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Education Classroom Library
 eZediaMX, No Child Left Behind, and Technology Planning
November 2002
By Drs. Jane & Michael Madden
Francis Marion University
With the impact of the No Child Left Behind Legislation being felt in all parts of the United States, educators are attempting to understand how they should best respond, especially in the area of appropriate technology. To come to their aid, "Technology Briefs for No Child Left Behind Planners" was funded by the U.S. Department of Education and developed as a collaborative effort between NEIRTEC (www.neirtec.org), the Education Development Center, TERC, the Educational Alliance at Brown University and Learning Innovations at WestED. The sixty-six page document is available in one download as a PDF from NEIRTEC in their Tools and Guides section or as individual sections on topics of interest.
"The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation emphasizes the importance of leveraging the power of technology in all areas of K-12 education, from reading to science to special education. As a result, education leaders at the state and local levels are expected to develop plans that effectively employ technology to enhance learning and increase student achievement" (NEIRTEC, 2002). While years ago, the emphasis was on learning a software package, now the focus is on the integration of technology into curriculum because thatıs where the action is. To impact achievement, technology has to support learning if educators expect to see lasting results (Hawkins, Panush, & Spielvogel, 1996).
One of the recurring themes in the Technology Briefs is the importance of addressing multiple: (1) learning styles and intelligences; (2) means of expression; (3) forms of engagement; and, (4) ways in which information and knowledge can be represented. As time and resources for students and teachers are at a premium, technology that is able to do all of these things at the same time becomes a valuable asset. Multimedia authoring allows each student to explore topics in a structured, yet flexible, manner and represent their learning in ways that enable them to capitalize on their strengths. eZediaMX now makes this process both simple and efficient compared to tools previously available. Additionally, for the first time there is a package that is easy enough to be used by primary children and powerful enough to be used by post-secondary faculty.
Working with teachers on a regular basis has taught us that schools have a surprising number of resources available to them such as digital photos or images, video clips, sound files, and graphics, all in a wide variety of formats. Students also produce an array of digital artifacts from Inspiration diagrams to Word documents. The problem is frequently how to capitalize on these resources and use them in multiple ways. Again, eZediaMX provides that integrative environment that allows schools to make use of what they already have on hand. It also allows schools to see where they might grow in terms of training and resources which is another critical planning issue as presented in the Technology Briefs.
Because eZediaMX is easy to learn for both students and teachers, it reduces time and costs in training and leaves everyone free to focus on the real issues - curriculum, content, and learning. The powerful logic area in eZediaMX further addresses concerns raised by the National Science Foundation that students have access to experiences that foster high-level thinking and problem-solving skills. The nice part is that the tools in eZediaMX grow with the user. You can do something very simple in a few minutes or you can take on a much more complex and sophisticated task. For the first time, that choice is in the hands of the end-user.
Reviewing the Technology Briefs from NEIRTEC and comparing that with the attributes and potential of eZediaMX will show there is a good fit between them. The ability to communicate in multimedia is a critical skill for students in a digital society. Creating projects through multimedia authoring gives students a richer way to explore topics and see relationships; that can only result in enhanced retention of information and concepts. Better yet, though, it can engage those students who have been on the fringes of learning for a long time - a message we hear echoed in No Child Left Behind.
About the Authors
Dr. Jane Madden is an Assistant Professor in the School of Education at Francis Marion University and is the Director of the Grants Development Program on campus. Dr. Michael Madden is a Professor in the School of Education. No remuneration was received for the writing of this article.
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