July 2004 — SETDA
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Texas: Meeting the Technology Integration Challenge in Texas Schools
Deep in the heart of Texas classrooms, students use digital technology to access, analyze and evaluate information; solve problems; and communicate with diverse audiences. Technology is making it possible for learning to occur in new and exciting ways. It is also becoming a common denominator - an equalizer - for giving students with diverse backgrounds and experiences opportunities to extend and promote learning.
At Hillsboro Independent School District (ISD) in rural central Texas, there are a variety of technology programs for teachers, students and parents. The teacher laptop program has incentives for both teachers and administrators and the summer camp training model was the key to the program's successful implementation. Class time is more effective as students use wireless laptops for research and curriculum projects. Parents and the community have opportunities to see firsthand the students' projects and the unique instructional methods on scheduled "Technology Nights." In suburban Houston, at Klein ISD, first-graders use laptops and productivity software to research and then illustrate the differences between spiders and insects. For students in these districts, use of the laptops is as much a part of their normal daily life as using the alphabet.
These examples are not isolated instances in Texas. Instead, they are the result of two coordinated approaches: focused grant programs and existing state law. Like many other states, Texas uses grant programs to perpetuate and propagate best practices. However, unlike most states, Texas has state laws that have been leveraged to integrate technology.
Technology Literacy
No matter where you go across Texas, there are high expectations about what students should know and be able to do using digital technology. This is due to the state's required technology applications curriculum. Technology literacy standards are specified through the Technology Applications (TA) Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).
These standards are to be integrated throughout the curriculum in grades K-8 and expanded through specialized, focused courses in grades 9-12. The TA TEKS give a vertical alignment between what is expected for K-8 students with learning benchmarks at grades 2, 5 and 8. They are not to be taught in isolation; rather, they are an integral part of every classroom's use of technology. In the standards for the core content areas in Texas - math, science, social studies and language arts - there are references to the use of technology. The importance of students meeting the technology literacy benchmarks for acquiring and integrating the TA TEKS across the curriculum is paramount in leading to success in meeting the curriculum needs of Texas students and meeting the requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB).
Technology literacy has been important in Texas for many years. It began in Texas classrooms over two decades ago when computer literacy was required by the Texas Legislature. All students were required to take computer literacy in grade seven or eight, and computer science was offered in high school. Since then, there have been many changes in technology and the use of technology in classrooms across the state. No longer is computer literacy sufficient nor is just learning about technology the focus.
