National ed-tech plan coming next week

The latest national blueprint for how schools can leverage technology's power to transform teaching and learning is coming next week, said Karen Cator, director of the Office of Education Technology for the Department of Education.

Cator made the announcement at the Consortium for School Networking's annual conference March 2. During a morning spotlight session, titled "Latest News on the New National Education Technology Plan," she gave attendees a preview of the plan. Highlights included a focus on teacher professional development in education technology, supporting ed-tech infrastructure in schools, using real-time data and delivering personalized assessments, and harnessing the power of online learning and social networks to provide 24-7 access to tools and resources for teachers and students. Cator said the new national ed-tech plan focuses on five main goals:

1. Learning. This means unprecedented access to learning for students, as well as finding new ways of understanding what types of learning experiences work best.

2. Teaching. Teaching needs to be highly connected with data, experts, and resources to provide a personalized learning experience for every student. Online learning also needs to be harnessed as an in-classroom and outside-of-classroom tool to reach every student possible.

3. Assessment. Assessments need to measure what matter most; provide real-time feedback for students, teachers, and parents; be embedded in classroom instruction; manage a persistent learning record; and provide continuous improvements at all levels.

4. Infrastructure. This means providing 24-7 access to tools and resources for teachers and students; including broadband access, cyber safety measures, best implementation practices, and leveraging economies of scale.

5. Productivity. To get students over a higher bar, said Cator, schools need to increase their efficiency in terms of time, money, and staff.