Technology Plan evaluation
Reflection
Technology has become a key aspect of the 21st century district. Goose Creek’s technology plan was set up in 2009 and has been revised, and is a document that does not receive a lot of attention by teachers. In fact, until this assignment, I was not aware that a technology plan even existed. The plan is extremely similar to campus improvement plans that are specific for each campus. The plan places a lot of emphasis on growing technology within the district. Like Moore (2006) the district is considering “how technology can accelerate or advance the strategic goals of the district” (pg. 8).
This vision requires a lot of collaboration between the educational technology department and the curriculum and instruction department. These interactions between the Curriculum and Instruction division and the educational technology department are extremely important. The budget for infrastructure is also a key component to the overall plan and paying for internet usage becomes a large part of the budget where the actual money for outside professional development is limited at only $31,970.86 for staff development (York, 1). Like a campus improvement plan the technology plan should be a vision for the use of technology in the district. The vision for that technology implementation in the classroom has changed markedly over the past 5 years, and while the plan has changed significantly as technology has advanced. The interview with Steve Koester that happened after the initial review of the technology plan helped to shed light on what the district plans on doing to help usher things in for the next century. My interview with the technology director helped me to realize the plan not only for high school but for the other grade levels as well. I do not have a lot of experience with how technology is implemented with other grade levels. I was very curious about other levels outside of high school. In elementary school students are separated into small groups. These groups get technology time every week. 5th grade becomes a time where students get to take home a laptop. More formal education with technology starts in 6th grade, while social studies classes use laptops a lot in class for 6th through 8th grade. High school, until this last year, has primarily only given access to technology in computer labs for classes and laptop carts used by teacher request. Next year however, teachers and students will have 24/7 access to iPads starting next year when the new high school 1:1 initiative is put in place. This massive change next year has forced the district to not only reevaluate their plan for high school technology, but also to reinforce their infrastructure. The addition of a larger broadband backbone is one that shows the expansion of the network resources is important.
Goose Creek CISD states that there is a committee for Network Access and Restriction, but it lacks any stakeholders to help assess those topics. This is extremely troubling, as there does not seem to be a problem with excluding stakeholders that are in the classroom. The collection of data also seems to not be complete as the district relies on the Star Chart to help determine needs of the district, but does not look at overall proficiency of teachers in the district. This combined with more anecdotal data gathering seems to need a lot more data to help determine the course of the district, as well as the proper utilization of technology.
I actually did learn a lot about the district and their views on technology. The plan has changed a lot since its inception. One to one initiatives have gained massive traction since I started in 2009. It is important for the district to reevaluate this plan and make sure that the plan for all students and teachers is in place to create an environment where technology is used effectively.
Goose Creek CISD has a lot of resources available to them and to the teachers in the district. The district is has combined a strong infrastructure with a commitment for the future. Steve Koester and I talked about how the district is supporting the learner and the educator in the final part of our talk. He talked about the inclusion of a new software program called AirWatch that would allow for the district to share resources and even provide Internet filtering while at home. This secures the devices and reduces the risk of collaboration between devices. This helps the technology infrastructure people at the district breathe a little easier. Programs like these also reduce the cost of implementing iPads, as apps can be shared and then taken back from a device when a student moves away or graduates.
As an educator, it is important to know the technology plan for the district that you work for. If I had taken time to understand the vision and the goals for the district, I feel that I could have been more constructive in helping to support those goals. Often teachers are left with a sense of frustration about technology or lack of it. If a teacher takes the time to understand the district position it becomes a lot easier to operate within that framework that the district provides. Technology as a tool for education is still a relatively new idea in education. As with anything else, a new idea is like a plant that needs to be allowed to grow, but also may need to be pruned back once in a while. The successful implementation of technology depends on a lot of factors. The infrastructure is just as important as the educational support.
References:
Moore, R.J. (2006, August). The five best accelerators in school. School Administrator, 63.7, p. 8.
York, T. (2012, June 29). Goose Creek CISD Technology Plan. Retrieved April 17, 2014, from http://schools.gccisd.net/users/0038/docs/GCCTech%20Plan_%202012%20-%202014.pdf
This vision requires a lot of collaboration between the educational technology department and the curriculum and instruction department. These interactions between the Curriculum and Instruction division and the educational technology department are extremely important. The budget for infrastructure is also a key component to the overall plan and paying for internet usage becomes a large part of the budget where the actual money for outside professional development is limited at only $31,970.86 for staff development (York, 1). Like a campus improvement plan the technology plan should be a vision for the use of technology in the district. The vision for that technology implementation in the classroom has changed markedly over the past 5 years, and while the plan has changed significantly as technology has advanced. The interview with Steve Koester that happened after the initial review of the technology plan helped to shed light on what the district plans on doing to help usher things in for the next century. My interview with the technology director helped me to realize the plan not only for high school but for the other grade levels as well. I do not have a lot of experience with how technology is implemented with other grade levels. I was very curious about other levels outside of high school. In elementary school students are separated into small groups. These groups get technology time every week. 5th grade becomes a time where students get to take home a laptop. More formal education with technology starts in 6th grade, while social studies classes use laptops a lot in class for 6th through 8th grade. High school, until this last year, has primarily only given access to technology in computer labs for classes and laptop carts used by teacher request. Next year however, teachers and students will have 24/7 access to iPads starting next year when the new high school 1:1 initiative is put in place. This massive change next year has forced the district to not only reevaluate their plan for high school technology, but also to reinforce their infrastructure. The addition of a larger broadband backbone is one that shows the expansion of the network resources is important.
Goose Creek CISD states that there is a committee for Network Access and Restriction, but it lacks any stakeholders to help assess those topics. This is extremely troubling, as there does not seem to be a problem with excluding stakeholders that are in the classroom. The collection of data also seems to not be complete as the district relies on the Star Chart to help determine needs of the district, but does not look at overall proficiency of teachers in the district. This combined with more anecdotal data gathering seems to need a lot more data to help determine the course of the district, as well as the proper utilization of technology.
I actually did learn a lot about the district and their views on technology. The plan has changed a lot since its inception. One to one initiatives have gained massive traction since I started in 2009. It is important for the district to reevaluate this plan and make sure that the plan for all students and teachers is in place to create an environment where technology is used effectively.
Goose Creek CISD has a lot of resources available to them and to the teachers in the district. The district is has combined a strong infrastructure with a commitment for the future. Steve Koester and I talked about how the district is supporting the learner and the educator in the final part of our talk. He talked about the inclusion of a new software program called AirWatch that would allow for the district to share resources and even provide Internet filtering while at home. This secures the devices and reduces the risk of collaboration between devices. This helps the technology infrastructure people at the district breathe a little easier. Programs like these also reduce the cost of implementing iPads, as apps can be shared and then taken back from a device when a student moves away or graduates.
As an educator, it is important to know the technology plan for the district that you work for. If I had taken time to understand the vision and the goals for the district, I feel that I could have been more constructive in helping to support those goals. Often teachers are left with a sense of frustration about technology or lack of it. If a teacher takes the time to understand the district position it becomes a lot easier to operate within that framework that the district provides. Technology as a tool for education is still a relatively new idea in education. As with anything else, a new idea is like a plant that needs to be allowed to grow, but also may need to be pruned back once in a while. The successful implementation of technology depends on a lot of factors. The infrastructure is just as important as the educational support.
References:
Moore, R.J. (2006, August). The five best accelerators in school. School Administrator, 63.7, p. 8.
York, T. (2012, June 29). Goose Creek CISD Technology Plan. Retrieved April 17, 2014, from http://schools.gccisd.net/users/0038/docs/GCCTech%20Plan_%202012%20-%202014.pdf