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Technology Plan Greenwood High School 2011-2013 Karen Robinson Noemi Rosales Ancizar Perdomo

Introduction Technology is capable of transforming education in ways that were previously inconceivable. As a result, technology could be the solution to the challenges that education and training face in the years to come and thus, it will provide us with a globally competitive workforce. Thus Greenwood High School strives to prepare students to function effectively in the society in which they live.

Vision The vision of Greenwood High School is to provide a safe and supportive environment in which students are becoming knowledgeable, skilled, independent, self directed learners and are proficient in their use of technologies as useful information resources.

Mission The mission of Greenwood High School is to ensure the highest quality education for each student by incorporating technology in all aspects of the curriculum and promoting effective and efficient use of technology by students and staff.

Demographics Greenwood High School was completed in 1996 and at present has approximately 1,100 students enrolled in grades 9-12 Greenwood High School population is made up of 49 % white students, 48% black students, 2% Hispanic and 1% As ian Approximately 83 teachers 72% of the student population is eligible for free and reduced lunch

Analysis of the current technology plan. The current technology plan follows the guidelines established by the county. In the county’s Technology Plan not much emphasis is placed upon student training but rather on the explanation on how the technology department works itself. The school board of education hired a technology specialist who is the head of the Technology Department and he is in charge of aligning the county’s practices with national policies regarding technology use in schools. This needs to be changed because schools are not autonomous and are not making the expected progress. More emphasis needs to be placed on students’ knowledge attainment.

Analysis continued The current technology plan lacks sustainability and potential of progress. It requires immediate action and an effective follow up or implementation of a new plan that guarantees that more students will have access to working computers on a regular basis . Teachers need more training too, so they can integrate technology in their class and in that way enhance the effectiveness, richness and appropriateness of their classes.

Analysis continued Most computers are really old. There is only one Computer Science teacher in our school. Internet access is highly restricted. Most teachers are not adequately trained to implement technology in their classes. There are frequent network issues due to equipment. Most programs are already outdated. Most students still need to learn computer care and Internet safeguards. Computers are not properly cared and maintained.

New Technology Plan At Greenwood High School all individuals are expected to use technology and teaching best practices. Principals will lead the way guaranteeing that the school is an open and safe space for learning. In doing so, the administration will set the example to illustrate the relevance of the use of technology in everyday school life. All communications will be sent via intern e-mail. Teachers are highly recommended to check their mailbox on a regular basis, daily. The administration will ensure that computer equipment is well maintained and that old damaged units are either fixed or replaced in a timely manner.

New Technology Plan Teachers are also expected to engage in exploratory teaching alternatives such as Web 2.O tools, like: Podcasting, blogs, social bookmarking, social networking, wikis and others, and new emergent technologies like: mobile computing, open content, electronic books, and others. Teachers will use on a regular basis web 2.0 tools to empower their classroom lessons, and students will be encouraged, as well, to learn the best practices in terms of internet safety and learning.

New Technology Plan Teachers will be trained by the school technology specialist in the effective use of teaching technologies available at school such as Smart boards, document cameras, podcasting, GPS caching, and the correct and efficient use of available programs online the school has purchased, or has available in the county or school system network interface. Annually, the technology specialist will work with selected teachers to present a “Technology in Class “ show for our Board of Education leaders to see how technology impacts learning.

New Technology Plan Students will be trained in the safe use of web 2.0 tools available online. By web 2.0 tools it is meant both: Learning programs ( applications ) and Social networks for educational purposes. Students are expected to use technology in an acceptable manner with all respect, caution and good judgment. Students are expected to be technology literate and help their families, communities and country develop safe and beneficial internet use and implementation.

New Technology Plan More computer science classes for our students will be provided. The school will set up the new computer lab, and will include in the master schedule, for every level, two hours class a week of computer science training for every student . Two new computer science teachers will be hired to provide the necessary support to grant students access to core instruction in word processing programs, communication programs, new high impact technologies like GPS caching, mobile computing, visual data analysis, and business programs. Instruction on Web 2.0 will be provided as well, as part of a holistic computer science program.

New Technology Plan Years 2011-2013. During this time internet will be used more efficiently by teachers and students in class. Resources will be allocated to purchase online academic support programs. Students will acknowledge of the importance of following the rules implemented on technology uses and the internet agreement. They will read them in every class the first day of school. They will know the consequences of violating them. During the rest of the first week, they will revi ew the regulation and every certain time during each quarter of the whole school year there will be reminders. Support from our Board of Education will be pursued.

Integrating the new technology plan to the curriculum. Every teacher will be trained to apply the Web 2.0 tools, mentioned in the new plan, during the first week of school. Assignments implementing the knowledge acquired during the training will be demanded from teachers so there is evidence of understanding and application of the tools. During walk-throughs, and formal observations, the implementation of the tools will be taken into consideration.

New Technology Plan Students will sign up a safe and respectful use of the internet agreement at the beginning of every academic year, the document’s guidelines will be reviewed every quarter as reminders. Students will be trained on a regular basis on the basic rules of online safety and best practices such as respect and decency. Students will be taken away their computer privileges, if they commit infractions of the correct use of the internet policies ( i.e. cyber bullying, libeling or slandering ) to up to one year, as part of the consequences of violating the regulations.

Integrating the new technology plan to the curriculum. Teachers will work by department on applying the new technology tools so they can support each other as a team. Teachers will divide the use of the different tools by department so each department will be working on different tools with students by quarters so there is a diversity of the teaching-learning process.

Implementation of the plan Based on the software and technology already existing in the school, the committee will analyze and evaluate the efficacy and efficiency of it. So, according to the findings of the existing software and technology the committee will make the changes and adjustment necessary to step forward and stay on top of technology use. The committee will prepare a timeline to put in practice the new plan. A lab per building will be available with at least 30 computers with internet access. Movable computer lab with 20 laptop computers will be available with wireless internet access. The school will adopt differentiated access to internet to give more accessibility to teachers.

Implementation of the plan Stages Time Evaluation of the existing software and technology. One month Changes and modification of the existing software and planning of the acquisition of new software and technology. One month Plan and schedule of the training to implement the new software and technology. One month Notification and information of the new plan. One staff meeting Training. School year Monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of the plan. School year. Walk-throughs, informal and formal observation to monitor and evaluate the plan. Year round. Students’ results on the standardized test. Standardized test result dates.

Professional development In our attempt to accomplish our goals, the committee will schedule trainings to use the new technology from the beginning of the school year. The first week of school for teacher two trainings of four hours each will be scheduled, it will be an interactive training so teachers can apply what they have been learning during the training. During these training sessions teachers’ skills on technology will be evaluated so they can be grouped according to their skills’ level. During the school year, two Mondays of the months will be scheduled with trainings for the new plan. Teachers will be assigned tasks to implement in class. By doing so, they will apply what they have learned in the trainings so they can share their experiences. From the results, teachers who need extra help will get support. Teachers will be grouped according to their level of technology knowledge. Every two months one of the Mondays scheduled for the training will be used to evaluate the efficiency of the plan and modify or make adjustments to it.

Community Involvement and Fund Raising. During the First Parents Conference at the beginning of the year, the committee will inform the parents about the new technology plan, parents will be invited to become active members in the school initiative, we will request support to start liaisons with the business around the school and the parents’ work places to look for more involving of the community. We will also invite and inform the community business. For support, coupons, discounts, and sales will be requested. Every two Fridays, any of the food business will be invited to come to school and sell their products and give a percentage to the school. Once a month, the school community will be informed to go to specific food businesses and part of what they sell that night will be assigned to school fund rising. Once a month, the school will have a dance during school time charging some money to students so they can attend. Request to some technology business to provide technical support like maintenance of the equipment, donations of equipment, etc.

Evaluation In evaluating the technology plan, will administrators evaluate how often technology is used in lessons? How effective is the use of the technology in achieving the standards of learning? Are the students able to effectively and efficiently use technology as a resource ? How to deal with areas of weakness?

Evaluation cont’d Teachers will submit their lesson plans on a weekly basis via email to their administrators. Administrators will check to see evidence of technology incorporated in lessons, as planned. Administrators will conduct walk throughs to see if the technology is being used effectively, and as a result students are learning the standards. Are the students’ performance on benchmark tests increasing?

Evaluation Continued: For unmet goals ; In areas of limited use of technology, teachers will have mandatory training. SOL’s not being met , could be as a result of ineffective use of technology? The school will provide training on how to actively engage the learner with technology

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Technology Implementation Plan.

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