Technology is most influential when integrated with curriculum and assessment. In a review of studies, the (CEO Forum, 2001) concluded that "technology can have the greatest impact when integrated into the curriculum to achieve clear, measurable educational objectives."

Integration of technology with curriculum and professional growth increases student achievement. Significant student achievement gains for technology integrated with standards were demonstrated by an eight-year longitudinal study of SAT I performance at New Hampshire's Brewster Academy (Bain & Ross, 1999). Students participating in the technology integrated school reform effort (School Design Model) demonstrated average increases of 94 points in combined SAT I performance over students who participated in the traditional independent school experience. In a pioneer "laptop school," where all students and faculty carry portable computers and access a campus network, Brewster's extensive school reform effort involved "rethinking the way we teach, how we build curriculum and the way we support and evaluate faculty" (Bain & Smith, 2000).

A study of a comprehensive effort to integrate technology into schools shows a increase in test scores related to the use of technology. In West Virginia (Mann et al.,1999), curriculum objectives for basic skills development in reading and mathematics were integrated with instructional software. This curriculum was reinforced with teacher instruction and the achievement tests used to evaluate student performance. Gains in student test scores on the SAT-9 (for 950 fifth graders in 18 schools) were attributable to the alignment of the targeted curriculum objectives with the software, teacher instruction and the tests.

In a randomized study in Virginia, use of digital video clips to supplement instruction resulted in increased student achievement (Boster et al., 2002)(Boster et al., 2004). In this case, the video segments were selected from a commercially available library (unitedstreaming[TM]) to align with particular standards in science and social studies addressed by all participating schools in the third and eigth grades. The assessments (pre and post) were likewise specially developed to examine student's knowledge of those standards.

"Intelligent tutor" software that supports curriculum has been shown to improve learning. In Pittsburgh, an algebra curriculum focusing on mathematical analysis of real-world situations and the use of computational tools is supported by an intelligent tutor software program as part of the regular curriculum for 9th grade algebra. On average, the 470 students in the experimental classes outperformed students in comparison classes by 15% on standardized tests and 100% on tests targeting the curriculum-focused objectives (Koedinger et al., 1999). At this time the algebra curriculum (PUMP) and intelligent tutor (PAT) are used in 70 schools, nationwide.

Teachers observe significant change in student skills and knowledge acquired after their first multimedia project. The Just in Time model for multimedia training enabled university content and instructional design specialists to provide teachers with skills as they were needed for completion of specified products and projects. After student completion of the first multimedia project, teachers reported increased student knowledge in: a) research skills, b) research skills to locate content resources, c) capability to apply learning to real world situations, d) organizational skills and e) interest in the content. (Cradler & Cradler, 1999)