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Introduction
It is hard to deny that the development of modern information and communicationtechnology (ICT) has had a profound impact on how we communicate, share ideas, solve problems and get answers. With regard to education, ICT has likely changed the way welearn - in many ways, putting the learner in control of the learning model; but haveclassroom teachers kept pace with this shift in educational practice? Teachers andstudents now have the ability to get answers to many of their questions with just a fewclicks of the mouse - or taps on an mobile phone. They can share classroom projects withstudents down the hall or across an ocean. They can collaboratively solve problems withlittle regard to time and distance - the Internet is open 24 hours a day and travels atspeeds approaching the instantaneous. However, in order to take advantage of thetremendous potential ICT represents, teachers and students must be literate in this newmedium. Taking its place alongside the traditional "Three R's", technology literacy is anew basic skill that many leading education advocates and organizations feel studentsmust master (International Society for Technology in Education, 2008; The Partnershipfor 21st Century Skills, State Educational Technology Directors Association; U.S.Department of Education, 2004). The belief is based on the premise that preparingtoday's generation of students for a lifetime of ICT use should be conducted hand-in-handwith teaching them to read, write and think mathematically. To do this successfully,school leaders will need to hire technology literate teachers who are comfortable, capabletechnology users able to provide students with adequate opportunities to apply a growingand changing variety of ICT applications. However, it will be difficult to ensure thatfaculty and staff members are "tech literate" until school leaders are able to identify,
 
define, discuss, model, and evaluate exactly what a "tech literate" teacher is able to do.In other words, what does technology literacy look like, how will it be acquired, and howwill it be accurately assessed? The purpose of this brief is to present some commondefinitions of technology literacy, provide some guidance about how to assess it and starta discussion about the role of the educational administrator in promoting it.
What is technology literacy?
Technology (ICT) literacy is a common expression frequently used by educatorsand the general public. Due to the familiarity of the term, and the ease with which it isused, it might appear that there is a clear, shared meaning of what it means and whatcharacteristics form the foundation of the term. The reality is that there is no clearlyagreed upon meaning of technology literacy and the term itself is actually quitecomplicated to define. Many educators, even those who are tech savvy, are likelyconfused by the competing meanings and often ambiguous definitions surrounding the phrase. Despite this lack of shared meaning, the Federal Government believed thatdeveloping technology literacy (whatever it is) was important enough to include it infederal law, stating that all students must be technology-literate by the time they exit 8thgrade (No Child Left Behind Act, 2001; U.S. Department of Education, 2004).Unfortunately, they fell short in providing a definition of what technology literacy means,leaving it up to individual states to determine the (potentially conflicting) details andultimately, how to assess if students have "achieved it" or not. As the examples belowillustrate, many of these definitions are vague and provide seemingly little guidance inhow school leaders should proceed in developing technology literacy among teachers andstudents. They do, however, represent a starting point for the discussion. For example:
 
The state of Virginia defines technology literacy as the ability "to possesstechnology skills that support learning, personal productivity, decision making,and daily life" (Virginia Department of Education, 2002, p.101).The Maryland Department of Education states that technology literacy is theability of an individual, working independently and with others, to responsibly,appropriately and effectively use technology tools to access, manage, integrate,evaluate, create and communicate information (Maryland Technology LiteracyConsortium, 2007). Not all state educational authorities have chosen to create their own uniqueterminology with regard to tech literacy, many states have adopted definitions created byThe State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) or The InternationalSociety for Technology in Education (ISTE), two leading education technology advocacygroups. SETDA defines technology literacy as: The ability to responsibly useappropriate technology to communicate, solve problems, and access, manage, integrate,evaluate, and create information to improve learning in all subject areas and to acquirelifelong knowledge and skills in the 21st century (SETDA, 2003). The InternationalSociety for Technology in Education (ISTE) defines technology literacy through the National Education Technology Standards for Students (NETS-S). These standards aredivided into six broad categories: creativity and innovation; communication andcollaboration; research and information fluency; critical thinking, problem solving, anddecision making; digital citizenship; and technology operations and concepts (ISTE,
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