NH State Tech Plan 2001

The mission of the New Hampshire Department of Education is to provide educational leadership and services which promote equal educational opportunities and quality practices, as well as programs that enable NH residents to become fully productive members of society.

B. Vision

Educational technology is one component of a larger system for improved student outcomes. Technology should be integrated into the curriculum in such a manner that it cannot be separated from the learning process. Utilizing current educational technology can ensure the academic achievement of every student and guide the development and implementation of improved classroom practices.

New Hampshire students will use educational technology to develop strategies for solving problems, enhance their access to information, collect data, analyze data, increase productivity, produce creative work, communicate ideas, improve learning, and develop workforce skills. Students will interact with information in a dynamic process rather than just as static sets of facts appearing on a printed page. Teachers will appropriately assess student progress through the use of educational technology, and school and district administrators will use technology in all aspects of school management. Commitments from government, university, district, community and private resources will be coordinated to ensure this vision is a reality for New Hampshire students.

Examples of NH school districts that have successfully met goals and objectives of this technology plan will be shared as a part of the dissemination of this plan. In particular links, will be provided on the electronic version of this plan to be posted on the New Hampshire Educators Online (NHEON) web portal available at www.nheon.org.

C. The NH Educational Technology Council

The Technology Council was formed for the purpose of creating a shared understanding and to contribute to the vision of effective technology integration within all segments of NH's educational system. The NH Technology Council serves as an advisory group to the NH OET for developing policy, pursuing funding opportunities, designing infrastructure, enlisting private sector support, and evaluating progress toward the vision of effective technology integration.

Maintaining representation of all stakeholder groups is essential to the process of articulating a NH vision of effective technology integration within the state's education system at all levels. Representatives for superintendents, principals, curriculum and technology coordinators, assistive technology consultants, teachers, state policy makers, representatives from business and industry, economic development organizations, key educational organizations and communities will help continue to guide this plan to make that vision a reality. The role of a Council member is to maintain ongoing communication with the stakeholders that member represents. In this way, the plan’s implementation can be a collaborative effort between educators in the field and the NH Department of Education.

Technology Council members will be identified by the Local Educational Support System Centers envisioned within this plan. (See section III below.) Specific stakeholders must be represented on advisory groups for each Local Center. A policy will be developed for rotating representation of the various stakeholder groups from each Local Center to be a representa