In too many schools, devices are purchased without a plan. Technology integration can’t be bought and doesn’t happen with a wave of the fiscal wand. Too often, expensive computers sit in carts or are used to deliver the same old instruction in a shinier way and that’s dangerous.

It’s dangerous because, as a nation, we don’t need students that are learning the same way they did fifty years ago but with a glowing screen instead of a chalkboard. We need students that are trained in entirely new ways of thinking. We need creative and critical thinkers who are able to generate ideas, test hypotheses, and solve interesting problems.

What is the best way to integrate technology in the curriculum? Honestly, I think there are very few places that are doing it particularly well and that’s because I think that most schools are putting the horse before the carriage. We look at the transformative effect that technology has had on the world around us and think—rightfully so—that this needs to find its way into our schools.

The problem is that the transformative change in society didn’t happen in a vaccuum; it was—and is—an evolution. Technology, on a broad level, does a few things really well:

1. It promotes communication. Technology—such as the written word, the printing press, radio, television, and the Internet—makes it cheaper and easier to spread your message farther and with more clarity.
2. It increases efficiency. My mobile phone has more processing power than NASA had when they put a man on the moon. Ordering online from Amazon is a much more enjoyable experience than tearing out the last page from a catalogue, filling it out, finding an envelope, and mailing to place my order and it’s much easier on their end as well. UPS leverages computers to plan the most efficient route in order to save money on fuel.

These two factors sow the seeds for transformative change. When you can clearly communicate with greater efficiency, the flow and intermingling of ideas rising dramatically and interesting things spring up. In schools, we skip laying the foundation for lasting change and go directly to the gimmicks. First, we need to build frameworks and workflows that increase student and teacher efficiency.

• What are the biggest instructional time sucks and how can we mitigate them?
• How can we automate data collection and paperwork in a way that frees up teachers’ time and attention to do what they do best: craft and execute create lessons?

Secondly, we need to find ways to amplify our communication. Learning should be accessible from everywhere and easy to exchange ideas between and amongst students, teachers, and administration.

• How do we build systems that encourage sharing of good ideas and useful information?
• How do make sure that students can access instructional content at any time (at home as well as in school)?

Communication and efficiency create a positive feedback loop—as one increases so does the other. These are not easy questions to answer and they typically go unanswered because their not particularly glamorous either. That said, if we want see transformative change in our schools, we’re going to have to sit down with the banal basics and figure out how to capitilize on the explosion in technological advancement over the last few years.