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Many resources useful for technology planning are also useful for evaluating technology implementation efforts. We believe that there are two primary reasons for this. First, evaluation should be rooted in an examination of your plan's vision and goals for technology. In essence, you want to evaluate your progress in meeting those goals. In this way, planning tools which assist you in creating good goals will also help you evaluate. Second, we often find that the biggest challenge faced by districts setting out to create evaluations is that they have no adequate plan upon which to base their evaluation. Thus, evaluation efforts often revert to efforts to update (i.e., re-write) the district plan.
Clearly the ideal situation is to write a sound plan -- with clear vision, goals, and action plans -- and then to set forth a rather straight forward process for evaluating your progress in implementing that plan. Even the thorny issue of "student impact and achievement" can be addressed most adequately if your plan is careful to define what you mean by student impact and achievement.
Unfortunately, most schools and districts are find themselves far from this ideal situation. This is why (as stated above) we often end up working with clients to first revise their strategic technology plans and then to develop a workable evaluation strategy. To get a leg up on this process, check out some of the on-line planning and evaluation resources listed below.
National Education Technology Plan, 2010
The latest version of the U.S. Department of Education's National Education Technology Plan details recommendations for states and local districts around making the most of instructional technology. The plan organizes its recommendations around five areas - learning, assessment, teaching, infrastructure and productivity. These areas constitute the main organizational sections of any sound technology plan.
National Center for Technology Planning
It is always good to look at another school or district's educational technology plan when developing or updating your own plan. Not that there is any "perfect" comparable plan, or that your plan should duplicate any other plan, but by viewing sample plans you can focus your own structure and content. The National Center for Technology Planning has electronically posted technology plans from schools around the nation and hence is a good place to start when seeking sample plans.
Technology and Education Reform
This resource, also from the U.S. Department of Education, summarizes the work of prominent educational researcher Barbara Means on the role of technology in education reform. This is "required reading" for technology committees prior to creating vision and goals.
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Research Reports on Technology and Education
Apple Computer Corporation. Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow, Today. Apple has also published updates to its original ACOT research, developing six "design principles" for 21st century learning. A site about ACOT2 can be found at ali.apple.com/acot2/ Documents related to the original ACOT research may be found at:
- www.apple.com/education/docs/Apple-ACOT2Whitepaper.pdf
- www.apple.com/education/docs/Apple-ChallengedBasedLearning.pdfBecker, H., Ravitz, J.L., Wong, Y., Teacher and Teacher-Directed Student Use of Computers and Software. Teaching, Learning, and Computing: 1998 National Survey. Report #3. Center for Research on Information Technology and Organizations. University of California, Irvine and University of Minnesota. 1999. This report can be found online at www.crito.uci.edu/tlc/findings/ComputerUse/html/startpage.htm
Coley, R.J., Cradler, J., Engel, P.K., Computers and Classrooms. The Status of Technology in U.S. Schools Policy Information Center, Educational Testing Service. Princeton, NJ. 1999. This report can be found online at www.ets.org/research/policy_research_reports/pic-compclssl
Schacter, J. The Impact of Education Technology on Student Achievement: What the Most Current Research Has to Say. Milken Exchange on Education Technology. Santa Monica, CA. 2000. This report can be found online at http://www.mff.org/publications/publications.taf?page=161
Proven and Effective Technology Practice
Edutopia - Why Teach With Project-Based Learning? 2010. An excellent set of video resources illustrating examples of project-based learning and how technology tools support this pedagogy.
Partnership for 21st Century Skills, Video21. Another set of video examples of 21st Century learning in the classroom.
Adams, S., Burns, M. Connecting Student Learning & Technology. Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL). 1999. This report can be found online at www.sedl.org/pubs/tec26/flash.html
ISTE/NETS National Educational Technology Standards Project Standards and realated documents available online at www.iste.org/standards.aspx
Southwest Educational Development Laboratory. Constructivism and Technology. TAP into Learning. Volume 1 Number 1. This resource is online at www.sedl.org/pubs/tapinto/v1n1.pdf
Evaluation Resources
Bingham, M., Stories with Data and Data with Stories T.H.E. Journal April, 1999. thejournal.com/Articles/1999/04/01/Stories-with-Data-and-Data-with-Stories.aspx
Johnston, J., Barker, L., Assessing the Impact of Technology in Teaching and Learning: A Sourcebook for Evaluators. 2002. This resource is available online at www.rcgd.isr.umich.edu/tlt/handbook.htm
Milken Exchange on Education Technology. Technology in American Schools: Seven Dimensions for Gauging Progress - A Policymaker's Guide. Santa Monica, CA. 1998. This report can be found online at http://www.mff.org/edtech/projects.taf?_function=detail&Content_uid1=152
Sun, J. How Do We Know It's Working? Designing an Authentic Technology Evaluation and Assessment Plan. Learning & Leading with Technology Volume 27 Number 7.
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology's Evaluation Resources. A variety of resources available online at www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/technology/index.html
Other Evaluation Resources
An Educator's Guide to Evaluation the Use of Technology in Schools & Classrooms
Produced by the U.S. Department of Education originally to help schools evaluate the impact of their Technology Literacy Challenge Fund (TLCF) projects, this guide offers a common sense approach to measuring your progress towards meeting the goals and objectives of your technology program. This guide is somewhat unique in its guidance to readers in creating their own evaluation indicators of performance. We very much favor this approach over the easier, yet considerably less useful, practice of using boilerplate indicators.
Technology and Education Reform
This resource, also from the U.S. Department of Education, summarizes the work of prominent educational research Barbara Means on the role of technology in education reform.
This special on-line edition of Education Week summarizes and overviews some important current research on the impact of technology. Case studies, graphics, the "test score" issue, and more!
National Educational Technology Standards
The NETS project has established a set of recommended technology standards -- by grade level -- for students. The project has also developed standards for teachers.
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Information on this site that has been produced by Sun Associates is Copyright 1997 - 2013 Sun Associates and is available for individual, one-time, use by educators. Duplication is prohibited without permission. All other material is the property of its authors and Sun Associates makes no warranty for its use or accuracy.
Last updated, February 17, 2012