INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
ICT FLUENCY AND HIGH SCHOOLS
A WORKSHOP SUMMARY
Steven Marcus, Rapporteur
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This study was supported by Grant No. ESI-0102582 between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Science Foundation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
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Suggested citation: National Research Council. (2006). ICT Fluency and High Schools: A Workshop Summary. S. Marcus, Rapporteur. Planning Committee on ICT Fluency and High School Graduation Outcomes. Board on Science Education, Center for Education. Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
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PLANNING COMMITTEE ON ICT FLUENCY AND HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION OUTCOMES
MARGARET HONEY (Chair),
Center for Children and Technology, Education Development Center, Inc., New York
MICHAEL EISENBERG,
Information School, University of Washington, Seattle
DANIEL GOHL, Principal,
McKinley Technical High School, Washington, DC
MARCIA LINN,
Education in Mathematics, Science, and Technology Graduate School of Education, University of California, Berkeley
JOYCE MALYN-SMITH,
Education, Employment, and Community, Education Development Center, Inc., Newton, MA
LAWRENCE SNYDER,
Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle
PHILIP SUMIDA, Science Instructor,
Maine Township High School West, Des Plaines, IL
JEAN MOON, Director,
HEIDI A. SCHWEINGRUBER, Senior Program Officer
OLUKEMI YAI, Senior Program Assistant
BOARD ON SCIENCE EDUCATION
CARL E. WIEMAN (Chair),
Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder
ALICE M. AGOGINO,
Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley
PHILIP BELL,
Cognitive Studies in Education, University of Washington, Seattle
JOHN BRANSFORD,
Department of Curriculum and Instruction, University of Washington, Seattle
DAVID T. CONLEY,
Department of Educational Policy and Leadership, University of Oregon, Eugene
OKHEE LEE,
Department of Teaching and Learning, University of Miami, Coral Gables
SHARON R. LONG,
Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University
BRETT D. MOUDLING,
Utah Office of Education, Salt Lake City
MARY “MARGO” MURPHY,
Georges Valley High School, Thomaston, ME
CARLO PARRAVANO,
Merck Institute for Science Education, Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ
HELEN R. QUINN,
Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Stanford University
SUSAN R. SINGER,
Department of Biology, Carleton College, Northfield, MN
JAMES P. SPILLANE,
Department of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL
WILLIAM B. WOOD,
Department of Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder
JEAN MOON, Director
HEIDI A. SCHWEINGRUBER, Senior Program Officer
ANDREW W. SHOUSE, Program Officer
OLUKEMI O. YAI, Senior Program Assistant
VICTORIA N. WARD, Program Assistant
Acknowledgments
The National Research Council (NRC), through the Center for Education and its Board on Science Education in consultation with the NRC’s Computer Science and Technology Board, was asked by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to hold a workshop to explore which components of fluency with information and communications technology can best be developed during the high school years. This report is the outgrowth of that workshop, held in Washington, DC, on October 23–24, 2005. The workshop would not have become a reality without the generous support of the NSF’s Advanced Technological Education Program and the encouragement and thoughtful guidance provided by Gerhard Salinger and Michael Haney, program directors in NSF’s Elementary, Secondary, and Informal Education Division.
As workshop chair, I wish to extend my thanks to my colleagues who served on the planning committee, each of whom brought deep and varied experiences to the process of planning the workshop. It was a talented and thoughtful group who gave generously of their knowledge and time. I also wish to thank Herb Lin, director of the Computer Science and Technology Board, for his ongoing consultation.
I wish to thank the following individuals who presented at the workshop: Thomas N. Applegate, executive dean, Austin Community College; John Behrens, senior manager, Assessment Development and Innovation, Cisco Systems Inc.; Karen Bruett, director, Education & Community Initiatives, Dell, Inc.; Chris Dede, Timothy E. Wirth professor of learning
technologies, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Julia Fallon, program developer for technical education, Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction, WA; Wendy Hawkins, executive director, Intel Foundation; Martin Ripley, head of e-strategy, Qualifications Curriculum Authority, U.K.; Robert Tinker, President, Concord Consortium; and Vera Michalchik, research social scientist, SRI.
Special thanks go to the authors of four papers that helped hone our thinking prior and during the workshop: Philip Bell, associate professor, University of Washington, and liaison from the Board on Science Education; Paul Horwitz, senior scientist, Concord Consortium; Karen Pittman, president, Forum for Youth Investment; and Paul Resta, director, Learning Technology Center, University of Texas.
I would like to thank the staff of the Board on Science Education. The intelligent oversight of director Jean Moon guided our deliberations and helped us to chart an effective course. The entire committee process was aided enormously by the skilled and highly competent work of Heidi Schweingruber, senior program officer. Kemi Yai, senior program assistant for the Board on Science Education, deserves special thanks for attending to the many and varied logistics and technologies the workshop involved.
Finally, I would like to thank Steven Marcus who wrote this report and did a wonderful job capturing the many ideas—large and small—in the workshops.
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the NRC’s RRC. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We thank the following individuals for their review of this report: Michael Eisenberg, Information School, University of Washington; Steve Robinson, Albert Einstein Fellow, Office of Senator Barack Obama, Washington, DC; and Nancy Butler Songer, Science Education and Learning Technologies, School of Education, University of Michigan.
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the content of the report nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. Tom Keller, Secondary Instruction, Medomak Valley High School, Waldoboro,
ME, oversaw the review of this report. Appointed by the NRC, he was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the author and the institution.
Margaret Honey, Chair
Planning Committee on ICT Fluency and High School Graduation Outcomes