Published: March 27, 2008 11:19 pm         

W.Va. among nation’s best for school technology

West Virginia’s school technology policies and implementation strategies are among the best in the nation, according to a report titled, “Technology Counts 2008: STEM, The Push to Improve Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.”

The state received an overall score of 95.3 on the report, which ranks West Virginia at the top of the class for its use of technology.

Technology Counts 2008 examined the K-12 community’s response to the United States’ perceived failings in preparing young people to thrive in a high-tech global economy. Grading was based on core areas of state policy and practice such as access to, and use of, instructional technology in the classroom.

West Virginia received an “A” for access to technology. That category included the number of students in a classroom with a computer and the number of students per high-speed Internet connection.

Educators in southern West Virginia confirmed that local schools are doing well in that category.

“Our county is right there with an “A” also,” said Mary Ann Foster, technology coordinator for the Raleigh County school system. “Every classroom in our county has an Internet connection, and every classroom has a computer — and some have more than that.”

“Every student in Wyoming County has access every day to some form of computer-aided learning,” said Danny Lusk, technology coordinator for the Wyoming County school system.

Lusk also indicated teachers are increasingly likely to use the Internet in their instruction.

“The majority of our teachers look to the Internet first when they need to do research,” he said. “When the Internet is down for whatever reason, that is the first call I get.”

The state also received an “A-” for the use of technology. That category rated student use of virtual school courses and computer-based assessments.

Like other schools in southern West Virginia, Nicholas County High School has offered online courses in such subjects as Spanish, German and even computer programming, said Buell Moses, technology specialist with the Nicholas County school system.

Raleigh County has started computer-based assessments, Foster said, such as an online writing assessment incorporated into the curriculum of several grades.

“It’s the first time the test has been online,” she said.

But several educators expressed concern that area schools need to make progress in at least one key area. With the growing teacher shortage, virtual learning and distance learning are likely to play a greater role in schools.

However, remote areas do not have the bandwidth infrastructure to support those technologies, several educators said.

“While this report reinforces that we are on the right track, I am cautiously optimistic about our ranking in Technology Counts 2008,” state schools Superintendent Steve Paine said. “At a time when less fortunate nations are investing in their educational systems, it is more important than ever that West Virginia makes educational technology a top priority.”