Scaffolding: Assessing Student Technology Use Schools own the task of providing students with experiences that build requisite knowledge and skills. Schooling today demands familiarity with various technologies, which translates into learning goals that focus on developing information literacy skills. Students must be able to use technology to find, evaluate, synthesize, and create information and communicate this through a variety of formats. These information literacy skills are not only required in today's classroom but also promote lifelong learning to help students adapt to the changing needs of society and work after leaving school. In the 1980s, the rise of personal computer use encouraged schools to provide instruction in basic programming skills. Even allowing for the value of logic and reasoning skills developed in programming instruction and the need for computer programmers, learning to program falls far short of the holistic skills required of today's technology-dependent workforce. Most states have addressed this issue through the development of technology standards for students. Did You Know? The International Society for Technology in Education's (ISTE) NETS Project is the starting point for many state technology standards for students. NETS stands for National Educational Technology Standards. Learn more about the following categories of technology foundation standards for students from the ISTE Web site. Basic operations and concepts Social, ethical, and human issues Technology productivity tools Technology communications tools Technology research tools Technology problem-solving and decision-making tools