Introduction

Students entering the Lake Geneva Schools today will graduate, work, and play in a rapidly changing global society. Their needs will be dictated by these changes. The responsibility of all school districts is to prepare students to live in the world of their future. Decisions made today will have major effects on the quality and efficiency of the education delivered to students both today and tomorrow. School boards and administrators need information in timely, accurate, and usable form in order to make sound educational decisions. Additionally, faculty uses technology to effectively develop and deliver instructional opportunities for students, and to communicate with parents. Time for instruction is critical. All educators must find new and better ways to accomplish this mission. Most importantly, students need technological tools and resources to help them learn and achieve.

As part of a student’s K-12 educational experience in Lake Geneva, there are expectations for all students to use technology and manage information to assist them in the successful completion of standards-based curricular outcomes where appropriate. Lake Geneva has adapted the Common Core Standards. Beginning in kindergarten, students receive technology literacy instruction on computer basics and use of common applications. In middle school, students receive instruction on computer applications and keyboarding, and deepen their understanding of technology by accessing a variety of technology-based learning modules in a modern technology lab. All 8th graders are assessed for their technology proficiency. In high school, a plentiful list of elective courses is available through 16 career clusters taught in state of the art facilities. The plans of study or career pathways allow students to group required courses and electives into a cohesive sequence in preparation for college and career paths. Many upper level courses articulate with technical college and undergraduate university credit offerings.

It is the intent of the Lake Geneva community and the Lake Geneva Schools to provide students with the skills they need in the 21st century. The community has demonstrated a strong commitment to its students by providing excellent facilities to deliver an outstanding educational program. Throughout the development of this plan which began in December of 2011, a diligent effort was made to include all critical stakeholders. Few districts have gone to the extent the Lake Geneva Schools have by hiring a 4K-12 director of technology, a 4K-12 curriculum director, and a 4K-12 Student Services Director who team together on decision making. This team effort is critical to the District Technology Committee as it develops its vision and mission for its media and technology plan.

Forward

It is virtually impossible to escape the implications of new technologies which affect every aspect of our lives. The number of ‘gadgets’ that are encountered in day to day life is beyond counting. Whether in the home or out in the community, people have to cope with new and often intimidating technologies. There is a constant barrage of new devices, new applications and new terminology to be mastered. In order to prepare our youth to be able to compete and flourish in the global economy of the 21st Century, it is imperative that they have the technology and information literacy skills required to be successful..

For this to be accomplished, the people who teach our children must be empowered to support student learning with professional development that focuses on integrating technology into their teaching and learning strategies. Furthermore, the technology needs to continue to find its way into the hands of the students in order to enhance learning. School administrators must be recognized as leaders in promoting a strong school culture that supports technology as a tool to engage students in their learning activities. Parents also play a crucial role in incorporating technology into the curriculum by understanding, supporting and taking advantage of efforts that bring schools into the Information Age. Students, staff, and families must have the information literacy skills to be life-long learners who can renew or extend their knowledge and skills to participate in tomorrow’s workforce.

Special Needs

The Lake Geneva Schools makes available assistive technology devices or assistive technology services, or both, to a child with a disability if required as a part of the child's special education, related services, or supplementary aids and services. If a child's IEP team determines that access to school-purchased assistive technology devices or services in the child's home or in other settings is necessary for the child to receive a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE), the devices or services are provided.

The Lake Geneva Schools is in a unique situation with regard to serving students who have special needs. Many of the dollars spent on assistive technology go to support employees of Lakeland School in Elkhorn, WI. Lakeland provides developmental and educational services for most of the students with significant and/or severe handicaps in Walworth County be they mental or physical. Currently the Walworth County Children with Disabilities Education Board (WCCDEB) and Lake Geneva Schools are transitioning away from using the services of the WCCDEB for our in-house education of student’s with disabilities. Because of this transition, many of the students with Individual Education Plans (IEP) in Walworth County whose IEP can best be met within the neighborhood school setting, are served by a combination of county and district employees for their core curriculum instruction. In a few cases, Walworth County provides full time teachers who teach in our facilities in both pull-out and inclusion programs along side our district employees. These full-time teachers work in our buildings and are held to the same standards as employees of the school district. They are fully certified special education teachers who focus on educating the identified students in our districts.

K-12 teachers who are employed by Walworth County and teach in our facilities, along with our own district special education teachers, are supplied by the Lake Geneva Schools with laptop computers. All of the assistive technology purchases are made with school district budget dollars. We provide computers and other hardware such as iPads, which are identified through the student’s IEP as necessary to provide the student with a FAPE. Other assistive technologies including many software titles, MP3 players, iPads, and headphones are available to students taking advantage of our extensive collection of books on tape and our growing collection of e-books. Many items can be checked out. We purchase and install assistive software such as Kurzweil and supply other hardware such as scanners to take full advantage of the Kurzweil suite. We upgrade to the latest versions of software including text to speech converters such as Dragon Naturally Speaking and products for low readers including several items from the Don Johnson collection of assistive materials as they become available. Lake Geneva Schools also takes advantage of the Wisconsin Assistive Technology Initiative (WATI) extensive resource library and professional growth opportunities as well as a plentiful selection of assistive materials available through the Assistive Technology Library at CESA #2 in Whitewater. Ongoing training is available through the CESA #2 Assistive Technology Academy.

Professional Development

Professional development in the Lake Geneva Schools in support of technology has undergone a major transition. Technology training, starting in the fall of 2003, became a permanent fixture of the fall teacher in-service activities. Training includes in-service at the beginning of the school year on changes to hardware and upgrades of software programs such as PowerSchool and PowerTeacher, Microsoft Office, Google in Education, SchoolFusion classroom websites, and any new software available to staff and students. Staff development also occurs prior to first quarter and first semester grading deadlines to refresh teachers on the intricacies of report card data entry at the elementary level and grade weighting and semester grade calculations 6-12.

• Training for secretaries occurs during the late start/early release days on the second Thursday of every onth across the school year. Administration receives mini-sessions at administrative team meetings on a monthly basis. These focus on PowerSchool, NWEA MAP test reports, presentation software and productivity tools such as advanced email features.

• Throughout the year, teachers are advised to participate in professional development opportunities made available through many avenues. Opportunities are available year round through CESA #2. Professional development opportunities at CESA #2. Topics include Common Core Curriculum, iPad training, SMART board workshops, Google Apps for education, as well as training on Rti and PBIS. Many other trainings in areas of interest are available through CESA #2.

• Every summer Badger High School hosts the Lake Geneva Technology Academy for 4K-12 Teachers. Teachers and staff are all invited and encouraged to attend the week-long event which is packed full of workshops. The objective of the academy each year is to help teachers gain exposure to the many ways technology can be integrated into the classroom.

• Within each school, user groups have formed which meet on a regular schedule. Two examples are the iPad user group and the SMART board user group. These groups meet with the intent to share and develop curricular ties to these devices so that they might take full advantage of these technologies in order to improve instruction and delivery of the curriculum. Teachers meet before or after school and often have the devices running in order to share and expand on each others ideas and input. Teachers maintain a wiki in order to gather and organize useful sites with valuable information including links and apps. The focus of the groups is continuous improvement.

Community Education

The school district takes an active role in promoting community involvement through a strong community education program. Offerings include computer applications and English language acquisition along with a whole host of offerings covering areas such as electronics, foods, and health. Courses that integrate technology offered recently include:

Training Wheels Series

• Computer Navigation with Training Wheels

• Computer Organization with Training Wheels

• Microsoft Word with Training Wheels

• Microsoft Excel with Training Wheels

Microsoft Word Series

• Microsoft Word with Training Wheels

• Beginning Microsoft Word

• Intermediate Microsoft Word

• Advanced Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel Series

• Microsoft Excel with Training Wheels

• Beginning Microsoft Excel.

• Intermediate Microsoft Excel.

• Advance Microsoft Excel: Built-In Functions

Advanced Topics

• Adv Microsoft Excel 2007: Advanced Functions/Formulas....

• Microsoft Mail Merge (Word and Excel)

Other Technology Related Courses

• Advanced Photoshop

• Ingles para principiantes adulto

• Computers With Training Wheels

• Digital Photography for Travelers

• Photoshop

• Using Your New Digital Camera

• Writers’ Workshop

District Technology Blog

A district technology blog has been developed and maintained to provide a place for teachers to access links and other sources of information regarding classroom technology integration. The tabs on the blog include Web 2.0 Tools, 21st Century Skills, Google in Education, iPads, and SMART boards. The blog also has a Twitter feeder collecting forwarded tweets from technology gurus all over the country.

The district's commitment to technology is strong. The significant appropriations made for technology over the past 10 years have helped prepare all parties involved in the education process with greater access and more varied opportunities. This commitment will continue as the district expands its facilities, services and offerings to the community.