I always thought that the IT staff in my school need to know how to set up the internet, fix computers, install applications and throw some snarky jokes our way to put us, teachers, down on Earth. I was wrong, there is so much more! During my graduate class at the University of St. Francis about Managing Educational Technology Services, we were required to create an institute technology plan that concluded with eight different sections. These sections included software and information maintenance and security elements, network infrastructure, budget and auditing, technology procurement and disposal, communication plan, professional development plan, technical support plan, and model and hardware maintenance. Furthermore, we needed to account for IDEA, ESL, FERPA, CIPA, Digital Divide, Tech Skills Gap, Copyright, and Fair USE.
This assignment really brought me out of my comfort zone. Technology is not simply the latest applications. Each application needs to be budgeted for, students and teachers need to be trained for, tutorials in multiple languages need to be available, the community needs to ensure security and privacy for student safety, and technology needs to be accessible. Here are some important bullet points from my tech plan:
- Install software that complies with CIPA standards that prevent students from gaining access to information that is harmful, violent, or dangerous.
- Hotspots will be available based on student need and equitable access to the internet in home learning environments.
- Conduct baseline costs surveys before investing in new technology.
- Conduct estimated costs of direct labor that involves research, training, and troubleshooting with technology applications.
- Ensure that technology is being disposed of in an environmentally friendly manner.
- Train administration, IT staff, and teachers on how to publish monthly newsletters to different stakeholders in multiple languages for effective communication.
- Professional development should be accessible live with question and answer sessions, and later accessible for review.
- Train teachers on strategies to reduce the digital divide in our district.
These bullet points are just a small snippet of the detail that went into my institutional technology plan. Having a plan in place helps the district not waste money, time, or resources with outdated technology that is not beneficial but instead focus on tools and technology that helps all stakeholders succeed and access information that helps them succeed on their educational journey. Furthermore, the plan needs to be consistently revised. I made sure to include a section on Zoom security and Google Meets security. Who is responsible if you get zoom bombed? Will there be counseling services that will be available if that happens? Remote teaching has taught us that we need to be flexible and proactive, not reactive. If we have to be reactive, we need to make sure we don’t make the same mistakes repeatedly. Lastly, one of the most important sections in my technology plan is communication. There are so many resources out there and we need to have all stakeholders communicate with each other on how to use these tech tools at home and school so they can complete their learning goals.