Eleven charter schools in Minnesota expressed their commitment to technology integration by participating in the Teams for Technology (T4T) training program, a Technology Literacy Challenge Fund (TLFC) grant project funded by Minnesota (Wendol & King, 2003). Data was collected to determine the technology needs of the participating charter schools; they significantly lacked general knowledge about technology and resources. The schools �also lacked a modern infrastructure, had limited software, and provided few professional development activities to improve technology skills� (Wendol & King, 2003, 6).
The charter schools were given the opportunity to select appropriate software for various needs (Wendol & King, 2003). Different training strands were offered to address the unique the needs of teachers, administrators, and technology leaders. �Leadership training for administrators and classroom integration training for teachers, coupled with the ability to collaborated with colleagues and experts nationwide, made this TLCF project an experience of phenomenal proportions for the participating K-12 schools� (Wendol & King, 2003, 17).
Although many successes of the grant project were noted, Wendol and King (2003) cite specific problems which were encountered: summer months made communication between teachers and school leaders difficult, scheduling changes caused conflict, e-mail was not utilized as frequently as it should have been, and sustainability was not fully possible because of the time constraints posed by the grant project. Many of these problems may have been avoided by coordinating earlier. If an organization is applying for a grant, they should begin planning whether they receive the grant or not.
Planning is essential to the success of technology integration as is noted in Standard TF-VII.B.: follow procedures and guidelines used in planning and purchasing technology resources. Wendol and King discussed the planning and budgeting of charter schools in Minnesota. There are many areas that must be considered including funding sources, training opportunities, and software selection. This planning is necessary to lay the foundation to effective technology use in education.
As I consider implementing technology applications, I am typically most concerned about how effective it is in improving my instruction. I had not realized how much has to occur �behind the scenes�. Reading this article has allowed me to begin to understand that there are many critical pieces to successful technology integration, of which I am not yet involved. It would have been beneficial if Wendol and King had included more information about these processes specifically.
Wendol, D. & King, T. (April 2003). Technology for charter schools too:
A team-based training model. T.H.E. Journal, 30, 9.
i
l
l
H
a
r
t
m
a
n
ISTE NETS
NJCCCS
About Me
Reflections/Artifacts:
Standard I
Standard II
Standard III
Standard IV
Standard V
Standard VI
Standard VII
Standard VIII
Critiques:
Standard I
Standard II
Standard III
Standard IV
Standard V
Standard VI
Standard VII
Standard VIII