US/ND-1: Professional Development
Professional Development
Bob Dunn (bdunn@doe.state.vt.us)
Fri, 30 Aug 1996 14:37:24 -0500
As I think about the issues surrounding universal access to
telecommunications by libraries and schools, I find myself struggling to
visualize what the role of professional development might be as an integral
part of any plan. My conclusion is that high-quality training must be
included. It doesn't matter how much high-tech equipment is in schools if
people don't have the knowledge or vision necessary for making it an
important tool for teaching and learning. We have seen it before -- schools
buy high-tech equipment which ends up collecting dust in some corner or is
underutilized until it becomes obsolete. Teachers' plates are full and
unless we include high-quality training as well as time to experiment and
practice, I fear that this initiative might not reach its full potential.
Who should provide the professional development? I agree that there will be
some exciting opportunities to form partnerships with service providers and
business. These organizations can provide tips on the use of the equipment
and some contexts for using it as an effective learning tool. We also need
to identify groups of information technology using educators who will be
available to offer some vision for innovative use by students of all ages.
This could be made up of trainers in several regions so that local issues
will be considered.