Professional Development
Changes Classrooms
AS I SEE “IT”
When the Enhancing Education through Technology (EETT) program came out as part of No Child Left Behind
in March 2002, I was stunned to find out the
regulations stated that 25% of the funds had to
be used for professional development. I thought,
“How in the world will I use 25% of these funds
on professional development, when what we really need is more computers?”
As the 21st century progresses, we begin to see
a major paradigm shift in instructional methods to reflect the challenges present in today’s
society. For a student to be competitive in a
global market, we can no longer rely simply on
traditional educational strategies. To meet these
demands, our classrooms must supplement and/
or replace traditional methods of instruction
with innovative educational experiences, and
our schools must implement technology in the
learning environment. We must use technology
as a tool to enhance a child’s educational experience by creating a variety of methods to meet
special needs, teach children how to manage information, and allow opportunities for students
to develop higher-level thinking skills.
Moore’s Law, the idea that processing power
doubles every 18 months, was first observed in
the 1960s and still applies today. Technology is
changing fast. Students are adapting, but systemic
changes in instruction still lag behind. Technology integration brings changes to teachers’ instructional roles in the classroom. The teacher’s
role in a technology-infused classroom must shift
from “sage on the stage” to “guide on the side.”
The issue is that teachers still struggle with implementing technology effectively while meeting
all of the demands placed on them to teach the
By Davis H. Brock
Davis H. Brock serves
as director of technology
for the Elmore County
Public School District in
Wetumpka, Alabama,
and serves as ISTE’s
Affiliate Membership
Committee chair. He
also teaches graduate
classes in educational
technology at Alabama
State University.
curriculum and ensure students are meeting the
required standards on high-stakes tests.
This is where I believe that leadership must
seek change and be willing to accept that we
cannot continue to do things the way they’ve always been done. Leaders in our schools must be
visionary and think outside the box to develop
ways that we can engage children in our classrooms differently. Sure, we still have mandates,
and we are still judged on how our students perform on those high-stakes test, but we can do it
differently!
Professional development for teachers and
administrators must change. No more “sit and
get” sessions; everything must be hands-on and
modeled for teachers so they can understand
the implications and what must take place to
systemically change instruction. Leaders must be
actively engaged in understanding new learning
environments and how students learn, and they
must receive high-quality professional development that helps them engage in new conversations about what takes place in the classroom
and how brain research shows that our students
learn differently than we do.
Professional development, when presented
systemically and over time, can help teachers and administrators create a new vision for
today’s classrooms, and that will help engage
students in ways that are more meaningful.
Therefore, we do need money for professional
development—more than the 25% that we get
through our EETT funds. And we need to create
high-quality professional development that engages teachers and administrators to prepare our
students for the new century in which we live,
work, and play.
