations that enable this type of thinking” (Dede, 2006).

Technology also offers students training in the skills they will need for future employment (Tapscott, 1998). Using [|computers], unlike passively reading a book or listening to a lecture, actively involves the student and exercises such needed skills as problem solving and information analysis.

Serim (2003) presents the notion of “Contemporary Literacy" to prepare students for the 21st Century. Contemporary Literacy which includes technology and information based problem solving, builds a bridge to connect to current and traditional literacy. It is interwoven within the curriculum. A good example is the embedding of calculators in math class, or the use of word processors in english class. The technology becomes transparent to the user. These new approaches to literacy could then be transferred to the State and national testing arenas and also transform standardized assessments on grade level achievement and year end course studies.

//Seems like a transition is needed here. --mr// 

=**3.0 THE PERILS OF TECHNOLOGY**=

//Western society has accepted as unquestionable a technological imperative that is quite as arbitrary as the most primitive taboo: not merely the duty to foster invention and constantly to create technological novelties, but equally the duty to surrender to these novelties unconditionally, just because they are offered, without respect to their human consequences. ~ [|Lewis Mumford]//

In a fast-paced world where educators often feel outpaced by rapidly advancing technology, it make sense to pause and take a critical look at the use of technology in schools. Technology is the "process by which humans modify nature to meet their basic wants" (National Academy of Science, 2007) Technology is viewed as tangible objects, including computers, and in particular the focus on access to hardware at the expense of effective pedagogy (Earle, 2002). We need to think carefully about the challenges and consequences that we face as learners, educators and society as a whole. There is no shotage of techo-evanglists who are poised to [|integrate technology]into every aspect of education. Cuban (2001) urges us to attend to research and past experience as institutions press forward through the myriad of hardware, software, and related ethical issues that did not exist thirty years ago. The question, he argues should be under what conditions, and what degree should we use technology. Will access lead to widespread use, and will widespread use lead to knowledge? In the late 1980’s Cuban identified three impulses which guided the implementation of technology in the school system: bringing students up to par with the demands of technical skills in today’s workplaces, increase productivity and efficiency of learning, and to learn collaboratively (Cuban, 1993). In the nineties, he did not see evidence of these changes and questioned the overuse of computer technology in schools and universities. Most of the critiques that we visit in this section are dated but those who holds these views may point to the recent study sponsored by the Department of Education which looked at thirty-three districts, 132 schools, and 439 teachers and found no significant differences in in classrooms using the reading and mathematics software products than those in control classrooms (Dynarski, et. al., 2007)

In this section we follow a similar structure as we did in reviewing the promise. First, we examine issues linked to the learning environment -obstacles that can result from inappropriate use, unreliability of technology, and time limitations. Second we will look at social interaction and communication and some of the negative consequences that might evolves if teaching is done by computers rather than people. Third, not all schools are prepared to safeguard students and student information from the possible negative consequences of social networks. Fourth we look at problems associated with assessment. Fourth, we examine how hierarchical decision making and limited funding that is prevalent in schools creates problems of access for all students. Finally we look beyond the classroom to examine how technology in the society may close many of the job opportunities that students could have expected to have in the past.



**3.1 Risks to the Learning Process**
//The structure I worked out for this section is general issue and then issues of use for very young to older students. It is a bit long so feel free to condense.//

Technology cannot be treated as the silver bullet or answer to all of education's needs. Cuban warns against making broad claims that technology in the classroom can raise test scores (Cuban, 2001). The engagement that a computer creates might provide some short term gains in students' learning experiences, because kids pay more attention to the monitor (Cuban, 2001; Oppenheimer, 1997). But using technology as "a swift fix" for complex educational problems will not solve the problems educators might hope it will (Cuban, 2001). Instead of ending problems, technology may solve a "non-problem," according to Stoll, in the process creating "a slew of new ones" (1995 page numbers).

Some educators question the value of early childhood exposure to computers, particularly in the years form preschool to third grade, when a child is most impressionable (Oppenheimer, 1997). “In pressing early childhood teachers to use computers with eye-catching software for tykes, zealous parents and educators have not transformed preschools and kindergartens into new and different versions of ‘good schools’. Rather, they have watched a technological innovation get reinvented into a benign addition to traditional early childhood programs” (Cuban, 2001, page number). Jane Healy (1999) warns that unproven technologies may offer engaging graphics, but suggests that they could also be detrimental to the early brain development. A series of studies suggested that "music and art classes may build the physical size of a child's brain, and its powers for subjects such as language, math, science, and engineering -- in one case far more than computer work did" (Oppenheimer, 1997).

Elementary students are often confused by what is valid and credible information, often citing sources that are written on blog spaces or from student-created sites. With such wide open access to wikis and wikipedia sites, students are taking the information from these sites as factual, allowing little room for what past encyclopedias and books worked hard to prevent. Stoll, (1999, page number needed here) described kids as who often lack critical thinking skills as "on-screen innocents who confuse form with content, sense with sensibility, ponderous words with weighty thought". A lack of understanding on the part of both teachers and students threatens a generation of students reared on Internet research: being unable to distinguish the legitimacy of the information available on the Internet. Using unscholarly sources for educational information leads to a confusion of students. Also with ready access to sites that sell student essays, students can use technology to cheat themselves out of learning. Students need instruction in how to evaluate what they find and to appropriately cite Internet sources. The impressionable nature of elementary children makes some worry about the trend to use technology to advertise, not educate. In many of the programs made available to schools at no cost, students of all ages are bombarded with banner ads (Cuban, 2001)

Judah Schwartz, a professor of education at [|Harvard]and a co-director of the school's Educational Technology Center believes that computers can cause a lack of creativity and isolate students from social interactions. Computers can also cause students to miss out on real world experience, as well as limit their knowledge to only the usage of the tools (Oppenheimer). Oppenheimer (1997) described a small but carefully controlled study went so far as to claim that Reader Rabbit, a reading program then used in more than 100,000 schools, caused students to suffer a 50 percent drop in creativity (Oppenheimer, 1997). By providing programmed instructions, computer technology does little to support creativity and art (Stoll, 1995). It impacts their ability to learn using their minds, not the computer. As children rely on computer programs as a tool to do some of the work for them, many of their basic skills will dwindle such as penmanship, spelling, grammar, and drawing (Stoll, 1995). According to [|Clifford Stoll]this can "foster a golly-gee-whiz attitude instead of a critical thinking" environment often dulling minds. Many of the educational games in the classroom emphasis drilling and "many of these games bow to the tyranny of the right answer" (Stoll, 1995). Finally, it is important to note that our students do not fully comprehend computers as a device for learning and higher level thinking. In his explanation of how students interact with computers, Foti states that, "it is quite clear that, while students aren't afraid of software tools, they don't have a good understanding of how computers work, how they are controlled, or even how they communicate." As educators, we try to prepare students for a lifetime of learning.

For older students the biggest worry is complacency and thoughtlessness. Alan Lesgold, a professor of psychology and director of a learning center at the University of Pittsburgh, calls the computer an "'amplifier,'" one that "encourages both enlightened study practices and thoughtless ones (Oppenheimer, 1997). Oppenheimer warns that this model has the potential, through "thoughtless practices" to "dominate, slowly dumbing down huge numbers of tomorrow's adults" (1997). Stoll observes that good teachers will continue to be good teachers whether or not they use computers in their classroom, just as bad teachers will remain such with a computer in the classroom or not. The key to successful implementation and realistic expectations of technology in the classroom is teaching students to be critical, reflective thinkers. Students are unsure of what to do when not given direction or a grade. "This concept has gone out the window as computers can provide kids with many of the answers quickly without being challenged mentally" (Tyack and Cuban, 1995). Shop classes, a source of hands-on engineering, have nearly been eliminated, removing a practical, vocational educational offering in favor of computer literacy (Oppenheimer, 1997). The replacing of real-world experience with the "multimedia razzle-dazzle" offered by computers may communicate to children and teachers a belief that technological simulation is superior in cognitive benefits to real-world experience.

Like any tool, technology can be used in ways that do little to benefit the student. Just as the film projector and VCR could be improperly used for respite from actual "teaching" in years past, the computer as "Edutainment" may focus on more entertainment then education. Clifford Stoll equated computers of the classroom of the 1990s to the filmstrips he has watched as a young student: "We loved them because we didn't have to think for an hour, teachers loved them because they didn't have to teach, and parents loved them because it showed their schools were high-tech. But no learning happened" (Oppenheimer, 1997). Edutainment is a strategy of embedding educational lessons in games to help make learning fun and enjoyable, thus captivating the students and motivating them to want to learn more. The fear of making learning fun through technology, Oppernheimer (1997) argues is that students may loose sight of the fact that learning is a challenge and will often entail a lot of hard work.This software often defines learning as drill and practice and it is unclear what a computerized multimedia presentation adds to education.



**3.2 Replacing Human Interaction**
Another factor that could potentially reverse a positive effect of technology is the reduction of human interaction that results from technology use. Specialists in early childhood development value the whole development of the child using their senses to learn-- emotionally, intellectually and socially -- before introducing something as "technical and one-dimensional as a computer" (Oppenheimer, 1997). Oppenheimer further argues that the human and physical world holds greater learning potential than computers. Indeed, using technology to replace real world experiences, when available to a student, sends the wrong message: "that the mediated world is more significant than the real one" (Oppenheimer, 1997).

When teachers assign students work on the computers, they are not receiving any social interaction with their peers and teacher. Because of this, students may not develop the social skills needed to interact with others on an emotional level. “It appears that although we think we are reasoning out our decisions and choosing our actions deliberately, we may often just be responding more or less automatically to cues in our environment.” (Buchanan, 2007) If we decrease the amount of personal interaction our students have on a daily basis, we are, in fact, changing how they respond. Instead of interacting and responding to people in their environment, they are responding to advertisements, email messages, My Space Blogs and countless other inputs from the internet that could have an adverse reaction to their development. “The power and benefits of responding instinctively to our //social// environment are especially clear if you consider any tight-knit group of individuals, from the musicians in a jazz quartet to soldiers spending months in close quarters.” (Buchanan, 2007) Without these social interactions, we might miss out on fostering the development of an important part of who our students are and ultimately who they become. Buchanan further notes that "It may be that important parts of our personal thinking are actually caused by the //social// network we're in…” By limiting the amount of human interaction in lieu of technology, we could possibly be changing our students’ very thought processes, identity and patterns of behavior. “As Jaffee (1998) notes, core identities are often invoked and defended in teacher-student //interactions// and the use of digital //technologies// may disrupt, threaten or enhance [students’] identities.” (Benson, D. E. &amp; Mekolichick, Jeanne, 2007)



**3.3 Technology Acquisition Decisions, Training and Access Issues**
According to the National Education Technology Plan, “over the past 20 years, America has invested hundreds of billions of dollars in education. For the 2003-04 school year alone, expenditures at local, state and federal levels on elementary and secondary education exceeded $500 billion. Despite the investment, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading scores have remained essentially flat during the same 20- year period” (2004). While many may argue that technology is a useful learning tool which can potentially bring all students to a level playing field, Stoll emphasizes that implementing technology will result in an exorbitant cost to the school system. In the late-nineties, Todd Oppenheimer reports, school districts across the United States slashed programs in art, music, and physical education in favor of purchasing classroom computers (Oppenheimer, 1997). It is important to prioritize and spend the limited money properly (Stoll, 1995).

A growing [|national initiative]to promote technology must take into account the rising costs of providing necessary technological capital. Todd Oppenheimer believes that the high-tech industry and the business community have fostered a "high-tech habit" among the school districts to whom they have donated equipment (Oppenheimer, 1997). After delivering and setting up the computer systems, "the companies often drop their support" (Oppenheimer, 1997). The district or school is left with the daunting responsibility of "maintenance of the computer network and the need for constant software upgrades and constant teacher training -- the full burden of which can cost far more than then initial hardware and software combined" (Oppenheimer, 1997). This leads to a cycle of "handouts from other companies," grant writing to cover costs, and turning to the community by asking voters to levy additional taxes (Oppenheimer, 1997).The money spent on initial implementation of technology in a school as well as the long-term costs associated with maintenance and upkeep can cause a misallocation of funds better suited for better purposes within the district. "In appropriating substantial funds for sustaining technology in a given district, administrators often leave other pressing needs unmet" (Cuban, 2001). The "high-tech habit" Oppenheimer believes imprisons schools in software licensing contracts and annual upgrades might not provide the benefits that technology promises.

Differing priorities between administrators and teachers has led to challenges in integration of technology into instructional purposes. Teachers, the experts in the classrooms, are often left out of the loop when decisions are made about technology purchases (Cuban, 2001). Technology is sold to administrators, and teachers are not given the assistance needed to implement technology use in the classroom (Tyack and Cuban, 1995). Cuban also questions the academic value-add for technology as compared to the dollars spent. “Even with little evidence that investments in information technologies raise test scores or promote better teaching, most school managers use the rhetoric of technological progress to establish legitimacy with their patrons and the private sector” (Cuban, 2001). The initial cost is multiplied by the need for training, equipment maintenance and in only a few years replacement costs. Any breakdown can cause a class to waste valuable teaching and learning time attempting to troubleshoot and fix the problem. As computers age, software conflicts increase, causing more interruptions and wasted time in the classroom. Often, the technology support team that has the responsibility for fixing the computers, has too many tasks and responsibilities to quickly solve problems.

Technology and software require time and effort to master. This can be an impediment for instructors designing a course, and for students, who may need to spend time mastering the technology or software in addition to the course materials.Faced with ever more educational [|software ,] the teacher needs a high level of proficiency and extra time to research and assess software to find quality products. Judah Schwartz, a professor of education at Harvard and a co-director of the school's Educational Technology Center was quoted by Oppernheimer as saying that 99% of the educational programs were of little value. In addition, schools that try to adapt technology into its curriculum often cannot integrate it effectively into the classroom (Shields, Behrmam, 2000). Without time and opportunities to learn, teachers are stuck at what McKenzie, (2000) termed Stage 3, or "electronic traditionalists," educators who see implementation of technology in the classroom as an extension of the traditional classroom (McKenzie, 2000). Cuban agrees, stating, “Most teachers adapted an innovation to fit their customary practices, not to revolutionize them” (Cuban, 2001). Technology is often introduced into the classroom and the teachers feel they have to change their method of delivery without any instruction to accomplish this task. With a lack of instruction for teachers who are equally mis-equipped for properly integrating technology into the classroom, the computer becomes nothing more than an expensive typewriter, according to Cuban (2001).

In addition to limited class time, there are often limited computers in the classroom. While this problem has been significantly reduced, most school cannot provide students with ready access to computers. In the past, the size of technology in the learning environment created visual obstruction making it difficult to speak to a group of students with computers. But frequent use of new more portable machines could put students at risk for the same physical problems that develop from improper ergnomics and eye strain. There is some hint that psychological problems are associated with increased interactions over the Internet (Kraut,Patterson, Lundmark, Kiesler, Mukhopadhyay,& Scherlis, 1998). These may posed a threat to the "well being" of our students These authors reported an an average 1% increase in depression by for every hour spent on-line per week for adults. Knowing this, we must proceed cautiously with introducing our children to a technology that may result in increased loneliness, depression, and decreases the number of close friendships. Time spent at a computer may have negative affects on the development of emotional attachments. . Additionally, kids are spending more time in front of computers than participating in physical activities, which can have a number of physical effects. Computer use maycontribute to the increased problems with obesity and staring at a computer screen for long periods of time could damage children's vision (Shields, Behrmam, 2000).

The Use of Assessment Data Requires Training
Learning and acceptance of technology is often very challenging for today's teachers due to reliabilty of technology and time restarints. In schools that use [|computer based training](CBT) or Integrated Learning Systems (ILS), teachers struggle to find time to look at the student assessment data generated by the software. This data allows teachers to identify any learning benefits for the students (Pflaum, pg. 191). Because most schools do not have a 1:1 ratio of computers to students, not all students have equal access. Larry Cuban stated, “Because of the limited time in centers, not every child was guaranteed a turn at a computer” (Cuban, 2001). In this scenario, it is equivalent to not having enough books for the students to study. Teachers must use techniques for rotating students as they would for traditional activities. While some researchers believe that there is valuable software that can have a positive impact student learning, teachers must have time to identify which software meets the needs of their students and also monitor usage/results to adjust its use.

**3.6 Security and Introducing Technology to Students**
A key part of implementing technology in any environment is maintaining security in the environment. In the larger society, recent problems with security have led to identity theft. In educational environments students with very clean credit records and are perfect targets for identity theft. Computer security is important because you probably do not want outsiders reading university or school e-mail, using computers to attack other computer systems, or prying into the personal information.

A recent article in SC magazine talks specifically about the identity theft problem (Carr 2007). The article specifically talks about the dangers of peer-to-peer file sharing, proxy servers and the difficulty in locking down unmanaged computers and laptops. Technology poses additional physical threats to students as well. “Children who are prepared to provide personal information to strangers are potentially the most vulnerable to online grooming by a sexual predator. In an American study of youth aged 10 to 17 years, it was reported that 45% were prepared to give out their name, address, and other information in exchange for a free gift valued at up to $100 (Turow &amp; Nir, 2000).” With the over abundance of chat rooms, online social organizations and emailing, predators have an ever increasing way to target victims.

Most people see the necessity of securing computer and networking equipment (infrastructure). Machines cost money, and therefore have value unto themselves. But consider why organizations are so willing to spend large amounts of money on technology--to store, access, and transmit information--the value of the information becomes more apparent. Since information has become so useful, it's not only the hardware and software that demand protection, but also the data. When information is lost, damaged, or otherwise unavailable when needed, it can have a serious effect on the day-to-day operations of an education organization. And when the information at risk is an individual student record, the consequences can be even more serious. What would be the damage, for example, if student report card files were modified inappropriately or confidential student aptitude scores were revealed improperly? (Szuba 1998)

**3.4 Job Market Issues - dwood**

 * In addition to the new push of technology and the technology buzz that has occurred as a result of the ISTE standards, technology has set up a good case for teaching students to become technology warriors. However, according to __The World is Flat__ author, Thomas L. Friedman, many of the technical jobs that the United States and Britain were previously employing from in house have been sent to places like India where the pay is cheaper and the cost of living is lower. Larger corporations like America Online, Microsoft, and even the major news source, Reuters, has outsourced much of their work to countries outside of the United States, costing us jobs for our current students. The idea of training our students to be excited and updated with technology may cost them their jobs in the long run. It would make better sense to train our students in jobs that will be secure upon their graduation into the working world.

Friedman's prediction that outsourcing of jobs will increased has not yet peaked. Indian business students are lining up outside the doors of corporation offices in India to work in call centers and handle accounting and technological procedures that at one time were American, European, and Canadian jobs. While saving these companies money, the students of today are looking at a bleak future in technology and accounting jobs as a result of this outsourcing (Friedman, 2006).

//(note --lots of citations were not in APA style-pay attention to that here so you don't make mistakes in your papers)//**

 =4.0 MOVING PAST PROMISE AND PROBLEMS= //I think this section could be improved by acknowledging the above discussion of the potential tempered by the problems and why we think it is makes sense to continue forward. Note that have moved paragraphs that parallel the above sections but they will need so editing to make them fit better (smile) -mr//

The development of high performance computing and communications is creating new media, such as the World Wide Web and virtual realities. In turn, these new media enable new types of messages and experiences; for example, interpersonal interactions in immersive, synthetic environments lead to the formation of virtual communities. The innovative kinds of pedagogy empowered by these emerging media, messages, and experiences are driving a transformation of traditional "teaching by telling" to an alternative instructional paradigm: distributed learning. If the substantial barriers to change discussed later in this testimony are overcome, within two decades American schooling will shift to new models of teaching/learning better suited to developing 21st century workers and citizens for a knowledge-based society (Dede, 2005).
 * Like the film projectors that illustrated complex, abstract information to the students of the past, today's technology is also changing the way that students learn. Use of technology in the future is any one's guess, but we will attempt to examine and predict some paths that seem particularly promising. Technology will continue to expand into other fields, allowing for increased communication and collaboration. As technology improves, some technology will become discontinued, offering ramifications for students. Finally, technology will continue to grow, develop and advance.

We have identified four options for educators to implement that will allow students to take advantage of all that technology has to offer safely and efficiently. 1) Consider carefully how to transform promise to practice while avoiding the problems that we cited. Provide teachers with technological help as well as programming to keep pace with today's student. 2) Remind teachers to never overlook the human aspect of teaching by showing teachers how to best integrate human interaction alongside technology. 3) We identify different ways that schools can maintain an even playing field in regards to technology for all students regardless of socio-economic status (SES). 4) Consider the strategies for using technology to increase professional development through learning communities. 5) Support continuous evaluation of the role of technology in every classroom to monitor the role that technology is playing within the school.** (BRETT)

**Turning Promise into Opportunities**
Looking to the future is not an easy task, but one way is to look at what has the potential to expand or has room for further development. One has to look at what is popular, such as Virtual Reality gaming, which will continue to be on of the most popular uses of technology (Pesce, 2000). According to Chris Dede, he believes that VR environment will become more enhanced to a point where they can actually augment reality with interfaces that depict actual scenes from the physical world (Dede, 2006). Expanding that concept, multi-user virtual environments such as the River City Project, [|http://muve.gse.harvard.edu/rivercityproject/], have excellent potential for authentic learning (Dede, 2006). More and more we will be able to bring distant parts of the world or universe into the classroom, places that students would not normally be able to experience. From the bush schools in Alaska to different tribes in the nations of Africa, technology can play a part of all peoples development and education. Modern day examples would be NASA's K-12 Quest Initiative, [|http://education.nasa.gov], or the JASON project, [|www.jason.org](Lucas, 2002). While some areas will be expanding, others will be shrinking, literally, as technology will continue to become smaller with smaller components containing more memory (Pesce, 2000). This will improve mobility and allow the technology to be easily carried and used more in the field. This too is already being seen today with the use of [|PDAs]and research on the natural environment at the Carl Sandburg High School (Lucas, 2002). PDAs are also intregral in communications, another area where technology will be expanding. Smaller lighter weight devices will allow an expansion of communications with students, parents and the community. Some principals currently use their PDAs all day long to stay in close communications with staff and parents which helps them "fulfill the expectations of the community" (Lucas, 2002). Communications will also be important among students. We will see that the importance of peer to peer communication as group communication will be key (Rheingold 2002).

In writing __The Playful World: How Technology is Transforming Our Imagination__, Mark Pesce clearly indicates his vision of future technology use saying, "Most of us will carry on much as before, but with a far more comprehensive awareness of the world around us: the entire world around us, in all of its richness, its depth, and its wonder. We will make more informed decisions, accounting for the comprehensive repercussions of our actions, or we will soon learn if these acts have caused harm to another.” His words bring an optimistic view to the forefront. Researchers indicate a belief that this use will provide a critical factor in the field of education. In the formative years of a child's education technology will provide "creative play [which is a part of] a fundamental learning experience for children" (Pesce, 2000). The opportunities provided will, in fact, allow more advanced students to seek a higher education as Pesce states, "More students will be participating in part time education where students have jobs and go to school part time on line because it's more convenient and efficient" (Pesce, 2000). Tapscott adds to this notion saying, "Many students need to work to fund university attendance. Many more in the workforce are registering in university courses as part of the trend of life-long learning (Tapscott, 1998). This is critical he believes because N-Geners will perform knowledge work requiring life-long learning. Computers will, Pesce believes, continue to augment human intelligence for these workers (Pesce, 2000).

Technology in education will continue to expand in vast ways. Technology will develop within every educational institution at every levels. Schools will secure more technology so "they so that they can operate more efficiently and faster and support better teaching and learning (Cuban, 2001). "School officials and educators will see increased benefits of technology and they will "continue to encourage people to contribute and give to the advancement of technology" (Rheingold 2002). Schools will be [|wireless]and students will be able to access the internet, their homework, and their classes from virtually anywhere. This could also cut down on the paper usage in the world, potentially helping our global environment conserving trees that provide oxygen and shelter for wildlife. The next generation of students will be more technologically advanced then their own teachers. Students of tomorrow will have grown up during the technology boom and will expect nothing less that technology based learning and virtual classrooms. Technology will expand at rapid rate while students and teachers alike will be challenged and pushed with the vast array of technology that will be used in the classroom.



**Increased Interaction**
It is very important to remember that the use of technological innovation in an educational setting should compliment and support the humanistic based instruction that is already taking place. Realize that while technology has its place in learning, we must be critical consumers such that we avoid making claims that technology belongs in every aspect of education. Technology has its place, but we can never lose the human touch—the “psychic” elements of teaching. (Cuban, 2001) Computers can remove a great deal of the interpersonal interaction that comes from working as a member of a group or community. In most working environments, interpersonal skills are pivotal to good work relations, deal making, communication, and success. Communication quality can actually diminishes rather than increases with technology. “E-mail and postings to network newsgroups are frequently ungrammatical, misspelled, and poorly organized. After trolling up and down the Usenet, from alt.best-of-usenet to zer.z.telecom.modem, I rarely find prose that’s articulate and creative”. (Stoll, 1995) Additionally, the relationship between an instructor and their students is part of the ongoing emotional growth of each student and should not minimized away as unimportant. The computer can be a barrier to close teaching relationships. When students receive assignments through e-mail and send in homework over the network, they miss out on chances to discuss things with their professor. The students are learning at arm's length. (Stoll, 1995) Finally, a well thought out and balanced approach to technological innovation in the classroom in critical in complimented instruction, not replacing it. We should build a balance between the real world and cyberspace, and students should get the proper dose of each, which in itself is yet to be determined (Stoll, 1995). The lack of guidance and close interactions with educators, student revert to cheating, copy and paste method of learning. Students and educators must connect to have "moral literacy" as well as "computer literacy".



**A Level Playing Field**
Although substantial progress has been made in installing computers in schools and in convincing the public that facility in using them is vital to students’ success in school and jobs, there are quantifiable social inequalities in the use of computers in schools. Students from high-income families have far more access to computers and to sophisticated uses of them than do students from low-income families. Black students use them less than whites, females less than males, and pupils whose native language is not English less than those who are proficient in English. Charles Pillar, who investigated use of computers in schools for the magazine Macworld, lamented “the creation of the technological underclass in America’s public schools.” He observed that “computer-based education in poor schools is in deep trouble. Inner-city and rural school districts lack the training and social support to use computers effectively. In most cases, computers simply perpetuate a two-tier system of education for the rich and poor. (Pillar, “Separate Realities,” pp. 218-219) Providing more technology grants to lower SES schools keeps students on fair playing grounds regardless of socio-economic status. “To ensure that poor and minority children will not be left behind in the technological expertise” technology has brought about a social inequality between the schools that can afford computers and those that cannot. (Tyack and Cuban, 1995) The final disappointment that Stoll illuminates is the myth that the Internet would help to make a more egalitarian society. He writes, “The myth holds that our networks are the ultimate in democracy –all voices can be heard. Bytes have no race, gender, age, or religion” ( Stoll, 1995). However, “for all its egalitarian promise, whole groups of people hardly show up on the networks. Women, blacks, elderly, and the poor are underrepresented” (Stoll, 1995). The clear academic advantage of students who have had computers at home with those students whose only encounter with technology has been at school is significant. “It was clear to us that having a computer at home added considerably to the child’s competence and confidence” (Cuban, 2001).



**Professional Development Programs**
Teachers have the greatest influence of how educational technology is used in the classrooms, therefore, it is important that they are as knowledgeable about the content as the person who wrote it. According to Stoll, it's impossible to browse the web without swimming in a river of flashing advertisements (Stoll, 1999). Teachers need to be mindful of the following when implementing technology: It's important that when we delegate assignments that we are prepared to expect the unexpected, content can be confusing and misleading, and students may not be able to determine conscious reality from virtual reality. Parent's, teachers and practitioners must be confident that they understand the dangers of distributed learning.

How then, with the growing demand for technical proficiency, can educators be brought to a place of comfort and efficiency in classroom technological use? Possibly the first and most critical factor will be in providing increased on-demand technical support for the hardware and related applications (Cuban, 2001). Only with reliable hardware, software, and network infrastructure, will teachers move beyond using technology for running the business of classrooms only. Moving hand-in-hand with the reliability concept is the need for support personnel who are readily available to classrooms when problems arise. After the hurdle of reliability is passed, the next area of concern may be professional development. Teachers spend a great deal of time planning for successful learning experiences in the classroom, but without appropriate training in available technologies, most cannot be expected to integrate them successfully into activities (Cuban, 2001). Such training must include not only hands-on technical elements with experts, but also offer opportunities for collaboration with successful users as well as time for planning and reflection. Additionally, resources that represent or outline practices and steps learned during training should be made available to the teachers after training to reinforce and recall proper useage. Follow-up, advanced and/or ‘refresher’ training is just as critical as the training itself, and successful programs often offer such combined opportunities. Will technology be readily infused with reliability and training alone? Most likely it will not, unless teachers are given a buy-in in some fashion. Cuban suggests that this is possible as evidenced in the TLTC program in Berkeley schools which, designed and anchored by teachers, seemed to show progress in several areas until federal funding disappeared (Cuban, 2001). "There are," he notes, "a few instances of reformers taking teachers' perspectives seriously, especially in using technologies that build programs around their classroom expertise" (Cuban, 2001).

Educational technology is not necessarily designed with the user (teacher) in mind. Using the state and national standards, programs are designed assuming that it is generic to fit all the needs of educators and learners. With out the input of the people who use the products on a daily basis, educational hardware and software will render itself useless to the masses.



**Formal, Ongoing Assessment**
It is not with a blind eye that educators should view the use of technological innovation in the classroom. A constant vigil must be observed concerning its value and applications. Checks and balances should follow these applications in order that optimal learning opportunities are provided for students. There are no proofs that computer math programs, for instance, actually are successful in teaching math at all, Stoll suggests, questioning why there should be so much emphasis on using this method of teaching. Evidence, he says, should come in the form of true data in order to support infusion of such strategies. (Stoll, 1995) [|Howard Gardner]in Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences discusses the the styles of many [|types of learners]. With a focus on technology application for mathematics as suggested before, the question arises whether all learning styles can be met in this format. Educators not only focus on math, but on research with the easily accessibe Internet. Stoll questions, however, whether evidence truly suggests that this is an effective means of teaching. He also questions what problems may be created when teachers and students spend even more time connected to electronic devices (Stoll, 1995). The potential of these perils of technology are real and the consequences of unawareness or irresponsibility are great, thus it is up to the educational community to implement the checks and balances he calls for (Stoll, 1999).

Continuous Evaluation of technology also requires a cohesive school community which must reach a consensus on what the ultimate goals are of technology in education. This cohesive school community must know its student demographic and must find answers to some tough questions. In a June, 2000 interview, [|Larry Cuban]specified, "The questions really break down into: What are we after? How can technology help? What do we have to change to make use of it?"

**EDUCATION LEARNING MODELS**
Various communities, schools, classrooms, and professional groups use technology in many ways. The boundaries of traditional learning, which took place primarily through textbooks and with one teacher in the classroom, have become blurred. Now learners can take field trips to different parts of the world without leaving their physical classrooms. Years ago, such a field trip was simply impossible. Learners can ask questions of experts who may be conducting research thousands of miles away, and teachers can more easily access material to supplement lessons. There are endless possibilities of how technology can benefit education. Listed below are some of the most common uses of technology in the school system today and how it benefits students of this new era.



**4.1.1 Community Models**
Even as the universe becomes more flexible, we find that our presence within it, no longer fixed at a single point, can move seamlessly throughout the collected knowledge of humanity. We can place our eyes and hands into other worlds. With each site we visit we will change how we think about the world. Virtual reality is the imagination realized, the hidden parts of us brought into view. The World Wide Web is a ubiquitous fabric of knowledge. Our children will come to apprehend a different reality than the one we inhabit, and they will be granted a broader sense of self (Pesce, 2000). The virtual friend could help children, with the close supervision of caring adults, to become more nurturing adults. “When children can see their reflection, when they can come to explore and model their own behaviors on the outside world, they’ll develop the theories they need to become better adults” (Pesce, 2000).

[|Virtual reality]has the ability to take technology from the classroom to omnipresent communities all over the world. It provides students the ability to see places they have never dreamed possible. Virtual travel allows students to see geographic locations, laboratories, or perhaps visit with experts in numerous fields all around the world (Pesce, 2000). These trips could be seen as modern day field trip (Pesce, 2000). The endless possibilities for virtual field trip opportunities can inspire teachers to introduce their students to places and people all over the world. GlobaLearn is one example of virtual technology being used to further children’s education and global interaction. “GlobaLearn is an inspired company of young adults who travel the world and chronicle their journey through the eyes of children. GlobaLearn expedition team travels with state of the art electronic equipment, including [|portable computers], [|digital photo]and [|video recorders], high-speed modems, and a mobile satellite transmitter” (Tapscott, 1998).



**4.1.2 School Models**
It has been almost three decades since [|Marshall McLuhan]characterized the world as a “global village” because of the rapid expansion of worldwide communication. More than ever before, students need to put their critical-thinking skills together in order to increase their problem-solving ability and improve interpersonal communication skills.

The computer allows teacher and students to search documents and database to get more information about various subject matter and supplement instructional and learning material. Projects can be developed that link students from different background and even from different countries and cultures. Teachers can design digital portfolios that help students organize information from many different places. [|E-mail]puts us in contact with people around the world and gives us a massive wealth of information at our immediate access (Tapscott, 1998).

Technology has brought individual students and the community to a better understanding of themselves and others. The needs of both the individual and the community (business as well as residents) have been vocalized with technology. Children with [|special needs]can communicate with other students without the fear of being stigmatized. They can share their feelings and concern about a disability. PatchWorx Web site is the place that they can share their stories, feelings and find a friend with common interests. Student centered programs of participative academic inquiry have demonstrated that previous theories of practice could be improved upon substantially. New assisted technologies may be shared quickly from the Internet for answers to needs of the disabled or students who have learning differences. The performance data being gathered and analyzed from some of these programs suggest that they can be very effective in transforming schools from disconnected entities to partners in the community (Lucas, 2002).

Work and home have now become one in the same because we can be reached everywhere due to the advancements in technology. This is promising as we can relate this to the continuity of school and home as a result of the internet (Rheingold, 2002).

“We need to replace the teacher’s globe, a fixture in every classroom, with a living model of the Earth. . . one becomes immediately aware that political boundaries are, for the most part, entirely arbitrary, that the governments dividing people are figments of our cultural imaginations and have very little to do with the actual realities of life on this planet” (Pesce, 2000).

Technology and philosophy are only tools. We have always had tools at our disposal. The key is to change people’s minds. As education professionals it is our duty to provide the leadership required to implement these effective instructional strategies. The entrenched educational instruction theories of past generations unfortunately still retard our intellectual progress towards wholeheartedly embracing student based interactive educational instruction. The teachers who are the unable to "think out of the box" regarding computers and technology often times are also unable to think out of the box regarding teaching and education itself. For example, they are often stuck in strict molds of teacher-student relationships, where they know and the student does not. They may now be intimidated that students may know more then them about technology. Professional development that broadens their knowledge in the areas of learning styles and multiple intelligence will move them toward a new view of their teaching style. As well as help educators find ways to provide total student engagement using all three learning styles: audio, visual and kinesthetic.

As educators we are the ambassadors and standard bearers charged with leading the way in the struggle to transform educational instruction into a partnership that prepares our children to meet the challenges of life in the 21st century. “The surest way to create a better future for our nation, and thereby better the lives of our citizens, is through improving the quality of education over one’s lifetime, wherever and whenever this education takes place and whoever provides it. In all these avenues, we must exploit the wonders of new technology” (Lucas, 2002).



**4.1.3 Classroom Models**
One of the most important areas where we can positively impact our young people with technology is in the classroom setting. "…the school years are a neurological window of opportunity, a chance to ensure that all children will get the right experiences to help them flourish in their jobs and careers, as mothers and fathers, husbands and wives, as citizens of communities" (Lucas, 2002). Technology is a very important tool in helping to revitalize and energize our classrooms. The enthusiastic adoption and implementation of technology in an educational setting helps young people to explore who they are and how they think about the world (Pesce, 2000).

Current educational technological innovation has produced a number of useful instructional tools. MOO, where students keep a "virtual presence...participating in both real world activities of the lab and online lectures, presentations, and informal discussion featured MediaMOO" (Pesce, 2000). Other programs such as e-Instruction and Promethium allow all students to answer questions with a hand held device in conjunction with a smart board without fear or a teacher's pet answers all the questions alone. Now all students are truly on a equal "playing field" in the classroom. A wonderful example at the University educational level is Pepperdine Universities Graduate Online Educational Technology Program ( [|OMET]). This program is a successfully working model that utilizes the benefits of technological innovation and effective implementation in a virtual classroom setting. The students in this program are challenged to effectively use a wide variety of technologies in enriching and exponentially expanding their own individual learning experiences. The introduction of advanced technologies in a wide variety of educational settings can be effective with all age groups.

Integrating technology into the curriculum enables students to connect that no academic subject stands alone. All subjects are interrelated. Technology helps comprehensive understanding of all areas of the curriculum. No matter what the subject, learning is maximized when there is an immediate feedback available. Computers support this learning.

Lucas feels it's imperative that we create new kinds of schools, freed from outdated educational systems. Today a growing trend for alternative high schools use the model of self-paced learning for GED success with computers and/or distance learning. Most of our students minds go untapped in the according to traditional textbook-based classroom, because we are living in a Digital world which has brought on enormous changes to our world. (Lucas, 2002). Perhaps, this is one reason for the high drop out rate we have today.

All subject matter can benefit from artificial intelligence (AI) - the use of “pets” with artificial intelligence, such as the [|Furby], to work with autistic children and others who can benefit from the extended repetition inherent in the activity of AI (Pesce, 2000). Continuing in that light, using [|Lego]kits as with [|Papert’s]turtle, “children can master logical thinking and complex concepts through play and exploration” (Pesce, 2000).



**4.1.4 Professional Development Models**
We've seen it all too often. A new strategic direction is announced at the District level, or a leading-edge principal buys a new software package that going to improve test scores. The word gets out to teachers and it's met with some excitement and trepidation. The solution is implemented and teachers get one lunch time orientation. Or, a year goes by and the software still sits in the box, dust is collecting. Unfortunately, there's no funding for professional development and the District does not want to release the product without PD. Sound familiar? The [|NCLB]has addressed one of the key elements in any successful technology deployment with a built-in requirement to fund PD. All too often, technology fails as a result of a lack of an integrated technology implementation plan that encompasses PD. The NCLB addresses the critical missing piece of the puzzle that has plagued every school in America, at one time or another. A welcomed promise by educators across the nation. “NCLB fundamentally changes how education is paid for, and how technology fits into the process ... what are the conditions under which technology improves student learning?” Serim sees this as a having significant potential for all educators. Serim sees the importance of 25% of the funds being required to be spent on professional development, which is an element that is often ignored or neglected and often results in failed implementations. "No matter what system you implement, professional development is the key" (Serim, 2003).

 =**5.0 CONCLUSION**=

We must always consider the potential problems as well as the opportunities from incorporating technology into any and all educational settings. As mentioned many times in this paper, technology is a resource and a tool, not the replacement for human interaction. When technology is used appropriately and in conjunction with various other methods it can be a powerful learning tool and resource. With the diversity of learners in classrooms, we must keep options open to accommodate for the different styles of learning. Students and educators have a great opportunity to expand and share their knowledge and enhance their skills through social networking, peer sharing, and global collaboration which are key components to define educational visions. Students, using technology, can shape their worlds and their future. Teachers need training and support to empower students to use technologies for project base learning so that students can participate in authentic, multifarious, collaborative tasks that can develop analytical and higher-order thinking skills ([|www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/ issues/methods/technlgy/te800.htm]). The world of technology will always hold promises and perils. Embracing these promises and creating solutions to these perils will set the course of the future of educational technology. The most important factor is how we decide that future will look.

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Retrieved August 3, 2006, from [|http://www.papert.org] Web site: [|http://www.papert.org/articles/MaineYouthCenterArticle.html]// //·// Roschelle,J., Tatar, D., Shechtman, N., Hegedus, S., Hopkins, B., Knudsen, J., Stroter, A. (2007). //Can a Technology-enhanced Curriculum Improve Student Learning of Important Mathematics?// (SimCalc Technical Report 1). Menlo Park, CA: SRI International. //Retrieved August 21, 2007,// http://math.sri.com/research/pressMay17.html //·// //Serim, F.C. (2003) Information Technology for Learning: No School Left Behind. Bit6 Associates, LLC Shields, M.S., Behrman, R.E. Children and Computer Technology. Vol.10. (fall/winter 2000). Retrieved from ( [|http://www.futureofchildren.org/information2827/information_show.htm?doc_id=6979)////] · Stoll, C. (1995). __Silicon Snake Oil__, (2nd ed.) New York, NY: Doubleday. Stoll. C. (1995). __High-Tech Heretic: Reflections of a Computer Contrarian__. 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 =**7.0 LINKS**=



Education Articles
__[|http://www.educationworld.com/a_admin/admin/admin122.shtm]Technology in Schools Does it make a difference? [|http://cnets.iste.org/]ISTE national education review [|http://chronicle.com/infotech/]The Chronicle of Higher Education [|http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JTE/]The Journal of Technology Education [|http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go2084/is_200203/ai_n6801474]A look at enrollment in college technology courses [|http://www.eduref.org/Virtual/Qa/archives/Educational_Technology/Effects_of_Technology/negeffects.html]Negative effects of Technology [|http://www.odemagazine.com]: September issue on Games in Education titled, "TheFuture of Homework" [|http://www.globalschoolhouse.org]: A virtual meeting place where educators, students,parents, and community members can collborate, interact, develop, publish, and discover learning resources [|http://www.homeschool.com/top100/]: A list of the Homeschool.com's favorite 100 educational websites [|http://www.iearn.org]: An international site for student projects and collaboration [|http://www.jason.org]: The program started by Dr. Robert Ballard, a science and math realtime learning environment [|http://www.learner.org]: Teacher Professional Development Program [|http://faculty.pepperdine.edu/mriel/edc641/readings.html]: Additional readings from Dr. Riel's website__ [|http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/ issues/methods/technlgy/te800.htm] __Critical Issues:Using Technology to Improve Student Achievement__

Web Tools
[|http://www.gamesforchange.org]: Another social innovation games site [|http://www.gamesforhealth.org]: A clearninghouse for health related games [|http://www.Thinkquest.org]: A place where students think and work together [|http://www.timelands.com]: The website of a teacher named Tim Rylands who uses Myths in his classroomhttp:www.techlearning.com/ Up to date stories on education and technology [|http://people.uis.edu/rschr1/et/blogger.html]University of Illinois at Springfield [|http://coe.sdsu.edu/eet/]The encyclopedia of Educational Technology [|http://www.seriousgames.org]: Educational games for the classroom, companies, and the public sector [|http://www.sitesforteachers.com]: Just as the name implies, a huge list of sites for teachers chosen by teachers [|http://www.gamesparentsteachers.com]: Helpful for parents and teachers who want to elevate the educational value of games

__Related Resources__
[|http://www.ataccess.org/resources/nochild.html]NCLB: Implications for Assistive Technology [|http://GLEF.org]: Edutopia: The George Lucus Educational Foundation official website [|http://www.sreb.org/programs/EdTech/OtherTopics/ruraleducation.asp]Current technology topics [|http://www.campus-technology.com/]Campus Technology [|http://www.mff.org/edtech/]Milken Family Foundation [|http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/technology/index.html]US Department of Education official site [|http://www.socialimpactgames.org]: About games for societal innovation [|http://www.surfnetkids.com]: A guide to sites just for kids, safe and fun [|http://www.papert.org/%7Chttp://www.papert.org]: Dr.Seymor Papert's website [|http://www.nasa.gov]: NASA offical website [|http://www.bayerus.com]: The Bayer Corporations official website [|http://www.casel.org]: A collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning