EDLD 5352 Instructional Leadership Week 2 Blog #3

National Education Technology Plan Transforming American Education: Learning Powered by Technology

The premise behind this national plan is to incite schools to act now. We have to work together as schools, as districts, as states, and nationally in order to see the highest success from technology with our students. The National Educational Technology Plan (NETP) has 5 goals for states, districts, the national government, and any stakeholders. Goal 1 is Learning. Goal 2 is Assessment. Goal 3 is Teaching. Goal 4 is Infrastructure. Goal 5 is Productivity.

Under Goal 1, Learning, it states that "all learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and outside of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society" (p. 12). We must make changes to the way we are teaching students and how they are receiving learning in order to incorporate technology into our daily classrooms. Goal 2, Assessment, states that "our education system at all levels will leverage the power of technology to measure what matters and use assessment data for continuous improvement" (p. 12). We need to have feedback on student learning so that we can make changes as needed to see student achievement improvement. We can also incorporate technology into assessments. Goal 3, Teaching, states that "professional educators will be supported individually and in teams by technology that connects them to data, content, resources, expertise, and learning experiences that enable and inspire more effective teaching for all learners" (p. 13). This is a big area of improvement. Districts are so diversified in how they assist teachers in achieving professional development in technology. NETP suggests having online learning communities for educators to collaborate, incorporating technology into curriculum, and providing teachers with professional development opportunities involving technology to name a few. Under Goal 4, Infrastructure, it states that "all students and educators will have access to a comprehensive infrastructure for learning when and where they need it" (p.13). One of the suggestions is that students and educators need to have access to adequate broadband internet, something also mentioned in the Long-Range Plan for Technology in Texas. Finally on to Goal 5, Productivity, which states that "our education system at all levels will redesign processes and structures to take advantage of the power of technology to improve learning outcomes while making more efficient use of time, money, and staff" (p.14).

Plans such as this give us an idea of where we are heading and where we need to be. This national plan provides a guide for the states to use as an example.


U.S. Department of Education, U.S. Department of Technology. (2010, March 5). Draft National Educational Technology Plan 2010. Retrieved from: http://www.ed.gov/sites/default/files/NETP-2010-final-report.pdf.