The nature and extent of the staff development and technical assistance are determined in large measure by the needs and exigencies of the local teachers and administrators. Our work in the intensive site schools has served as a rich opportunity to study the way technology is, or is not, successfully integrated into teaching and learning. The following narrative represents some of our observations and lessons learned thus far.
Leadership is the key ingredient.
If you don t know where you re going, you ll end up someplace else. Effective use of technology requires changes in teaching, and the adoption of a new teaching strategy can be a catalyst for technology integration. Each school needs easy access to professionals with expertise in technology and pedagogy. While many of the barriers to using technology to support learning are the same for all poor communities, some populations have some additional issues. In some schools, infrastructure remains a serious barrier to technology adoption .