Private School - Susan Bevier

Week 10 discussion questions:

1.      How do your proposed strategies (Week 8 Step 6) meet the required standards as your Week 6 Step 4 stated?

2.      Review the reading materials in Technology domain to propose using other standards which are not adopted by your studied school. Explain why those new standards should be considered for your studied school.

Rawson-Saunders School is a private school, and is not required to satisfy requirements set by the federal or state government.  We are accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS), which has joined with other accrediting organizations under the AdvancED umbrella. We are also a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS). Week 6, Step 4 included these standards. In writing Report II, I did supplement the required standards that were listed in Week 6 Step 4 to include the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) Essential Conditions because NAIS has endorsed NETS as the foundation of their standards.

The relevant SACS/AdvancED standards include:

Teaching and Learning:

3.11 Coordinates and ensures ready access to instructional technology, information and media services, and materials needed for effective instruction.

3.11 (a) Integration of technology into the instructional program in all classrooms to meet the needs of all learners

3.11 (b) Level of expectations held for technological sophistication and comfort of adults at school

Professional development and commitment to continuous improvement:

5.3 Establishes and implements a process to design, evaluate, and improve professional development and ensures participation by all faculty and staff

7.5 Provides research-based professional development for system and school personnel to help them achieve improvement goals

Financial:

5.5 Engages in long-range budgetary planning and annually budgets sufficient resources to support its educational programs and to implement its plans for improvement

Physical resources:

5.10 Provides technology infrastructure and equipment that is up-to-date and sufficient to accomplish the system’s goals

 (AdvancED, 2007)

NAIS enumerates principles for planning and managing the use of technology in private schools, which are to be used by administrators, teachers, and technology personnel. The principles are organized into the following categories:

1.      Leadership: The school administration will provide support in planning, implementation, and evaluation of technology integration, and will provide adequate resources for teachers and students.

2.      Teaching and Learning:  Teachers research, evaluate, and employ technology to support the curriculum to meet learning needs of the students, and use technology to transform learning through creation of new learning opportunities.

3.      Professional Development: Technology integration is recognized as a critical piece in teachers’ professional development, and provides both sufficient time and resources for implementation.

4.      Infrastructure and Administrative Operations: The school has adequate technology resources and technology staff to support efficient and effective administrative operations. (National Association of Independent Schools, 2010)

ISTE NETS specifies a set of essential conditions for effective integration of technology into learning:

1.      Shared Vision: All stakeholders in the educational community share a vision of technology in the school

2.      Empowered Leaders: All stakeholders are empowered to effect change

3.      Implementation Planning: A plan for technology integration is aligned with the shared vision

4.      Consistent and Adequate Funding: Funding for technology resources and personnel, and staff development is ongoing

5.      Equitable Access: All students, teachers, and staff have reliable access to relevant technology resources

6.      Skilled Personnel: Faculty and staff possess skills in selection and use of technology

7.      Ongoing Professional Learning: Educators have technology professional development and time to practice and share with colleagues

8.      Technical Support: Technology is maintained and personnel is available to answer questions

9.      Curriculum Framework: Digital-age learning exists within the curriculum content standards and is aligned

10.  Student-Centered Learning: All planning, teaching, and assessment is developed based on students’ needs and abilities

11.  Assessment and Evaluation: The use of technology is continually evaluated along with teaching and learning

12.  Engaged Communities: Support for integrated technology comes from partnerships and collaboration with the community

13.  Support policies: Technology resources are a part of the administration’s policies, financial planning, accountability measures, and incentive programs

14.  Supportive External Context: Technology integration is supported through policies and incentives set at the national, regional, and local levels.

(ISTE, 2010)

My management objectives are:

Goal 1: The administration will support fair and equitable access to technology to faculty, staff, and students so that they can effectively and efficiently perform required tasks.

·         Objective 1.1: Technology staff will maintain a current inventory of all technology resources

·         Objective 1.2: Technology staff will maintain a list of technology needs

·         Objective 1.3: Administration will form a technology committee consisting of representatives from the administration, department representatives, and technology coordinator which will meet at least once per semester to set technology direction of school, including maintaining the campus technology plan and evaluating the use of technology to support instruction.

Goal 2: The administration will support the development of competencies in ISTE’s National Education Technology Standards (NETS) for learning, teaching and leading.

·         Objective 2.1: Develop a list of staff and faculty technology competencies which define expectations

·         Objective 2.2: Perform a yearly needs assessment of staff and faculty technology skills.

·         Objective 2.3: To support all staff and faculty meeting technology competencies, provide professional development through workshops and mentoring that address needs.

·         Objective 2.4: Students demonstrate developmentally-appropriate technology skills and knowledge as defined in NETS-S; evidenced by accomplishment of authentic tasks documented in school records, lesson plans, portfolios, and observation.

·         Objective 2.5: Technology will be integrated into instruction will be as evidenced by lesson plans, teacher and student portfolios, and observation.

Strategies for these objectives:

Procedures for the strategies are partly included in the objectives, but are fleshed out here. I am assuming that the administration is in agreement with the goals and objectives within this plan.

1.      Create an updated and complete inventory of all technology

2.      Perform a needs assessment of technology needed for teaching, learning, and operations.

3.      Create a document listing all technology needs.

4.      Form a campus technology committee

5.      Technology committee reviews, makes any necessary revisions, and endorses this technology plan

6.      Technology committee creates vision statement for technology on campus

7.      Technology committee develops list of age-appropriate student technology competencies and determine how they will be assessed

8.      Based upon current research, NETS, and student technology competencies, technology committee develops list of faculty and staff technology competencies

9.      Assess current state of faculty and staff technology competency and comfort levels

10.  Create a list of needs based on the target technology competencies and the current state

11.  Prioritize the list of needs

12.  Based upon the stated technology direction, student competencies and subject curricula, develop list of strategies for technology integration in the classroom

13.  Identify which, if any, of these strategies are currently implemented and by whom.

14.  Designate these teachers as mentors who will work with Technology Coordinator to support expanded technology integration on campus

15.  Revise prioritized list of professional development needs if necessary

16.  Research professional development options to address prioritized needs

17.  Identify professional development costs, with identification of possibilities available at no cost

18.  Schedule professional development (if necessary, contract with provider)

19.  Referring to student, faculty, and staff competencies, inventory list, and technology integration strategies, prioritize technology purchases

20.  Create list of specifications for technology purchases

21.  Review technology funding options in school operating budget, fundraising, and grants. Identify available funds.

22.  Obtain bids on highest priority technology items

23.  Make technology purchases as funds allow and install

24.  Technology committee will periodically review and assess technology needs, professional development needs, and state of technology integration and address areas of concern

Because the ISTE Essential Conditions are the most comprehensive, I will use them as the basis of this alignment table:

ISTE’s Essential Conditions	Objectives (o) & Strategies (s)	AdvancED/SACS standards
Shared vision	1.3(o); 6 (s)	---
Empowered leaders	1.3(o); 4-8 (S)	---
Implementation Planning	1.3(o); 12(s)	3.11(a)
Consistent and Adequate Funding	21, 24(s)	5.5
Equitable Access	Goal 1	5.10
Ongoing Professional Learning	2.3(o), 9-18, 24(s)	5.3 & 7.5
Technical Support	(in technology goals)	---
Curriculum Framework	2.5(o), 12(s)	---
Student-Centered Learning	7,8,12(s)	---
Assessment and Evaluation	24(s)	---
Engaged Communities	---	---
Support Policies	Goals 1&2	---
Supportive External Content	2.4(o), 8(s)	---

As evidenced by this chart, the objectives and strategies are fully aligned with ISTE’s Essential Conditions except for one element, developing partnerships in the community to support technology.  The objectives and strategies are fully aligned are fully aligned with the AdvancED/SACS standards.

In considering other standards not adopted by my school, I examined the National Education Technology Plan (NETP). This plan is based on the recognition that “technology is at the core of virtually every aspect of our daily lives and work, and we must leverage it to provide engaging and powerful learning experiences and content, as well as resources and assessments that measure student achievement in more complete, authentic, and meaningful ways.” The plan identifies five key areas: learning, assessment, teaching, infrastructure, and productivity (U.S. Department of Education, 2010). My school should consider each of these areas as described in this plan.

·         Learning: The NETP states that we should look to creating an engaging, relevant, and personalized education for all students that mirrors their technology-filled world and the future. At the core of this approach is the student taking responsibility for his or her own learning. I would note that an extension of this is that teachers take model this learning style as well, and take responsibility for their professional development in technology. Teachers should not step back and claim they cannot use technology because no professional development is in place. I do hear this in my school, and it is an attitude that needs to change.

·         Assessment: Standards and assessments must include 21^st century competencies and expertise across the curriculum. Using cognitive research and theory about how students think in an interactive, media-rich environment, technology-based formative assessments can be used to make needed modifications in teaching as well as determine what students have learned for grading purposes, using data to drive continuous improvement. My school has not taken advantage of technology-based assessments.

·         Teaching: Use a connected teaching model, where teachers have the tools to incorporate content and resources to create, manage, and assess learning experiences that engage students. Teachers at my school have begun to explore this model, but have lacked to technology in the classroom to fully implement.

·         Infrastructure: The infrastructure must be in place in our schools to support the learning, teaching, and assessments described above. While my school is fully networked, support for mobile devices such as iPads is lacking.

·         Productivity: As in all parts of society, improved productivity is essential in education. Among the areas in which productivity can be improved: measuring educational progress in terms of “seat time,” groupings by age, teaching academic disciplines as individual entities, and pacing of instruction. My school relies on these traditional structures, but should be open to exploring new designs in education.

Resources

AdvancED. (2007). AdvancED Accreditation Standards for Quality School Systems. http://www.broward.k12.fl.us/k12programs/District_Accreditation/pdf/advanced_district_standards.pdf

International Society for Technology in Education. (2009). Essential conditions. Retrieved March 24, 2012, from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-students.aspx

National Association of Independent Schools. (2010). Technology use in private schools. Retrieved February 22, 2012, from  http://www.nais.org/about/seriesdoc.cfm?ItemNumber=149157&sn.ItemNumber=146810

U.S. Department of Education. (2010). National Education Technology Plan. Retrieved January 18, 2012, from http://www.ed.gov/technology/netp-2010