District/School Administration Administration
The Board of Education Advisory Councils

Educational Technology Advisory Council

Massachusetts STaR Chart (School Technology and Readiness Chart)

Attached you will find the most recent version of the Massachusetts STaR Chart (School Technology and Readiness Chart). It was derived from the Texas chart of the same name and we have updated it several times since we originally adapted it.

There are several reasons why ETAC maintains this chart:

1. ETAC believes that any strategic plan for the Commonwealth should reflect the elements in the chart. Any plan should consider expectations for schools, teachers and students in the Commonwealth many of which are specified in the chart.

2. ETAC believes it is important to have clear standards for every school district. We recommend that local technology plan benchmarks be defined by the Proficient Tech level of the following columns:

   Column B:	Patterns of Teacher Use
   Column E:	Patterns of Student Use
   Column G:	Capabilities of Educators
   Column M:	Technical Support
   Column N:	Curriculum Integration Staffing
   Column P:	Budget Allocated for Technology
   Column R:	Students per Instructional Computer
   Column S:	Internet Access
   Column T:	E-Learning Environments
   Column U:	LAN/WAN

   
   

3. The STaR chart provides guidance to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education about grant distribution by offering a common set of goals. This guidance is part of ETAC's charge from the Commissioner.

There are several assumptions built into this work:

• That technology should be integrated into teaching and learning so that its use extends opportunities and potential for all students.
• That the effective use of technology involves the many elements specified in the chart by the 23 columns. Technology in education, used appropriately and effectively, is a complex set of interactions of people, materials, infrastructure and continuous support. It is not a single investment at one time.
• That the chart is reviewed and updated annually.
• The chart is "forward looking" because technology constantly changes and educators need to consider how these changes impact teaching and learning.
• The chart strikes a balance between what is reasonable in schools given the current funding and what is desirable given our goals for student learning and the communities' expectations.

We appreciate the responses of many of you to our work with the chart. Each version reflects many of your contributions and will continue to do so.