The technological challenges in K-12 Education

The marriage of technology and education has become a challenging task. This is especially true for large urban school districts with the task of integration technology are confronted on two fronts. The business side, it must be student data, financial, infrastructure management and board. The teaching of this page must meet the needs of society, as their children are educated.

Some of the largest school districts serving more than 175,000 students and aFree 20,000 employees. to manage the finances of these organizations as a rule be federal state and local governments in the form of taxes, bonds, etc. There is an ongoing debate about how money is spent in public education paid. This debate was even stronger after the government began to collect and distribute billions of dollars with his E-Rate program.

When he started school districts, deadweight, to get the public expects that the issue of technologyschools would be immediately addressed. This did not happen. Indeed, for large school districts, poses new challenges for managers of technology. The E-Rate program is very complex, to attend and report back. The funds are sent directly to the number of children receiving free or reduced price lunch (another government program).

In a typical large urban school district, schools should be on both ends of the spectrum. Do good to those aroundhave a strong PTA, the active involvement of businesses, neighborhood, and students eager to learn. At the other end of the spectrum, you have schools with little parental involvement, old plants, a high concentration of poor children and small business / Community involvement.

The E-Rate funds for this latter group of schools. He sees things as inside wiring, Internet services and network equipment. What could not be for computers orSoftware to connect these systems. The idea was that schools will be able to recommend funds that use e-store, where to buy items and computer software. Sounds good, except that not many districts to upgrade the wiring, a higher bandwidth or budget to replace the router.

In the early days of E-rate, some districts, the system ran through the purchase of the same items to the same schools each year. They would then transfer the old equipment for schools in the districtthat do not qualify for E-rate. This gap, and many others were soon closed. The large school districts are now crawling to meet technology needs with fewer dollars.

Some district leaders to focus on schools that need it most. You can get your new computer, new software and new teaching technology. Schools to do well in the districts, have begun similar efforts to save their parents, trust PTAand local businesses to make it happen. These schools are now asking for an equitable distribution of funds technology district.

The Director District of technology professionals who can seek to remedy these and other technical problems. Semi-retired teacher or a hack named is not the right way to solve these problems. Immediate attention required. Remember that for every four-year plan that a child is starting preschool, but halfElementary school, before something happens and ninth graders will have disappeared from the system.