Technology Issues for
Administrators
They said this computer can do
anything! So, go ahead:
Stop Billy from sticking peas up his nose.
I dare you!
A Workshop
presented by
Karen Work Richardson
Web Resources
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Links for this workshop and lots of other
educational website can be found at My
Backflip:
http://www.backflip.com/members/witch
yrichy
Have Fun!
Wednesday’s Agenda
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Introduction
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The Big Picture
Personal Reflection
Technology Standards for Administrators
Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow
Technology Use Stages
Technology Integration Indicators
Hands-on Activities
A Little Philosophy…
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Hegel and educational technology
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Thesis
Antithesis
Synthesis
Oh, great!
She’s starting with Hegel?!
We’ll be here all day!
How Long Does It Take?
Number of Years to Reach 25% of Households
40
35
35
30
26
Y
e 25
a 20
r 15
s
10
22
Years
16
7
5
0
Internet
PCs
Radio
Television Telephone
Jane Healy, Failure to
Connect
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Blames technology for bad pedagogy and
poor parenting
Dismisses most positive research as
sponsored by computer corporations or
conducted by consultants (p. 22) then quotes
a study sponsored by music educators:
“Although one might wish for a more objective
funding source, the results have been
provocative.” (p. 230)
Simon and Schuster, 1998
Jane Healy, Failure to
Connect
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Accuses techno-pushers of “hysteria”
then says, “If you don’t limit computer
time, don’t be surprised when he starts
to have attention, learning, or social
problems.” (p. 226)
Clifford Stoll
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Silicon Snake Oil and High Tech Heretic
Seems to advocate no computers in
classrooms
Most famous quote: “No computer can teach
what a walk through a pine forest feels like.
Sensation has no substitute.” (p. 138)
Thinks field trips cost $100 or $200
Anchor, 1996
Todd Oppenheimer
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“The Computer Delusion,” Atlantic
Monthly, July 1997
Suggests that schools are buying
computers at the expense of other
programs
Questions the need to teach computer
skills
http://www.theatlantic.com/issues/97jul/computer.htm
Todd Oppenheimer
Quotes Stoll: “Computers in classrooms
are the filmstrips of the 1990s. We loved
them because we didn’t have to think for
an hour, teachers loved them because
they didn’t have to teach, and parents
loved them because it showed their
schools were high-tech. But no learning
happened.”
Points to Ponder
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What are your reservations about technology
in education?
What role does technology have in
education?
How comfortable are you with technology?
What successful examples of technology
integration have you witnessed?
Answering the Critics
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Research is slim but getting better
Tends to focus on case studies and narratives
of successful programs by motivated teachers
and administrators
Plenty of horror stories
Check here for a presentation about research
into educational technology:
http://www.wmburgweb.com/Resources/Pres
entations/justify2.html
Jay Sivin-Kachala
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Vice President of Interactive Educational Systems
Design (IESD), Inc., an educational technology
consulting firm in New York City
Conducts research in the field of educational
technology
Provides a variety of consulting services related to the
development and evaluation of educational software
and multimedia products
Develops print materials that supplement educational
software
Trains educators in the use of technology
http://www.techlearning.com/db_area/archives/TL/062000/archives/kachala.html
Evaluating Technology
Integration…
Is all about asking the right
questions.
Which is better technology or no technology?
(too broad)
Under what conditions is technology
valuable?
Do Computers Make Kids Smarter?
Why Computers Make Bad Teachers
The Right Question
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What software is being used, how well
is it matched to the school’s curriculum
objects, how well is it matched to the
needs and learning characteristics of
the students, and what role is the
teacher playing before, during, and after
its use?
It’s Not Just About Technology
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Check the Apple “Unit of Practice”: It’s
just a good lesson plan with perhaps a
little more thought to the tools:
http://www.apple.com/education/profess
ionaldevelopment/uop.html
Wall Street Journal
Hard Lessons
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Computer labs are lousy places for
computers.
Struggling students get more out of
computers than average or above-average
students.
Most teachers still don’t know how to use
computers in class.
School systems must plan computer use
carefully.
Wall Street Journal Interactive, Technology & Education: What
Have We Learned? Nov. 20, 1997
Wall Street Journal
Hard Lessons
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Computers are a tool, not a subject.
Kids flourish when everyone has a computer
but schools aren’t spending enough to
guarantee that.
Schools can’t handle hand-me-downs.
Computers don’t diminish traditional skills.
The Internet and email excite kids by giving
them an audience.
Kids love computers.
Wall Street Journal Interactive, Technology & Education: What
Have We Learned? Nov. 20, 1997
Issues for Administrators
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Infrastructure
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Network
Hardware
Access
Software
Personal
Productivity
Implementation
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Policies
Professional
Development
Integration
Evaluation
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Program
Faculty
Technology Standards for
Administrators
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Leadership and
Vision
Learning and
Teaching
Productivity and
Professional
Practice
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Support,
Management and
Operations
Assessment and
Evaluation
Social, Legal and
Ethical Issues
Activity Time
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Reviewing and commenting on the
Technology Standards for
Administrators
http://cnets.iste.org/tssa/framework.html
Points to Ponder
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What is your personal vision of
technology integration? How is
technology being used
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In the classroom
In the computer lab
To facilitate communication
To contribute to professional growth
Larry Cuban
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“Computer Meets Classroom: Classroom Wins,”
Teachers College Record, Winter 1993
Technology historian
Begins with the question: “Why is electronic
technology used far less on a daily basis in
classrooms than in other organizations?”
Only recently has technology been part of education
reform rhetoric
Larry Cuban: 3 Scenarios
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Technophile: Electronic Schools of the
Future Now
Preservationist: Maintaining While
Improving Schooling
Cautious Optimist: Slow Growth of
Hybrid Schools and Classrooms
Points to Ponder
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Where is your school right now? How is
technology being used
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In the classroom
In the computer lab
To facilitate communications
To contribute to professional growth
SEIR-TEC Lessons
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The Southeast Initiatives Regional
Technology in Education Consortium
Three years, 14 resource-poor schools
Spent 3 to 4 days a month in each school
Read more about the lessons on-line:
Factors that Affect the Effective Use of Technology for
Teaching and Learning: http://www.serve.org/seirtec/publications/lessondoc.html
SEIR-TEC Lessons
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Leadership is key.
Have a plan.
Be patient.
Be realistic about
actual use.
Think beyond
technology to
instruction.
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Get tech support and
pedagogical help.
Different populations
have different needs
and access issues.
How’s your
infrastructure.?
Gauge your
progress.
On Integrating Technology
Visit The George Lucas Educational
Foundation for high quality materials
related to the best use of technology in
education. The website includes articles,
interviews and other resources.
Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow
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Begun in 1985 as a research program
on impact of interactive technologies on
teaching and learning
Provided students and teachers an
Apple computer at home and school
Provision of technology access
Site freedom to develop technologysupported curriculum and pedagogy
More about ACOT:
http://www.apple.com/education/k12/leadership/acot/
ACOT
Evaluation
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Conducted a series of evaluations at
five original sites from 1987 to 1990
Had to constantly find new ways to
evaluate outcomes based on up close
observation of sites
“Formative evaluation” evolutionary
character
ACOT Triangulation
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Assess progress based on a range of measures and multiple
benchmarks
Compared students’ basic skills performance to nationally
reported norms
Comparison of student progress and achievement over time
Comparison of ACOT classrooms with demographically similar
classrooms
Gathering data on classroom practices and parents’ background
The Importance of ACOT
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The findings about ACOT were less
important than the questions it raised
about evaluation and current
assessment methods
Had a positive impact on student
attitudes
Contributed to changing teaching
practices
The Inconclusions of ACOT
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On standardized tests, ACOT students
did not perform any better than
comparison groups or nationally
reported norms who did not have
access to computers or the teaching
and learning reforms implemented in
ACOT schools
David Dwyer and ACOT
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Memphis Schools found significant gains in
mathematics and language arts basic skills
30% is the magic number: takes 30% less
time to learn the same things with help from
the computer
And 30% of your budget should be for
training
Most remarkable improvement was in writing
fluency
Read an interview with Dwyer and other technology leaders at
Technology & Learning Magazine
David Dwyer and ACOT
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Points to the importance of instruction as an
element in increasing writing skills
Admits that the flaw with ACOT is that
participation was voluntary
Dramatic results
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90% went to college (15% for school)
Dropout rate was 0% (30% for school)
Better attendance
David Dwyer and ACOT
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Emphasizes need for staff development
Teachers are trained as teams
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Develops collegiality
Encourages them to learn from and help
each other
David Dwyer and ACOT
The Down Side
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Lots of work to change the system
Sometimes teachers perceived changes
that just weren’t there…
Teaching kids to use the tools took too
much time away from content
David Dwyer and ACOT
Impact of Technology Over Time
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Adoption Stage
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Struggles
May revert to traditional
methods
Appropriation Stage
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Adaptation Stage
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Clear goals lead to
improvements
Less use of content
software and more of
tools
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Comfortable enough to
forget the technology
Changed to
“constructivist” methods
Innovation Stage
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Opened up instructionally
Project-based learning
Tech Integration Indicators:
Teachers
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Accomplishes goals through technology
use
Computer activities are a natural part of
the curriculum
A routine or system of use is evident
A variety of software is in use
Teacher uses computer comfortably
Adapted from Technology Enriched Administrators, Virginia
Department of Education, Division of Technology
Tech Integration Indicators:
Students
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Can explain what they are doing and
why they are doing it
Collaborative, inquiry, discovery
learning
Enthusiastic
Exhibit basic computer skills
On task
Understand classroom routine
Classroom/Lab Indicators
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Room arrangement
Rotation assignments
Supplies are accessible
Place for whole group instruction
Tip sheet and manuals are available
Hands-on Activities
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Explore the Principal Connection CD
Browse the Curriculum Snapshots
collection of best practices
Learn more about the Levels of
Technology framework (LoTi) and take
an online survey.
Thursday’s Agenda
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Some Statistics
An Introduction to Rubrics
An ACOT Rubric
Creating Surveys
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Examples
Using the Profiler
Designing Great Rubrics
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Make a rubric that covers a range of
situations
BUT don’t be too general
AND too much detail can be a problem
Limit the number of dimensions
Choose key, easily understood criteria
Adapted from Technology & Learning, August 1999
Designing Great Rubrics
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Use measurable criteria
Choose clear descriptors
Use four levels
Keep the distance between levels equal
Include those who will be evaluated in
the creation of the rubric
Adapted from Technology & Learning, August 1999
Activity
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Review the ACOT Rubric
Where do your faculty members fit?
Where do you fit?
Would this be a beneficial tool to review
with your faculty?
Survey Websites
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http://www.edmin.com/
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http://www.formsite.com
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http://ichat.edmin.com/surveyRegister.cfm?sc=5A
F47F73-6687-11D5-8813009027D22F1C
http://fs7.formsite.com/ivyrun/ivyrunform/index.htm
l
http://profiler.scrtec.org/
Survey Design Tips
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Know your purpose
Keep them reasonably short
Make questions as specific as possible
Try to avoid interpretation
Give some space for personal comment for each
question if possible
Visit this site for details about surveys:
http://www.hhp.ufl.edu/RPT/FACULTY/jconfer/LEI488
0/SurveyDesign.htm