Since starting the Educationtech21 website, I’ve been asked by a number of people, “Why the name?” I think some have come to the site looking for ways to use technology in the classroom and been surprised by what may seem to be the emphasis on classroom instruction and student learning. So, this article will be a little different (and shorter!). I would like to explain the story behind the name and talk a little about what you will find on the site both now and in the future.

If you have not read, “About the Website…A Personal Story“, I invite you to do so by clicking the about selection in the main menu at the top of every page. There you will find my personal story and background in education. In this story I refer to an article that I wrote titled, “A Vision for Technological Classrooms for the 21st Century” and the ensuing discussions and conversations centering around it as the primary reason for creating this website. In this article I present a vision of what a completely flexible school might look like that integrates the proper use of technology with sound, research-based teaching methods in classrooms. This was also the model as I looked for a name for the site.

I was looking for a name that represented an integration of education and technology in a modern classroom but with the important distinction that the education part should come first. The overarching idea here is that technology can be used to support classroom instruction and even be a delivery vehicle for certain types of instruction but can never replace the teacher when it comes to  observation, assessment and intervention for individual students. The implementation of technology is mechanical but fitting it into a plan for student centered learning is not. No plan for implementing a technology-centered flexible classroom will be effective if research-based educational practices are not already in place. It is for this reason that much of the writing is centered around instruction. The use of technology in the referenced article is obvious. What is not so obvious is the planning that would go into making the lessons targeted, assessments accurate and the learning geared toward mastery. Educationtech21 was created to discuss those issues and the issues teachers face in following a student-centered learning plan while taking advantage of available technology. Keeping that in mind and with the goal of moving toward more flexible, technology-based classrooms, the name educationtech21 was chosen to represent education first, the use of technology second, and incorporating 21st century educational research into both. I hope you will read, comment, link and share as we seek to meet the needs of educators in the 21st century classroom. Thanks for being a part!