Major Steps:
to learn and get help. It is a disruptive shift to move from being the teacher with the answer key in hand to being a facilitator of self-directed learning. Teachers have to
have support or they will not risk the change.
1. Teaching with Technology
1.1Assist teachers in learning to use the resources available to extend student learning and learning 21st Century communication and collaboration tools.
Measureable assessment:Evidence: Job embedded training will meet with each teacher for a one hour session to show teachers side-by-side how to enroll in Edmodo, Twitter, and to find forums to collaborate with other teachers.
Cost: One hour of in-sevice training and a graduate student volunteer.
90 % of Teachers will leave the workshop connected with a network of 5 other teachers as evidenced by following them on Twitter and watching this video by Will Richardson (TED talk).
1.2 Use digital images and graphics in products and enable students to do the same.
Evidence: Teachers will use multimedia projections to enrich lessons and students will use cameras to record projects, dramas, oral recitations, create documentaries, etc.
Cost: Acquisition of 5 hand held digital camera/ video cameras. Consider receiving donated iPhones that do not have a monthly data plan.
90% of Teachers will each create a multimedia slideshow as a digital showcase of student work containing: digital images of student products, a video clip of recorded student oral work, and a set of 3 photos that show a progression of learning.
1.3 Learn to access the power of many by finding and connecting with other educators to share lessons.
Evidence: Teachers will share in a brown bag lunch session each week what kinds of forums they have been accessing to find useful lessons that have already been designed and shared.
Cost: Lunch room attendant once per week. Consider parent volunteers.
90% of teachers will attend the event weekly to discuss and share ideas for where they are finding ideas for lessons.
50% of students will create an exhibit for the "I made this fair" and exhibit it after school during the hours of parent pick up. Judges from outside the school will award certificates. At least 30% of parents will attend and be given flyers on how to better access the communication sites and encouraged to enroll in text feeds, follows and rss feeds. Parents who indicate a lack of technology skills will sign up to be contacted about future parent oriented events.
1.4 Demystify technology hardware to train teachers and students to troubleshoot basic problems.
Evidence: teachers will reference the handouts and reduce the number of support requests that escalate to the building principal or to the Network Specialist.
Cost: Current staff will recruit volunteers to create videos and technology handouts to train teachers and students.
Measureable assessment:1.5 Create real-world projects through project-based learning embedded with technology that prepare students to work in digital environments.
Evidence: Students will display their products at an "I made this" exhibit where parents and the community attends a public showcase of student projects. Some projects may also be passed up to the correct authorities to further implement the findings of the projects.
Cost: Afterhours use of building facilities and labs. Security.
Measureable assessment:
50% of students will create an exhibit for the "I made this fair" and exhibit it after school during the hours of parent pick up. Judges from outside the school will award certificates. At least 30% of parents will attend and be given flyers on how to better access the communication sites and encouraged to enroll in text feeds, follows and rss feeds. Parents who indicate a lack of technology skills will sign up to be contacted about future parent oriented events.According to President Obama, "Pay attention to the stuff kids make. It is important."
1.6 Use data from the gradebook and student performance to make decisions regarding curriculum and lessons.
Evidence: Teachers will use information to make data driven decisions about the lessons needed. Some lessons will be omitted as unnecessary and others will be added to the scope and sequence each year to adjust the instruction to the needs of each learner.
Cost: Additional printing costs
Measureable assessment: Teachers will be asked to submit a reflection once per marking period about how they adapted their lessons based on student performance from the data collected in the gradebook.
Goal 2. Student use of Internet to create and collaborate.
2.1 Leverage the existing technology to increase student engagement through the use of multimedia.
Evidence: Students will participate in a pair of surveys--the first asking general learning style and multimedia skills questions, the second given after several months of hands-on, will focus on the learner's reflections on his own learning.
Cost: creation of 2 assessments
Measureable assessment:90% of students will complete both surveys and will show a self-reported change in skills and an improvement in final products that include creativity, engagement, problem-solving, initiative and job-like skills.
2.2 Increase Internet safety by educating students about the dangers and responsibilities of digital citizenship.
Evidence: Each year students will participate in a class discussion and role play.
Cost: Curriculum or donated materials that have active engagment. Creation of the pledge form.
Measureable assessment:90 % of students will sign in agreement to a pledge containing basic principles of Internet safety and digital citizenship.
2.3 Create showcases for digital products to share beyond the classroom and generate traffic to validate student work with comments.
Evidence: Visible to visitors and students, student work will be on display in a physical digital showcase (tv, computer playing screencasts and slideshows of stills,) and on-line in a social networking site, for example Edmodo or FaceBook so that others can access student created materials for comment.
Measureable assessment:60% of the time (most of the time as reported by the principal) a digital showcase will be showing student created projects. Teachers will utilize this forum for helping gather comments to support student work. Teachers will share annecdotes of incidents to help inspire continued Technology integration.
2.4 Teach students to access information to become self-directed learners.
Evidence: Showcase in entry lobby and student showcase visible as a link from schools homepage.
Cost: One donated computer and monitor dedicated to the display.
Measureable assessment:100% of students will conduct a personal research project of their own choosing over time as a part of their study each year. They will meet weekly with the computer teacher as mentor to evaluate their progress and set goals. Digital portfolios in the form of a 1-2 minute video will show evidence of student learning and will be shown on the digital display and on the school webpage.
Domain: Management
Major Steps:
Goal 3. Communication.
3.1 Use Web 2.0 tools to open communication between parents, the school and the community.
Cost: none
Evidence: on going job embedded inservice in a learning community, number of subscribers/followers to the services
Evidence: on going job embedded inservice in a learning community, number of subscribers/followers to the services
Measureable assessment:
At the meet the teacher night, teachers, parents, and community supporters will be given the first of 2 surveys about their technology skills. At the Christmas pagent, a second survey will be given to assess the effect of increased communications.
3.2 Use Gradebook program to help students monitor their own progress.
Cost: subscription fees
Evidence: student log ins to the the program available on a report.
Measureable assessment:Student gradecheck hits will increase by 50%.
3.3 Use social networking and podcasting to keep the community, sponsors and parents informed about student products and needs.
Cost: none
Evidence: on going job embedded inservice in a learning community, number of new posts, site traffic
Measureable assessment:The number of subcribers to the school blog will increase to 50% of the parents. Content will be refreshed at least once a month.
3.4 Create internship positions for students from Caldwell High School to work with students in a more individualized setting to master technology and create a knowledge base of skills.
Evidence: student in building for 3 to 5 hours per week each in the lab and in classrooms.
Cost: publicity and screening, background check
Measureable assessment:
One student from the high school will be present in the computer lab or classroom for at least 3 hours per week as evidenced by a sign-in sheet in the lab.
3.5 Use videoconferencing to work collaboratively with other schools and subject matter experts.
Evidence: Virtual fieldtrips and guest speakers via videoconference will be announced and posted on the schools homepage.
Cost: videoconferencing equipment has already been donated
Cost: videoconferencing equipment has already been donated
Measureable assessment:
In the lab log, teachers will complete a short reflection piece consisting of two parts:
at sign out, teachers will anticpate the use of the videoconferencing lab objectives. Upon return, the other reflection over the impact of the event on student learning will be collected. These will be shared on the school blog and at brown bag lunches.
Domain: Funding
Major Steps:
As a faith-based institution, the philosophy and founding mission of the school depends on prayer and as-needed provision by the hand of God through believers. While parents pay tuition, much of the needed funds are donated by community members. If the school has a funding excess, then the school policy is to pray for guidance. In the past, the staff has decided to use reserves to help other private schools or mission projects. Building on-going funds for long-term stability seems to contradict this principle of living by faith. To date, every technology need of the school has been met or even exceeded by private donations given at the time there was a need. The first step in changing this would require a new view of the timeline of need. Establishing an inventory with expirations and expected replacement dates may help staff and steering committee realize that technology is not in the same durable asset catagory as playground equipment or desks, but rather more like consumables such as workbooks that need to be replaced more frequently. With committee approval, then the search for an on-going source of revenue, for example, an annual benefit dinner, could begin.
Goal 4. Initiate long-term planning for future technology needs
(18 months ago the school raised 20,000 for an initial outfitting of the labs,peripherals, software, and network. Rather than wait until all machines need updating, begin a cycle of replacement in more manageable quantities.)
Evidence: a committee will form and begin long range planning as evidenced by agenda and minutes.
Evidence: a committee will form and begin long range planning as evidenced by agenda and minutes.
Cost: publicity, background checks.
4.1 Create a vision for technology committee to support the schools technology needs from stakeholders including:
the faculty, the student body, parents, former students, steering committee members.
the faculty, the student body, parents, former students, steering committee members.
Evidence:committee agendas and minutes
Cost: recruiting costs, background checks
Measureable assessment:
By August 15, 2012 the initial meeting of interested people will by held to discuss inventory methods and potential sources of on-going revenue.
4.2 create a fund that generates income to update technology on a cycling basis.
Evidence: an accumulation of funds statement from local bank.
Cost: Investment Advice, advertising to create enery/excitement,
Measureable assessment:
A fund will be established. It will be supported by an annual event large enough to accumulate $2000-$5000 per year. Because the school has all new technology, there are no current needs. The funds will be held in reserve to provide for future needs.
4.3 create an inventory of assets (date of purchase, warrantee, expected life) to predict when they will need to be replaced and begin a schedule of retiring out of date technology.
Evidence: Technology assets are labeled, and a database of other information is shared as view only to stakeholders.
Cost: Labels and tracking software
Measureable assessment:
90% of technology assets will have a number and be logged into a tracking spreadsheet that will be reviewed by the technology committee at regular intervals.
References
Cybersmart (2012). Digital Citizenship Lesson Plans and Activity Sheets. Retrieved March 4, 2012 from http://cybersmartcurriculum.org/digitalcitizenship/lessons/
National Educational Technology Standards: NETs for Students 2007
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForStudents/2007Standards/NETS_for_Students_2007.htm
http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs/NETS_for_Student_2007_EN.sflb.ash
http://www.iste.org/Content/NavigationMenu/NETS/ForStudents/2007Standards/NETS_for_Students_2007.htm
http://www.iste.org/Libraries/PDFs/NETS_for_Student_2007_EN.sflb.ash
National Educational Technology Standards: NETs for Teachers 2008
Obama, B. (2012) The White House Science Fair. Retrieved on March 4, 2012 from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/07/obama-white-house-science-fair_n_1260284.html
State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) Assessments Comparison Chart for the 2011-2012 School Year
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=2147504245&libID=2147504239
Tsui, A. , Ng, M. (2000). Do secondary L2 learners benefit from peer comments? JOURNAL OF SECOND LANGUAGE WRITING, 9 (2), 147 ± 170 (2000) Retrieved March 4, 2012 from http://www0.hku.hk/curric/amytsui/bk_reviews/docs/Do_Secondary_L2_Writers_Benefit_from_Peer_Comments.pdfhttp://www.tea.state.tx.us/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=2147504245&libID=2147504239
Twitter4teachers wiki Retrieved March 4, 2012 from http://twitter4teachers.pbworks.com/w/page/22554534/FrontPage
