The first progress report on the Texas long-range plan for technology began in 2008. This is a 180 page report that documents the State's progress and accomplishments in meeting the recommendations (from September 2006 through August 2008) made to the TEA, Regional educational service centers, and other educational agencies (p. 1). The progress report begins with an introduction which describes the Texas Long-Range Plan for Technology and its goals.
Next, the progress report highlights two legislatively mandated programs, the Technology Immersion Pilot (TIP) and the Texas Virtual School Network (TxVSN), that were implemented 2006-2008. The report for TIP deals with the progress made throgh the pilot implementation including data concerning successes and lessons learned. For the TxVSN, the report deals with opportunities and options for students learning through online courses (p. 2).
After the reviewing the TIP and TxVSN, the progress report is then divided into four sections, with each section reviewing the progress for each of the four areas on the Long-range plan: Teaching and Learning; Educator Preparation and Development; Leadership, Administration and Instructional Support; and Infrastructure for Technology. The last part of the report provides a summary of the services by regional education service centers.
Numerous charts and graphs are used throughout the report. I found this to be very instrumental to understanding the data that is being presented. For instance, it is easy to see how different grade levels are utilizing technology by looking at the provided bar graphs. The report also lists schools that received various recognitions dealing with technology use. I found myself looking through these lists to see if I recognized any of the districts, and I did.
There is a plethora of different types of information presented in this report. School types, support for online learning, tech-literacy assessment, and teacher's beliefs (on various issues) are just a few of the topics reviewed. I can see how this report can become a valuable tool for administrators. The report shares the same goal as most educators: To move forward and positively impact our schools and to prepare our students with the 21st Century skills that are needed to succeed and thrive in our global society (p. iii).
Reference:
Progress report on the Long-Range Plan for Technoloty, 2006-2020. A report to the 81st Texas Legislature from the Texas Education Agency.
