“By Stacy Hawthorne, EdD, Board Chair, The Consortium for School Networking Ninety-two percent of jobs in the United States require digital skills. As a nation, we have a responsibility to prepare students to navigate and succeed in this predominantly digital world. Recent federal attention to artificial intelligence (AI) in education, among other policies, reflects a clear understanding that students must learn not only what these tools can do, but how to use them safely, effectively, and responsibly. This is no easy task, and local school communities need federal support in ensuring K-12 classrooms prepare students for the future of work. This is the message more than 50 educators and school district leaders delivered in Washington, D.C., last week when they met with policymakers from over 20 states to discuss education technology, including broadband funding, digital learning access, privacy, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and screen time in K-12 schools. At its core, education technology helps teachers do what they have always aimed to do: reach each student. When implemented intentionally, it deepens learning and connects classroom experiences to real-world skills. Students collaborate on shared projects, analyze data, engage in critical thinking and creative problem-solving, and learn to assess the reliability and bias of information. These experiences mirror how modern workplaces operate. They help students understand not just how to use technology, but when and why to use it. Technology also plays a critical role in access. It supports students with disabilities through assistive tools, helps multilingual students stay connected through translation, and ensures students in rural or under-resourced communities are not left behind. At the same time, as the role of technology in learning has grown, so too have valid concerns about how it is used. Questions about data privacy, cybersecurity, and screen time deserve serious, thoughtful responses. And school districts — working with parents, teachers, and students — are best positioned to purposefully implement education technology in ways that reflect local needs, values, and realities. Federal support plays an essential role in making that local decision-making possible. For decades, the most effective federal education technology policies have focused not on mandating how classrooms operate, but on building the conditions that allow educators to use technology responsibly and effectively. Funding for programs such as Title II-A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) support professional learning for teachers and school leaders, helping educators build capacity around effective digital instruction, student data privacy, online safety, and emerging technologies like artificial intelligence. As technology evolves, educators must evolve with it. Sustained federal investment ensures that teachers can guide students in purposeful use, rather than leaving them to navigate increasingly complex tools without instruction or safeguards. Similarly, ESEA Title IV-A provides block grant funding that allows districts to invest in education technology and related professional development, alongside school safety, mental health supports, STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) programs, and well-rounded learning opportunities. It gives local leaders the ability to respond to community priorities — whether that means strengthening digital learning environments, teaching privacy and online safety best practices, expanding math and literacy tutoring, or addressing cybersecurity risks. Connectivity investments through the E‑Rate program, part of the Federal Communications Commission’s Universal Service program, are another example of federal policy done right. By helping schools secure high-speed broadband and safe internal networks, E‑Rate enables nearly every aspect of modern instruction, from collaborative learning to accessibility tools to workforce-aligned career and technical education. In rural and low-income communities especially, these investments are foundational to learning and engagement. Without reliable, secure connectivity, conversations about preparing students for a digital economy are largely theoretical. Federal policy has also established essential guardrails around privacy and security. Laws such as the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) help districts protect student data while still allowing technology to support teaching and learning. So too do the over 100 new student privacy laws that states have passed in recent years, complementing federal FERPA and COPPA protections. Taken together, these policies reflect a balanced approach: investing in access, building educator capacity, strengthening safeguards, and perhaps most importantly, preserving local decision-making. If 92 percent of jobs require digital skills, then building those skills must begin in K-12 classrooms that have the tools, training, and trusted partnerships with families to use education technology intentionally and in ways that reflect local needs and values. When federal policy supports those local efforts, the future looks even brighter for our students, our workforce, and our country. Published: May 4, 2026 CoSN is vendor neutral and does not endorse products or services. Any mention of a specific solution is for contextual purposes.
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