2.3 Towards the virtual k-12 educational organization: an emerging  (Page 10/11)

Recommendations

Changes to the current educational system will require the adults who govern and control the system to recast it as a functional, resilient, and flexible form of learning that is up-to-the-challenge of educating every child to a level of quality that is unprecedented in human history. Pink (2005) described the twenty-first century as the rise of the conceptual age in order to create new knowledge to accelerate economic growth and quality of life. As meaningful as learning should be for students, it needs to be as meaningful for the adults involved in the great transition of knowledge transmission during the twenty-first century.

It is apparent that the influence of technology on the educational structure is a factor that cannot be ignored. It can be embraced as federal, state, and local education agencies have started to take notice of the value of technology in education. Lawless&Pellegrino (2007) noted current initiatives for educational organizations, which included items such as “improving the capacity of schools to use technology” and “minimizing inequitable access to technology” (p. 576).

This glimpse into a singular school district’s embrace of technology and learning software shows a progression to a state that other districts may desire to emulate. Although beginning with a lagging adoption on the part of teachers and administrators, this school district had a consistent history of technology use. This will raise serious questions for other educational leaders that now see the influence and evolution of technology within educational settings. What might districts without this solid history consider while seeking progress toward a more virtual structure? Are the hurdles too high for districts that have not had the capacity, or intent, to implement new technologies?

As the structure of the educational organization is shifting, this is an opportunity for the educational leaders to consider significant questions.

• What exactly is the role of leaders in modeling and promoting the effective use of technology?
• How can technology change the relationship between a student and learning?
• How can technology assist teachers in the active engagement of students?
• What steps can a district take to develop the technical skill of leaders within the organization? What kind of training would be promoted?
• How can technology help realize programmatic goals and performance assessment?

What kind of systematic evaluation plan can be implemented? Having a foundation on which to build this emerging virtual structure may assist lagging school leaders tasked with understanding and developing a plan to implement technology use.

Summary

The emerging K-12 educational organization has a virtual structure that includes (1) connectivity to the Internet that expands the idea/definition of classroom. Teaching and learning will be virtual with connectivity to the primary learning organization (which may/may not be the traditional school district), (2) dynamic software to engage, enhance, and guide the student learning experience, (3) integration of software with an individual teacher’s own approach and understanding of pedagogy and student learning, and (4) an emerging culture that blends virtual learning with the more traditional face-to-face (lecture/discussion) instructional approach.