NCATE Report - Teachers Need to be "Fearless" with Technology

In 1997, the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) Task Force on Technology and Teacher Education published a paper entitled Technology and the New Professional Teacher. 1 This focus of this report was how support could be provided to teacher education colleges and universities as technology continued to increase in the education of students being prepared for the 21st century that was rapidly approaching. It is interesting that in some areas this forward-thinking report already seems quaint itself, with admonitions such as, “Teachers must participate in formal courses, some of which may be delivered in non-traditional ways, e.g. via telecommunications” (p. 11). Barely 10 years later we have respected universities offering graduate degrees entirely through online study without the need to ever set foot on their physical campus, MIT making entire classes available online for free (but not for credit), and few people in awe of the fact that they’re being offered “via telecommunications.”

Now that we have both feet firmly in the 21st century, it is interesting to review the NCATE task force’s vision of education in our century, and how technology integration into the education environment can be encouraged and supported.

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“Teachers need an ‘attitude’ that is fearless in the use of technology, encourages them to take risks, and inspires them to become lifelong learners” (p. 11).

“Teachers may be forgiven if they cling to old models of teaching that have served them well in the past. All of their formal instruction and role models were driven by traditional teaching practices. Breaking away from traditional approaches to instruction means taking risks and venturing into the unknown. But this is precisely what is needed at the present time” (p. 10).

I agree with these statements wholeheartedly, but developing a teacher who is fearless enough to take risks and venture into the unknown is much more difficult than simply recognizing the need. While there are some teachers that are approaching retirement and “coasting,” or simply don’t want to put forth the effort required to change the lesson plans they have been using for years, we also need to recognize that there are some very real concerns that make it difficult to be fearless.

In Maslow’s hierarchy of need, safety is second only to physiological needs like breathing. Maslow specifically includes safety “of employment” and the safety to provide for the needs of one’s family in these secondary level needs. To be fearless in embracing technology, teachers must feel secure enough in their employment to be willing to take risks. If they stray from the lesson plan that has “served them well in the past,” they run the risk of getting a decreased result as they perfect their new lesson. Will that be acceptable to the school principal? Will the school principal be willing to take the risk of allowing the teacher to try a new approach, or will he or she be concerned about the possibility of a negative result that will need to be explained to the assistant superintendent, and so on up the chain. No Child Left Behind, AYP, and “district report cards” are important and noble goals, but have made education a very high stakes game in which everyone is very focused on “the numbers” to continually improve the district’s report card rating.

Given this reality, it is important that teachers are given as much as we can give them to facilitate the technology integration. Three of the items listed on page 21 of the NCATE report regarding needs of teacher educators are equally important for teachers in the classroom.


1. “Incentives for faculty in terms of release time for professional development, new course development, and recognition for experimental teaching at times of tenure and merit review.” We may not be able to offer tenure and direct financial rewards, but need to be supportive of teachers making the attempt and recognize their efforts. Time, in general, is a huge challenge for our teachers as they are increasingly stretched to deliver more academic content, more effectively and thoroughly, to increase student achievement on standardized tests.

2. “Technical support that provides reliable maintenance of existing equipment and assistance for new software applications.” Classroom teachers also need to know that when they develop a technology-infused lesson, every effort has been made to ensure the lesson will not be challenged by non-functional equipment. Offering instruction on newly adopted software, rather than just letting teachers flounder trying to learn the application by trial and error, also decreases the time needed to integrate a new technology and increases the likelihood of a successful result.

3. “Sufficient access to technology for faculty and students.” Classroom management and lesson delivery logistics can be a real challenge if there is insufficient technology available to teachers and students. Even when labs are available, it may be difficult or impossible to reserve them at the time(s) they are needed to effectively deliver the lesson.

“The new technology will transform the role of the teacher as thoroughly as did the introduction of printed textbooks” (p. 12). We need to ensure our teachers and our administrators – including the superintendent - have the support they need if we expect them to be “fearless” enough to take the risks necessary to reach this potential.


1 The full text of the NCATE report at ERIC.