Texas Long Range Plan - Teaching and Learning

The Teaching and Learning area of the Texas Long Range Plan, Long-Range Plan for Technology, 2006-2020 (Adopted by the State Board of Education November 2006), retrieved from Texas Education Agency website, March 5, 2011, http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=5082&menu_id=2147483665, is the area that addresses the use of integration of technology into the day-to-day business of instruction. Ideally full integration would provide all students across Texas with equitable access to technology resources. When we consider that we are currently preparing our students for jobs that don’t yet exists with technologies that we can only dream of, this equitable access is critical for 21st century learners. The Teaching and Learning component of Texas Long Range Plan clearly outlines what each of the major state and local agencies must do in order for school districts to ensure that students are engaged in daily instruction that integrates technology in meaningful ways. If all of the recommendations outlined by the TLRP were followed, there would no doubt be students all over Texas engaged in high-interest and relevant learning. Educators in Texas could proudly say that we are preparing our students to be active, successful contributors in the 21st century. The weakness of this component is that theres does not appear to be any absolute standards that the major players have to meet, the well-considered recommendations could easily be overlooked by many local school agencies and training center and the very goal that the component means to reach – equitable access – could actually results in less equity depending on the decision of each of the local entities. Improvement would be seen if the state mandated compliance from all stakeholders.