Since 1992, the district has been developing its education technology infrastructure by installing local and wide area networks, purchasing hardware and software, creating district Web pages, putting in place various administrative systems such as an automated grade book and a student management system, and hired technology trainers and integrators. Once the technology was in place, the district shifted its focus to upgrading staff capacity. Beginning in 1998, the district embarked on an ambitious set of weekly technology professional development sessions for its staff. Topics have ranged from Web page design to use of productivity tools, Internet resources in the classroom, and software evaluations. Every school building has a Consolidated Plan, which addresses its technology needs in hardware and software, professional development, and instruction.
Every classroom is now able to access the Internet and communicate through e-mail.
The district has been using its TLCF funding to purchase digital cameras, scanners, CD writers, and projection devices, and to train part of its staff on the instructional use of HyperStudio so that the students can use the technology to do multimedia presentations. With these surveys, the district has gathered a body of self-report data about how staff are using technology, how the use is affecting students, and how staff rate themselves on their levels of expertise with various uses of technology. The district is using the partnership to launch a more systematic and deeper examination of the impact of technology through a comparative study of two cohorts of teachers those making high use of technology and those making low use. Technical assistance is being provided on instrument development, data analysis, and reporting of conclusions. The results will be valuable to compare with the survey data the district has collected so far.