Teachers and Technology: Making the Connection

[Pages:298]Teachers and Technology: Making the Connection

April 1995

OTA-EHR-616 GPO stock #052-003-01409-2

Cover Photo Credit: Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT)sm, Stevens Creek Elementary School, Cupertino, CA Recommended Citation: U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, Teachers and Technology: Making the Connection, OTA-EHR-616 (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, April 1995).

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oreword

n the United States, the public school system is designed--ideally--to produce effective, thoughtful citizens who will become valuable contributors to society. In the race to make sure our students are well prepared to handle the world they walk into when they walk out of schools, the nation has tried to enlist as teaching resources the most relevant technological innovations of our time-- whether television or telecommunications, calculators or computers. But in the process of equipping our students to learn with technology, a valuable--perhaps the most valuable--part of the education equation has been virtually overlooked: the teachers. Despite over a decade of investment in educational hardware and software, relatively few of the nation's 2.8 million teachers use technology in their teaching. What are some of the reasons teachers do not use technology? What happens when they do use technology? What factors influence technology integration in schools? What roles do schools, districts, states, the private sector, and the federal government play in helping teachers with new technologies? OTA's in-depth examination of these questions was initiated at the request of the Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources, and endorsed by the House Committee on Education and Labor (now the House Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities) and a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee. As this report will show, helping schools to make the connection between teachers and technology may be one of the most important steps to making the most of past, present, and future investments in educational technology and in our children's future. Throughout this study, the advisory panel, workshop participants, and many others played key roles in defining major issues, providing information, and contributing a broad range of perspectives that helped shape this report. OTA thanks them for their substantial commitment of time and energy. Their participation does not necessarily represent an endorsement of the contents of the report, for which OTA bears sole responsibility.

ROGER C. HERDMAN Director

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dvisory Panel

Allen Glenn, Chairperson Dean, College of Education University of Washington Seattle, WA

Milton Chen Director, Center for Education

and Lifelong Learning KQED San Francisco, CA

Chris Cross President, Council for

Basic Education Washington, DC

Molly Drake Director, Alternate Teacher

Preparation Program University of South Florida Tampa, FL

Lee Ehman Professor of Education Indiana University Bloomington, IN

Geoffrey Fletcher Interim Executive Deputy

Commissioner for Curriculum, Assessment, and Professional Development Texas Education Agency Austin, TX

Keith Huettig Board of Directors National School Boards

Association Hazelton, ID

Yolanda Jenkins Education Specialist Compaq Computers, Inc. San Mateo, CA

Stanley Johnson Science Teacher Jefferson Junior High School Washington, DC

Leslie Lemon Hunt Second Grade Teacher Beauvior Elementary School Biloxi, MS

Henry R. Marockie Superintendent of Schools West Virginia State Department

of Education Charlestown, WV

Argelio B. Perez Education Consultant Lansing, MI

Dwight Prince Principal, Robert E. Lee

Elementary School Long Beach, CA

Tom Snyder President, Tom Snyder

Productions Cambridge, MA

Adam Urbanski President, Rochester Teachers

Association Rochester, NY

Valerie J. Wilford Executive Director Illinois Valley Library System Pekin, IL

Art Wise President, National Council for

Accreditation of Teacher Education Washington, DC

Kristina Woolsey Distinguished Scientist Advanced Technology Group Apple Computer, Inc.

OTA appreciates and is grateful for the valuable assistance and thoughtful critiques provided by the advisory panel members. The panel does not, however, necessarily approve, disapprove, or endorse this report. OTA assumes full responsibility for the report and the accuracy of its contents.

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roject Staff

Clyde Behney Assistant Director

Denise Dougherty Program Director1 Education and Human Resources

John Andelin Assistant Director2

Nancy Carson Program Director3 Education and Human Resources

PRINCIPAL STAFF Kathleen Fulton Project Director

Patricia Morison Senior Analyst

Isabelle Bruder Smith Analyst

Ethan T. Leonard Research Analyst

OTHER CONTRIBUTING STAFF Paula Bruening Senior Analyst

Sam Seidel Research Assistant

ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF Cecile Parker Technical Editor

Linda Rayford PC Specialist

Jene Lewis Administrative Secretary

Marsha Fenn Office Administrator4

Gay Jackson PC Specialist4

Tamara Kowalski Administrative Secretary5

________________

1 Since July 1994. 2 Through August 1993. 3 Through June 1994. 4 Through June 1994. Now in OTA's Energy,

Transportation, and Infrastructure program. 5 Through July 1994.

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ontractors

Ronald E. Anderson University of Minnesota

Henry Jay Becker University of California at Irvine

James Bosco Western Michigan University

Larry Cuban Stanford University

Gulden Fox-Gurcay National Film Institute

Madeline Gross Washington, DC

Melinda Griffith Alexandria, VA

Beverly Hunter and Bruce Goldberg Bolt, Beranek and Newman, Inc.

Nancy Kober Charlottesville, VA

Robert Kozma and Wayne Grant Center for Technology

in Learning SRI International

John R. Mergendoller Beryl Buck Institute for Education

Saul Rockman, Rockman, et al. Jerome Johnston, University of Michigan Jerry Willis, University of Houston

Margaret Riel InterLearn

TERC Vanessa DiMauro Alan H. Feldman Shahaf Gal Daniel Lieberman Jack Lochhead Richard R. Roupp Barbara Sampson William Spitzer Robert Tinker

Jerry Willis University of Houston

Dee Anna Willis Linda Austin

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1 Summary and Policy Options 1

Summary of Key Findings 1 Introduction 3 Teaching and Technology: The Potential 8 Teachers and Technology: The Barriers 18 Promising Approaches to Technology

Implementation 28 Current Federal Support for Teacher Training and

Technology 29 Federal Policy Issues and Options 29 Conclusion 46

2 The Promise of Technology for Teachers 49

Summary of Key Findings 49 Introduction 50 Technology and the Job of the Teacher 54 Using Technology to Enhance Instruction 57 Assisting Teachers with the Daily Tasks of

Teaching 71 Fostering Teacher Professional Growth 79 Conclusion 88

3 Technology Access and Instructional Use in Schools Today 89

Summary of Key Findings 89 Introduction 90 What Technologies Do Schools Own and How Are

They Used? 91 State Policies on Access and Use 119 Conclusion: Issues with Policy and Research

Implications 121

ontents

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4 Helping Teachers Learn About and Use Technology Resources 129

Summary of Key Findings 129 Introduction 130 Factors That Influence Technology Use by

Teachers 130 Approaches To Enhance Technology

Implementation 144 Lessons About Technology Implementation 155

5 Technology and the Preparation of New Teachers 165

Summary of Key Findings 165 Introduction 166 History and Current Challenges of Preparing

Teachers 167 Reform in Teacher Education 169 Technology in Teacher Education 181 Models of Change: Lessons for the Field 191 Conclusions 205

6 Technology and Teacher Development: The Federal Role 207

Summary of Key Findings 207 Introduction 208 Background on the Federal Role 209 Current Federal Support and Commitment 212 New Opportunities for Federal Leadership 220 Major Technology-Related Training Programs 224 Summary of Federal Emphasis in Technology-Related

Training Services and Activities 234 Historical Precedents for Technology-Related

Professional Development 239 Lessons from Past and Present Federal Efforts 246 Key Issues for Future Federal Policies for

Technology-Related Teacher Development 250 Conclusion 254

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