Tech Without Support: IT Snags Hamper Schools' Technology Use

Moses, A. R. (2008). Tech Without Support: IT Snags Hamper Schools' Technology Use. Retrieved from http://www.edutopia.org/ikid-school-technology-support

This article covers the problem of a lack of tech support in public schools. The author cites a poll stating that half of educators said a lack of support impacted their use of technology in the classroom. In some schools, this resulted in technology simply not being used - nonworking computers were removed from the classroom rather than receiving repairs. Other schools would pay teachers or students to run tech support, upgrading computers or debugging network problems. But some schools simply can't afford enough tech help. Tech savvy teachers are often still called upon to help with problems, which leaves them overworked and doesn't allow them enough time to plan lessons. The problem is simply not enough money or tech support employees. What used to be a good ratio of tech support to students five years ago is now not enough.

As a future teacher who would like to incorporate technology into my classroom, this problem concerns me. With a lack of tech support, I might not be able to incorporate the technology I want. An example of this is the U.S. Government class I did my high school practicum in. The classroom had a SmartBoard installed on the wall, but the teacher wasn't provided with the software or training to use it. The SmartBoard had been there all year, and was simply being used as a backdrop for his PowerPoint presentations. He told me he had been excited about getting a SmartBoard, because he wanted to use it for interactive lessons, but the lack of tech support didn't allow him to use it. I am worried something similar will happen to me as a teacher. As a teacher, I can ask the administration to buy 30 copies of Software X for our computer lab, but if tech support doesn't have time to install it and I don't have the proper network permissions, the software may sit around for months before it is installed. If a student downloads a virus or the shared network goes down, we may not be able to use the computers at all until tech support solves the problem. Teachers and students are at the mercy of the school's budget for technology to work. But it's not just a money problem, it's also the allocation of resources. Referring to my earlier example, instead of buying expensive SmartBoards for every classroom and then not setting them up, perhaps the school should have invested in an additional tech support person to help teachers with existing tech problems. Expensive technology is useless without someone to maintain it, so hopefully schools will begin to understand this better.