30. May 2008 by The Advisor.

Most schools were somewhat late to jump on the technology bandwagon. Most corporations, with their constant focus on cost-savings, implemented digital records systems, computers for all employees, email, etc. early on to try to reduce costs with technology. Other sectors such as health-care and government, while later than the private sector, have embraced technology heavily as well. Now the push is on in schools to digitize everything.

With any big change, there can be a tendency, however, for the pendulum to swing from one extreme to the other. So it’s worthwhile to ask the question, is today’s focus in schools on technology the right amount or too much? In other words, are ed tech products and services being purchased from a cost/benefit framework, or as part of a frenzy to “catch up?”

Moreover, this question can be asked on both a macro and micro level. How much of a districts budget should be devoted to technology vs. other needs (macro)? Is a given system under consideration by a school the right amount of technology to accomplish the objectives of the project, or is it layered with lots of extra features that raise the price but will go unused (micro)?

There are no easy answers to any of these questions. However, when school budgets and the education of children are at stake, its imperative to seek answers to the tough questions.

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28. May 2008 by The Advisor.

A constant theme in educational technology is the high cost of equipment, bandwidth and digital resources. Schools know they need to invest more in technology, automation systems, and digital content, but funding for infrastructure, hardware, and digital content is often hard to come by.

 But what if funding wasn’t an issue?

 Microsoft announced this week that it will make Office 2007 compatible with the Open Document Format (ODF). ODF is the document format that open source document software programs use for word processing files, spreadsheets and the like. So now, a school can use free software to create documents and still be able to share them with people using Office.

 What this does is eliminate another barrier to universal adoption of digital tools in schools. Office too expensive for your budget? Download free open-source document software and get access to similar tools for free. Is a vendor’s learning management system too expensive for your school to afford? Download and install Moodle and have a world-class LMS for free.

Moodle, in fact, is a good case in point. The America’s Digital Schools study found that LMS systems are gaining in popularity with schools nationwide. In terms of market share, Plato Learning was in the lead with almost 34% market share. The number two system, however, was Moodle with 32%. Despite the millions Plato has spent on advertising, marketing, and sales, they are only beating a free system with no marketing or sales staff by 2%.

Schools are often too quick to turn to vendors with high-priced solutions that then require extensive grant writing, budget wrangling, and sometime tax-levy increases to purchase. With a little creative analysis of the available alternatives, many more schools could fully equip themselves with first class digital tools.

 Google Docs anyone?

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