On Wednesday, I listened to a presentation by Jean Haverstick, a long-time friend of mine that was to a group of campus administrators.

Jean was talking about the need for education technology in the classroom, and how the state standards we now have are actually derivatives of national standards. Pretty common talk, but one thing about Jean is that she always has pretty funny asides when she speaks, whether it is one-on-one or to a large group.

Today, while discussing standardized tests, she said the following: (I paraphrase her here) “Campuses celebrate passing the TAKS (Texas’ standardized test). I never understood that. The TAKS test is the minimum that kids need to know. We celebrate the minimum! It is like a car company celebrating that they just made a Yugo.”

I had to laugh. It really was a funny statement, and Jean’s deadpan made it even funnier. Afterwards however, I started to really think about it. She was right of course, we do have all kinds of awards and celebrations and orgasms when kids pass the test. But it is just the minimum.

Would we celebrate if our doctor got the minimum grade on the surgery she was about to do on us? Would we celebrate the airline pilot that got the minimum grade on “Landing?” Of course not.  Yet we celebrate the Yugo in education. And we don’t just do it in testing, we do it with educational technology as well.

How many times do campuses look at the use of a lab as “successful use of technology?” If  we run all of the kids through the labs once every three weeks, we call that “technology integration.” If we show kids how to use online video, or how to send an email, we celebrate the Yugo. The teacher that made a powerpoint of her presentation is now effectively integrating technology.

Administrators, for the most part, don’t know what to look for. They see a computer being used, and they think that technology is being integrated. Kudos to you on your evaluation. You used your Smartboard as a projection screen. Good job.

We don’t teach the kids, as a whole, collaboration or communication. We have standards, we have technology, but we don’t use it like we should.  You know it and I know it.

Yet, we always claim that we are doing “technology.”

After a few years of looking around the ed tech landscape, there are a lot of fancy cars driving around out there. There are campuses doing what they are supposed to do, Web 2.0 stuff and the like, and the collaborative web. There are even some pretty good people out there ready to drive us to our destinations. The Guhlins, the Dembos, the Fryers and the Warlicks of the world are all standing by ready to show us how to drive.

There are those that are driving Ferraris.

Too many of us are driving Yugos, and we are damn happy to be doing so. That is a major problem. Because while the Ferrari drivers are zooming ahead, the Yugo drivers are falling farther and farther behind. Ask a typical teacher what Web 2.0 is and I bet ya money you get a blank stare.

So, campuses and districts all start to drive the Yugo. They drive the car the minimum amount allowed. Drive to the lab. Download a video. Go back to class. Drive, but don’t go too fast. You might scare someone.

So how do we move from a Yugo to a Ferrari?  It actually is how most people move from a simple “starter car” to a luxury car: A few steps at a time.

Celebrate the Fords

We need to stop celebrating Yugos and start to at least celebrate the Fords and Chevy’s. We should not be content with the minimum. Administrators should demand that teachers go beyond the minimum: Administrators need to ask:“That is nice, but now what?” Even if they don’t know what the “now what” is.  That teacher you think kicks ass with technology? Is she showing the other teachers how to be an integrating teacher, or does she keep her knowledge locked inside her room and head? If she isn’t sharing her knowledge, she needs to be, and she needs to be called on the carpet if she isn’t.

After the Fords, move onto the Accords. Make the use of technology as part of the regular classroom experience so common that the luxury models become the commonplace, and the Yugos of the school.

Then we can celebrate the Yugos.