9454741 Beldham Project Goal Any successful effort to restructure education using technology will require substantial user involvement in the planning and decision-making stages of that effort. The Regional Technology Planning Project will bring together representatives of those interested in improving K-12 education in our region into a formal consortium that will develop a plan of action for creating a flexible regional networking infrastructure and for using that infrastructure to enhance teacher professionalization, student achievement and school restructuring in the K-12 education community. Project Objectives 1. To create a formal regional consortium out of the Technology Steering Committee. 2. To conduct an assessment of what is currently available in terms of networking/distance learning hardware and software in the 10 intermediate units in western Pennsylvania. 3. To conduct an assessment of the attitudes of teachers, administrators, parents and students toward technology and its role in educational innovation and reform. 4. To evaluate other regional technology initiatives in terms of how we can apply their experiences to a plan of our own. 5. To write a formal plan for implementing a flexible regional networking infrastructure including recommendations on equipment, personnel, teacher training, cooperative projects among consortium members, projects for diverse student populations, connecting to statewide, national and international networks, administration, and funding.
