Finding your vision in the ever changing world of technology

When developing a vision for technology many school leaders focus on the competencies embodied in 21st century skills.  Several organizations have developed frameworks around these skills.  The focus on skills rather than a specific device or application provides a better foundation for the ever changing world of technology.  But even skill based frameworks can be difficult to implement.  They are designed to be all encompassing and as a result are often too broad and difficult to communicate.  For example the Partnership for 21^st century skills “framework for 21^st century learning” is often referred to as the “4 c’s  (Communication, Creativity, Critical thinking and Collaboration ) yet these skills are a small part of the overall framework.  While the framework offers a “holistic view of 21^st century teaching and learning” exactly how school district leaders are to accomplish it remains amorphous.  So the question remains, how do you create a vision for technology when it changes so quickly?  It seems as soon as you settle on a device ,a newer, cheaper version comes along.  The ever changing nature of technology requires a vision that is not device or application specific.   Skills, equipment and applications all overlap and must be accounted for in a District vision.  As you frame your vision I would suggest these tenets as the basis of your plan, regardless of the technology you have or plan to purchase.   

Personalization

                                All of the technologies children gravitate toward are individualized.  The ipad, ipod, Facebook and Twitter all focus on the individual as the end user.  For the most part all of the these examples are able to be networked, giving the end user a unique experience; individual ‘profiles’ and customization coupled with the ability to share.  School leaders need to envision technology usage the same way.  A device that allows students to create a personalized experience unique to them ultimately leads to the most successful implementation.  In Mineola we have found that the ipad has proven to be the device that provides unique and tailors learning for every child.  We have partnered with eSpark, a company that uses engaging apps to provide differentiated instruction for every student. We use benchmark assessments to determine the greatest area of need for every Middle School student (600).  The students then log onto the eSpark app as homework and work on specific skill sets.  A student may not progress in the app until he/she demonstrates mastery on a skill through by taking a quiz on the topic.  The quiz questions mirror the benchmark assessment.  Our ipad initiative focuses on leveraging the device to provide very specific work based on an individual student’s needs.  In addition, we provide a secure social network in which students have their own identity.  Similar to Facebook, students can create his/her own profile to share with other classmates.  Since all of this resides on the web, students will communicate and collaborate with classmates and teachers long after the bell rings.

Extend the Classroom

                                Social networks allow districts to extend the school day.  Students have immediate access to one another via the web.  Gone are the days of physically going to each other’s homes; instead they can meet virtually.  Not understand the homework assignment? No problem – log on and ask a classmate. Teachers can also log in to answer questions, join the conversation or silently watch the interaction.  The social network capability also allows for a document exchange.  Free sites like Edmodo work well to accomplish this task.  More sophisticated programs like eBackpack provide an intricate workflow solution.   For example eBackpack will support the creation of PDF workbooks that can be separated into worksheets, completed by students, submitted to the teacher, graded by the teacher and returned to the student all seamlessly. eBackpack is also a secure virtual storage system that provides a ‘locker in the cloud”. 

One of the key components in designing successful technology initiatives is to think about how teachers will be able to view, manipulate, and ultimately bring to bear student performance data.  Teacher dashboards are critical in a successful extension of the classroom.  Monitoring student progress is essential when creating a personalized infrastructure.  If every student is receiving differentiated assignments teachers need the ability to quickly assess student work.  The dashboard coupled with the document exchange makes life easier for teachers and students.  This ease of use makes implementation more likely to go smoothly.  Once teachers see the value in the technology, they are more apt to embrace it.  Finally, extending the classroom should also include the summer.  This year in Mineola we are making ipads available to all middle school students in August, a full month before they are set to return to school.  Each ipad will be loaded with a summer reading assignment (including an ebook) as well as the eSpark app which will benchmark the student based on his/her spring score and provide a set of skills to work on before school even begins.  It is our hope that we will lessen the traditional ‘summer loss’ by provided students with an additional month of skill based work at his/her academic skill level.

Problem Based Learning

                                Much has been written about the flipped classroom, but on a more basic level Bloom’s taxonomy has been flipped.   Imparting information simply doesn’t work in a wired classroom.  Access to the web flips Bloom’s taxonomy.   Technology forces teachers to create new lessons that move away from giving information to lessons that require students to apply knowledge.  Solving complex problems is the basis of the common core standards.  Problem (or project) based learning has become a norm in Mineola Middle School.  Even resistant teachers quickly found that it was easier to ask students to find facts rather than supply facts.   The change of the lesson design is perhaps the most critical component of a successful technology vision.   Lesson planning for a digital classroom is not making all of your tradition dittos into PDF’s; it requires a new mindset of engagement.    We have found that the process is an evolution.  Teachers start with small tasks that require getting information from the internet.  Those assignments typically morph into small group work in which students collaborate to find information and answer questions.  The epiphany occurs when teachers begin to pose problems that do not have discrete answers.  Students work collaboratively to find solutions to the problem.  Students must also provide evidence to support their conclusions. 

This type of lesson design is where Districts should invest their professional development monies.  We have found that trying to teach teachers ‘technology’ is virtually useless;  we will never know more than the kids.  Everyone in the 21^st century digital classroom is a learner, including the teacher.  This mindset will allow teachers to tap into the technology capabilities of his/her students without fear.  Students live in a technology driven world and are at ease with the problems and challenges that technology creates. It is OK for teachers not to know everything about devices and capabilities; let the students excel in that world.  We need teachers to understand the capabilities and design lessons that engage students in the content using the tools that are innate to today’s students.