Week 2 assignment

From the Texas Technology Long Term Goals 2006-20, I decided to focus on the Educator Preparation and Development. I chose this section as I would like to learn more about an area that is so critical to the success of implementing appropriate technology into our schools. All teachers go through a preparation program that teaches them how to use technology with students. As the document suggest teachers should be motivated, responsible, and know how to prepare students for the 21st century by using appropriate technology. The document goes into detailed recommendations on Educator Preparation and Development for different areas of education. There are recommendations for the Texas Education Agency, The State Board for Educator Certification, regional education service centers, local education agencies, texas higher education, and parents, communities, and the private sector.

There has been quite a bit of progress in the area of Educator Preparation and Development. Looking back at the last 3 years from 2006-07, 2007-08, and 2008-09 the scores have been 13, 14, and 18 respectively. This is a star chart classification of Developing Tech, Developing Tech, and Advanced Tech respectively. As you can send the trend for this area is showing significant improvement.

However this is not the same trend and progress we see at the state level. For the 2007-08 school year the results for percentage of Texas schools in the area of Educator Preparation and Development where as follows: Early Tech- 5.4%, Developing Tech- 74.2%, Advanced Tech- 19.9%, and Target Tech- .6%. As you can see, the high majority (72%) of Texas schools fall into the Developing Tech area. If you compare the same data from the previous year (06-07), you would see that the percentage in these areas is roughly the same- Early Tech- 8.2%, Developing Tech- 74.0%, Advanced Tech- 17.0%, and Target Tech- .7%.

One recommendation would be to work on the vertical alignment of the TEKS. I would also push administrators to ensure integration of appropriate technology, and 100% of educators to meet the SBEC standards, as well as 30% or more of the budget allocated for professional development.