TCEA Advocates for Change
In an email sent early this morning, the Texas Computer Education Association (TCEA) shares:
The TCEA Advocacy Committee wants you to know some of the steps we have been taking to gear up for the legislative session. We have been meeting with some vendor and association partners since September formulating position statements and legislative goals. Based on input the TECSIG membership submitted through a survey in October , we have even begun working on some draft legislation that supports Rep. Dan Branch’s vision of giving districts flexibility with the purchase of instructional materials.
We met with Rep. Branch in September and have sent him a formal letter encouraging him to pursue increasing the technology allotment and changing the way the funding for instructional materials is allocated in order to give districts more flexibility in the selection of instructional content and the delivery of that content. We are currently working on a way to mobilize those wanting their voices to be heard in this upcoming legislative session. These discussions are ongoing and will only intensify as we get closer to January.
In addition to these activities, the TCEA board is working on a draft advocacy plan that will provide us with a long-term vision for where we need law and policy changes to be made to promote the use of technology in education.
We are encouraged that you feel so passionately about these issues. Our unified voice has been missing in past legislative sessions but we hope to begin changing that this legislative session.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Bergland & Kari Rhame
The actual letter appears below:
Dear Representative Branch:
Following our meeting with you recently in Austin at the Texas Computer Education Association office, the group in attendance has been meeting regularly and discussing the ideas you shared. While we are all supportive of these ideas, including; making sure language supporting the use of technology is inserted into all existing and newly funded projects such as the high school allotment; supporting the expansion of the TxTIP program; and, supporting the expansion of funding allotted to digital content, we did focus on two areas. We believe that there are two areas which offer the greatest opportunity to move Texas forward in creating the types of 21st century learning environments our students and teachers need, as well as preparing our students for the 21st century workforce. The two areas are:
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Increasing the technology allotment
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Providing flexibility in the textbook funds that would allow for local control and utilization of the funds to purchase technology-based solutions, including the computing devices required to utilize them.
We look forward to meeting with you soon after the upcoming elections to discuss these two areas and next steps.
Sincerely,
Kari Rhame, President Jennifer Bergland, Advocacy Chair
Kudos to the TCEA organization for beginning to advocate on behalf of Texas school children and educators that have fallen into the digital chasm created by too little funding and unfunded mandates. I encourage you to support this effort, as well as to be critical about how the effort might be improved or enhanced, then share those insights.
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