The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction supports our state Institutes of Higher Education to prepare our future educators to be prepared to teach in our digitally rich learning environments. Schools are continually evolving the instructional practices and classroom technologies to encourage students to be empowered learners. Reviewing the introductory materials on the WI Standards for ITL home page provides an overview of how teaching and learning are advancing in the digital age.
The key shift to work on with pre-service and/or interns is the paradigm shift that "The focus is on learning with information and technology rather than learning about information and technology." New emerging pedagogical strategies including coding, design thinking, leveraging data for students to drive their learning and the access to information is allowing students to creators of new knowledge.
The State Superintendent's Wisconsin Digital Learning Plan (2016) identified updating the current Information and Technology Literacy Standards as a priority for DPI in collaboration with our local school districts and professional partners. The Plan's vision for student learning called for equitable, personalized, applied and engaged digital learning for all students. The skillful and equitable use of technology can transform the way teaching and learning happen in classrooms across Wisconsin. Digital tools can enhance student learning as they connect efforts to identify what students should know and be able to do as well as help students and educators assess progress toward achieving academic goals. To meet the needs of today's students and to ensure they are college and career ready, schools are encouraged to be innovative in providing student learning experiences, adopting technologies and instruction in ways, which meaningfully engage the digital generation. District have to leverage collaborative leadership teams and community partners to ensure proper planning and budgeting to support high-quality technology-rich learning opportunities.