As a group, we worked to include four goals. We decided to focus our goals on 21st Century skills, as that relates to our mission and vision statements. The mission and vision is the foundation of any strategic plan, as it is the shared vision among stakeholders. It was important for us to base all decisions on the mission and vision.
By establishing strong mission and vision statements that we all agreed with, each group member drafted objectives, progress measures, responsible parties and timelines that applied to each goal. Then, as a group, we collaborated to revise specific wording and content to etablish the four goals. The four goals are:
Infrastructure, Hardware, and Software
Staff Professional Development
Teacher & student learning: digital citizenship
Student Learning: collaboration, independence, problem-solving
Our vision and mission statements emphasize the importance of technology skills including communication, collaboration, independence and problem-solving. In creating our goals, we wanted to maximize opportunities for students to develop these skills through technology. In order for our vision to be achieved, a solid infrastructure must first be implemented, as noted by our first goal. Without robust infrastructure, using technology in classrooms would not be viable. Training for staff on how technology skills can be enhanced through technology is also necessary. Without adequate training, staff would not be able to offer these opportunities to students.
The rationale for creating this plan was to prioritize four critical components of the plan: infrastructure, professional development, teachers, and students. Without a solid and robust infrastructure, the technology plan would fail. If educators had no training or professional development, teachers would not approve and uphold the plan, as they would not be able to provide meaningful opportunities for students to communicate, collaborate, and independently problem-solve through technology. Without these opportunities for students, the plan serves no purpose. Therefore, we created a plan to show fourth vital aspects of technology implementation to support the development of technology skills.
Discuss how this module contributed to your understanding of building a robust technology infrastructure.
This module contributed to my understanding of building a robust technology infrastructure as I learned fine details of wireless connectivity. Through the reading, I discovered the intricacies of planning and installing wireless networks. I also learned about the need to maintain and manage users, resources and data, as well as the importance of keeping networks secure. With all of the various components involved, it is clear that building a robust technology infrastructure is a complex task.
Explain how the system that you and your team built is scalable and meets future school needs.
Nautilus Elementary currently has limited access to technology at school so our technology plan is allowing laptops to be purchased so teachers can start using technology in the classroom for everyday use. The future is leaning towards technology, it is important that schools have the opportunity to bring technology into their classroom now and in the future by implementing new resources to enhance students learning.
Define what a partnership is.
A partnership between a school and another organization provides benefits for both parties involved. Partnerships with public, private, and community organizations give students the opportunity to extend their learning to real-life experiences and schools sometimes receive monetary donations as well. These organizations that partner with the schools then benefit from advertisements in school newsletters and social media, and the partnership builds stronger community relations.
Explain how a partnership can support the school Vision and Mission
Through partnerships, schools will have the ability to work hand and hand to create opportunities to create funds or extra resources to reach the goals of the mission and vision statements. Community partners can help raise money, create awareness to the community, help create resources, or supplement needs for students. Partnerships are great ways to help reach the school's mission and vision for the technology plan.
Technology Infrastructure, Partnerships, & Funding/Budget Assignment
The standard that most contributed to my understanding of technology plans is Educational Leader Standard 4, Systems Planner, Objective D. This states “establish partnerships that support the strategic vision, achieve learning priorities and improve operations.” By creating partnerships with stakeholders allows for new opportunities for staff, students, and the school community. Partnerships can help ensure the vision and mission of the technology plan can be effective because it allows for others outside of the school to help with the success of the plan.
http://www.mpsaz.org/edtech/files/mps_tech_plan_final-14-17.pdf
This technology plan has not been updated since 2014 and it does need to be updated since technology has changed since 2014. The idea of having teachers teach technology and integrate technology into their curriculum is essential. Students need to have the opportunities to learn how to use technology and become proficient with technology.
The technology plan I evaluated at the beginning of the semester was detailed and had all the necessary components to be successful but the biggest downfall was that the technology plan was back in 2014. There needs to be more technology integration into schools and ways to help teachers learn how to create a successful technology integration classroom.