TECHNOLOGY BY DESIGN - A COMPREHENSIVE PROCESS FOR MANAGING TECHNOLOGY CHANGE TO SUPPORT AN EDUCATIONAL ORGANIZATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY

A lot of what we do in schools includes intelligence, honest purpose, and perspiration. We work hard and we do it the way we have always done it. OR, we latch on to the greatest new fad and do it the new way because everyone else is doing it AND, if we don't, we will fall behind. This is especially true of technology in schools. The theory of Technology by Design (TBD) is that all aspects of technology use in a school should be created to achieve an explicit purpose - clearly linked to what the school hopes to accomplish. From networking and database decisions to the choice of a Technology Director or CIO, TBD should guide each decision. The formal tool that helps an organization establish that the clear goals exist and that each initiative is linked to those goals is the Technology by Design process. The outcome of that process is often called a Technology Plan. This paper will outline the justification for that process and provide some detailed discussion of a few of its fundamental components.