Technology in American Education: The Vehicle of Recovery

The Obama administration has a road map for the economic recovery of the United States; the Department of Education calls their section of the map the National Educational Technology Plan 2010 (NETP). In the rationale for the NETP, it is stated that the two main goals will be raise the percentage of the population holding a 2-4 post-secondary degree from 39% to 60%, and to “close the achievement gap” (both within a decade). While both goals are honorable, the former is concrete and measurable, while the latter is vague and incalculable. While the goals differ in their location on the road map, they are both conveniently located in the same direction from where the country presently sits. As the NETP urgently states; the country needs a new vehicle to get over river and through the woods.

The engine of the recovery vehicle is an educated workforce, so the document places the principle of learning first and up-front. Increased training, knowledge and expertise will overhaul the engine and leverage its core strength, increasing the total output of the machine.

But raw horsepower is not enough to win the race on its own. This recovery vehicle also needs to follow a carefully navigated course set out on the map. To this end, the Department of Education sees the practice of transparent assessment at the best guidance tool. Assessment acts like GPS, informing us whether the vehicle is really on track, or instead if we should have taken a left in Albuquerque.

Once we know that the engine is running clean and we’re on the right course, this vehicle will need to have a good pit crew. This position of advisory, support, and maintenance is identified in the NETP as the role teaching needs to play. No longer are teachers required to be fountains of knowledge, in front of their students throughout the course work. It is instead suggested that teachers need to connect students to data and guide their experience. A good pit crew knows when to flag their vehicle in for fuel and how to inspire a daring driver.

A race can be won or lost based on tires; that’s where the rubber literally meets the road. The well-designed technological infrastructure for such a high-powered vehicle is crucial to maintain the integrity of the vehicle’s journey. The Department of Education’s plan targets a goal of a one-to-one ratio of Internet access devices to students and staff, and that means a whole lot of systems, servers, and devices (not to mention the need for quick repairs). This component may be written off by some as ‘boring logistical stuff’, but if you’ve got a flat tire it doesn’t matter how hard to rev the engine, you’re not going anywhere anytime soon. Students and teachers need to have devices and access, or they are just spinning their tires.

The last component addressed on this recovery vehicle is also the most intangible. Productivity is not the addition of air-conditioning to a vehicle designed for speed. You can’t see productivity as a singular system in the vehicle. Productivity is the streamlining and synergy of essential parts and the removal of superfluous crap. President Obama’s economic recovery vehicle will not have fuzzy dice.

Is the NETP recovery vehicle totally different from the previous year’s models? I don’t think so, but that’s okay. It’s a good, clear map that illustrates the emerging route technology ought to take education in the United States. The vehicle is now assembled and pointed in the right direction. Real learning is the fuel; the race is on.