Find out who's interested and who's not.

Painful experience with other educational innovations has taught us that any big change requires a broad base of support. It is almost never enough to have a visionary superintendent, or a small band of forward-thinking teachers, forging a lonely path through the wilderness.

Linking technology with instruction will cost both time and money. It will place new demands on teachers and students; it will change the way teaching looks in the classroom. The superintendent, principals, curriculum coordinators, teachers, school board members, parents--all will have questions, concerns, and reservations. Support from local business and community groups will also be important, since you're likely to need volunteer help and donations of funds or equipment.

Begin by taking the pulse of your community. Talk informally with all major constituencies, to get a sense of people's ideas, interests, and worries. Jot down questions and comments, both positive and negative. Don't rely on the opinions of a few; try to reach the broadest possible number. As you identify others who share your enthusiasm, enlist them to help with your informal needs-sensing.

If you find that interest is low--or concerns are high--within any particular constituency, you'll need to take the time to cultivate support.Don't assume that folks will "come around" once the ball gets rolling; don't be swept away by your own excitement or that of a few colleagues.

	Some strategies for helping to generate interest and support:Involve school administrators, board members, and key teachers by arranging for them to visit demonstration sites. (Choose your strongest instructional leaders; don't pick only the "techie" teachers.) Ask them to talk to others about what they've seen.
	At PTA, civic club, and school board meetings, demonstrate some simple technology applications, such as a CD-ROM encyclopedia. Even better, have a student conduct the demonstration.
	If your school or district already uses some instructional technology, set up visits to those schools or classrooms or hold a technology open house for parents. Ask local industries to donate door prizes.
	Organize a study group to explore new uses of technology. Demonstrate your own commitment by taking an active part. Use the list of questions you've gathered to help focus the group's activities.
	Lead the process for developing a vision and a set of goals for how educational technologies can improve teaching and learning.
	If a school building is to be constructed or renovated, participate in the planning and design process so that technology requirements can be designed into the new facility.
	Nothing builds commitment faster than positive hands-on experience. If you have funds available, provide teachers, on an incentive basis, with laptop computers for their own personal and professional use. Or, seek out your local bank to see if they will set up a low-interest loan program through which teachers and students can finance their own computer purchases.

Initiate a formal technology planning process.

As interest begins to build, you may be tempted to plunge right into technology purchases. But first you'll need a careful, comprehensive planning process. As Ian Jukes noted in a recent article in The School Administrator, putting technology in schools "is not just about purchasing and installing hardware and software--it is about the physical and conceptual infrastructures which must be constructed to support the technology."

Plotting out technology choices is literally like drawing the blueprint for a skyscraper: An inch's miscalculation at ground level can be enormously magnified when it's time to build the seventh floor! Issues of cost, capacity, compatibility, environment, and longevity all need thoughtful consideration. Above all, it is essential to have a clear picture of what it is you want the new technology to accomplish.

The next two sections will take you through the basic elements of technology planning.

Jukes, B. y Dosaj, J. (1996). The essential steps of technology planning. The School Administrator, p. 53. (4).