September 1997 — Features

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The Boulder Valley Internet Project: Lessons Learned

Concluding Comments

Over the span of the five year project, teachersí skills and comfort levels have improved, the Internet technology itself rapidly evolved, and the district gone through a series of challenges related to limited resources and a shift in educational philosophy. Not only is the Boulder Valley School District a complex system; it is also an elaborate, dynamic system, with the adoption of the Internet comprising but one variable among a large number of complex factors that continue to influence educational outcomes.

Ideally, the adoption of a technological innovation should be part of a larger reform effort, a concerted effort toward common goals. Even if a new vision of instruction is not promoted with the use of telecommunications, the nature and structure of the Internet itself is encouraging teachers to learn and teach in a very different manner.

A larger, qualitative research report is online at: http://www.cudenver.edu/~lsherry/aera97.html
 
Lorraine Sherry is a research assistant for RMC Research Corp., where she helped evaluate the Boulder Valley Internet Project and the CPB/Annenberg Math and Science Project. She is currently a doctoral student in the Educational Leadership Innovation Program at the University of Colorado in Denver. Primary interest area of research is computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL). Sherry also serves as Web mistress of the School of Education's Home Page and on the university's Internet Task Force as well. E-mail: lsherry@carbon.cudenver.edu

References:

  1. Rogers, E.M. (1995), Diffusion of Innovations, Fourth Edition, NY, NY: The Free Press. p. 36
  2. Main, T. (1996), and Teaching Teachers to Use Telecommunications: The British Columbia Experience. [Online]: Path: http://www.webcom.com/journal/t_main.html
  3. Sherry, L., & Wilson, B. (1996), "Supporting Human Performance Across Disciplines: A Converging of Roles and Tools," Performance Improvement Quarterly, 9(4), pp. 19-36.
  4. Peled, A., Peled, E., & Alexander, G. (1994), "An Ecological Approach for Information Technology Intervention, Evaluation, and Software Adoption Policies," in E.L. Baker & H.F. OíNeil Jr., (Eds.), Technology Assessment in Education and Training, 35-61. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum & Associates, p.37.
  5. Sherry, L., & Lawyer-Brook, D. (1997), The Boulder Valley Internet Project: A Case Study. [Online.] Path: http://www.cudenver.edu/~lsherry/aera97.html