Running Head: SHARED VISION & RATIONALE 1

Shared Vision & Rationale

Megan Rucker

ITEC 7410

Spring 2017

Dr. Ribble
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Shared Vision & Rationale

Vision Statement

Students, parents, teachers, administrators and other stakeholders for Paulding

County High School aim to prepare students for their future beyond high school. With

this in mind, technology will be used to develop transferable skills that will extend

beyond high school. In an increasingly digital world, technology proficiency is a

necessary component in any profession. Stakeholders will demonstrate technology use

that encourages higher order thinking and authentic tasks. The purpose of higher order

thinking activities and authentic tasks are to provide opportunities for learning beyond

what can normally be accomplished in the classroom. Professional development

workshops and collaborative assessment/ instruction design will be used to foster a belief

in the effectiveness of technology tools. Technology tools will be provided equitably

during the school day as well as at designated times before and after school every week to

provide equal access to tools for all students.

Rationale

Over the last several weeks I have had a number of opportunities to find out more

about the way technology is viewed in my school. After interviewing my principal, I

believe I have a better understanding of technologys place in my school from an

administrative stance. When asked what he believes technologys role is in the classroom,

Mr. Wilcox explained that it should be used to support learning rather than replace it. He

explained that he has some concerns that technology is used at times to replace good

instruction. He also expressed concerns that teachers are often the ones using technology

rather than the students (2017). This is supported by some of the results of a survey
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given by the business and technology department recently. According to the survey 58%

of respondents never use technology to help students analyze information or think

creatively, and an additional 16% only do so once in a semester. However, 58% of

teachers said that they use a presentation tool like PowerPoint a few times a week (Hall,

2017). This perfectly reflects the principals concern that most teachers are the ones using

technology. Additionally a report of the lab sign-ups reflects only the tasks teachers have

students use technology for. This report reflects 20% of teachers used the lab for an

online lesson, 22% for a project or presentation, 19% for word processing, 17% for test

prep, and 22% for research. An additional 16 periods were used for testing. While online

lessons could consist of a wide variety of things, other lab activities consist of a mixture

of critical thinking tasks and tasks that replace regular classroom activities like typing

and test prep (Church, 2017). The results of the surveys as well as the lab sign up forms

reflect the need for a change in vision and the need for more training with the tools we

currently have. Both the school and county focus mission and vision statements place a

great emphasis on becoming ready for life after graduation, so a shift of vision would

support these ideas. As is written in the Essential Conditions, When students take

responsibility for their own learning, they become explorers capable of leveraging their

curiosity to solve real-world problems (ISTE, 2009). When students are able to problem

solve authentic tasks they will be more ready for life after high school. While we still

look at technology in its simplest form, we are unable to use its full potential.

A survey that I administered to a few stakeholders reflected a similar breakdown,

with most participants using technology for research, word processing, and presentations.

Additionally, the survey provided insight into possible reasons why teachers do not use
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more higher order thinking activities with their students. Around a third of teachers

reflected a lack of confidence in basic troubleshooting skills and knowledge of potential

tools. Similar to the survey given by the business and technology department, teachers

on my survey said that they rarely use digital tools to reinforce content.

A few of the comments on the surveys highlighted some of my findings.

According to one teacher, I think technology can be used to help struggling or special

needs students and be a gateway or accessible avenue for some students. This comment

reflects the misconception that technology offers limited possibilities and only for some

students. The teacher considers technology a good source for remediation, but does not

perceive the possibilities for higher order thinking and extension.

Diversity Considerations

Two comments from the business and technology department survey pointed to

concerns in accessibility at our school. One teacher commented that

At the high school level we could use more ideas/apps that use phones as that's

the main product in BYOD. The wi-fi also needs to work better because it's often

frustrating for teachers and students when a technology lesson is planned and

students can't connect. I think teachers like to and would use technology more if it

worked better and if there were ideas/training offered. (Hall, 2017).

Another teacher made a similar comment, The lack of viable technology hinders

bringing it into the classroom. Hard to implement activities I've done at previous schools

due to the lack of technology resources and the out of date equipment provided (Hall,

2017). Both of these comments reflect the concerns teachers in the school have about the

adequacy of our current tools. In many areas of the school, the wifi is weak, and the
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computer labs are often taken up or not large enough for class sizes. Because PCSD is a

BYOT district, students come to school with a large variety of devices. Because teachers

are not exposed to all of the different types of devices, taking advantage of BYOT outside

of basic research tasks is difficult.

Additionally many students at PCHS have no devices at all and are often at a

disadvantage to other students. PCHS is not Title I, but it is a low income school. One

way that PCHS could more adequately address the needs of all students is to reorganize

the computer labs. Currently not all of the computer labs fit a full class of students. This

could either be addressed by creating four full sized computer labs rather than having 5

labs of varying sizes, or it could be addressed by asking teachers to only signup for labs

that match the size of their class. This would allow for the opportunity for more teachers

to make use of lab time and incorporate technology into their lessons. Another way to

make technology more equitable is to offer open lab time on certain days before and after

school. Many of our students who ride buses get to school very early and could take

advantage of this lab time for class projects.

Finally, the most important tool for providing equal access to technology for all

students is teacher training. One way that I would attempt to foster digital citizenship is

by providing teachers with the resources and collaboration time needed to develop

technology rich higher order thinking tasks. As the ISTE Essential Conditions points out

equitable access means more than simply providing devices and connectivity. It also

means giving every student the opportunity to learn from teachers who understand how to

use technology to both enhance learning and create quality learning experiences for

students with special needs (ISTE, 2009). Providing this training to all teachers is
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important, but emphasizing the need to teachers of on-level and special needs students as

well as CTAE classes that traditionally serve female students will help ensure that all

students become college and career ready.

Stakeholder Roles

Instructional Coaches: Paulding County School District does not currently have a

salaried position for any type of instructional coach; however, they do encourage a

train the trainer program. Rather than creating a new position, collaboration leaders

could be trained and collaboration groups could work together to help address some

of these goals. It is often difficult to develop authentic tasks within the traditional

educational setting, so working collaboratively with a leader that is already in place

will build more ownership in the initiative.

Teacher: Once collaborative teams are established and a goal of incorporating more

authentic tasks is addressed, teachers will be responsible for managing devices,

provide basic troubleshooting, and insure equal access. Teachers will provided a

number of ways for students to express their knowledge, provide opportunities for

creative problem solving, and support application of skills.

Parents: Parents will be responsible for maintaining contact with teachers and using

tools like Canvas, Infinite Campus, and teacher website to stay up-to-date on current

projects and tools students are using in class.

Students: Students will be responsible for using school wifi responsibly and

downloading the apps and tools required for class. Those students that do not have

access to a mobile device will have access to the limited netbooks and classroom

student computers. Students will take advantage of authentic and interest based tasks

to show their skill and knowledge.

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Administrators: Administrators will organize and provide training to collaborative

leaders. Administrators will also be responsible for providing constructive feedback

on the integration process.

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References

Church, G. (2017). Computer lab sign-up form. Paulding County High School Media

Center.

Hall, W. (2017). Teacher technology use. Paulding County High School Business and

Technology.

International Society for Technology in Education (2009). Essential Conditions.

Retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/tools-resources/essential-conditions

Wilcox, C. Personal communications. 30 Jan 2017.

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Appendix

Technology Survey

1. What do you feel the schools goal is for technology use?

2. How are you currently using technology in your classroom?

3. How confident are you in your ability to troubleshoot problems?

4. Do you feel that technology use is important in all classrooms?

5. How confident are you in your ability to use technology with your students?

6. Do you feel supported in your attempts to use technology with your students?

7. Are you willing to allow for struggle time during your class to make sure students

are able to overcome the learning curve of using a new tool?

8. Do you believe that the tools currently offered allow your students to use

technology in a way that supports higher order thinking?

9. What could the school do realistically to improve technology integration in our

school?

10. What can the school do for you to make you more comfortable using technology

with your students?

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