Draft of National Education Technology Plan

The National Educational Technology Plan describes how information and communication technologies are changing education. President Obama said during the Address to Congress that “by 2020, America will have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world.” We became educators because we believe that every child can really be anything they set their mind to be. However, the reality is that many students drop out before they graduate from high school. The students who do make it to graduation are unfortunately not prepared for postsecondary education or the workforce. The world is becoming more competitive and technology has taken part in making that happen. Now education must become a priority because the United States is unable to compete on a global level. Just the other day I saw a commercial with students from around the world discussing how important math and science are. The message from an educator in this commercial is that the United States is far behind other countries in this area. As educators we know that we need to close the achievement gap that has prevented our students from becoming successful individuals and vital parts of our workforce. The question is, how do we get there? Education reform needs to take place but it is not the only factor. Today technology plays a large part in our lives and education must realize this and follow the trend. Educators need to understand that the way we were not many moons ago is not what is best for our students today. We need to make sure that our professional development continues to focus on using technology in the classroom and that we actually use this once we are back in our classrooms.