Technology: America's Schools Not Designed or Equipped for 21st Century

GAO discussed the need for technology in public schools. GAO noted that: (1) schools prepared for 21st century education should have adequate space for instruction and storage, facilities for teaching laboratory science, and a library with multiple, networked computers for instructional use; (2) new schools are being built with these changes in mind, yet only a handful of such schools model state-of-the-art technology; (3) at least three quarters of the public schools surveyed reported having sufficient computers and televisions, although they do not have the building infrastructure to fully use them; and (4) not all students have equal access to facilities that support state-of-the-art technologies and many education reformers find it unfair to hold students to nationwide standards if they do not have an equal opportunity to learn.