Reflection on Educational Technology and Regulations

I would say that the most powerful learning moment I had this week was the realization that federal policy regarding educational technology is one of the most important, yet least talked out aspects of teaching. Over the last ten days, I learned more about FERPA, COPPA, IDEA, CIPA, and PPRA than I had in the previous five years.

The shocking realization I’ve come to after learning about these laws is that there are a tremendous amount of violations of these federal laws that go on ALL THE TIME, and my guess is many teachers have no idea they are breaking the law. As I mentioned in my letter this week, I was recommended a scanning app by a fellow teacher just last week as an app to recommend to students so that they could scan written work and submit to Schoology. Yet, the app required the creation of an account, and a quick scan of acceptable apps and websites on our district website showed me that this was not an approved app. Thus, I would have been committing a federal violation had I listened to this teacher.

So how does this influence me in the future? My main goal is to become a principal in my district. As principal, these federal laws and regulations will get the attention they deserve. Teachers will be informed about the AUP and I will go over examples of how common violations.My belief is that AT LEAST 50% of the teachers in my district don’t know about these laws, and that obviously presents a serious problem. The biggest problem in my district is not how the AUP presents information, its lack of knowledge that the AUP even exits.