By John Bailey
March 16, 2013
There is an emerging gap between the technology infrastructure in schools and what is needed to support next generation models of learning and also meet the requirements of the upcoming PARCC/SBAC tests. A recent survey revealed that more than 58% of Missouri school districts do not have the technology needed to administer the new assessments.
There is a growing interest among Federal lawmakers in helping schools modernize their infrastructure to take advantage of new technology-enabled models of learning and assessments.
The President’s State of the Union address included a specific reference to modernizing schools in Partnership to Rebuild America paragraph:
Tonight, I propose a “Fix-It-First” program to put people to work as soon as possible on our most urgent repairs, like the nearly 70,000 structurally deficient bridges across the country. And to make sure taxpayers don’t shoulder the whole burden, I’m also proposing a Partnership to Rebuild America that attracts private capital to upgrade what our businesses need most: modern ports to move our goods; modern pipelines to withstand a storm; modern schools worthy of our children. Let’s prove that there is no better place to do business than the United States of America. And let’s start right away. [emphasis added]
But oddly, the White House fact sheet didn’t include the reference to schools and Administration officials suggested that schools were not part of the proposal. Normally, the broad proposals outlined in a State of the Union are followed by more details when the Administration releases their budget plan and agencies provide more detailed fact sheets. However, this year the Administration missed their statutory responsibility for presenting a budget by February 4 and will instead submit one as late as April 8.
Meanwhile, the House and Senate have moved ahead and introduced budget plans this week. The Bipartisan Policy Center has excellent summaries of the House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan Plan and the Senate Budget Committee Chairman Patty Murray Plan. The Senate proposal is important because it is the first time in more than four years that the Senate has offered a budget plan. Second, it also includes a provision for school modernization that seems closely aligned with the President’s language in the State of the Union:
$20 billion to jump‐start repairs and technology infrastructure investments in schools across America that are crumbling or lack critical educational tools like broadband access that are required in the 21st century economy. This will help engineers and construction workers get back on the job, and it is investment in our students that will pay off down the line.
There is also discussion around how the E-rate can be modernized to better support the digital learning needs of today’s schools and students. Last week, all five FCC Commissioners testified before the Senate Commerce Committee and agreed to work with Congress to restructure the program. Senator Rockefeller has suggested that he would like to see the E-rate’s cap raised which could provide an additional $5 billion to $9 billion over the next decade. However, Commissioner McDowell said that the FCC must first tackle the contribution system which is funded by fees imposed on telecommunications providers. Those fees have more than doubled to approximately 15 percent of bills, up from 7 percent in 2001.
Increasing the availability of funds is important but only if coupled with efforts to reform the program itself. The LEAD Commission has drawn attention to this. In my testimony before the House Education and Workforce Committee last month, I talked about the importance of modernizing the E-rate to ensure it is aligned with the education priorities of today.
The program is also in desperate need of reforms that make it easier for schools to participate. The GAO found that of the “approximately $33 billion in funding that was requested between 1998 and 2007 but that did not result in a funding commitment, about 23 percent was denied because applicants did not correctly carry out application procedures.” There are opportunities to make the application process more streamlined and also update the eligible services list to better prioritize the infrastructure schools need.
As these federal proposal continue to unfold, state and school leaders can launch their own modernization efforts using ideas from our Smart Series including strategies for funding devices and also getting ready for online assessments.