charter school k-12

Critique the existing technology plan in your school/district and answer the following questions:
1. How did the plan meet the existing needs in technology, funding, and management issues?

My school does not have an existing technology plan, but if they did, the technology budget should not just be "whatever is left over". "A good technology budget aligns to goals. Budgets ought to be a subset of a larger technology plan that’s tied directly to district and school goals." (Johnson, 2011)


2. How did the goals provide the measurable outcomes for future improvement?

Again, my school did not have any previous or existing technology goals, but one way to come up with measurable outcomes is to ask many different people to be a part of the technology committee- teachers, principals, parents, students, etc. "An advisory committee is a great help for the technology budget maker. A good advisory committee will also insist on some kind of assessment that helps answer the question, Did expending funds in this way have the anticipated result?" (Johnson, 2011)It is best to have a replacement cycle in place before computers are old and beginning to break down. "Do not keep computers going that are at end of life. Once a computer is more than five years old, we don’t fix it. Put the old machines that will be recycled when they break into non-missioncritical places." (Johnson, 2011)

One aspect of future improvement to keep in mind is how often computers will need to be replaced. "A sustainable technology practice means not purchasing more technology than a school can regularly maintain, upgrade, and replace... Computers much more than five years old become unreliable. If we’re going to replace our computers every five years, we need to purchase 20 percent of them new each year. Therefore, our annual computer budget needs to be .20 replacement rate x [number of computers] x $1,000—this year and every year from now on. If you don’t maintain the technology, you get unreliable computers that teachers won’t use." (Johnson, 2011)


Training and staff development is another vital aspect of a technology plan. No matter how much technology is available, if teachers are unsure of how to incorporate it into the classroom, it will be useless. "Technology training has three simple but important components. Every device, application, and system needs to come with instructions on why it’s useful, how to use it, how to use it to support teaching and learning." (Johnson, 2011)

3. How did the strategies defined to meet the proposed objectives?

There was no previous technology plan or objectives, but one aspect to keep in mind in any technology plan is how the technology will be used in the classroom. "Successfully integrating technology into all facets of the school, especially classrooms, begins with a well-crafted technology plan that is aligned with the district and/or school strategic plans. Technology plans provide the vision for integrating technology into classrooms to enhance student learning." (Vojtek, 1998)

The technology plan should have specific strategies to meet the defined objectives. "Technology plans provide a systemic framework to coordinate efforts and assist districts in achieving their vision or something far beyond today's imagination through 'stretch' goals." (Vojtek, 1998) "No matter the underlying reason for writing a technology plan, the most important part of the technology plan is the process of creating the plan and involving key stakeholders throughout the initiation, implementation, and institutionalization phases of the plan." (Vojtek, 1998)

One proposed objective should be that decisions are made by a group of teachers, principals, and perhaps even parents and students. One person should not be making all of the technology decisions. "All key stakeholder groups should be involved in developing a district and/or school technology plan. Consider including representatives from these groups: administrators, coordinators (especially building and district technology coordinators), staff developers, teachers, classified support staff, parents, members of school councils, business/school partners, and students." (Vojtek, 1998)




References:
Stretching Your Technology Technology Dollar.Full Text Available By: Johnson, Doug. Educational Leadership, December 2011, Vol. 69 Issue 4, p30-33

Start with a good plan to achieve your vision.Full Text Available By: Vojtek, Robert; Vojtek, Roseanne O'Brien. Journal of Staff Development, Spring 1998, Vol. 19 Issue 2, p59-61