Technology: Highway or Roadblock in Education?

There is a declared and spoken commitment to technology at the district and at my school but, as is so often the case—in the case of technology--the application of that commitment is elusive. I have searched the district and school web sites, wandered the building to see firsthand and talked to teachers and administrators in an attempt to ferret out the techno-culture at my new teaching home.

Fundamentally, one technology is only worth the cost if it makes life easier, better, cleaner, etc. than did the previous technology. At my new school, technology is so difficult to access that it is useless. Indeed, I use on a daily bases only that which I brought with me, and even its value is diminished by my inability to interface with the school.

I learned
• For a school that has made the huge investment of installing a very expensive technology in every room, the technology is too cumbersome to use with regularity.
• Management of technology is a dictatorship not a democracy.
• The primary commitment to technology is merely the declaration that technology is important.
• The misconception persists, that technology is an answer to a problem rather than a tool used in the solution.
• If I want to change things, I’m going to have to go outside of the school to fix it.

Sounds a little hopeless, No?

read my full report at http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dc4mjkmb_1hftmvqdr&hl=en