Digital Instructional Partnership

In this final section, you will examine how instructional partnership can support innovative use of technology by students and educators. You will begin by looking at the conditions which enable effective use of digital tools and services. Next, you will look specifically at coaching and how instructional partnership supports student and educator use of technology. Recognizing the need for an organizational view, you will complete your final self-assessment with a focus on systems thinking.

Note that you will need to complete a culminating activity in Module 5.

Enabling Conditions for Digital Learning

The effective integration of digital learning is about more than just devices and apps. Enabling conditions speak to the systems, beliefs, and priorities of schools and districts and how they support and sustain innovative digital learning. ISTE has identified 14 critical elements which enable innovation and powerful learning and teaching.

ISTE Essential Conditions

This compact organizer identifies a variety of enabling conditions including what it is, why it's important and what to look for.

Activity Directions

Learning outcomes

  • Explore enabling conditions which support innovative digital learning and teaching

Activities

Explore the guide, ISTE Enabling Conditions.

Discuss these questions with your partner.

  • Which of the enabling conditions are areas of strength for your school? Your district?

  • Which of the enabling conditions need attention or improvement in your school? Your district?

  • What questions are raised as you begin examining digital learning and teaching in your district?

Instructional Partnership and Digital Learning

Coaching Improves Teachers’ and Students’ Powerful Use of Technology

We revisit this resource from Digital Promise with a focus on how coaching impacts student and educator use of technology.

Activity Directions

Learning outcomes

  • Examine instructional coaching as a means to promote effective educational technology use

Activities

Read the article Coaching Improves Teachers’ and Students’ Powerful Use of Technology.

Discuss these prompts with your partner.

  • What does the research say about the impact of coaching on educator use of technology?

  • What does the research say about the impact of coaching on student use of technology?

Respond to these questions in your LIFT Portfolio.

  1. Looking at the diagrams and data measuring the impact of coaching on technology use by educators, which of these areas do you feel is most important in your school or context? Why?

  2. In your school, district, or learning network, who are potential thought partners or allies to help you better understand how to effectively use digital tools and services?

Bookmark useful links using your LIFT Bookmarks Form or a curation tool of your choice.

Self-Assessment Part Three - Systems Thinking

Leadership Self-Assessment Part Three: Systems Thinking

This self-assessment examines Systems Thinking from the CSTP Teacher Leader Self-Assessment.

Activity Directions

Learning outcomes

  • Self-assess professional skills in systems thinking

  • Identify partnerships and integrations for your own instructional partnership in your school or system

Complete the LIFT Self-Assessment Part Three on your own. In order to use the editable form, you may need to open using a pdf viewer or editor other than your browser.

Save the results as your initial benchmark data in your LIFT Folder.

Respond to the questions below in your LIFT Portfolio

1) How might you or your partner collaborate with existing teams or projects which support innovative learning in your school or district?

2) Who should you connect with to better understand existing programs and supports?

3) What are other areas of need in which you could provide leadership or instructional partnership?

Reflect | Review | Revise | Recognize

Activity Directions

Learning outcomes

  • Reflect and review learning to identify new questions, ideas, and goals

Reflect

Discuss the following questions with your learning partner and

Respond to the following in your LIFT Portfolio.

  1. What was the one idea from this module that resonated most with you as an educator?

  2. In what ways are you thinking differently about the use of digital tools and services for instruction and professional learning?

  3. What are some needs and challenges within your school, team, or context specific to using educational technology?

  4. In the area of digital learning and teaching, who leads this work in your school?

  5. Who leads this work in your district or system?

  6. Who are experts or thought leaders on this topic in your school and/or district?

Review / Revise

Review the following areas of your LIFT Portfolio

  • Golden Circle

and these documents as necessary:

  • LIFT Ideas and Questions

    • What new questions, ideas, inputs or insights have I added?

  • LIFT Bookmarks (or your own bookmarks document)

    • What new resources have I found?

  • LIFT Folder

    • Are all the necessary documents in your LIFT Folder?

Record

Revisit your work in this module with your learning partner using the following checklist. Check each other's portfolio to ensure the following have been completed. Your learning partner is not expected to review for content, only that you've completed the tasks.

  1. Do you have responses to all the questions in your LIFT Portfolio?

  2. Have you completed all the activities?

  3. Have you added any resources to your LIFT Bookmarks Form or curation tool?

  4. Are necessary documents in your LIFT Folder?

Once all the work has been completed, you can

Recognize/Reward your learning partner and move on to the next module.