Dive Brief:
- The Every Student Succeeds Act, which was signed into law by President Obama this week, includes state block-grants intended for improving technology in schools.
-
"Aside from the E-rate (program) … schools haven't had a dedicated source of federal funding for technology since the Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT) program was last funded in 2010," eSchoolNews reports.
-
Yet because the funding is a block, that means ed tech supporters will have to advocate in their districts to make sure the money is divvied up in a way that supports e-learning, along with various priorities which draw from the same funding source.
Dive Insight:
The inclusion of education technology in ESSA, no matter how vaguely referenced, is important, especially since the Innovative Technology Expands Childrens' Horizons amendment was scrapped.
"Securing the ed tech provisions in the updated legislation is a monumental win," said Brian Lewis, CEO of the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), in a press release. The Policy@Intel blog noted, "This flexible formula block grant will give districts the authority to choose technology based education for their classrooms as well as address the issues of inadequate home connectivity for low-income and rural students."
It's too soon to tell, however, how effectively districts and states use the flexible block funding to advance blended learning and tech in the classroom.