Skip the navigation

DOE presents National Education Technology Plan

Students need more e-learning opportunities, the agency says

By Grant Gross
January 10, 2005 12:00 PM ET

IDG News Service - School districts across the U.S. need to trade traditional textbooks for online educational content and offer students more e-learning options, according to a plan released by the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) Friday.
The DOE's National Education Technology Plan, titled "Toward a New Golden Age in American Education -- How the Internet, the Law and Today's Students Are Revolutionizing Expectations," outlines seven broad areas where schools can improve the use of technology in education.
It said paper textbooks become outdated quickly and are "physically cumbersome," and recommended that schools train teachers in using online and multimedia instruction. It also said schools should consider online content but also place rigorous academic standards on that content.
Students should also have better access to e-learning opportunities, with courses designed for additional student credit or personalized instruction, the report advised. In another of the seven recommended steps, it called on schools to look for ways to provide students and teachers access to broadband connections seven days a week. Schools should make sure they have enough technical help to maintain school broadband connections.
Many current students don't remember a world without the Internet, and they want schools to make better use of technology, said U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige. "They're concerned that the schools aren't keeping up," Paige said.
This report, which builds on two other DOE reports released in the past nine years, will help move schools toward a "future where students receive the quality of education they deserve," Paige said during a webcast Friday.
Educational investments in technology are important as U.S. workers face competition from around the world, said Phillip Bond, undersecretary for technology at the U.S. Department of Commerce. "We don't want to compete to see who can pay the least, so we have to have workers who are smarter ... than their counterparts around the world," Bond said.
Among the recommendations in the report:

  • Schools should invest in leadership programs to "develop a new generation of tech-savvy leaders at every level."

  • Schools should ensure that every teacher has the opportunity to take online learning courses.

  • Schools should look at new ways to fund technology, including reallocating spending on textbooks and other instructional supplies, and leasing technology with three- to five-year replacement cycles.
Reprinted with permission from IDG.net. Story copyright 2010 International Data Group. All rights reserved.
Additional Resources
Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
WHITE PAPER
Solving application issues over the WAN requires careful consideration. Based on their independent research, Forrester Consulting offers recommendations on how to tackle application performance issues, insufficient bandwidth and the inability to quickly restore users in a disaster.

Read now.

Security KnowledgeVault
WHITE PAPER
Security is not an option. This KnowledgeVault Series offers professional advice how to be proactive in the fight against cybercrimes and multi-layered security threats; how to adopt a holistic approach to protecting and managing data; and how to hire a qualified security assessor. Make security your Number 1 priority.

Read now.

Cut Communications Costs Once and for All
WHITE PAPER
New IP-based communications systems are being deployed by small and midsized businesses at a rapid rate. Learn how these organizations are enabling faster responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing existing communications costs.

Read now.

Gov't Legislation/Regulation White Papers
Overcome Top 7 Admin Challenges of Active Directory
As Active Directory's role in the enterprise has drastically increased, so has the need to secure the data. Gain insight on creating repeatable,...
Insiders Can Ruin Your Company. Take Action.
Did you know that 80 percent of threats to an organization come from the inside? The threat from insiders is often overlooked in...
Top Solutions and Tools to Prevent Devastating Malware
Custom malware frequently goes undetected. According to Forrester Research, the best way to reduce risk of breach is to deploy file integrity monitoring...
Streamline Compliance and Increase ROI
Streamline, simplify, and automate compliance related activities; especially those that impact multiple business units. This white paper from NetIQ, outlines solutions that will...
X-Ray of the PCI Process-4 Proactive Steps
This white paper from Forrester Research Inc., helps break PCI into understandable components. Security and risk professionals will gain knowledge and insight into...
All Gov't Legislation/Regulation White Papers
Gov't Legislation/Regulation Webcasts
Optimizing Networks for the Cloud
Join guest speaker, Rohit Mehra, IDC Director of Enterprise Communications Infrastructure, to explore current trends, discuss best practices for optimizing Data Center and...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 2: Designing and Deploying SQL Server on VMware vSphere
Download this webcast to learn about the design considerations for virtualizing SQL workloads, performance and scalability information and high-availability options, as well as...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 1: Designing and Deploying Exchange 2010 on VMware vSphere
Download this webcast to learn the virtual hardware design considerations for Exchange 2010, deployment using the building block approach, options for high-availability and...
Customer Spotlight: How IPC The Hospitalist Company Implemented Oracle on VMware
Have you been looking to hear about customer's experiences with the new VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager product? View this webcast to learn...
Virtualize Business-Critical Applications with Confidence
Virtualizing business-critical applications has become a key focus for organizations as they move along their virtualization journey. With the launch of VMware vSphere®...
All Gov't Legislation/Regulation Webcasts
Newsletter Sign-Up

Receive the latest news test, reviews and trends on your favorite technology topics

Choose a newsletter
  1. View all newsletters | Privacy Policy
IT Jobs