| Increasingly, public school districts across the United States are preparing staff and faculty in how to integrate technology to optimize both student learning and efficiency in administration. Many districts hire administrators to oversee technology planning, implementation, and training. For purposes of this study, the professionals, hired with the responsibility of planning and implementing the technology program for the district, were referred to as technology directors. The purpose of this study was to determine what skills and knowledge technology directors and university professors who taught graduate educational technology courses in colleges of education perceived to be important for technology directors to possess for the present (2002) and the future (2005).;A survey developed by the Boston SIM Industry-Education Liaison Committee for a previous study was used to study task activities, interpersonal skills, and technical skills necessary for public school technology directors to possess. Technology directors and university professors were surveyed on their perceptions of importance of skills and these perceptions were compared for both the present (2002) and for three years in the future (2005).;The populations consisted of technology directors and university professors who taught graduate educational technology courses in units of education, who completed a web survey during 2002. A total of 175 public school technology directors responded from sixteen states and 50 university professors who taught graduate educational technology courses responded from nineteen states.;In general, university professors' perceptions were the same as technology directors' perceptions in the areas of task activities, interpersonal skills, and technical skills. Of all 110 items, 55 for the present (2002) and 55 for the future (2005), only 20 (18.2%) significant differences were found. By identifying the skills that technology directors need to posses, there are now guidelines for districts hiring technology directors, university preparation programs, technology directors wishing to improve their skills, and future technology directors. According to what was found in this study there should more emphasis placed on all interpersonal skills and all task activities. Perhaps specific programming skills need to be dispensed with and other networking and systems skills need to be emphasized more. |
