The Connecticut Commission for Educational Technology, which operates out of DAS, has played a critical role over the past two years in helping to connect students for any time, anywhere learning. The Commission’s recently published 2021 Annual Report reflects progress in closing the “Homework Gap,” along with other key components of its five-year State Educational Technology Plan:
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Open Education Resources: The Commission’s launch of GoOpenCT.org enables all Connecticut educators in K – 12 and higher education to create, share, and access thousands of high-quality, standards aligned learning materials — including the CSDE’s forthcoming statewide curriculum — to reduce the cost of learning for schools and college students (Page 15)
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Support for Teachers: The Accelerate CT program, led by the CSDE with Commission input, covered the cost for more than 700 Connecticut educators to develop skills in teaching with technology through the ISTE Summer Learning Academy (page 16)
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Digital Equity: Concerted promotion of the Emergency Broadband Benefit program has spurred more than 90,000 households in Connecticut to take advantage of free Internet access for learning (page 19)
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Connectivity Funding for Schools and Libraries: Guidance from the Commission has encouraged Connecticut schools and libraries to apply for free home Internet access for students and patrons through the Emergency Connectivity Fund, with $40M in awards to date (page 19)
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Digital Learning Resources: 2021 saw a doubling of the number of districts using the LearnPlatform Inventory Dashboard, a free resource from the Commission that empowers decision-makers to assess the usage and return on investment of more than 5,000 educational software titles (page 20)
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Cost Avoidance: Since its 2017 launch, the Commission’s Educational Software Hub has saved districts an estimated 40,000 hours in staff time — in addition to legal fees — to comply with Connecticut’s data privacy law and leverage innovative technology solutions (page 20)
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Statewide Content Access and ROI: The Connecticut State Library continues to deliver exceptional value through researchIT, the digital library free to all Connecticut residents, delivering $43M in digital content subscriptions at a cost to the state of $1.5M (page 28)
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Internet Access for Institutions of Learning: The Connecticut Education Network (CEN) delivers Internet connections, content filtering, and cyber protection services to schools, colleges, libraries, towns, and open access members at a cost that saved these institutions approximately $30M this year alone
As background, the Commission is empowered by the General Assembly through CGS § 61a to envision, coordinate, and oversee the management and successful integration of technology in Connecticut's schools, libraries, colleges and universities. As part of its responsibilities as the state's principal educational technology adviser, it designs and stewards the State Educational Technology Goals and Plan that helps ensure equity of access to technology-based learning solutions.
This past year’s accomplishments reflect the efforts of 20 Commission members and more than 40 Advisory Council members. We look forward to continuing these inter-agency efforts in 2022 to benefit students, educators, and educational institutions across the state.
