Unit 10

1. Give a brief overview of the information you found on these sites.
While both of the websites focused on technology in education, there was defintely a difference in the content of information each site provided.  The first site (AASA) seemed to really focus on a wide variety of different topics facing education far beyond just the scope of technology.  AASA has a really wide variety of weblinks which can give school leaders information and statistics on virtually every topic facing public education today from balanced calendars to school improvement to grants and funding. 

The CASTLE website, while still very interesting, was probably a little more philosphical in nature with less of a focus on what may be conventionally considered the "nuts and bolts" of a school leaders job.  However, a significant part of a successful school leader is to be a visionary and stay on the cutting edge of research and societal trends that affect education.  There is no question that each of these sites fill a very important niche in the toolkit of a district leader.

2. What information will be most useful to you as a school leader?
While both websites have a plethora of useful information, I really appreciated the wide spectrum of information provided in the AASA site.  Along with all of the information that the website provides just in itself, the weblinks are outstanding "quick find" resources for any number of pertinant issues facing superintendents.  For me personally, I really spent a lot of time following the weblink on balanced school calanders.  While there is no shortage of "major" issues facing us in public education today, I do believe that the move away from the 200+ year agrarian calendar is a critical move in the right direction, especially as we attempt to meet the needs of our most at-risk populations.  This move is going to require a tremendous amount of education for the general public as sacrificing the conventional summer break will be a very difficult and bitter pill for many to swallow.

Unit 9

1. Did you find the CoSn website useful?
I did feel the website was excellent and sas useful.  Obviously the information was most pertinant to leaders in the field of technology and/or district leaders, but it was a tremendous source of information over a wide variety of technology education related topics.

2. What information on the website was most useful to you?
I really appreciated the articles that dealt with the empowering the 21st century superintendent as well as those that talked in depth about the special challenges associated with being a district's technology director.  However, what I probably got the most out of was the information on cyber-security.  This issue, and more importantly how to ensure cyber safety in today's world, is something of critical importance and one that effects all aspects of the district.

3. How will information from this website help your Technology Committee?
The greatest challenge that I see which faces our technology committee is how to best prioritize the many different technology issues which face the district.  There is a tremendous number of forces in regards to technology that pulls our resources in a variety of different directions.  The challenge facing our committee is to use the information that is currently available to them to the best of their discretion and determine what is the best, most effective way, in which to make those expenditures.  The different information and insight provided in this website serves as a great tool that could be utilized by our technology committee to help decide how best to make those purchases.

4. What implications does this information have for technology planning in your school?
One thing that struck me was how the position of technology leader within a school district is such a unique, and relatively new, position as compared to other leaderships positions which are much more traditional.  While the challenges of a building principal and superintendent are varied, they are also very similar to challenges facing school leaders 25 years ago.  With that said, the position of technology director didn't even exist until a matter of a few years ago.  What this website seems to suggest is that major technology questions facing our district should not be made exclusively by the tech coordinator, but rather the responisibility should be shared by other district leaders as well as classroom teachers.

Share Wiki's

Here is my Wiki page that we use at my school to share lesson plans!!!
http://washingtonmckinleylessonplans.wikispaces.com/

Quiz #2

1. What school board-approved Internet policies does your district currently have?  Are these policies adequate for your district?  What policies do you need to update or add? 

The Pierre School District has an Acceptable Use Policy which governs the usage of the internet by both staff and students.  I found the policy to be pretty comprehensive in regards to what it included.  Obviously the Use Policy itself was very explicit in appropriate usage of the internet and included information and suggestions directly from the Child Internet Protection Act so as to thoroughly inform and protect the students and staff of the district.  The district also has a nine part Distance Learning Policy which very explicitly states the (very rare) conditions that must be met prior to a student taking a distance class for credit.

As I read through the policy and discussed it briefly with our Technology Coordinator, it does seem as if we are on solid ground in regards to our Acceptable Use Policy.  However, any policy that is related to technology must always be closely watched and frequently updated!  With the, fairly recent, eruption of Web 2.0 tools, the face of technology and education are always changing and our policies will need to match this revolutionary landscape.

2. How should a school district handle the issue of copyright, especially in regard to technology?

This is definitely an interesting topic, and one that, at first blush, did not feel was as strongly influenced by technology as I did upon further reflection.  Initially, my thought was that federal copyright laws are pretty explicit so the need for further school policy was redundant (i.e. what school has a murder or kidnapping policy?).  However, the dynamic of technology, as demonstrated by publications on the internet and sites like Napster, has certainly expanded the possibilities of copyright infringement and made everyone’s intellectual property more vulnerable.  So as society evolves, so must our policies.  While schools should obviously reference federal statute regarding copyright, we should also try to make the specific examples and expectations less ambiguous and have our technology committee continue to monitor changes so as to stay current in effort to prevent copyright infringement.

3. Is the use of the Internet in schools worth the dangers involved?  Why?  If yes, what can schools do to minimize those dangers?

ABSOLUTELY…hopefully nobody says otherwise J!  The primary function of the K-12 public school system is to prepare children to be successful as they make their way towards adulthood.  This preparation looked a certain way in 1920, substantially different in 1960, and again far different than in 2010 for the obvious reason that the world was a far different place in each of those eras.  As has been mentioned in class numerous times, we are in a Web 2.0 world where the computer is not just a tool to share information, but rather an instrument that allows for interaction, discussion, and relationship-creation between individuals and cultures that at one time would have seemed unimaginable.  No longer is the purpose of education to just give students the basic skills of reading, writing and arithmetic; we must now give them these skills plus the capacity to integrate them in this highly connected world. 

As the possibilities of the internet continue to evolve, so to do the potential pitfalls and dangers.  As the “Information Superhighway” began to make inroads into our schools in the late 90’s and early part of the 21^st century, some of our biggest concerns were students having access to pornographic materials and or other "naughty" websites.  While I in no way want to understate this continuing problem, we must also be aware that with the 2.0 capabilities come 2.0 dangers and recognize that the we must be even more vigilant in our protection of kids.  While firewalls and policies are an excellent starting point, there will probably never be a replacement for education, supervision and monitoring.  It is the role of all staff members to continue to be vigilant in our supervision duties, be that through electronic means or just good old fashioned moving around the room, to protect our students.

4. Why should school leaders utilize research when making technology purchases?  What does the current research say about the effectiveness of educational technology?

There are several reasons district leaders should utilize research, but I would submit that the three most critical are: 1. As an educational tool for the public; 2. To justify expenditures to the public and; 3. Assure that the district is making the wisest possible choice in regards to the spending of valuable and limited capital.  Obviously reasons one and two are closely connected as schools that do not successfully educate the public are not likely to have to justify the technology expenditures as they may have never been made.  The third way that research is critical is so that the technology department can be assured that the way they are spending their resources does the greatest amount of good for the largest number of students.

Fortunately, the results of recent research makes all three of the previously mentioned  reasons that much easier!  A true assessment of the vast possibilities that technology provides is difficult to quantify because it’s greatest strength in terms of student achievement is in the increased motivation and interest that it inspires.  However, as longer-term studies continue to be made, it is clear that even with the very easily measured areas such as reading, math, and especially writing, technology is having a very positive impact. 

5. Knowing the 2.0 tools such as blogs, wikis, podcasts and social networking tools engage and motivate students, why do many schools continue to block these powerful tools from students and teachers?  How do school leaders balance safety with access to 2.0 tools?

Fear has been and will always be a powerful motivator, and there is no question in my mind that it is the force exerting the greatest resistance on these tools in our schools.  This fear is real and it is for a variety of reasons; fear for children’s safety, fear of failure, fear of investing money, fear of change.  But, although all of those play a part, I would contend that the fear of the unknown is the most powerful!  As educators we pride ourselves in having a mastery over the content that we teach.  It is the expectation of ourselves to be able to speak intelligently on our area of expertise so as to answer any questions from our students.  The thought that we enter into an arena where the students have greater knowledge and experience is uneasy and certainly unchartered waters for most of us in the field.

As Dr. Hauge stated, there are four main weapons we have at our disposal by which we can allow students access to these tools, yet still provide them with the protection and safety they need.  First is good policy which states acceptable use of technology and stays current with trends and changes.  Secondly (and maybe the most overused in the past) is a sound firewall that protects the network as well as the students.  Third is to continually supervise and monitor the students.  And lastly (and most importantly) education!  We must provide our staff with the tools and know-how so that they can feel comfortable educating students with this format.

Unit 7

This was an interesting collection of research and, for me, important because it provided a volume of evidence supporting the educational investment into technology.  While trying to condense the research into a short review is a challenge, what I found striking was how the different articles seemed to suggest technology’s powerful impact on such a wide variety of academic settings including students with special needs, high school achievement scores, and probably most significantly, the long-term effects that technology has due to such a stark increase in motivation and interest.   I would say that the recommendations given in the report on the US DOE website was probably as concise as any could be in regards to summarizing the direction and commitment we must continue to make in order to continue the successful impact that technology has in our educational system.  The recommendations from the website suggested the following:

1. Improve access, connectivity, and requisite infrastructure;

2. Create more, high-quality content and software;

3. Provide more, sustained, high-quality professional development and overall support for

teachers seeking to innovate and grow in this domain;

4. Increase funding from multiple sources for a range of relevant activities;

5. Define and promote the roles of multiple stakeholders, including the public and private

sectors;

6. Increase and diversify research, evaluation, and assessment; and

7. Review, revise and update regulations and policy that affect in-school use of technology,

particularly regarding privacy, and security.

Some of the results mentioned above may be even tougher sells than say the purchase of laptops for high school students because things such as improved connectivity and additional professional development are truly necessary, but lack the tangible tool that a purchase of hardware provides.

As mentioned above, my reactions to this research is very positive for a variety of reasons, but mostly because it shows a wide variety of research that gives solid evidence of technology’s ability to impact achievement.  Often times detractors of technology, and I think specifically of the debate that often raged surrounding the 1-to-1 initiative, would point out that this investment would not increase test scores.  While virtually all of the research would suggest that the improvement is always going to be felt in a long-term way, there were several studies (most powerfully for me, the 3 year study in Michigan) that demonstrated more immediate results as well.

There is no question that having these studies is certainly one more powerful tool that educators and technology advocates can use to promote the continued investment in 21^st Century tools.  Instead of relying so heavily on anecdotal evidence such as positive comments from teachers and students as the main crux of the debate, we can point to specific cases of research where technology impacted the achievement of students from across the spectrum of grades, abilities, and interests.

Unit 6

1. Does your school have an Internet Acceptable Use Policy?
Yes.  It is outlined according to the Child Internet Protection Act and is seemingly very up to date and meets the needs of both our district and the current technologies available to our students.

2. Does your school have an Internet Publishing Policy?
Yes we do.

3. Does your school have a Distance Education Policy?
Yes.  Coming from an elementary background, I had never really considered a Distance Education Policy and upon first reading this week's question, didn't know for sure if we did have that policy.  I was pleasantly surprised to see that we do have a Distance Education Policy and it seems very thorough. 

4. What does your district do to keep these policies up to date?
Our Technology Committee meets yearly to update and approve the Technology Play which includes all of the aforementioned policies.  Our Technology Committee consists of our Technology Director, the Superintendent, the Director of Curriculum and Instruction, Tech Support Employee, three principals (one from each level; elementary, middle, high), and four teachers that represent the three different levels (plus two from the elementary). 

Unit 5 Copyright

1. Does your school district have a Copyright Policy? 
What we have is pretty limited.  There is mention of copyright in the student handbook and then it was also briefly covered in the internet use policy that all staff had to sign off on.  With that said, there is very little in regards to specifics about copyright and it certainly didn't go into great detail.

2. Does the Copyright Policy need to be updated to reflect technology issues?
The fact that it was mentioned in the internet use form certainly signals an understanding by the district that technology is one of the areas where copyright infringment is probably the most likely (and hardest to police I would suspect).  With that said, there is nothing in regards to specifics that address technology or the potential copyright violations that could occur.

3. Does your school district follow copyright laws?
I would certainly like to think we do!  With that said, policing and supervising the office copier is definitely one of my very low priorities throughout the course of the work day.  I do feel that our staff understands copyright restrictions and that our administration does a decent job of supporting those laws and doesn't promote breaking them.

4. What are your feelings about copyright laws?
Well obviously I understand the importance of the laws and certainly realize that, just like any other property, intellectual property should be valued and protected.  It does, at times, get to be a little gray though.  For example, two of our schools were a part of the Reading First grant and, with money through the grant, we bought copies of lesson maps for teachers to use when implementing their reading lessons.  The lesson maps are very structured tools that assist teachers in using the core textbook to plan high quality lessons that meet all of the Big 5 areas of reading instruction.  Many teachers took the high frequency words listed in the template and turned them into a smart board lesson which they created.  According to the copyright laws, those smartboard lessons could not be shared with teachers from the buildings that did not have the lesson maps, even though they were created by the teacher.  That seems a little extreme to me as I'm not sure a list of words (especially if they are put into a different order) qualify as intellectual property.  With that said, I'm not a lawyer and kind of like my job (and freedom) so we purchased the lesson maps for the other two schools.  :-)

Quiz 1 - October 2nd, 2010 EDU 615

1. Why should a school district have a website?  What should be on the website?

The two primary functions of a website, in my opinion, are as a vehicle for promoting your school and as a tool to share pertinant information with the community.  As has been discussed in our class, the responsibility to promote the local school district is paramount.  Be it to build public support for a project, attract possible families and students to the school, or even as a recruitment device for future employees, the school's website will often serve as that critical first impression for a school.  Secondly, a good website should serve as a provider of information for the public.  From the school lunch menu to upcoming events to the dissemination of test data, the website can serve as a great tool for people to stay connected to their local district.

As to the contents of the website, there are many things that I feel are essential; most notable among them is that it be kept current!  A website with outdated information appears shoddy, unprofessional, and reflects poorly on the district.  Obviously upcoming events, handbooks, links to teacher websites, and pictures of students and their activities are all components of an effective website.  Also, a teacher's page which provides links to the electronic copies of important school documents is important.

2. How do administrators and school boards keep a current vision of technology and the future?

Obviously each school must have a vision for the future, and any vision that is not integrally related to technology is doomed from the onset.  Probably the biggest key in meeting this vision is also the answer most often stated as weaknesses by various districts; and that is professional development.  There is no way that anyone, much less a busy school administrator or school board member, can be expected to just know about the changes in technology.  As has so often been mentioned, our world and the pace of technology is growing exponentially, so the need to stay up to date and be educated is of the utmost importance.  Whether it is through the investment of money or time, school leaders must commit the resources to professional development both with themselves and their staffs.

3. What information from the CEO Forum website is most useful?  How can that information be used?

For me personally, the STaR Chart was the most beneficial part of the CEO Forum.  The STaR chart served as an excellent tool to identify a district's strengths and weaknesses in the broad field of technology.  I see that information being useful in a variety of capacities.  Everything from educating the public on school needs to identifying the critical ways in which the school needs to focus their technology investment in order to improve learning.  But most significantly, the STaR Chart could serve as a baseline for the district's technology committee (and then for the administration and school board) as it develops a vision for how to best invest it's precious resources to meet future needs.  As one might guess, the investment in many schools, as indicated by completion of the STaR chart, should probably shift from heavy financial commitments in hardware to providing on-going professional development for staff so that they can use the already existing hardware more effectively for the students.

4. What are Web 2.0 tools?  How can these tools be used by schools to enhance classroom instruction?

Web 2.0 tools include things like Wiki Pages, blogs, and podcasts.  The distinguishing characteristic of the Web 2.0 tools is the ability it gives users to be interactive with others.  While earlier 1.0 versions were great ways for individuals to access data and ride the "information superhighway", the 2.0 tool truly gives people from all over the globe the ability to connect with one another.  This level of universal interaction moves the way that information is shared, and the speed of that collaboration, into an entirely new realm.  Blogs and Wikis allow like-minded individuals to connect in ways that even a decade ago would not have been thought of and has "personalized" the internet in ways previously not even imagined.

The possibilities that this brings to the classroom are endless.  While the 1.0 tools brought an unheard amount of information to the students' fingertips, the 2.0 version brings the information to life!  The interactive component of 2.0 increases student engagement and motivation in classroom activities tremendously.  What was once "just another report" now becomes an on-line chat and debate.  Instead of listening to only the assertive and outgoing students share ideas and thoughts, now the more reflective and introverted student has an opportunity to show classmates and teachers their knowledge base and values.  While information/education is power, the ability to use that information to exert influence is what leads to real power and success in today's world.  The 2.0 tools expands the ability for all learners to express themselves in a group setting.

5. What is CyberBullying?  What can schools do to help prevent CyberBullying?

Throw away all computers and destroy all cell phones, pagers, I-pods, etc!  Obviously that is not a serious answer.  Sadly, CyberBullying is just an electronic extension of what bullying has always been, and that is a form of harrassment that demeans and threatens our children.  The difference between CyberBullying and what we may consider traditional bullying is frightening because there is no escape from CyberBullying in today's world.  As connected as we all are, students are subjected to the harassment even in what should be the safety of their own homes.  Also, CyberBullying is more dangerous in that the sheer volume of harassers can be expanded because of the nature of electronic communications and the ability to spread gossip, compromising pictures, etc. so rapidly. 

As far as preventing it, there is no cure.  However, like all bullying, the best recipe involves a combination of empathy building and education.  It is critical that we try to build empathy between the bully and the victim by making them understand the pain and hurt that they are causing.  Also, we must educate young people on not only ways to avoid being targets, but also about the technology itself so that they understand the "permanent" nature of all electronic messaging and how those words or pictures almost never disappear.

Initial Blog

This is my initial blog.  I truly hope that I am doing this correctly.