Integration of Instructional Technology in the Grosse Pointe Public School System
Integration of Instructional Technology in the Grosse Pointe Public School System
Executive Summary
Executive Summary
In the Grosse Pointe Public School System, we are at a pivotal tipping where we must set the platform for
preparing students for the educational environments of 21stcentury learning. Our students were born in a digital
world where access to resources and information has been and will continue to be just a click away. We must begin now to establish the essential components to effectively design the classroom and the educational settings to best meet the evolving student learner and the standards of quality instructional practices.
In March of 2012, representatives from a Plante Moran study presented to the GPPSS Board of Education their findings in an audit of current instructional and operational technology and their assessment of technology structure and design. In brief summary, their findings were:
•The district is hampered with aging technology;
•There is inadequate bandwidth across the district and there is a digital gap that exist within the district; •There is a need for a clear vision and direction that is effectively concise and understood amongst the stakeholders across the district with a coordinated and aligned plan for positive change.
Although, the summary document shared by Plante Moran did address the areas of concern. The report did not Although, the summary document shared by Plante Moran did address the areas of concern. The report did not appear to provide any additional information that was not already known within the GPPSS.
In order to move forward with clear intent and direction for changes and upgrades in the technology within GPPSS, the GPPSS Board of Education adopted a “Resolution for Technology Related Information Items” at the Board meeting in May, 2012. There were 5 critical areas that must be addressed per the resolution as presented and sponsored by Board Members Mr. Brendan Walsh and Ms. Lois Valente. The critical areas were:
•Wide Area Network and Bandwidth
•PC Refresh and Desktop Computing Alternatives •Wireless LAN and Wi-Fi
•Microsoft vs. Alternatives
•Application, Web Platform, and Other Related Concerns
Per review of these identified item areas, a common thread of limited maximum capacity for bandwidth across the district exists that confines the capacity to perform the necessary operations of educational programming and performance both inside and outside of the classroom. Also, as presented in the Board Resolution, there are “significant financial operational implications for the district and the taxpayers.”
Integration of Instructional Technology in the Grosse Pointe Public School System
Integration of Instructional Technology in the Grosse Pointe Public School System
Executive Summary
Executive Summary
As the GPPSS works on determining the necessary improvements in our WAN (Wide Area Network), our Bandwidth, our Aging Desktop Computers, and our Wireless Equipment and Installation, the GPPSS should also maintain a focus on the necessary and appropriate digital devices that provide ALL students with the necessary access to learning and resources that will enhance their education. We must move forward in an additional
discussion on how to provide the most appropriate, cost-efficient, and integrated instructional technology tools for our educators, students, and parents.
In preparation for a rapidly changing educational landscape in how we teach/instruct students, how we assess students (Smarter Balanced Assessment, NWEA) and evaluate teachers, and how we establish curriculum standards (Common Core), we need to begin and expedite the preparation for these changes in a systematic manner that will lead us toward a more efficient and a richer/deeper quality of education for ALL students in the GPPSS. The time is now to begin the dialogue of transformation and redesign of instructional practices that best fit the needs of our students who are “digital natives” and ensure their success as 21stcentury learners. The first stage of
needs of our students who are “digital natives” and ensure their success as 21stcentury learners. The first stage of
this dialogue includes an understanding and commitment to the “Student Learner Profile” that helps define the skills necessary for our students to be successful. As administrators and educators in GPPSS, we have been collaborating and obtaining feedback on the components of the Student Learner Profile from staff in each school. We have also worked to align the profile with the Continuous Improvement Plan of GPPSS and the Long-Term Targets. Our success can be found in students who exhibit the profile of being a:
Knowledgeable and Continuous Learner Motivated, Inspired, and Persistent Learner
Creator and Contributor
Effective and Collaborative Communicator Critical Thinker and Problem Solver
Integration of Instructional Technology in the Grosse Pointe Public School System
Integration of Instructional Technology in the Grosse Pointe Public School System
Executive Summary
Executive Summary
At the forefront, our technology plan must be about student learning. When many districts across the country discuss the need for instructional technology in their schools, the focus and direction tends to immediately go to the tools and the learner platform that they will adopt. Before a learner platform is agreed upon, the most important discussion should be on the learning and how we may best meet the needs of our students where the instructional technology is a facilitator of information, resources, collaboration, and project-based outcomes. In 2010, the U.S. Department of Education produced a public document entitled, “ Transforming American
Education: Learning Powered by Technology.” This public document provides a basis for establishing areas of focus within the school district and shares a model to be considered for goal-setting and related objectives. From this document, there are 5 Focus Areas with corresponding objectives. They are:
Learning: Engage and Empower Assessment: Measuring What Matters Teaching: Prepare and Connect Infrastructure: Access and Enable Infrastructure: Access and Enable Productivity: Redesign and Transform
Applying the knowledge and assessment of where we have been and where we are now with our utilization of instructional technology in the GPPSS, it is critical that we enhance and accelerate the discussion of the
educational, financial, and operational needs of the district. In moving forward, there are three (3) groups that would need to come together with specific tasks and directives. The three (3) groups are:
GPPSS Board of Education Technology Steering Committee External Professional Consultants
Teacher Technology Learner Task Force
From this triangulation of committee interest and conclusion, a shared document with the common vision of the actions and necessary steps to move us forward with our technology is imperative. From a financial resource perspective, we are limited in our general funds to offset the costs associated with potential proposed
infrastructure and programming changes. The recommendations from these groups will need to include a plan for how to achieve the goals of the GPPSS and how to obtain the necessary support from the Grosse Pointe