John Newsom, director of instructional technology at Bellevue School District, says technology brings new capabilities that were impossible previously. That's what we're after with the technology. The Internet, of course, is also filled with less savory sites, and it does not teach kids how to determine what information is valid, what's hearsay or what is propaganda. In schools, we need teachers to do that. Computer simulations are another example of technology's unique capabilities.
Simulations empower learners to do risky, even dangerous experiments, without getting hurt.
One challenge to all of this is that only 20 percent of teachers perceive themselves as well prepared to teach with technology. This suggests that, so far, technology's impact on education may not be as substantial as the hype, and that if we want those millions of computers already installed to support learning, our investment needs to shift to teacher development. Educators who believe technology can improve education seem to agree that computers and the Internet must not steal the stage from what students learn, that technology should be invisible and indispensable. That's a tough job for teachers. Teachers need time to learn and to develop lessons that employ these complex tools in appropriate ways.