Education Daily   

Stakeholders on Capitol Hill this week urged Congress to salvage the main federal education technology funding stream, which President Obama proposed to eliminate in his FY 2011 budget request. More than 200 educators at the Washington Education Technology Summit pledged to work with legislators to restore funding for key initiatives they say are necessary to improve student achievement and bolster teacher professional development. With the Enhancing Education Through Technology program facing elimination in the Obama administration’s FY 2011 budget request, ed tech advocates expressed fear that the new language surrounding ed tech would fail to ensure mandatory technology spending takes place.

They encouraged legislators to take the following action to support technology in schools:

• Fund EETT or a successor program to at least $500 million through the FY 2011 Education Department appropriations bill.
• Update EETT with the ATTAIN Act, H.R. 558 and S. 818, which would target education technology funding towards innovation, low-performing student subgroups, state and local capacity building and leadership, and professional development.
• Ensure technology is included throughout ESEA reauthorization, but establish a separate program that would coordinate that inclusion, ensure teachers receive adequate professional development, and establish equitable distribution of resources.