This is a great question leora.

 Many people think the main challenge for integrating technology in education in funding, and while it certainly is a valid concern especially in the developing countries, I think the main challenge is resistance, apprehension and fear of using technology from the teachers side. We all idolized a teacher at some point in our lives:) an image teachers always aspire to have and maintain. This unfortunately, at least in some of the cases I have seen, makes the teachers risk averse, avoiding to try something new and risking making mistakes in front of their students… a valid concern might I add.

This is why in many cases you need effective pedagogic itechnology integrations techniques. Some of the approaches we tend to use, in addiition to effective professional development, is involve highlighting the value of certain technologies from a pedagogic approach, and from time and effectiveness point of view,  furthermore, we tend to do a lot of inclassroom support technique to alleviate the fear of losing face in front of the students, I call it “Hand Holding”

The great thing about our teachers though, is that once they are on the band wagon of technology, they end up avid users and supersede all your expectations.

I have a question for Haif and Bill (and anyone else who
would like to weigh in): 

In the US, in addition to logistical issues like finding the
necessary funding and ensuring adequate electrical infrastructure, there have
been challenges in integrating technology that have to do with our approach to
education.  In some cases, for
instance, the demands of preparing students for high stakes testing have
limited the classroom time available for the kinds of rich technology-mediated learning
activities that can promote the development of 21st century skills.

In your work around the globe, have you witnessed technology
integration challenges that are particular to a country’s culture or education
structure?

We have seen that situation in the US, too- school systems
invested in technology but didn’t have a plan for helping students and
educators use it well.  Similarly,
corporations made extremely generous donations of technology to community
based learning programs that didn’t even have the staff to install the equipment.  Fortunately, I think there is now a
more widespread understanding that technology integration is about much more
than the technology itself, and the focus has largely shifted to questions of
how best to use technology to further multiple and sometimes conflicting
educational goals.

One of the issues I have come to experience is the wrong expectation from technology. Many countries, as i have experienced in the Arab world invest in technology, by placing it in schools, then are surprised when no change is achieved. I wonder how many countries, pay attention to the necessity of effective integration of this technology in education and assuring proper usage through teacher pedagogic development?

I don’t think the issue is with the plausibility of the terms “21st century learning”, “Education Reform” or personalized learning”, I think the issue is more about defining what are those set of skills we need to give the 21st century students and how we deliver them through proper education reform programmes. Next we need to prioritize with respect to each country’s needs and cultures. Once that is done, it will be inevitable to use technology, and not for the mere focus of using technology, but focusing on the infinite learning resources that can be made available for these students to supplement the standard text books, thus allowing students to personalize their learning experiences and environments.

Using technology in education should be beyond questioning, when we consider the need for multiple resources, the peer to peer learning experiences in a globalized economy.

I like Bill’s take on the phrase- “transformation” embodies
our hopes, but “evolution” is a more accurate characterization of the actual
process.  It also better reflects
the complexity of the process.  In
our 25-plus years of exploring the roles that technology can play in education,
my colleagues at CCT and I have heard any number of claims that technology was
about to single-handedly transform education.  Our work, and that of other researchers, has shown that
while technology can play important roles in the evolution of education- as enabler,
facilitator, catalyst, lever- many other elements need to be in play for real
change to occur.  Those elements
include educators at every level of the system who to share a vision of success
for all their students and appropriate and robust support for teachers and
leaders, to name just two.

While we have always characterized our efforts as “transformative”, evolutionary often seems to be the most accurate characterization. The prevailing educational culture and institutional inertia tend to blunt even the most exciting, ambitious and far reaching initiatives. That said any real attempt at reform or transform[ation] has a time limit, which seesm to be about four years maximum.

Popular education media often uses terms such as “education transformation” , “21st century skills” and “personalized learning”.   In your work in your system are these concepts and terms relevant, or seem too over-reaching and implausible, or perhaps even overwhelming?    How do you address these concepts in your planning?Assuming you see the need for improvement in your education system, or the segment you have the greatest influence on, how is education technology perceived towards that improvement:  a hindrance, necessary but difficult, or an essential component for success and why?Do you see traditional textbooks as the permanent and primary means of content delivery or do you anticipate new electronic means of creation, aggregation and dissemination become the norm at some point in the future?