Technology+Report

Technology Integration in Education
This is a summary of four different schools and the type of hardware, software, training and evaluation that the schools use. From Michigan we will discuss Grand Rapids Community College (GRCC) in Grand Rapids, Emerson Elementary School in Owosso, and Grayling High School in Grayling. Also included in our group are Fairfax County Public Schools in Fairfax County, Virginia. The largest campus is Grand Rapids Community College with approximately 17,600 students and well below that in size, but significantly larger is Fairfax County Public Schools with approximately 1900-2000 students. Our remaining schools, Emerson Elementary and Grayling High, have about 600 and 500 students respectively. Even with this massive difference in student populations, we still found numerous similarities with the technologies used.

__Hardware:__

Similarities began with the hardware choices; It seems that all schools researched preferred Windows as their computer platform of choice. However, the models chosen containing these computer platforms showed similarities as well as differences among the different schools. For instance, Melanie found that Grand Rapids Community College had quite a variety of models which included desktops, laptops, and tablets. Michaela discovered that Emerson Elementary only employed the use of desktops and some laptops. Sarah’s school in Grayling prefers desktops as well as ipads and Melissa’s school district in Virginia stuck to using Dell desk tops.

When it comes to operating systems, Emerson Elementary seemed to fall flat. The other three schools being compared are either already using Windows 7 or are in the process of transitioning from Windows XP to Windows 7. Emerson is not doing so and is still currently using Windows XP with no immediate plans to upgrade in the future. Computer configuration also seemed to vary among the four schools. Grand Rapids Community College used a variety of configurations as they have a variety of computer models while Emerson Elementary uses a universal configuration throughout the school. Fairfax County Public Schools uses a network drive that allows them access to shared folders throughout the district and Sarah’s high school uses a virtual configuration which helps to save space on the desktop.

Most add on devices were similar throughout the four schools observed. Keyboards, mice, printers, and projectors seemed to be the most common while use of document cameras was less frequent. Smartboards also seemed to be another common add on in use within the schools with another point of interest being the connectivity of these devices.

All schools being reviewed used some type of high speed connection. Melanie found that Grand Rapids Community College preferred to use Merit as their high speed carrier with an AT&T back up. Michaela discovered that Emerson Elementary has its own LAN (local area network) and that the Owosso district itself has its own WAN (wide area network) with both wired and wireless technologies available. Melissa, who reviewed the Fairfax County School District, found that they prefer to use high speed internet and primarily are a completely wireless district. Lastly, Sarah, who researched the Crawford Ausable School District, found they also prefer high speed internet but use one with the fastest transfer data rate available called T3.

__Software:__

We found a wide variety of software being used throughout the schools we surveyed. Grand Rapids Community College is a large institution and uses much more software than most of the other schools and school districts. In the realm of multimedia, Grand Rapids Community College has adopted Adobe Design Premium Suite that includes Adobe Flash, Photoshop, and Illustrator. Emerson Elementary School uses window media player while Grayling High School relies on Microsoft PowerPoint and online multimedia such as Prezi and GoAnimate. Flash is the last multimedia authoring program used in these four schools and it is used in Fairfax County Public Schools.

Again, it looks as if Grand Rapids Community College uses many more internet programs than the other schools, including software that is specific to various departments. Internet programs at GRCC include ALEKS, Plato Academic Systems, Mitchell on-line, Weaver reading tutorial software, and //Reading A to Z// to name just a select few. All the schools make use of Internet Explorer and Firefox as browsers and McAfee is quite common as a security suite.

The most popular word processing program is Microsoft Office and it is used in all four schools; GRCC also uses Adobe InDesign and Microsoft Publisher. These schools have a wide variety of computer assisted instruction programs (CAI) to choose from and some schools use more than others. Grayling High School and Fairfax County Public Schools both have Smart Boards that are used as CAI programs and Grayling also uses an E20/20 program. Just like with the internet programs, each department at Grand Rapids Community College uses different CAI programs. The CAI programs in use include but are not limited to Cortez Peters Championship Keyboarding, Keyboarding Pro Deluxe, and Typing ACE; for science training one could use the anatomy and physiology software, ADAM, or Plato Academic Systems in mathematics. Emerson Elementary School also uses a lot of CAI programs, a few of them being GroupWise, STAR Reading, Inspiration and Math Blaster.

Emerson Elementary School and Fairfax County Public Schools both use Microsoft Excel as their statistical program while GRCC includes Minitab, SPSS, SAS and StatCrew; Grayling High School uses Data Director. We found the schools have a wide variety of statistical programs and running reports to select from.

Most schools update their software every year to include any new updates that have become available. This is the case for at least three of our four schools. GRCC, Emerson Elementary, and Grayling High all get their software updated yearly. Melissa is currently in her first year of teaching at Fairfax County Public Schools and was unable to find how often they update their software. They do have to turn in their laptops for the summer and she thinks the technology department updates them at that time.

__Training:__

All but one of our group members were satisfied with the level of technology training at respective campuses, feeling that administration offered reasonable training according to need. Michaela’s Emerson Elementary School, however, did not rise to the standards she would expect, and her report for the school in this area was less than acceptable.

At her school, Michaela reports no formal technology training is offered, and no qualified person available on site who could present such a class. One might assume that the technology teacher could intervene, but that instructor is not proficient enough with computers to take on the task. Even as hardware at the school is improved with the addition of ceiling mounted projectors and i-pads on the way, no preparations for training to use these devices has been advanced. Michaela’s frustration with an absurd situation is clear and she would like administration to begin supporting faculty in this area by including technology training as part of required Professional Development days and by supporting teachers who attend educational technology conferences or seminars.

Our other group members offered praises for the technology training sessions offered at their schools. At Melissa’s Fairfax County Public Schools, faculty are required to attend some instructional sessions in technology and are encouraged to take advantage of many other technology-based presentations. For Melissa, technology specialists are available both on campus and at the county level to assist instructors with all their needs in this area. Not only are the specialists ready to help each individual, they are eager to assist departments or groups with specialized sessions according to need.

Melanie’s comments about GRCC were similar to Melissa’s in the sense that they both had a technology department ready to help individuals with all technical questions. Beyond answering questions and assisting in technical classroom emergencies, the college offers a wide variety of classes to involve staff and faculty in all aspects of technological training. Although staff must attend training sessions, faculty members are not required to do the same and many do not take advantage of the ample and varied training sessions available.

Even though Sarah stated she wished she had more training available because of the vast amount of technology being used at her Grayling High School, it was clear she feels her school is exemplary in this area. All employees are trained in basic computer literacy, and the level of training rises as the need becomes evident. As new technologies are added to the campus, departments, teams, and individuals attend classes for all hardware or software they are expected to use.

__Evaluation__:

The most effective way to gauge student understanding and successful pedagogical techniques is through evaluation. By obtaining data throughout the school year, teachers and administrators can utilize it in developing valuable ways to improve the quality of education for students. School districts vary when it comes to techniques in gathering its data. With all of the technology available, it makes this process much more efficient and easier to share.

At Melanie's campus which seems to contain a substantial amount of technology for both its staff and students, 1500 computers are available to serve the 17,600 students. At the end of every semester students evaluate all adjunct faculty but assessment of students is left strictly to each individual instructor. Student satisfaction is also measured unscientifically via polls on Blackboard that are administered by the Director of Distance Learning and Instructional Technology.

At Emerson Elementary Michaela reports one computer on campus for every seven students. Evaluations are not used in this particular school and Michaela is frustrated with the situation due to the lack of consistency with training and follow up. Technology is constantly evolving, therefore it is important to stay current with the most innovative and effective educational tools.

At Fairfax County Public Schools Melissa states that her high school campus has 1,900 students with 1,690 computers for their use. Students use several technology based assessments such as PALS for phonological screening and eCART for every subject based on the state standards. Within the next year, the students will be completing many of the state tests via computer. New staff members must be certified by their school based technology specialist at the end of the academic year to ensure they are competent in using all of the technology within the county. Students are evaluated either every unit to once a quarter with teachers conducting the assessments for the students.

Sarah is employed at Grayling High School where the computer to student ratio is 1 to 2.28. With 2 main labs and a computer lab on wheels (COW), freshman students are required to complete the computer based Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) test. The following year, the PLAN test is administered, which is an ACT prep assessment. Juniors take the Michigan Merit Examination (MME). All of the assessment data is recorded by the ISD for collaborative purposes. These assessments are ongoing and are conducted by teachers and administrators.

__In Conclusion:__

It is clear that technology is a part of each of these schools, whether small or very large. Comparing Grayling High and Emerson Elementary that are somewhat similar in student numbers, one might conclude that Grayling is far superior in the technology department, especially when it comes to training. However, we must also consider the fact that Grayling is a High School and perhaps it is more critical that these students and teachers put more emphasis on technology. Although GRCC is the largest institution by far and there is ample technology and training available, the requirements on the faculty to use it are minimal. It's quite disappointing when one compares this standard to the standards in Fairfax County where every new teacher must be certified for competency in all the technology in the county. It is expected that all schools will struggle with finding funds and attaining agreement between administration, school boards, and unions for equipment and staffing in the area of technology, but some of these schools have clearly managed better than others. Even if all the schools we compared aren't exactly where we would like them to be in technological development, all are at the very least advancing, sometimes slowly, in this area.