The president of Dublin City University Dr Danny O'Hare recently urged greater awareness of technology in education. His article, via The Irish Times On The Web, struck a chord with Larry Olson, chief information officer for Pennsylvania, who describes here how his state is dealing with the issue.
AS the chief information officer for Pennsylvania, my role is to direct our state's information technology policy and to seize opportunities for applying modern information systems in ways that will boost government service and reduce operating costs.
From my vantage point in the US, piece by Dublin City University president Daniel O'Hare, which was recently posted on your Web page.
The views expressed by Dr O'Hare are strongly shared by Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge, especially the value of introducing students to computer technology at an early age and the continued enhancement of our children's computer literacy throughout their school years.
Much as it does for Ireland, the information age presents an opportunity for Pennsylvania to establish itself strongly as a leading player in the 21st century global marketplace. But like Ireland, the Commonwealth faces a challenge in improving the computer resources of our schools; and providing the support services necessary for their effective utilisation.
To meet this challenge, the Ridge administration, with the backing of the Pennsylvania legislature, has established the Link to Learn initiative. Link to Learn will make more computers available in schools and will help school districts expand their own local area networks.
As Dr O'Hare so correctly noted, however, the availability of technology is not sufficient to meet the present challenge. What makes Link to Learn unique in the US is its emphasis on professional development - so that our educators are trained in the effective use of classroom computers - and the identification of learning materials that take advantage of the multimedia capabilities of today's computer networks.
The ultimate goal of Link to Learn is the development of a statewide telecommunications network known as the Pennsylvania Education Network or PEN. It is envisioned as a "network of networks" that will tie all school, library and community local area networks into a broader, more powerful network environment land interface with the worldwide Internet.
Access to PEN will not only help students gain the computer skills they will need to compete effectively for information age jobs, it will also provide a multimedia, high speed communications channel for the sharing of teaching expertise and informational databases, profoundly exploring the learning environment.
It will create a classroom without walls, unhindered by past limitations caused by geographic location and population density.
That I can rapidly respond here to viewpoints expressed a continent away vividly illustrates how information - and access to it - will greatly determine what nations take leadership positions in the emerging 21st century economy. It also demonstrates the global reach of the changes that are upon us.
The industrial age of the 1900s is giving way to the information age of the new millennium. Our schools will play a vital role in smoothing that transition and serving as facilitators of lifetime learning.
There is room for both Ireland and Pennsylvania on the information superhighway and we would all do well to share experiences and draw strength from our common vision. Pennsylvania has already made a commitment to enhance its educational resources through Link to Learn, but our journey has just begun, enriched by the company of others.
I look forward to the possibility of learning from one another as our two cultures establish educational and economic goals for the next century.
In the meantime, I invite Irish political and educational leaders, as well as interested citizens, to follow Pennsylvania's progress through the Link to Learn Web site on the Pennsylvania home page:
(http://www.state.pa.us).
