 
 CHAPTER 70--STRENGTHENING AND IMPROVEMENT OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY 
                                 SCHOOLS
 
                SUBCHAPTER III--TECHNOLOGY FOR EDUCATION
 
            Part A--Technology for Education of All Students
 
Sec. 6811. Findings

    The Congress finds that--
        (1) technology can produce far greater opportunities for all 
    students to learn to high standards, promote efficiency and 
    effectiveness in education, and help propel our Nation's school 
    systems into very immediate and dramatic reform, without which our 
    Nation will not meet the National Education Goals by the target year 
    2000;
        (2) the use of technology as a tool in the teaching and learning 
    process is essential to the development and maintenance of a 
    technologically literate citizenry and an internationally 
    competitive workforce;
        (3) the acquisition and use of technology in education 
    throughout the United States has been inhibited by--
            (A) the absence of Federal leadership;
            (B) the inability of many State and local educational 
        agencies to invest in and support needed technologies;
            (C) the limited exposure of students and teachers to the 
        power of technology as a cost-effective tool to improve student 
        learning and achievement;
            (D) the lack of appropriate electrical and telephone 
        connections in the classroom; and
            (E) the limited availability of appropriate technology-
        enhanced curriculum, instruction, professional development, and 
        administrative support resources and services in the educational 
        marketplace;

        (4) policies at the Federal, State, and local levels concerning 
    technology in education must address disparities in the availability 
    of technology to different groups of students, give priority to 
    serving students in greatest need, and recognize that educational 
    telecommunications and technology can address educational 
    equalization concerns and school restructuring needs by providing 
    universal access to high-quality teaching and programs, particularly 
    in urban and rural areas;
        (5) the increasing use of new technologies and 
    telecommunications systems in business has increased the gap between 
    schooling and work force preparation, and underscores the need for 
    technology policies at the Federal, State, tribal, and local levels 
    that address preparation for school-to-work transitions;
        (6) technology can enhance the ongoing professional development 
    of teachers and administrators by providing constant access to 
    updated research in teaching and learning by means of 
    telecommunications, and, through exposure to technology 
    advancements, keep teachers and administrators excited and 
    knowledgeable about unfolding opportunities for the classroom;
        (7) planned and creative uses of technology, combined with 
    teachers adequately trained in the use of technology, can reshape 
    our Nation's traditional method of providing education and empower 
    teachers to create an environment in which students are challenged 
    through rigorous, rich classroom instruction provided at a pace 
    suited to each student's learning style, and in which students have 
    increased opportunities to develop higher order thinking and 
    technical skills;
        (8) schools need new ways of financing the acquisition and 
    maintenance of educational technology;
        (9) the needs for educational technology differ from State to 
    State;
        (10) technology can provide students, parents, teachers, other 
    education professionals, communities, and industry with increased 
    opportunities for partnerships and with increased access to 
    information, instruction, and educational services in schools and 
    other settings, including homes, libraries, preschool and child-care 
    facilities, adult and family education programs, and postsecondary 
    institutions;
        (11) the Department, consistent with the overall national 
    technology policy established by the President, must assume a vital 
    leadership and coordinating role in developing the national vision 
    and strategy to infuse advanced technology throughout all 
    educational programs;
        (12) Federal support can ease the burden at the State and local 
    levels by enabling the acquisition of advanced technology and 
    initiating the development of teacher training and support as well 
    as new educational products;
        (13) leadership at the Federal level should consider guidelines 
    to ensure that educational technology is accessible to all users 
    with maximum interoperability nationwide;
        (14) the rapidly changing nature of technology requires 
    coordination and flexibility in Federal leadership; and
        (15) technology has the potential to assist and support the 
    improvement of teaching and learning in schools and other settings.

(Pub. L. 89-10, title III, Sec. 3111, as added Pub. L. 103-382, title I, 
Sec. 101, Oct. 20, 1994, 108 Stat. 3637.)
