Policy Identification
In the present education environment, the educational technology policy, particularly Internet and technology policy in schools, is considered as outdated mostly because it has failed to deliver the diverse learning of students. For instance, today’s classroom is not the same way as adults might consider it. SMART Boards have replaced blackboards, allowing educators to create an Internet portal that allows students to take part in diverse interactive activities. Paper assignments, books, or other classroom features of life in the classroom are changing rapidly as the tech-savvy generation is seeking new learning tools. Even while the shift toward technology is taking place, notable cultural lag still exists about the changes. Teachers and parents are exercising caution on concerning trusting students when it comes to using the revolutionary tools (Kerchener, 2013).
Cultural lag entails a concept whereby slow change rate is associated with a particular culture, which is mostly apparent in the present technological world. Here, a need has arisen to address the issue of cultural lag to facilitate in enforcing trust between teachers and students. In the past, many notes used to be passed to students, while the present administrations are encountering challenges concerning regulating email use and text messaging in learning institutions. Furthermore, testing is not the only areas of concern, nonetheless, mostly because the major problem is affiliated with ways of determining how schools can implement technology in learning institutions effectively. As such, questions arise as to how schools can exercise an open as well as a less regulated environment that would ensure that students are safe when it comes to utilizing technology to address their learning needs (Kiira and Stephan, 2013).
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Each day, issues related to trust emerge in schools concerning the way that the Internet can be used in an acceptable manner. Many learning institutions are normally forced to filter certain websites, particularly Websense to ensure that students can gain access to the Internet without landing to deliberate or accidental inappropriate content while learning. Also, notable debates have emerged concerning the kind of content that should be filtered or when filtering is beyond the necessary (Kerchener, 2013). Since Websense is not an individual, it only blocks or searches sites that are considered inappropriate in its code. As such, websites that are left hosted freely, technical forums, or political blogs, are put in the same category as Internet pornography, viruses, and computer games websites, thus hindering students from accessing them (MEXT, 2011).
Even though this huge market is developed to facilitate in hindering unregulated communication with individuals beyond the school environment, the side effect is that they end up smothering learning opportunities. Here, one of the ideal way of handling this kind of challenge is to introduce a decision that does not tolerate certain activities by the students, by ensuring that teachers are capable of overriding to ensure that the ways the students utilize the technology availed to them are fee and dynamic in an increasing manner (MEXT, 2011).
In case a teacher, rather than a computer is permitted to make decisions concerning whether a certain website is ideal, then students would be in a position to gain updated information in ways that they cannot be given the present setting of learning institutions. For example, in a case of students request to send texts when classes are over for a sick student to let them know of an assignment, learning would take place while the relationship between teachers and students would be enforced (Lackéus and Williams, 2015).
Technology may also be considered as double sided, although doing so would not be fair. Here, the ideal way of performing an evaluation would entail regarding technology as a tool apparent in the system of education. Even though it demands maturity to utilize as well as manage effectively, the place of technology in the setting high school, which is increasingly emerging as a higher learning environment, is vital to cope with the educational learning needs of the 21st century (Kerchener, 2013).
During an era in which the rights of humans are vital as well as prominent, it is essential to permit computer programs, with both false and true values to be charged with guiding the next thinkers’ generation during their entire schooling careers. However, questions prevail as to whether teachers have any reasons that would hinder teacher from performing the task in a more efficient way, particularly as they gain more knowledge concerning modern communication. Here, while approaching a new decade, it is the role of school administrators, parents, as well as teachers to ensure they go past the cultural lag as well as avoid any issues related to trust. This is mostly because it is possible to implement zero tolerance policies while at the same time allowing students gain access unlimited access to a wealth of information, thus allowing learners to succeed in their use of technology for education purposes (Yi-Ching, et al., 2013).
ISLLC Standards about Education Technology Policy
ISLLC standards have a notable influence on the education technology policy in various ways. These standards are meant for setting the parameters for the work that school leaders undertake. They are also responsible for guiding the position descriptions of school districts, assessment and evaluations of administrators, certification, state licensure, accreditation anticipations, and coursework as well as the content of the preparation leadership initiatives in a postsecondary setting (Yi-Ching, et al., 2013).
The ISLLC (Interstate School Leaders Consortium Standards) meant for leaders of schools were developed to serve as the foundation for all standards for administrator certification and licensure. The framework is usually organized in six major standards. To begin with, the standards are supposed to facilitate the articulation, development, implementation, as well as stewardship of learning vision to ensure that it is shared as well as received the support of the entire learning institution community. Secondly, the framework is responsible for advocating, sustaining, and nurturing the culture of a school as well as the programs it used to instruct to ensure that they are ideal in supporting learning among students as well as the professional growth among staff members (MEXT, 2011).
Thirdly, ISLLC standards play a key role concerning ensuring that the operations, management, and resources of an organization are efficient, effective, as well as support a safe learning environment. Fourthly, the standard ensures that the collaborating families, as well as the community members involved, manage to respond to the diverse needs and interest of the community while also ensuring that the resources within the community are utilized in the most effective way. Fifthly, they advocate for a need to act with fairness, integrity, as well as ethical manner. Lastly, the standards require an understanding environment that is capable of responding as well as influencing the broader social, political, legal, economic, and cultural context to ensure that education technology policy is well handled in institutions (Lackéus and Williams, 2015).
In the case of ISLLC, more mention concerning technology should be apparent mostly because, in the current learning environment, leadership within the technological environment may emerge as one of the key aspects of busy lives. Even though individuals wish that ISLLC standards are accorded better recognition based on the ways through which digital technologies are influencing both our professional and personal lives, it is vital to remember that administrators in schools are responsible for instructing learning institutions, evaluating staff, community relations, budgeting, operations, management, and various other roles (Lackéus and Williams, 2015).
Concerning the issue of the education technology policy, therefore, it is essential to note that they play a major role when it comes to dominating conversations as well as anticipations concerning the competency of learning institutions administrators. Therefore, the ISLLC standards should presently aim at addressing the various technological advancements taking place in the society to facilitate in devising effective ways of how the education technology policy can be implemented to support the diverse changes taking place within the learning institutions. These would address the growing needs of the tech-savvy students’ generation learning needs effectively (Kiira and Stephan, 2013).
Need for Selecting the Policy Change
The major reason for selecting the education technology policy change is driven by the advancements taking place in the educational environment, which are creating a need for learning institutions to devise ways of coping with the technology to support the growing technological learning needs of the students. For instance, ever since the information age became apparent in the U.S. during the 1970s, Noam Chomsky argued that behaviorism was not sensible, thus making him focus on proving the notion that individuals are nor usually born with an innate ability of the black state of learning. He argued that individuals were capable of learning the language irrespective of whether they preferred or not. In the perspective of Chomsky, the new code of behavior he introduced provided people with news ways of evaluating the manner in which students learn (Kerchener, 2013).
Basing the argument by Chomsky to the issue of education technology policy, in this case, it is vital to ensure that students are well equipped with technological tools to allow them to cope with the education need, which is presently reliant on information age to emerge competitive in the marketplace. When schools are adequately prepared to handle the diverse needs of students in utilizing information technology, the education technology policy would play a major role in boosting the schools learning needs, which would mostly cover the needs of the present generation. The technology policy would advocate for a need by educators to ensure they have the relevant educational knowledge, which would allow them to support the diverse learning needs of their students using technology (MEXT, 2011).
Furthermore, with sufficient understanding of the way that technology works in the learning institution, it would be possible for teachers and administrators of the school to monitor the learning processes of the students effectively. This way, they would manage to ensure that they gain access to appropriate and relevant learning materials, which would then allow them to cope with the technological needs of the community and workplaces after completing their education. In my perspective, therefore, I believe that implementing education in all subjects that students take in school would play a major role in preparing them to prepare for future trends in the future educational technology as well as apply technology effectively in their personal and professional lives (Yi-Ching, et al., 2013).
Pros and Cons
Concerning the issue of education technology policy, various pros, and cons exist. Regarding the benefits of supporting the policy, technology would provide students with ways of undertaking experiments in a more pedagogical manner, such as allowing academic professionals to learn ways in which they can design as well as execute classes through technology. Technology also enhances education through making the learning more effective and fun, such as with e-textbooks and apps, which guide the students throughout the learning process (Kiira and Stephan, 2013). Furthermore, when using technology, students and teachers are capable of automating tedious tasks, such as whereby educators can automate the grading system allowing them to keep track of the performance of their students. Moreover, technology provides students with rapid information access, which plays an essential role in supplementing their education experience while also improving their life skills, such as preparing them to the world that is significantly driven by technology (MEXT, 2011).
By contrast, some drawbacks are also prevalent concerning use the of technology in the learning environment. For instance, technology creates distraction among students, such as when they use their smartphones, laptops, and other technological tools beyond the learning environment. Technology is also associated with creating the social interactions disconnect, mostly because individuals show much reliance on technology, thus limiting verbal communication. Additionally, technology is capable of supporting cheating within a class as well as in assignments, especially in a case where students handle assignments that do not require thought. Also, students encounter challenges in gaining equitable access to technology, thus limiting access to technological resources, especially in the case of those students who cannot afford the tools. Furthermore, the research that the students acquire through technology may not be of high quality, especially when the students cannot find reliable and proper resources to back their learning processes (Kerchener, 2013).
Ramifications of Educational Policy Change
Based on the current trends, which reveal the orientation of education toward technology, it is vital to impose various ramifications to ensure that students perform optimally in the learning environment. One way of enforcing this is through enforcing basic education policies targeting contemporary issues, including advancements in information, science and technology, and internationalization (Kerchener, 2013). These efforts should be imposed in line with the support of the government to ensure that students are adequately prepared to handle the technological learning environment more efficiently. The other area of major importance is to target children to establish their basis in the technological learning environment. This would play a vital role on ensuring that students lead innovative lives through technology, thus ensure that the society witnesses notable technological progress in the future (Yi-Ching, et al., 2013).
Plan for Policy Change
To ensure that the education technology policy matches with the various changes taking place in the technology world, it is essential to devise a plan that would support effective implementation of the policy in the education environment. For instance, of the major strategies would be to hold meetings with teachers, parents, staff, students, and other stakeholders to discuss the ideal practices to be followed while utilizing technology in class. These parties would raise their opinions regarding the ideal strategies to be implemented then choose the ones that all the parties come to a consensus.
The discussions about technology implementation should be handled verbally as well as in written form to ensure that all individuals involved take part in the process. Although these forms of communications would be time-consuming, they would lead to effective strategy implementation, which all parties abide by as well as agree to observe. Furthermore, it would be vital to consider the issue of budget implications, mostly because the acquisition of technological equipment, material, and training would be expensive to acquire, particularly if the learning institution is rolling out the plans for technology adoption for the first time. The timeline for the implementation should also be discussed, which should not take more than one year to ensure that students are exposed to technology early as well as ensure that educators have gained important experience concerning technology use as well as in disseminating educational materials to students effectively while using technology.
In conclusion, it is apparent that the education technology policy is still outdated despite the potential it shows toward improving the overall learning process of the students while also equipping them with technological life skills. In this perspective, therefore, school administrators, teachers, parents, and the community should consider measures they should implement to ensure that technology is implemented fully and effectively in learning institutions. These would equip the students as well as educators with learning skills that can allow them to cope with future trends in education as well as professional lives.
References
Kerchener, C. T. (2013). Education Policy for a 21st Century Learning System. Retrieved from http://edpolicyinca.org/sites/default/files/PACE%20Policy%20Brief%2013-3.pdf
Kiira, K., & Stephan, V. (2013). Sparking Innovation in STEM Education with Technology and Collaboration: A Case Study of the HP Catalyst Initiative. OECD Education Working Papers, 91 (1), 1-54.
Lackéus, M., & Williams, M. K. (2015). Venture creation programs: bridging entrepreneurship education and technology transfer. Education & Training, 57 (1), 73-148.
MEXT. (2011). Trends and Development in Education, Science and Technology Policies Summary. Retrieved from http://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/hakusho/html/hpab201101/detail/1330512.htm
Yi-Ching, W., Bou-Wen, L., Chintay, S., & Chung-Jen, C. (2013). Communicating and prioritizing science and technology policy using AHP. Innovation Management, Policy & Practice, 1 (1), 437-451.
