What I did not accomplish

3. I did not learn as much about the Texas Long-Range Plan for Technology as I wish that I could have. I feel that this is going to be very important for schools in the future. While wealthy schools may already have much of the technology needed to meet the criteria for the plan, schools with less money are going to find it hard to purchase new technology. I worry about the poor schools because I feel that as a new principal this is where I will most likely end up. I didn’t learn as much as I would have wanted because the class had to move on. The class did everything it was supposed to do.

Using Blogs to Communicate with the Community

8. School administrators need to start taking advantage of blogs. Blogs are inexpensive, easy to use, and can get information out quickly. These are all things that schools are looking for. School administrators can use blogs to interact with their communities without ever leaving their offices. Blogs could allow school administrators to inform the community of upcoming events or give details of events that had already occurred at the school. Blogs would be great for a school trying to do things like pass a bond. It would allow the school to get feedback from the public while getting the information out.

Concerns about Blogs

7. Blogs create two major problems for schools. The first is that blog sites are blocked by school internet filters. Unblocking blog sites would open up millions of blogs for students to read. Many of which might contain things that are not acceptable for students to see. The second problem is that everything a student post to a blog is out there for the world to see. This would open students up to online predators. It would be a major disaster if an online predator met a student through a school blog. Also if the blogs were not monitored tightly, the blogs could turn into a sort of MySpace for students.

Educational Value of Blogs

6. Blogs are going to be an important part of the future of education. Blogs are one way that will allow learning to become a twenty-four hour a day process. A teacher can start a blog about a topic and let the students take over. It would be like having a classroom discussion that never stopped. Students could comment a home or in class. Also students could create their own blogs about a subject. Schools could team up with schools across the globe. This would allow students in different countries to comment on other student’s blogs. Using blogs would allow teachers to create a global atmosphere without ever leaving their classroom.

What I Learned

5. The first thing I learned from this course is that I work for a great school district. After viewing our campus STaR Chart I was very impressed. I now know that not everyone gets to work at a campus that provides each student with a laptop and every classroom with a Smart Board. By being provided all of this technology I have learned to do a lot of things using technology. I am above most teachers in the things I can do using a computer. I also realized that to be a good principal I am going to have to continue to learn about technology and that being good with technology is going to be a major asset to me.

Assignments

4. I believe that I was successful in my assignments; however my academic coach might beg to differ. I turned in all of my assignments on time and usually had them done a day or two in advance. I would just hang on to them until the last day just in case a great idea popped into my head. The only problem that I had with some of the assignments was that the assignments were so open. In all of my past classes I had been given step by step instructions on how to complete the assignments. In this class it almost seemed that I was given free range on some assignments. The problem with that is that the entire time I was working I was afraid that I was on the totally wrong track. This could also be a good thing because it forced me to contemplate several different options.

Was the class relevant to my job?

2. The things that I learned in this class are relevant to my everyday job in some ways. As a technology director my main responsibility is the constant upkeep of all school technology. This includes everything from computers to the school’s internet server. I probably only spend ten percent of my time doing things that deal with the STaR Chart, Long-Range Technology Plan, or professional development. While those things are the base for everything that I do, I spend most of my time on upkeep. I use all of the things that I learned in this class, but sadly it always seems that other things are more important to the people around me.

Outcomes Envisioned

1. After the first week’s assignment I thought this class was going to be a sort of introduction to technology in education. I thought we would do things like learn how to use the internet and PowerPoint. I thought this class was going to be a walk in the park. I was totally wrong on all of those assumptions. This class made me think. The last two assignments were so open that I had to just sit and think about all of the possibilities. I achieved the outcomes I thought that I would and then some. I did use PowerPoint and the internet, but I also learned so much more. The course outcome did not align with what I had envisioned. I had envisioned a class about how to use technology where I would learn nothing. Instead I learned about everything from the Long-Range Technology Plan to blogging.

Technology Action Plan

Action Plan for Integrating Technology

Part 1 = Gathering Information
The following groups will each be assigned a task. Each task will help see what is needed for us to integrate technology into the classroom better. All groups will return their findings to the superintendent.
1. Campus Principal
a. Go to a school in another district that has successfully integrated technology
b. Determine what technology campus will need
2. Site-Based Committee
a. Determine what technology campus will need
b. Determine how community will feel about increasing technology
3. Technology Director
a. Inventory technology that district already has
b. Determine what technology district needs
i. Prioritize list
ii. Try to find technology that will compliment technology that district already owns
c. Determine the increase in funding needed for upkeep of additional technology
d. Determine cost of professional development to educate staff about new technology
4. Special Needs Director
a. Determine what grants there are for technology
b. Determine if the school is eligible for these grants
i. If so, begin paper work for grant
ii. If not, what does the school need to do to become eligible?
5. Curriculum Coordinator
a. Determine what technology campus will need
b. Determine if it will be more cost efficient to move away from paper books in the classroom
6. Business Manager
a. Determine what the school has budgeted for integrating technology
b. Determine if the school can pull funds out of other budgets to increase technology budget
7. Committee of Department Heads.
a. Go to a school in another district that has successfully integrated technology
b. Determine what technology campus will need

Part 2 = Creating and Approving Plan
At this point the Superintendent, Campus Principal, Committee of Department Heads, and the Site-Based Committee will create a plan that includes what technology will be purchased. Using a sort of checks and balances procedure will ensure that the best plan is created. The Superintendent will then take the plan to the School Board for approval. If approved, the technology will be purchased and begin to be implemented.

Part 3 = Implementing the technology
1. The new technology will be given to the teachers for 2 weeks to allow the teachers time to become accustomed with the new technology before receiving professional development.
a. During these two weeks the teachers will be given a technology placement exam. This exam will identify the teachers’ high and low points of technology knowledge.
b. The campus principal will then decide on what professional development needs to occur for the technology to actually be used.
2. The staff will receive professional development about the new technology.
a. Professional development will provide staff with both knowledge of product and specific examples of how to use the technology within their teaching field
3. The staff will receive professional development based on their low points from the technology placement exam.
4. The principal will hold a staff meeting to tell the staff what is expected of them with the new technology.
a. Staff will be told that they are expected to use the technology in class
b. Staff will be told that refusal to do so will result in nonrenewal or reassignment within the district
5. Principal will monitor use of technology through use of classroom walkthroughs, technology sweeps, by monitoring classroom computers through his computer, and by just asking the students.
a. The assistant principal, curriculum coordinator, and the technology director will also aid in this process.
6. After three months will hold a refresher professional development. At this time teachers will be asked to show ways that they have used the technology in the classroom.

Professional Development Planning
Teachers will be given a technology placement exam to allow the administration to provide professional development that the teacher’s actually need. The teachers will also be provided with professional development that will provide the staff with the knowledge needed to use the new technology.
Professional Development to be given:
1. How to use technology that was purchased
a. Teachers will be broken down by subject and shown how to use the hardware for their classes
2. Copyright Laws
a. Teach ethical legal behavior for technology
b. Teach teachers to teach students the same behavior
3. Protecting Students from Online Predators and Themselves
4. Good Search Engines
a. Teachers will learn how to use search engines better and more efficiently
5. After three months with the technology, will have teachers show examples of how they are using the technology

Evaluation Plan
1. Evaluate Professional Development
a. Principal will email teachers asking what professional development that they believe that they need
b. After each professional development the principal will email teacher about what the teachers learned in the professional development
c. Campus principal will attend each professional development
2. STaR Chart
a. Each year principal will review both teacher and campus STaR Charts