Supporting tech leadership: these regional groups offer sound advice and training. (the online edge).When a K-12 administrator asked me to recommend technology leadership resources, first on my list were the Web sites of the Regional Technology in Education Consortia. Funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the "R-TECs" are located in 10 regions of the country and provide leadership assistance to help K-12 schools, libraries and other educational entities integrate technology successfully. As an R-TEC brochure puts it, "Technology implementation doesn't does·n't Contraction of does not. just happen." A RANGE OF TECHNOLOGY SERVICES While each R-TEC is charged with providing technology support tailored to the needs of educators and learners in the region it serves, they all offer four types of services: 1. Guidance in using new technologies to improve teaching and learning, with online tools, products and tested examples 2. Professional development in new technologies, such as training institutes and on-site on-site adj. Done or located at the site, as of a particular activity: on-site monitoring of a production run; an on-site film shoot. courses 3. Assistance in creating technology infrastructure, including technical assistance, and information on technology planning and funding sources 4. Information and ideas on effective technology policy, such as online technology forums that provide links between educators and policy makers. For example, HPR-TEC, the High Plains Regional Technology in Education Consortium--which serves Colorado Colorado, state, United States Colorado (kŏlərăd`ə, –răd`ō, –rä`dō), state, W central United States, one of the Rocky Mt. states. , Kansas Kansas, state, United States Kansas (kăn`zəs), midwestern state occupying the center of the coterminous United States. It is bordered by Missouri (E), Oklahoma (S), Colorado (W), and Nebraska (N). , Missouri Missouri, state, United States Missouri (mĭz  r`ē, –ə), one of the midwestern states of the United States. , Nebraska Nebraska (nəbrăs`kə), Great Plains state of the central United States. It is bordered by Iowa and Missouri, across the Missouri R. (E), Kansas (S), Colorado (SW), Wyoming (NW), and South Dakota (N). , North Dakota North Dakota, state in the N central United States. It is bordered by Minnesota, across the Red River of the North (E), South Dakota (S), Montana (W), and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (N). , South Dakota South Dakota (dəkō`tə), state in the N central United States. It is bordered by North Dakota (N), Minnesota and Iowa (E), Nebraska (S), and Wyoming and Montana (W). , and Wyoming--offers a variety of tools and resources that address the daily difficulties of working with technology in learning environments. These include TrackStar, which makes it easy for teachers to create and use interactive online presentations; www4teach ers, where teachers can share classroom struggles and triumphs; www.4kids.org, which provides safe, fun and educational sites for students; RubiStar to create rubrics for project-based learning Project-based learning, or PBL (often "PjBL" to avoid confusion with "Problem-based Learning"), is a constructivist pedagogy that intends to bring about deep learning by allowing learners to use an inquiry based approach to engage with issues and questions that are rich, real and activities; and the Profiler tool for administrators to assess and track technology expertise in their districts, states and regions. But schools anywhere can use HPR-TEC resources. For example, the school system in Rogers, Ark.--not among the HPR-TEC states--used Profiler, profiler.hprtec.org, to create technology surveys for each school to better plan staff development programs and help teachers improve their skills. BEST-KEPT SECRETS While some administrators may be familiar with specific resources that come from the R-TEC leadership goldmines, the reality is that most educators cannot identify their regional consortium and are unaware that there is a national network of R-TECs, www.rtec.org. Therefore, whether you are researching, implementing or evaluating new technologies in your curriculum, updating technology plans, designing staff development programs, preparing proposals for funding, or seeking advice on technical issues from experts, put the R-TECs first on your list, too. THE NATIONAL R-TEC NETWORK Become familiar with the wealth of online resources and services available through your regional consortium, and at all of the other R-TECs listed below: EAST * Northeast & the Islands Regional Technology in Education Consortium, www.neirtec.org * Mid-Atlantic Regional Technology in Education Consortium, www.temple.edu/martec * Appalachian Regional Technology in Education Consortium, www.the-atec.org * SouthEast Initiatives Regional Technology in Education Consortium, www.seirtec.org CENTRAL * High Plains Regional Technology in Education Consortium, www.hprtec.org * South Central Regional Technology in Education Consortium, www.southcentralrtec.org * North Central Regional Technology in Education Consortium, www.ncrtec.org WEST * Northwest Educational Technology Consortium, www.netc.org * Pacific Regional Technology in Education Consortium, www.prel.org/programs/rtec/rtec.asp * Regional Technology in Education Consortium for the Southwest, www.westedrtec.org Odvard Egil Dyrli, dyrli@uconn.edu, is senior editor and emeritus e·mer·i·tus adj. Retired but retaining an honorary title corresponding to that held immediately before retirement: a professor emeritus. n. pl. professor of education at the University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut is the State of Connecticut's land-grant university. It was founded in 1881 and serves more than 27,000 students on its six campuses, including more than 9,000 graduate students in multiple programs. UConn's main campus is in Storrs, Connecticut. . |
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