There has been a lot more emphasis on the last year on staff development. You see it building momentum. Corporate leaders and educators, through the CEO Forum on Education and Technology, also have encouraged schools of education at colleges and universities to step up technology training. Stein said business leaders were initially surprised to see how little time and money were spent to prepare future teachers. The NEA is arming its local chapters with information on teacher technology training, and in some states, the union is bargaining with school districts to give teachers more free time to learn how to use new technologies, Stein said.
State laws vary.
But certainly there are situations where they can bargain for it. Stein added that it would take time for teachers to learn how to fully integrate technology into the curriculum.