Interesting Tech Times in Ed

As someone with over 13 years experience as an EdTech professional and almost 18 years in education as a whole, I'm here to testify that these are very interesting times in education.  Over the past few years, we have seen a push for more technology-driven or technology-supported initiatives than ever before.

Never mind that us EdTech folks have been touting technology's importance for more than a decade as it relates to the newest buzz-term, 21st century skills.  Never mind that we still have some education professionals that are less than up to speed on even old technology.  What is interesting is the push at the state-level for more integration.

I'm not sure that in my tenure I have experienced this push from people other than the EdTech folks.  I really like that we have state-level leaders embracing technology for learning. However, I wonder if the state folks are looking beyond (with their eyes AND their wallets) using technology to assess student performance.  While we like the ability to create assessments and lessons and view PD videos online, this is not helping the access our kids have to technology.  If you think about it, if kids don't have this access, then what good is it? Where is the push for more student use of technology for REAL learning?

We can accomplish this in a number of ways (more buzz-terms like project-based learning), but at the moment we are also strapped by our "scores" on state tests.  Interesting times, indeed, especially if all tests are to be conducted via computer.

I ask you, should we purchase more computers so that our kids can take a test?  Or should we be exposing our kids to the world of technology and how it can help them for their personal and professional learning?  Doing the former is mimicking the practice of worksheets and mindless activities.  Doing the latter, I believe, can lead to some pretty awesome young people graduating from our schools, ready to contribute to our global society.