Texas Long Range Plan for Technology: Infrastructure

According to it's most recent report to the Texas Legislature, the Texas Education Agency indicates that infrastructure is the critical element of support for all aspects of technology. The 21st century classroom relies heavily on the use of technology. Students and teachers in these classrooms are being exposed to more and more technology and are using that technology in more innovative ways than ever before. It seems obvious, then, that infrastructure must be in place for this type of classroom to exist. In fact, the most recent data from the Texas STaR (School Technology and Readiness) Charts, the official data gathering device used by the TEA to determine the level at which technology is being implemented in our schools, indicates that more schools are at the advanced level in terms of infrastructure than in any other reporting area. The other areas of reporting are: Teaching and Learning; Educator Preparation and Development; and Leadership, Administration and Instructional Support.

This is rather surprising when you consider that educators compile these charts. What this means, in effect, is that more educators across the state feel that they are advanced in infrastructure more so than in the areas of teaching and learning, administrative support, or teacher preparation programs. If this were in fact a truth, then that would be good news for education. How many times have we seen cities built up faster than the infrastructure to handle the new population? By building the infrastructure and having it in place to handle the increased use of technology, we will be making it a much easier transition to the use of that technology. In areas where this infrastructure lags, it can be very frustrating. In these cases, teachers are given technologies and training only to find out that there is not enough bandwidth to handle it.

Hopefully, this data is an indication that the infrastructure for advancing technology in the 21st century classroom is, if not in place, advancing rapidly and teachers and students will be able to advance 21st century skills in the classroom.