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Teachers Driving Web 2.0 Use in Schools
Says National Research Survey
Lightspeed Systems and Thinkronize, creators of netTrekker, partner on 'Safe Schools in a
Web 2.0 World' initiative to examine use of Internet technologies in U.S. school districts
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. and CINCINNATI – April 6, 2009 – While
many stakeholders are involved in developing policies on the use of Web
2.0 technologies in K-12 education, new research suggests that teachers
are the most important group driving adoption. This is a major finding
from a national research survey of more than 500 district technology
directors. The survey was commissioned by Lightspeed
Systems Inc., a leader in network security and management software
for schools, and Thinkronize Inc., creators of netTrekker,
America’s number one educational search tool, with support from
Atomic Learning.
There is a persistent gap between how today’s “digital” kids
learn in school and how they work and interact outside of school,
a trend that underscores the critical need for districts to keep
pace with technological advances and adapt to students’ learning
needs. Education leaders are challenged with maintaining a high
level of security and safety while allowing for creative and
collaborative work in a 21st century classroom. To meet this
challenge, Lightspeed Systems and netTrekker developed Safe
Schools in a Web 2.0 World, an ongoing initiative to help
schools implement Web 2.0 technologies safely and effectively
to improve teaching and learning.
In the first part of the initiative, Interactive Educational
Systems Design Inc. (IESD), an independent educational research
firm, conducted the “National Online Survey of District
Technology Directors Exploring District Use of Web 2.0 Technologies” in
February and March 2009 to examine the current status, future
plans, and ongoing challenges of Web 2.0 in K-12 education. The
research survey broke down Web 2.0 into seven categories related
to student instruction and learning environments, rather than
treating it with a broad brush.
Teachers were most often identified as a key group leading the
adoption of a wide variety of Web 2.0 technologies. Specifically,
teachers were most frequently cited for driving the adoption
of digital multimedia resources (78 percent), online learning
games and simulations (65 percent) and teacher-generated online
content (60 percent). They were also among the top three groups
for student-generated online content (45 percent) and student
use of virtual learning environments (42 percent). Another key
group identified was students, who were most frequently cited
as driving the adoption of social networking and student-generated
online content.
“The research indicates that the movement toward Web 2.0
use to engage students and address individual learning needs
is largely being driven in districts from the bottom up – starting
with teachers and students,” said Dr. Jay Sivin-Kachala,
vice president and lead researcher for IESD. “Furthermore,
the results show that many districts are using or planning to
use Web 2.0 tools in teacher professional development, which
suggests that teachers will become increasingly comfortable with
these technologies and better able to teach students how to use
them safely and productively.”
Overall, the research confirms school districts are using or
planning to use several types of Web 2.0 technologies, but reveals
there is still resistance to using online social networking for
instructional purposes. In 83 percent of districts, very few
or no teachers use online social networking for instruction,
and 40 percent of districts currently have policies that don’t
allow use of this technology. However, some trailblazing districts
have plans for adopting or promoting use of this technology.
Other key results of the survey include:
- The three most frequently cited reasons for adopting Web
2.0 technologies are: addressing students’ individual
learning needs, engaging student interest, and increasing students’ options
for access to teaching and learning.
- Online communications with parents and students (e.g., teacher
blogs) and digital multimedia resources are the Internet technologies
most widely used by teachers, and a majority of districts have
plans for adopting these technologies or promoting their use.
- Teacher-generated online content (e.g., multimedia lessons,
wiki-based resources) is likely to be the next area of growth
in the use of Web 2.0 technologies. Almost half of districts
have plans for adopting or promoting the creation and sharing
of this content through Web 2.0 tools.
“Educators today face an overwhelming challenge, but have
an unprecedented and consequential opportunity. They are charged
with providing a collaborative, global education environment
for students – one that emphasizes 21st century skills
and integrates the many facets of Web 2.0,” said Randy
Wilhelm, CEO of Thinkronize. “We felt it was important
to design a survey that dug deep into the challenges and innovations
of Web 2.0 in education, and we’re encouraged by the depth
and breadth of the responses. We look forward to continuing to
explore solutions to the adoption barriers that are limiting
the benefits our digitally native kids derive from these new
technologies.”
Over the next several months, the companies will conduct online
focus groups, prepare a white paper summarizing and interpreting
the research, and develop resources based on the insights learned
to help guide districts in harnessing the educational power of
the collaborative Web. The companies are exploring reaching out
to curriculum directors and other educators next year to get
their perspective on Web 2.0 use.
“We are committed to helping teachers use Web 2.0 technologies
such as online videos and social networking sites with educationally
rich content in the classroom,” said Scott Garrison, president
of Lightspeed Systems. “The finding that teachers are key
drivers confirms what we are hearing from our school district
IT customers. Our mission is to provide a safe online learning
environment for students throughout the world without over-blocking
valuable learning tools.”
This national survey of district technology directors has a
margin of error of 5.0 percent or less per question. To access
the executive summary and research report, visit http://www.lightspeedsystems.com/ResearchSurvey or http://new.nettrekker.com/surveyreport.
About Lightspeed Systems
Lightspeed Systems Inc., founded in 2000, develops comprehensive
network security and management solutions for the K-12 education
market. Lightspeed is committed to helping schools operate
their networks effectively and efficiently, so educators can
provide a safe online teaching and learning environment. The
company’s flagship product integrates content filtering,
spam management, bandwidth management, antivirus protection,
extensive reporting capabilities, email archiving, and mobile
filtering into a single application. Lightspeed Systems software
is used in more than 1,500 school districts in the United States,
United Kingdom and Australia to protect more than 5 million
students. For the past two years, Lightspeed Systems has been
recognized on the Inc. 5,000 list as one of fastest-growing
private companies. For more information, call 661-716-7600,
or visit www.lightspeedsystems.com.
About Thinkronize
Founded in 1999, Thinkronize
is a leader in the digital delivery of K-12 educational content
and is dedicated to enhancing the education of today’s youth with highly effective technologies that
deliver the rich educational value of the Internet to every child
in a safe, relevant, easy-to-use format. With the mission to help
every child learn and a belief that technology can transform education,
Thinkronize was first to market with a standards-based educational
search engine, utilizing the services of Academic Benchmarks (www.AcademicBenchmarks.com),
the premier provider of comprehensive standards-based K-12 educational
databases, alignment tools, and integration products. Thinkronize’s
flagship product, netTrekker, is the #1 educational search
tool in K-12 schools and is currently used in over 21,000 schools
nationwide. Peers, educators, and parents have honored Thinkronize
and netTrekker over 25 times for its contribution to education.
In addition, Thinkronize was named to the 2007 Inc. 5000
and 2006 Inc. 500 lists as one of the fastest-growing
private companies in the United States. The company was founded
by Robert Reinders and currently serves over 12 million students
in all 50 states, including adoptions by key districts and states
nationwide. For more information, visit www.Thinkronize.com or
phone 877-517-1125.
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