March 2004 — Editorial
Print this article | Email this articleClick here to receive your FREE subscription to T.H.E. Journal
Examining the Wireless Classroom
Chris Dede of Harvard University has noted that the two most common errors of technology assessment are to overestimate the speed of diffusion of an innovation and to underestimate its eventual consequences. With wireless, I am not sure that we have overestimated the speed of its diffusion in education. It has sped into schools more rapidly than I - a less than patient person - had hoped. We will closely watch the consequences of this technology.Continued Strength of Ed Tech
On another note, it has been my pleasure to attend the Florida Educational Technology Conference (FETC) and the TCEA Conference over the past month or so. At both conferences, I felt a high level of excitement among the attendees. FETC has long been a leader in the country, and this year was no exception with attendance the highest it's been in the last three years. The sessions generating the greatest interest were those related to the Internet and handheld devices. While the TCEA Conference was not quite able to match the record-setting number of registrants from last year, overall attendance, including a robotics contest and exhibitors, was up from 2003. As an organization, TCEA has a tradition of contests and awards for teachers and students. In the last few years, its robotics competition for students has grown significantly to 90 teams. These two conferences show that school districts and educators understand the importance of professional development and collegiality that a powerful conference can bring. They are also a testimony to the continued strength of the educational technology market. If you were unable to attend either conference, log on to our Web site (www.thejournal.com) to view images from FETC and the TCEA Conference.
Finally, I am disappointed to report that John Bailey, former director of the U.S. Education Department's Office of Educational Technology, has decided to leave the department to join the Bush campaign as deputy policy director. His leadership, enthusiasm and willingness to listen will be sorely missed in the department. He has set in motion a number of initiatives that will influence technology and education for some time to come, including an ambitious research agenda that we will feature as a part of our series on Scientifically Based Research. With his words; actions; and, in some cases, dollars, Bailey has also been a strong supporter of important educational technology organizations such as ISTE, CoSN and SETDA. Bailey continued a strong leadership tradition begun by Linda Roberts in the Clinton administration. Susan Patrick is assuming John's responsibilities as acting director. We anticipate the same powerful leadership from Patrick and wish her well.
Cite this Site
copy text (above) for proper citation
