The beginning of a new school year is a good time to stop and reflect on the experiences of the past and how they relate to the present and the future. And while there are many variables relating to our individual experiences, the one constant weaving its way throughout all of our professional careers is change.
Twenty years ago Alvin Toffler's Future Shock dealt with the subject of change and the increasing speed and momentum it would develop. As we have seen many of his predictions become reality, we have also come to understand that to adapt successfully to change, it's important to view it positively -- not as something to be resisted or feared - but as opportunities for innovation, self-motivation and empowerment.
These opportunities abound for each and every one of us as we begin another school year loaded with the changes and challenges presented by our students, our colleagues, our communities, the results of legislative action and our new Superintendent's vision of literacy for all students.
On a personal note, the career changes I undertake as the new Assistant Superintendent for the Office of Information and Telecommunication Services are challenging and exciting. My commitment as an educator has always been to impact students positively by demonstrating total involvement, intensity and loyalty to task. High expectations are established for all and acceptance of the responsibility to be advocates on behalf of all students is the norm.
It is imperative that OlTS leads, stimulates and supports educational transformation through the development and use of technologies in an educational system committed to continuous improvement. Proposed initiatives, to be shared in detail in the near future, will attempt to identify critical educational needs, connect pedagogical theory and practice to wider social issues, and encourage the sharing of ideas and expertise throughout the Department and the community at large. These initiatives will call for better and more effective use of new and emerging technologies to prepare students for a future of constant change.
If we fail to utilize the potential of technology, we will sentence our students to an intellectual wasteland in the 21st century. Technologically speaking, we have expended our energies in learning to walk and we have taken small steps. It is time that we take a giant step into our technological future.