The+BIG+5

==What are the BIG 5 areas that you believe the District can develop to best serve the needs of our learning community five years from now? For example, altering the structure of the school year to even out holiday time would bring many advantages. We need to be able to offer students a more flexible working environment which gives them greater choice of the times they work. Technology can support this in many ways, from simple applications that provide dynamic e timetabling of lessons, coaching sessions, working groups etc to vast platforms enabling the learning experience to become fully integrated into a learner's life. I would also add that we must achieve the highest return possible on our investment in technology and this will not happen unless learners have far greater access than they do at present.==

[from Ken Pfeil, Mann MS] The BIG 5 areas I believe the district can develop to best serve the needs of our learning community five years from now are as follows:
 * Community outreach--with so many technology resources available just in Colorado springs (businesses, other educational institutions, etc.), tapping into these resources and forging stronger relationships in the context of implementing technology to more effectively educate our students is critical. If we can open doors within the community, perhaps we can do a better job of illustrating to our students real-world environments in which emerging technologies play key roles.
 * Professional development--more consistent/robust professional development focused on how to best use technology in the classrooms will garner higher staff buy-in.
 * Fiscal responsibility--this ties directly into professional development. Before we put the cart before the horse and buy a bunch of gadgets, detailed ROI analysis needs to be conducted and heeded.
 * Process/system standardization--if we are creating a vision applying to all facets of the district, a number of processes and systems must also apply uniformly throughout the district to support the vision. We shouldn't strip away autonomy, but innovation needs to be shared and perhaps mandated so that schools, departments, and etc. minimize operating at cross-purposes.
 * Marketing to existing and potential stakeholders and to staff--strategically informing district members and stakeholders of our mission, vision, and progress along the way can generate support and momentum. Our drive should not be presented, especially to teachers, in a piecemeal fashion as more work for staff. Rather, a broad and fairly simple 30,000-feet-up picture should be drawn with, again, simple and workable avenues toward this picture also illustrated. From this point, as the overall initiative gains focus and direction, so do its more detailed components.


 * (From Scott Fuller: McAuliffe LTE): I can't be there tomorrow, so I thought I would chime in here.**


 * 1) How can we facilitate getting basic Internet and device access to low income students who otherwise are cut off from essential technology when they leave the school building? I feel like partnerships with ISP’s that could give basic access for certain hours (3:00 – 9:00??) to help even the playing field is critical.
 * 2) I would hope to see a true commitment to providing long-term training to staff on what 21st Century learning can look like. Let’s teach teachers how to make a paradigm shift at the instruction level THEN think about what tools would support the instruction rather than buying stuff that few know how to integrate at a student level with meaning and context. This would include vertical alignment from Pre-K up and opportunities to develop vertical PLC’s within our existing clusters. I think it is also important to engage our local universities (UCCS, CC, etc.) and urge them to participate in this shift so that teacher candidates are better prepared to walk into the classroom.
 * 3) If it is our desire to be leaders of a shift in how services are delivered and what education looks like, support the vision by adjusting report cards, lesson plan expectations, and evaluations at all levels (from Superintendent down to EA’s) to provide motivation, clear expectations, and incentive to break from static linear teaching. This would reflect to all levels that we are committed.
 * 4) Truly bring ALL stakeholders to the table on a consistent basis. How often are we asking students what they feel they need? Parents? Community leaders? Do we have the equivalent to a “District Think Tank” related to this topic?
 * 5) Foster the belief that our buildings are community buildings not just a place that we “allow” children to come to for 6.5 hours a day. Drawing the community in through learning workshops, year around and evening lab/library access, and working towards personal device access to our network and programs/applications would lead to more connected neighborhoods.

(From Phil Goulding; Palmer HS) 1. I think the critical need is to have authentic staff development in tech integration. Teachers need to have permission to try and succeed or fail, and then have the opportunity to discuss what they did with other teachers. Ongoing regular meetings during the year would be needed. 2. Make the salary scale be based on practice rather than just taking the classes. If teachers are using the new skills they are learning, they get their yearly increment, if not it stays the same. 3. Provide online video tutorials for students on using various web 2.0 tools. 4. Change assessment and separate behavior from grades and base their grades on rubrics rather than percentages. Graduation should require not just academic success but personal growth of behavior. Make tardies, absences, classroom behavior problems actually count. This would require setting standards--essentially an honor code type of rubric. 5. Have schools open when students need to use equipment they may not have at home--evenings and weekends and provide support for 21st century projects.

__From the four Elves:__ Consistent district vision and expectations for personalized learning A modern, relevant, differentiated curriculum and supporting resources available anywhere anytime Reliable and sustainable access to technology for all learners Appropriate, differentiated professional development accessible anywhere anytime Partnerships in the wider community for real world collaboration and support of authentic products evaluated by authentic audiences Time must be more flexible in school, out of school, and the school year itself.

[Colleen Lyon, Doherty HS] //"ACHIEVE Graduate is an effective communicator." Using 10th graders as an example: incorporate into the 10th grade __**Soc. St. curriculum map**__ the expectation that all 10th grade students will create a podcast about a WWII topic, (learning and using audio primary sources and sound editing software), to be stored in their electronic portfolio and considered a requirement for graduation...Likewise, all 10th grade Biology students must have completed a vlog of a topic (learning and using webcam and screen-capture tools) as a requirement for graduation, and so on for all content curriculum maps. Build on those skills in successive grades by repeating required projects that integrate content with digital tools. As it works now, it's too hit or miss. Some 10th graders have multiple opportunities to create multimedia projects, some have rare opportunities--it all depends on the teacher...//
 * SCAFFOLD/ALIGN DIGITAL KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS and ACHIEVE GRADUATE CHARACTERISTICS**

//So, if teachers must teach students to learn and create in a digital format for graduation requirement, teachers must learn sound editing, screen-capture, etc. tools themselves, and instruct/model using podcasts, vlogs, etc in their classes. A lot of PD (for credit) will be required for that. This might mean hiring full-time staff to implement such aggressive training, but can also utilize existing staff (i.e. LTEs, LRTs, etc). There are also companies ([|Atomic Learning]for one) that provide online training. This means budgeting to pay trainers/companies. Perhaps means building in digital class requirements for step raises...Training must focus on Achieve Graduate skills. So, teachers are not taking a class in Audacity, they're taking a class in **"Digital Communication: Content by Ear. Teach your students to podcast with best practice by using the web to research, plan and organize knowledge, to writing scripts, to narration techniques, to sound editing using Audacity."**// //This is a vast, complicated, controversial tall order. Year-round schedule? High schools start later--end later (as per research on teen growth/sleep needs)? Magnetize all schools (some vocational, some IB, some technology)--and import/train staff with expertise in magnet skills? Change LTE to Tech Coordinator with prerequisite professional tech education? Ask me about a microcosm of this that effects student achievement from the LTE point of view (hire high school LTTs/techs with skills/pay of caliber Ed Sherman's--as we implement more tools in education, we need technical expertise/tools onsite).//
 * IMPLEMENT DIGITAL SKILLS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT REQUIREMENTS**
 * BLOW UP EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE and REBUILD TO PROPEL/SUPPORT INNOVATIVE EDUCATION**

See LTT infrastructure comment above...
 * PROVIDE LAPTOPS/E-READERS/CLOUD ACCESSIBILITY TO ALL STUDENTS/STAFF**


 * CEMENT THIS PLAN TO WEATHER BOARD/ADMIN. TURNOVER**