A Technology Vision for Lifelong Learning

Where there is no vision,
the people perish.
Proverbs 29:18

The Technology Action Team suggests that the Education Implementation Segment recommend the following mission, objectives and strategies to the Board of Directors of the Community Alliance for Lifelong Learning:

Technology will be a catalyst for the improvement of educational quality, the overall competitiveness of the community, and ultimately the quality of life and standard of living of each citizen in the Bloomington-Monroe County Telecommunity.

1. Strategic Objective: Access

Every citizen of the Bloomington-Monroe County Telecommunity should have reasonably convenient access to the resources necessary to make full use of technology.

1-1. Minimum standards for resources should be established and shared with individuals, institutions, agencies and businesses to provide guidance for acquisition of technology that provides interoperable access to voice, data and/or video information and/or communications services available through cable television, telephone services and/or other facilities.

1-2. Every educational office, classroom or teaching station should be equipped with a telephone, modem and/or fax modem, computer, printer, video display and video cassette recorder, CD-ROM and interactive multimedia capability.

1-3. Each public or community service institution or agency should endeavor to establish at least one station equipped with the technology necessary to provide access to these services.

1-4. Public stations or community kiosks should be strategically located throughout the major business, institutional, recreational and services areas of the community.

2. Strategic Objective: Connectivity

The Bloomington-Monroe County community should be made up of neighborhoods of Local Area Networks and Wide Area Networks connecting schools and other learning institutions, libraries and museums, hospitals and clinics, local government and other centers of community activity, and the residences of teachers and learners to community-, state-, nation- and worldwide information systems and to each other.

2-1. Within each school or information site, there should be Local Area Networks (LANs) and servers connecting teacher stations, counseling and administrative offices and providing opportunities for interactions among colleagues.

2-2. Each neighborhood network should be connected to a community-centered Wide Area Network (WAN) and server located at the school system's administration center, the public library, the city or county building, and/or or the university.

2-3. The community WAN should be accessible from the recreation areas, homes and workplaces of community residents and businesses.

3. Strategic Objectives: Support

Technology should be used to assist existing agencies institutions and businesses and begin to establish Bloomington-Monroe County as a telecommunity where high tech communications, productivity and education ideas can be tested and proven in an environment where unprecedented collaboration fosters lifelong learning.

Technology should be used to enhance the roles and instructional opportunities of teachers.

Technology should be used to support the development of critical thinking and collaborative skills, as well as to expand educational opportunities, for learners.

3-1. Well-designed technology has to be an integral not a tangential part of the teaching and learning process, sustained and supported by curriculum leadership, inservice education and staff-development activities aimed at learning how to use the technology, how to design instruction, how to teach differently, how to relate in new ways to students, and how to assume new roles as learners and researchers.

3-2. Technology systems must be supported by technical and maintenance resources capable of providing seemingly trouble-free operation with minimal service disruptions, capitalized to provide for regular maintenance, system upgrades, and necessary equipment purchases.

3-3. Public and private funding must be developed to allow the community to purchase, maintain, and upgrade technology systems and connections.

3-4. State and local telecommunications regulations need to be reviewed and revised to increase the accessibility and affordability of advanced technology in education and in other public sector institutions.

3-5. Reduced rates for communications services (telephone and cable) to education institutions must be granted or arranged by the State of Indiana public utility commission.

3-6. Information services, providers and networks should offer free or low-cost access to schools, classrooms and the Telecommunity.

3-7. Technology providers must be provided the opportunity to develop, produce, and distribute products and services relevant to education and lifelong learning.

The Technology Action Team suggests that the Education Implementation Segment recommend the following objective and strategies to the Board of Directors of the Community Alliance for Lifelong Learning for subsequent recommendation to the Board of School Trustees of the Monroe County Community School Corporation.

4. Strategic Objective: School Technology Plans

In order to further the mission in the community vision for lifelong learning and in accordance with Section 101. IC 2S10. 1-25-1.2, the Monroe County Community School Corporation should update the current five-year technology plan, reflecting the need for the development of a community-wide information infrastructure and the supported and sustained integration of technology into the teaching and learning process. According to information supplied by the Indiana Department of Education, the pan must include at East the following information:

4-1. A description of the Monroe County Community School Corporation's intent to integrate technology into the curriculum. This integration should be teacher directed, be an on-going process, include technology as a tool throughout the curriculum, and encourage a technology-rich learning environment for all learners.

4-2. A plan for providing inservice training. This inservice should focus on integration of technology with the curriculum and give teachers adequate time, access to resources, and training.

4-3. A schedule for maintaining and replacing educational technology equipment. This schedule should be flexible to incorporate appropriate, up-to-date technology and provide adequate support for maintenance.

4-4. A description of the criteria used to select the appropriate educational technological equipment for the appropriate use. This description should include a process for selection of educational technology to support learning goals and teacher involvement in developing criteria for and in selection of equipment.