Local, state and national initiatives are creating an electronic "global village." Research into communications systems, the "knowledge explosion," and teaching and learning have highlighted the importance of education and management systems. The increasing appearance of complex technology systems to the home and small business markets has changed the landscape of what people need to know and how they go about learning.

We must invest in the transformation of our current classrooms into 21st Century learning environments.This will require: financial support and committment from the school corporation and the community; appropriate professional development; computers and networks integrated into the community and the world; access to information in all libraries, classrooms and offices which allows the development of information processing skills, vital to discovering new information and understanding new knowledge; and resources and personnel critical for the upkeep, management, replacement and purchase of the technology.

Affirming the reality of "interdependence and mutual aspirations," learners, families, government and community agencies, businesses, and educators formed the Community Alliance for Lifelong Learning (CALL) to route community efforts in support of a " literate, thoughtful and effective citizenry...as the critical ingredient of a healthy, competitive global economy and a viable multicultural democracy."

Declaration of Interdependence
Bloomington-Monroe County Strategic Plan 1994
Monroe County Community School Corporation
City of Bloomington
Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce

CALL established, in 1994, three community focus groups to examine and develop strategic objectives and action plans on initial strategies: parental involvement in student learning; the use of technology to integrate services, instruction, and curriculum in the community and the schools; and student exit competencies for the schools. As is often the case with similar assignments, common threads run through the work of each group: individual and shared responsibilities for lifelong learning; quality, standards, and competitiveness; and active and continuous learning.

Technology will be a catalyst for the improvement of educational quality, the overall competitiveness of the community, and ultimately the quality of life and standard of living of each citizen in the Bloomington-Monroe County telecommunity.
• Every citizen should have reasonably convenient access to the resources necessary to make full use of technology.
• The community should be made up of neighborhoods of local and wide area networks connecting schools and other learning institutions, libraries and museums, hospitals and clinics, local government and other centers of community activity, and the residences of teachers and learners to community-, state-, nation- and worldwide information systems and to each other.
• Technology should be used to assist existing agencies, institutions and businesses and begin to establish Bloomington-Monroe County as a telecommunity where high tech communications, productivity and education ideas can be tested and proven in an envi ronment where unprecedented collaboration fosters lifelong learning.
• Technology should be used to enhance the roles and instructional opportunities of teachers.
• Technology should be used to support the development of critical thinking and collaborative skills, as well as to expand educational opportunities, for learners

A Technology Vision for Lifelong Learning
in the Bloomington-Monroe County Telecommunity
© Community Alliance for Lifelong Learning 1994
Community Focus Group on Technology:
The Technology Action Team
c/o Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce
Bloomington, IN 47402

Developmental support and startup equipment for HoosierNet was provided by Indiana University and the Community Service Council of United Way. Additional startup funding was secured through a grant from the Telecommunications Council of the City of Bloomington. HoosierNet is now providing contracted direct circuits to businesses, government and educational institutions, including, as of January 1996, the Monroe County Community School Corporation, through facilities housed in the Monroe County Public Library. Two additional strategic objectives are within range: initial public access will be available at the public library, with plans for public kiosks at activity centers and commercial locations; and a community network grant from the State of Indiana's Access Indiana fund will enable dial-in access early in 1996.

Regarding the teaching for learning process, the Monroe County Community School Corporation believes that:
• meeting educational needs of all children is the shared responsibility of the entire community;
• the creation of a shared vision and goals is essential to ensuring the commitment of the school community to the education of its children;
• as members of this community, we have a responsibility to model the behaviors that are characteristic of individuals committed to lifelong learning;
• shared high expectations on the part of parents, educators and employers will promote higher levels of student achievement and performance;
• education provides the foundation of knowledge and skills necessary for individuals to be responsible citizens prepared to compete successfully in a local, state and global economy;
• learning requires that students participate actively in their experiences;
• learning requires an applied understanding of the roles of technology in education, in the workplace and in the personal lives of each learner;
• learning experiences should provide for continuous learning, self-direction, self-evaluation and goal-setting;
• all students shall be supported and challenged by the educational community to reach their individual potential; and
• we must create the conditions that promote successful learning for all students.

Graduates of the Monroe County Community Schools will be
• Seekers of knowledge
• Citizens of their communities
• Problem solvers
• Creators of performances, products and innovations
• Managers of personal effectiveness
• Effective communicators.

Community Focus Group
for Student Exit Competencies
Monroe County Community School Corporation
and Community Alliance for Lifelong Learning 1994

The Monroe County Community School Corporation, understanding the value and importance of technology in teaching and learning, is committed to investing necessary financial resources, to integrating technology into the curriculum, to providing staff development, and to incorporating, updating, supporting and maintaining up-to-date technology to support lifelong learning goals.

An Ongoing Technology Plan
Monroe County Community School Corporation 1995

The technical resources in the Monroe County Community School Corporation are inadequate. At least half of the current equipment is six to twelve years old and is either impossible or inefficient to connect to a modern integrated technology system. Over t he last two years, a series of initiatives have focused attention on ongoing technology planning and implementation in the MCCSC. Efforts were made to increase both the quantity and capabilities of new technologies, resulting in increased teacher and student interest and demand. However financial and technical support have been been undersupported and overused.

But the groundwork has been laid for an integrated system. Financial efforts have temporarily doubled the Capital Projects Fund monies available for equipment and technical support. Network engineering services had been contracted to an outside vendor. An additional technician was added to the staff of Information Services in the spring of 1995, and a systems programmer, two technicians, and an on-staff network engineer were added early in 1996. Consultation services have been provided to MCCSC buildings and departments, focusing on curriculum and administrative functions as the foundation for technology resources. A full-time Instructional Technology Coordinator has been added to the staff of the Office of Curriculum, Assessment and Instruction.

In 1994, the MCCSC developed a connectivity strategy calling for the installation of an extensive and appropriate telecommunications infrastructure -- a corporation-wide backbone of serial links and electronic resources -- capable of connecting building-wide networks, learning areas, instructional, counseling and administrative offices to students, teachers, librarians, students, and administrators within the corporation, and with the world. Using the standards developed in the construction of University and Templeton elementary schools as a foundation, construction of this infrastructure has begun at Bloomington High schools North and South, Batchelor and Tri-North middle schools, the Administration Center, and University, Templeton, and Binford elementary schools. At least two additional buildings will be brought onto the network each year, as funding and technical support allow.

In the late 1980's and early 1990's state legislation mandated a change in the school evaluation process which reflected a philosophical shift from "summative" -- or judgmental -- products, toward "formative" -- or growth, change and development -- processes. The "Performance Based Accreditation" processes in all schools included the formation of a school improvement teams of educators, students, parents and community participants who, working with products from the community-wide strategic planning and MCCSC technology planning processes, have identified "the rapid growth of technology" as a priority issue. Other legislation mandated a "technology preparation" curriculum model for hands-on, performance-based, interdisciplinary instruction and later created CORE 40 career and course requirements for workforce and college preparation.

Philosophical directions have been set on both the state and the local levels. Support for technology from the corporation and from the community is increasing. It is in this climate that the Community Technology Committee offers a framework for an Integrated Technology System. As expected, this framework involves adding computers and enhancing existing networks.

New equipment alone, however, will not fulfill the vision. Staff will need training and support as they integrate technology into the curriculum. Computer systems and their networks must be adequately managed and maintained. Regular maintenance and system upgrades must be capitalized into future purchases.

The proposed framework focuses on information technologies, including modern desktop and portable computers, electronic information and communications capabilities, distance learning and teleconferencing, and interactive multimedia technology. Other emerging technologies which support curriculum in all disciplines need further and continued investigation and exploration to enhance and expand this ongoing framework.