Even if the school district knows there's money available to install better communication, it may not yet have figured out just how to do that. So the President's committed to making sure that the Federal government helps in these efforts. Our plan will streamline the numerous Federal technology programs into a performance-based technology grant program. This simplified structure will ensure that more technology dollars get to the classrooms where they're needed. When the schools are free of the administrative burden that they must currently endure to receive technology funding from the Federal government, they can spend more time focusing on how best to use that technology funding.
Technology can be a powerful tool to improve our academic achievement, but it is only a tool.
And we don't want to use it as a crutch, nor the lack of technology as an excuse. We must integrate our technology programs into our basic programs, so that it becomes a coherent program. When technology is properly incorporated into the classroom, more students will develop the skills to succeed in the modern workforce. And my answer to that is that probably the highest-level insertion point into a school system is at the level of the teacher. Being able to change the teacher's skill set, attitude, or experience is the most powerful point of insertion for helping us.