No Child Left Behind (NCLB)

Improving Student Achievement Through Technology Materials

A new report from the U.S. Department of Education, Toward a Golden Age in American Education: How the Internet, the Law and Today’s Students Are Revolutionizing Expectations, examines the state of educational technology and offers recommendations for maximizing its contribution to improving education. It also focuses on the role of the Federal No Child Left Behind Act in bridging the “digital disconnect” between Internet-savvy students and their schools in order to align technology with improved learning.

The 68-page report, which serves as the Department’s National Education Technology Plan, details seven major steps, which address: leadership; funding; teacher training; the development of e-learning and virtual schools; greater access to broadband communications; the transition from print to digital media; and the integration of data systems, such as technology-based assessments of student performance.

In addition, the report also profiles a sample of pioneering schools and school
districts across the country along with state initiatives that have successfully
enriched students’ learning experiences through multimedia, simulations, and
interactive software.

For a copy of Toward a Golden Age in American Education, visit www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/technology/plan/2004/plan.html or call
(877) 4ED-PUBS, while supplies last.

Adapted from The Achiever, February 1, 2005, Vol. 4, No. 2

IDEA Reauthorization Mandates Digital Repository

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) reauthorization (H.R. 1350, Sec. 675) (see page 9) includes a new standard for accessibility to print instructional materials for visually impaired students. In addition to creating a common format for digital versions of print materials, the IDEA mandates that publishers provide this digital file to a national repository. While the current language of the legislation implies that supplemental publishers may be exempt from this requirement, the bill is not yet in its final form. In addition, some state laws may expand the requirement beyond core textbooks.

Currently, the Chafee Amendment to copyright law allows authorized entities (e.g., Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic, American Print House) to make an alternate format copy for free for those with a physical disability that prevents them from accessing a print book. There are several problems with this process including quality of the alternate format, timeliness of materials received (often halfway through a quarter), and justifying who qualifies under Chafee. The definition is often left up to the authorized entity; most take a narrow approach. Two work groups, formed from the National Repository meeting, are now working on possible structures for the repository.

For more information on the IDEA, log on to the Thomas Web site at http://thomas.loc.gov and search for “HR 1350, Sec. 675.”

For information about how this mandate impacts Michigan students, contact: Kathy Brown, Supervisor, Michigan Schools for the Deaf and Blind, 1667 Miller Rd., Flint, MI 48503, (810) 257-1420, brownk3@michigan.gov.

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