Is it the Tool or the Teaching?

... dusts off soap box Yesterday, in one of those impromptu hallway type meetings, a group of people working on various project all started to vent about video conferencing and how it seems that the Alberta Government is not really paying attention to what is needed in the education system (any surprises there?). School boards are getting $60K or more to install VC centers within their districts and some of these schools have computers that are almost eight years old. I guess they have to do something with all that politically managed dark fiber that is the Supernet but really. If the government wants to make use of this great network, shouldn't they get better computers, better training and support and a more logical means of managing the network as a means of establishing a decent base for ICT integration before they try to build "Cadillac" VC suites? Perhaps they are trying to atone for cutting all those teachers and now are trying to use VC as a means of "spreading the experts". But they should be aware that the experts may also be spread thin in a few short years. After all, it's the people that teach students, not the array of mics, cameras, wires and controllers. The down side is that there is lots of research to say that what the government is doing is sound, which if all the other issues were taken care of it likely would. And in another feat of great timing, I came across this Innovate article on VC this morning. /hops off Technorati Tags: Video Conferencing, Rant, Alberta Government, ICT, Technology Integration