Table of Contents 

A. Overview 

The Census of Technology continued to show modest gains in the past year. While modest, the gains represent consistent improvement in Missouri’s schools with regards to technology readiness and use during the 2004-2005 school year. Despite another year afflicted with sluggish economies at the state and local levels and significant decreases in state funds (including another year of not funding the Technology Acquisition Grant Program), Missouri schools continued to improve access to education technologies for administrators, faculty, staff, and students and report increases in their quality uses of those technologies.  

While advancements are slight, the 2005 data indicate that more schools are connected to one another and the Internet and more educational technologies are provided for teachers and students. Students, teachers, and administrators continue to become better skilled in using education technologies and, more importantly, continue to increase the frequency in which they use the technologies in meaningful ways. 

INTERNET ACCESS

·        Of the 2,211 school buildings reporting, over 2,100 or 95 percent have a partial T1 or higher Internet connection.  

COMPUTER ACCESS

·        Out of the 288,926 computers located across the buildings, over 270,000 computers (94 percent) are located in instructional rooms: 160,797 in classrooms, 87,260 in computer labs, and 22,284 in library media centers

·        The 2005 number of students per computer (all computers located across all buildings) is 3.09, compared to 3.26 in 2004, 3.29 in 2003 and 3.8 in 2002 and 2001.

·        The number of students per computer in all instructional rooms is 3.3, compared to 3.48 in 2004, 3.66 in 2003, 4.21 in 2002, 4.34 in 2001, 4.65 in 2000, 6.4 in 1999, and 8.15 in 1998.

·        The number of students per computer in classrooms is 5.55, compared to 5.89 in 2004 and 6.42 in 2003.

PRINCIPAL TECHNOLOGY SKILLS

·        Approximately 91 percent of principals have intermediate and/or advanced technology skills, compared to 92 percent in 2004, 90 percent of principals in 2003 and 82 percent in both 2002 and 2001.

·        Schools report that 97 percent of the principals routinely use email – the same rate reported in 2004 and 2003, and compared to 92 percent in 2002 and 74 percent in 2001.

·        The rate of principals routinely conducting online research is 79 percent, compared to 80 percent in 2004, 79 percent in 2003, 69 percent in 2002, and 58 percent in 2001.  

TEACHER TECHNOLOGY SKILLS

·         Schools report that 78 percent of teachers routinely use educational software, the same percent as in 2004, and compared to 76 percent in 2003, 71 percent in 2002, and 59 percent in 2001.

·         The rate of teachers routinely using technology for lesson plan preparation is 66 percent, the same percent in 2004, and compared to 64 percent in 2003, 59 percent in 2002, and 45 percent in 2001.

·         In 2005, 81 percent of teachers have intermediate and/or advanced technology skills, compared to 81 percent in 2004, 79 percent in 2003, 76 percent in 2002, and 72 percent in 2001.

STUDENT TECHNOLOGY SKILLS

·        Schools report that 80 percent of students routinely use educational software, compared to 81 percent in 2004, 80 percent in 2003, 75 percent in 2002, and 62 percent in 2001. 

·        Approximately 90 percent of eighth-grade students are technology literate. 
 

B.  Bulleted List of Findings  
 

TECHNOLOGY PLANNING

·         All districts have state-approved technology plans 

·         2,156 school buildings (98 percent) have building technology plans
 

TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

·        90 percent of districts have board-approved education technology standards

• 82 percent have locally developed standards and 29 percent have adopted the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS)
   
• 87 percent have standards for middle school/junior high students (grades 6-8), compared to 84 percent for students in grades 3-5, 81 percent for PreK-2 elementary students, and 74 percent for high school students (grades 9-12)
   
• 79 percent have standards for teachers, 77 percent for school administrators, and 69 percent for support services staff
   

• 98 percent of technology staff
   
• 91 percent of school building administrators
   
• 81 percent of teachers
   
• 69 percent of school services staff

·        345 buildings report having a total of  1,070 eMINTS-trained teachers
 

HARDWARE AND SUPPORT

·        On average, districts provided 2.73 FTE for technical maintenance and support

·        School building technical support was most likely provided by district staff, followed by school certificated staff and other school staff

·        School buildings provide access to 288,926 computers

·        85 percent are PC or PC-compatible and 15 percent are Apple/Mac

·        94 percent of all computers are located in a classroom, computer lab, or library media center (LMC)

INTERNET CONNECTIVITY AND DISTANCE LEARNING

·         87 percent of the districts have district-managed networks that connect all district buildings

·         Most district networks support:

·        accounting/payroll – 98 percent of districts

·        student attendance – 93 percent of districts

·        email/communications and library catalog – 91 percent of districts

·        food service – 80 percent of districts

·        discipline reports – 77 percent of districts

·       95 percent of the school buildings have a partial T1 or higher Internet connection 

·       Buildings support distance learning systems

• cable television – 1,140 buildings
   

• interactive television –  485 buildings
   

• satellite reception –  400 buildings
   

• desktop videoconferencing –  270 buildings
   

TECHNOLOGY USAGE

·       99 percent of districts report having technology integrated into one or more core content curriculum:

·        96 percent – communications arts

·        90 percent – science

·        88 percent – mathematics and social studies 

·       Almost all districts provide email accounts to staff:

·        96 percent – school administrators

·        94 percent – teachers

·        90 percent – other district staff

·         Fewer numbers of districts provide email accounts to students:

·        108 – high schools students

·          51 – middle school students

·          33 – students in grades 3-5

·          13 – students in PreK-2
 

·       Buildings report the following routine use of technology, by application and user type

•  Buildings estimate the following routine uses of technology, by function and user type 

·        Leadership and support of teachers in integrating technology is provided by:

·        library media specialist – 58 percent of buildings

·        school administrator – 53 percent of buildings

·        teacher – 52 percent of buildings

·        district technology staff – 47 percent of buildings

·        instructional technology specialist – 34 percent of buildings

·        Buildings estimate that 50 percent of the teaching staffs fully integrate technology into the curriculum

·        Almost all buildings have one or more technology-mediated feedback systems:

·        email – 2,075 buildings

·        voice mail – 1,115 buildings

·        homework hotlines via the web – 611 buildings

·        automated absentee calling systems – 416 buildings

·        homework hotlines via the telephone – 331 buildings

·        listservs – 287 buildings
 

TECHNOLOGY FUNDING

·        Districts projected spending $105.9 million in 2004-05 for technology-related activities and purchases

·        414 districts (79 percent) applied for E-rate discounts in 2004-05:

·        districts projected a total of $29.7 million in discounts

·        80 percent of the discounts are used to support education technology