Making the Commitment to Technology Professional Development
Linda Bartone
Director of Planning and Grants

Building a high quality cadre of teachers is one of the greatest challenges facing American education today. In both the pre-service and in-service arena, the technology qualifications these teachers possess dramatically impacts the use of technology in the classroom.

Our students are shortchanged if their teachers do not have the necessary staff development for effectively using technology tools and resources to impact student achievement. According to a United States Department of Education report, only about twenty percent of our teachers feel very well prepared to integrate technology into classroom instruction. All of the hardware and software in the world makes no difference if the teacher doesn't know how to effectively connect technology as a learning resource.

The American education system has spent the last six to ten years making sure that we have equitable access in our schools to high speed connectivity, that we have our classrooms wired, that we have hardware and software to support student learning, that our teachers are prepared to use technology effectively, and that we are providing online content to classrooms, computer labs, and school library media centers.

How successful have we been with professional development initiatives? Resources have been devoted to staff development opportunities, but the reality is that most schools and districts are not spending the recommended funding resources to support this most critical issue. The United States Department of Education recommends that twenty-five to thirty percent of the total technology budget should be devoted to staff development. In reality, most school districts are spending far less — fifteen percent or less — while still expecting the same results.

What are some ways we can close the gap on the financial resources that should be allocated for professional development versus the amount that is actually budgeted?

• Make a commitment on the state, district, and school level that technology budgets must consider the total cost of ownership, including the twenty-five to thirty percent devoted to staff development — it should not be an option to cut this area of the budget.
• Consider a wide variety of learning opportunities for educators, including peer modeling and mentoring, instructor-led graduate level and certificate renewal courses, conferences and workshops, and online courses that permit anytime, anywhere learning.
• Establish high expectations with accountable assessment measures for teacher performance.
• Leverage a variety of funding sources, including federal, state, local, and grant funds.

If teachers are not prepared to use technology in the classroom, our students will not benefit from the resources and tools that are so critical to success in higher education, the world of work, and life in the twenty-first century. Well-prepared teachers, backed by sufficient professional development budgets, should be the rule — not the exception.

Linda Bartone spent 13 years as a library media specialist at the elementary, middle, and high school levels and was on the Board of Directors for the National Association of State Media Professionals.