April 2005 — SETDA
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Assessing Technology Integration in Schools
SETDA’s PETI Tools Assist States in Making Data-Driven Decisions About Education Technology
Almost three years and more than 30 conference calls later, the State Educational
Technology Directors Association (SETDA) is pleased to announce that its Profiling Educational Technology Integration (PETI) tools are being implemented in states nationwide. The PETI tools, released in September, were funded by the U.S. Department of Education (D'E) and developed in conjunction with the Metiri Group. This suite of tools, which represents a high-quality set of validated resources built with consensus from the states, is available online forfreeto any education stakeholder at www.setda-peti.org.
Critical Components
In 2002, SETDA and the D'E recognized the fact that state and national organizations had collected a great deal of data on technology without establishing a common set of data elements and definitions. In response to this, SETDA brought together several state directors to focus on the challenging task of identifying the key questions, indicators and data elements necessary to assess the integration of technology. Building upon the National Forum on Education Statistics’ “Technology in Schools Handbook” and the enGauge process developed by the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL), SETDA members formed a Common Data Elements Task Force to carefully consider the critical components to assess technology integration, including conditions, policies and impact.
The initial set of Common Data Elements was exactly that - a set of data elements identified to respond to key questions and indicators. A consensus was reached by 25 states around these elements, which formed the basis for the entire suite of PETI tools.
SETDA recognized the difficulty the development and validation of instruments posed for the states in terms of capacity and resources, and agreed that creating actual survey and observation tools would provide the most effective technical assistance to the states. Thus, SETDA worked closely with five pilot states to validate the following tools:
- A district-level survey;
- A building-level survey for teachers and administrators; and
- Classroom-level observation tools, including focus groups with students, interviews with teachers and administrators, walk-throughs, and extensive observation protocols.
An Adaptable Approach
Implementing the entire suite of PETI tools is a large undertaking. Although some states are utilizing this approach, others may need to consider different options due to local control, data systems or resources. Keeping this in mind, SETDA and the developers provided tools that can be used in many different ways.
The intention of this special SETDA section in T.H.E. Journal is not only to provide you with more information about the PETI tools, but also to demonstrate how states are already using them. Several states aligned data collection efforts around the common data elements before the PETI tools were even completed.
