Pages 1--45 from
Guidebook for Developing an Effective Instructional Technology Plan
Version 2.0 1
prepared by
Graduate Students at Mississippi State University
participating in
TKT 8763 Ð Seminar in Planning for Instructional Technology
Instructor: Dr. Larry Anderson Internet: LSA1@ Ra. MsState. Edu
Mississippi State University Revised Spring 1996
Table of Contents
Authors...............................................................
......................................................................
........... 4
Preface
......................................................................
......................................................................
..... 5
Process
Technology Planning Model
......................................................................
................................ 8
Introduction
......................................................................
............................................................ 9
The Purpose of Technology Planning
......................................................................
........... 9
The Planning Process
......................................................................
...................................... 9
The Planning Document
......................................................................
............................... 10
Implementation in Progress
......................................................................
......................... 11
Ongoing Evaluation
......................................................................
...................................... 11
Product
Cover Sheet
......................................................................
........................................................... 14
Title Page
......................................................................
............................................................... 14
Table of Contents
......................................................................
................................................. 14
Acknowledgments.......................................................
.............................................................. 15
Executive
Summary...............................................................
.................................................... 15
Vision Statement
......................................................................
.................................................. 16
Mission Statement
......................................................................
............................................... 16
Demographics
......................................................................
...................................................... 16
Committee Membership
......................................................................
..................................... 17
General Introduction
......................................................................
........................................... 18
Data Collection, Analysis and Reporting
......................................................................
......... 18
Plan Preparations
......................................................................
................................................. 20
Critical Issues
......................................................................
....................................................... 21
Public
Relations.............................................................
....................................................... 21
Equipment
......................................................................
...................................................... 22
Implementation
......................................................................
.............................................. 22
New and Emerging
Technologies..........................................................
............................ 23
Professional
Development...........................................................
....................................... 23
Incentives/ Reward System
......................................................................
.......................... 24
Purchasing
......................................................................
...................................................... 25
Community Resources
......................................................................
.................................. 25
Legal Aspects
......................................................................
.................................................. 26
Curriculum, Instruction, and Evaluation
......................................................................
.. 26
Philosophy
......................................................................
...................................................... 27
Networking............................................................
............................................................... 28
Maintenance
......................................................................
................................................... 29
Special Needs Learners
......................................................................
................................. 30
Security
......................................................................
............................................................ 33
Community Involvement
......................................................................
............................. 33
Funding
......................................................................
........................................................... 34
Fine Arts
......................................................................
.......................................................... 35
Support
......................................................................
............................................................ 38
Lifelong Learners
......................................................................
........................................... 39
Facilities
......................................................................
........................................................... 39
Other Critical Issues
......................................................................
...................................... 40
Evaluation
......................................................................
............................................................. 40
Budget
......................................................................
................................................................... 40
Bibliography
......................................................................
......................................................... 41
Glossary..............................................................
......................................................................
... 41
Appendices
......................................................................
........................................................... 41
Index
......................................................................
......................................................................
41
Index
......................................................................
......................................................................
...... 42
NOTICE: RESTRICTIONS ON DUPLICATION
This document is not copyrighted yet, in its entirety; however, to
preserve the integrity of the students' work, the National Center for
Technology Planning (NCTP) does not release complete rights to
duplicate
the Guidebook. Anyone who wishes to make copies of this work is
required to do the following:
1. Seek and obtain written permission from Dr. Larry S. Anderson,
Founder/ Director, National Center for Technology Planning, P. O. Box
5425, Mississippi State, MS 39762, 601° 325° 7253 (Voice) or
601° 325° 7599 (FAX); E-mail: LSA1@ Ra. MsState. Edu
2. Upon receiving permission from Dr. Anderson, submit to NCTP a list
containing names of individu-als or organizations to whom a copy was
given.
3. The Guidebook must be reproduced in its entirety, as one single
unit.
By following these guidelines, users of this document will allow NCTP
to continue to keep the Guide-book updated and will keep the Guidebook
from being copyrighted.
Thank you for your cooperation!
We respectfully offer this document to those who anticipate writing a
technology plan in sincere hope that it will aid
them in their task. We recognize this work as one that is "in
progress." This guide is a product of our collaboration at the
time of publication, May 7, 1996. We expect and desire others to
critique, expand, and improve this endeavor.
The original guidebook was developed by students in June, 1995. This
was an excellent work; however, several revisions
were needed. The following authors, therefore, created Version 2.0:
Authors
Layout and Design by Fairfax H. Montgomery
NAME E-MAIL DEGREE INSTITUTION
Abdullah S. Al-Weshail asa2@ ra. msstate. edu M. S. University of
North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND
Amanda L. Baxter alb1@ ra. msstate. edu M. S. Mississippi State
University, Starkville, MS
Wynelia Cherry wc1@ ra. msstate. edu Ed. S. Mississippi State
University, Starkville, MS
Evelyn W. Hill evelyn@ cvmfaculty. msstate. edu B. S. Mississippi
State University, Starkville, MS
Charles R. Jones, II crj5@ ra. msstate. edu B. S. Mississippi Valley
State University, Itta Bena, MS
Lyle Thomas Love ltl1@ ra. msstate. edu B. S. Mississippi State
University, Starkville, MS
Fairfax H. Montgomery fhm1@ ra. msstate. edu B. A. Mary Baldwin
College, Staunton, VA
Deborah S. Podwika dsp3@ ra. msstate. edu M. A. Roosevelt University,
Chicago, IL
Betty Lang Rawlings blr3@ ra. msstate. edu B. A. Mississippi State
University, Starkville, MS
Angela G. Reed agr2@ ra. msstate. edu M. S. Mississippi State
University, Starkville, MS
Seyed E. Taghavi set1@ ra. msstate. edu Ed. S. Pittsburg State
University, Pittsburg, KS
Joseph E. Tilley jet6@ ra. msstate. edu B. B. A. Mississippi State
University, Starkville, MS
Judy C. Woods jcw5@ ra. msstate. edu M. S. Mississippi State
University, Starkville, MS
Preface I am extremely proud of the document you are reading currently
and want to offer a few words to help readers understand the
significance of this work. This guidebook is a fluid documentÑ it is
in a constant state of change, of being updated. Such is the nature of
technology planning. The Guidebook for Developing an Effective
Instructional Technology Plan was
created by graduate students enrolled in my course, Seminar in
Planning for Instructional TechnologyÑ a rich experience included in
the Instruc-tional
Technology program at Mississippi State University. I have at-tempted
to ensure that the activities in which these students engage are
pragmatic and immensely beneficial. I used this assignment as a means
of immersing students in the topic of technology planning. As a
result,
students learned a great deal more and a great deal faster than had I
merely shared with them my views of technology planningÑ in the
traditional mode of teaching.
No longer do I require students to write research papers that they
submit to me as a partial requirement for the degree. In this
scenario, student
work would remain in the scrutiny of the professor; outstanding work
of students would not be shared with their peers. Make no mistake, I
still
expect students to engage in sterling-quality scholarship. My standard
of excellence in this area is extremely high (the students would
probably
roll their eyes and say, "Yes, to a fault!")Ñ and students respond in
a superb fashion to these high expectations.
The improved system I use is for students to perform individual and
group research on well-thought-out issues, then to collaborate in the
creation of materials that have universal application and are sought
by hundreds of educators. Further, their work must be shared with the
world, using a variety of technologies, but especially the Internet,
generally, and the World Wide Web, specifically. Such a situation
oc-curred
with respect to this guidebook.
The majority of these contents were developed by my students. Only in
a few cases have I added my own words or input directly. Naturally,
since
I have spent many hours engaging these marvelous students in discourse
and debate, and have attempted to help them think more than just
remember, I hope my influence appears, albeit subtle.
The guidebook was developed in response to needs voiced by educators
around the world. Graduate students maintained rigorous contact with
technology planners in a wide variety of locations and institutions.
Email has been the primary mode of communication used; electronic
redistri-bution
of this guidebook seemed a natural delivery medium, therefore.
These extremely hard-working graduate students at Mississippi State
are some of the most well-equipped planners on this planet. The entire
world is their classroom. Using the Internet extensively, they have
both taught and been taught by the brightest minds in existenceÑ
yours! They
have probed deeply into sensitive issues, questioned exhaustively the
premier leaders in government agencies and other policy-making
institutions, and stretched the minds of both energetically-willing
and mildly-reluctant educators. As is the case with any eager learner,
they
have attacked this mode of learning with a vengeance; all of us who
participated are better people for the experience. The fortunate few
who
have experienced this contagious synergy firsthand know the
exhiliration that occurs and the concomitant frustration we sense as
we see others
who "don't get it." I am so proud to have been the single professor
whose great fortune it has been to stand amidst these learners
engulfed
in the enterprise of intellect and exuberant, boundless creativity!
These students have critiqued hundreds of technology plans, most of
which were contributed to the National Center for Technology Planning
by people like you. They have designed many devices, or aids, for
plan-ning, and interacted frequently with a wide variety of schools
engaged in
technology planning. One result of all this activity is this
guidebook. We hope you find it immensely beneficial.
As you read and use this guidebook, we encourage you to submit your
comments, suggestions, and questions. It is through the regular
exchange
of ideas that we are able to improve the product.
Thank you to every person who has given so freely to the valiant
efforts of my graduate students. Your input, advice, and dialogue has
been
invaluable. I feel sure, also, that you enjoyed interacting with the
stu-dents and can understand why I derive such joy from working
closely
with them.
Larry S. Anderson, Founder/ Director LSA1@ Ra. MsState. Edu
National Center for Technology Planning P. O. Box 5425
Mississippi State, MS 39762
and
Associate Professor Department of Technology and Education
Mississippi State University P. O. Box 9730
Mississippi State, MS 39762
Phone: 601° 325° 2281 FAX: 601° 325° 7599
WWW: http:// www2. msstate. edu/~ lsa1 [LSA1 in lower case]
Process
PHASE 2
Research
PHASE 4
Formalize the Planning
Technology Planning Model
Identify the technology needs of the individuals and organizations in
your educational institutions,
identify the technologies that can be applied to those needs, and
identify how they can be applied.
Use what you have learned from your research to define your vision/
mission and to define the goals
and tasks that will lead to fulfilling your vision and mission.
Articulate in a document what is believed, what exists, what is to be,
and how goals are to be
achieved.
Team members should be representative of all stakeholders and should
be leaders who excel in
planning, relationship, and communication skills.
PHASE 5
Continually
Implement Evaluate
Revise
PHASE 1
Recruit and Organize Planning Team
PHASE 3
Construct Technology Plan
Copyright © 1996 by Lyle Thomas Love
Introduction This introduction outlines the concepts associated with
the process of planning. Immediately following this introduc-tion is a
detailed discussion of concepts associated with the productÑ a
technology planning document.
The Purpose of Technology Planning Technology planning is an activity
that provides direction
and helps users understand clearly where they are now and imagine
where they want to be. The most common technique
used to formalize technology planning is the creation of a document. A
technology planning document is to technol-ogy
planning as a road map or a navigational chart is to a journey but the
planning document is neither the journey
nor the adventure. It is a device that helps explain the vari-ous
points of interest and destinations to travelers involved
in the process of realizing their dreams.
The purpose of technology planning is not just to produce a document,
but to produce continuous action that creates
and maintains a technology-rich educational environment. The plan
(noun) is a clear, written description of the plan
(verb) that is put into action by members of the community.
The Planning Process Like a long journey, technology planning is
long-term and
continuous. There are discoveries about different routes to the same
destination. There may be side-trips. Keep plan-ning.
Allow plenty of time (a year is suggested). Include all stakeholders
in the planning processÑ students, teachers,
administrators, community leaders, and other members of the community
who will benefit from the implementation of
the plan. Keep in mind that when the technology is in place and in use
it should be transparent. The real purpose of
technology in education is education.
Hint: Keep a log of council/ committee activities for refer-ence and
as a resource for the planning document .
Consider the following:
° How best can we assess the present state of technology and future
needs?
° How can we provide for ongoing evaluation and assessment?
° How often should the planning council/ committee meet?
° What educational institutions that have already in-stalled and
implemented technology such as electronic
classrooms can we visit? ° What conferences, expositions, etc. can we
attend to
discover more about our greatest potential in technology?
° Where can we find planning resources (people and documents)?
° How should we divide the planning responsibilities?
The Planning Document A planning document is one physical outcome of
the plan-ning
process. This guidebook presents key elements to consider in preparing
the written portion of a technology
plan. It is intended to expand a planning committee's famil-iarity
with technology planning and related issues.
A good technology plan includes certain components. These components
and related issues are presented in the order in
which they generally appear in published technology plans. However,
this does not imply that the order used in this
guide is the best or the only possible choice. Likewise, not all
components listed may be necessary for all plans; some
plans will require additional sections not covered in this guide.
Please keep in mind that planning is a fluid, ongoing pro-cess. The
written plan should be an articulation of what is
believed, what exists, what is to be, and how goals are to be
achieved.
Implementation in Progress
Implementation is a part of the continuous action that starts with the
first technology planning decision. It begins the
fulfillment of: 1) the vision, 2) the mission, and 3) the purpose of
the planning process. It is ongoing and should improve as
you evaluate your activities and revise your policies. As you initiate
the implementation phase, consider the following:
° Always keep the vision and mission statements in mind as you
progress toward your planning and
implementation goals. ° Provide opportunities for everyone to be
involved.
° Provide a flexible environment that nurtures change and encourages
risk-taking to learn technology skills
and use technology. ° Develop and maintain resource relationships with
technology experts to be aware of emerging technolo-gies.
° Do not panic if something is not going the way every-one thought it
would. Reevaluate! Realize that you are
involved in a process that requires constant monitoring and adjusting.
° There should be a definite schedule or timeline in your plan for
carrying out the various phases.
° Someone must be responsible for implementing the plan in buildings
and district-wide. (This could and
should be more than one person.) ° Decide what motivational measures
will be used to
encourage teachers or administrators who are reluctant to carry out
the program.
Ongoing Evaluation Evaluation is a continuous, ongoing process. This
process is
both informal and formal. The informal component goes on in the
planners' and implementers' minds as the planning
and implementing process begins and continues. The formal component
takes place at intervals throughout the process.
The informal is more intuitive; the formal can be done with
established criteria.
In all planning processes some plans work well and others not so well,
relative to various factors, including the plan-ning
and working environment as well as the people in-volved. A purpose of
the evaluation process is to determine
what is working for your institution and what is not, then revise
accordingly. One public school system deliberately
decided not to include a timeline or a budget in their plan. They also
decided to report annually on progress in imple-mentation,
review, revision, monitoring, and evaluation.
° Revisit and revise the plan at least annually. ° Elicit feedback and
suggestions continuously.
° Establish a feedback loop into the implementation process based on
the vision and mission that is ongo-ing.
° Consider these questions: u What has been and is being accomplished?
(imple-mentation)
u How can it be improved? (evaluation)
u What is our next step? (revision)
Product
An attractive cover sheet is vital in providing that important first
impression. Think of the cover sheet as the front door to
someone's home. It should be sufficiently inviting, visually, that the
reader is drawn to open the document and see what
is inside. The cover should be enticing. Just imagine how much more
appealing a magazine cover is when
it is asplash with color and meaningful graphics than if it were
blandÑ with only the title shown.
In developing a cover sheet consider the following:
° Utilizing different typefaces ° Inserting graphics
° Adding color ° Including the name of the institution for which the
technology plan is designed
An attractive and informative title page is an important component of
a technology planning document, conveying a
strong, positive message. In developing a title page consider:
° Including the state/ province in which theinstitution( s) is located
° Including the date the plan was submitted ° Including who the plan
was submitted by (not
necessarily every name on the committee, but the name of the committee
as a whole) (example: advisory
committee) ° Including the superintendent (if applicable)
° Including an address and phone number for additional information
° Including the e-mail address or the web site address for a contact
person in the institution
The Table of Contents is a crucial component of a planning document
because it provides a guide for readers. In devel-oping
the Table of Contents the following points may be considered:
° Including all sections of the document ° Being neat
Cover Sheet
Title Page
Table of Contents
° Being attractive ° Having page numbers so that readers can go
directly
to a certain topic ° Having appropriate indentations
° Including leaders (leader dots) ° Including headings and
subheadings, if needed
An acknowledgments page provides the opportunity to recognize those
persons and groups who have contributed
their time, efforts, and resources toward the completion of the
technology plan. While this section should be kept as
short as possible, it should at least recognize those who provided
financial support, leadership, technical expertise,
review or editing of the manuscript, and the publisher of the finished
document.
If the acknowledgment is for a specific person or organiza-tion, then
that contribution to the plan should also be cited.
If the acknowledgment is for the contribution of a group whose members
are also to be recognized individually, it is
often best to list these members in alphabetical order. Con-sider
ending this section with a general acknowledgment so
that all supporters of the plan can feel that their efforts were
appreciated.
The executive summary serves essentially as an abstract of your
technology plan. It provides the reader with a short
overview of what the plan is, how and why it came into being, and what
it hopes to accomplish. Like an abstract, it
should be placed near the beginning of the planning docu-ment so that
it is easy to locate. The summary should be kept
brief, and should communicate quickly the major points of the plan to
the reader. A maximum length of two pages is
recommended.
It is important when creating the summary to remember that, for many
readers, the executive summary will be the
only part of the plan that they read in its entirety. This means that
the summary can be potentially the most important part
of your technology plan for those readers as it will provide them with
their only impression of it.
Acknowledgments
Executive Summary
A vision statement expresses your thoughts about what you want to
happen in the future and should be written in broad
terms. In preparing a vision statement, sufficient time, sup-port,
commitment, teamwork, and flexibility are required in
order to convey a positive attitude toward the use of the technology.
This component, with the mission statement, is
the basis of everything else that you will do. It should be thought
out carefully and included in all technology plans.
When constructing a vision statement, consider the follow-ing:
° What roles do we desire and see for the future of technol-ogy and
education in our institution and community?
° What will our classrooms of the future look like and include?
° How will instruction be delivered? ° How and at what levels will
students achieve?
° How will the community be involved? ° What do we envision for our
learners in the future?
A mission statement decribes your purpose and your plans for
fulfilling your vision for technology in education. This
component should be included in all technology plans. When composing a
mission statement, consider the follow-ing:
° What must we do to make our vision come true? ° What is learning,
according to our definition?
° What does learning look like while in progress? ° What is different
about learning with technology?
° What must we do to develop, implement, and continu-ally improve the
quality of instruction and learning
using technology? ° What are desired student benefits and outcomes?
° What characterizes our learners?
Demographics give the blueprint of the area surrounding the
institution that will be implementing technology into its
program. The demographics of a community or region contribute to the
general quality of the learning experience.
Vision Statement
Mission Statement
Demographics
Demographic data should cover all relevant aspects of the community/
schools. This section is important as demo-graphics
may influence potential industrial and residential development. When
developing a statement of demographic
composition, the following points may be considered:
° Location °Area
° Population distribution by ethnic group, gender, and median age
° Percentage of professionals, blue collar workers, unemployed, etc.
° General accreditation/ degree levels of teachers ° Income: household
and per capita
° Student enrollment, history, and projections ° School building
distribution
Every strong technology plan has several committees made up of key
personnel. Committees should include:
° Students ° Parents
° Community members ° Faculty members
° Administrators ° Business persons
° Laypersons ° Librarians
° Administrative support personnel ° Technology professionals
There should be room for outside consultants and other interested
persons. The above list is only for consideration. In
choosing committee members, factors to consider would include: a past
history of willingness to invest their time and
interests in educational endeavors; past committee member-ships;
strong indications of interest in this area; formal or
informal leadership positions in the community; persons with known
influential positions; and vocal/ energetic trendsetters.
However, it is imperative that all groups be represented.
Committee Membership
Points to consider when establishing and working with committees
include the following:
° A leader who is assertive, committed, self-starting, and flexible
should be chosen for each committee.
° A recording secretary is essential. This person will be responsible
for recording all meetings and distributing
the minutes. ° Meetings should be scheduled on a regular basis at a
time that is convenient for the majority of members. ° The leader
should be able to delegate authority to those
in each committee. Committee members should be given job descriptions
so their roles and responsibilities
will be clear. ° Job descriptions for the technology coordinator as
well
as other key personnel should be included in the tech-nology plan. An
organizational chart may be useful.
° Committee members should be encouraged to visit each campus in their
district, as well as other school
districts, to compare existing technologies.
This should be written in an abstract form that could include but not
be limited to the following:
° Capacity: number of schools, students, faculty members ° History of
committee: committee's beginning, who is
involved, stages of committee, and its activities ° Short-term and
long-term goals
° School's organizational structure ° Purpose of the school in the
community
Consider starting data collection with students and teachers as end
users of instructional technology; this
would aid in discovering how to apply technology to their specific
responsibilities and working situations.
This concept would also apply to other staff and personnel. A survey
using open-ended questions can
be useful for this purpose.
General Introduction
Data Collection, Analysis, and
Reporting
Data are likely to be used and/ or reported in a variety of locations
within a technology planning document. Data are
necessary for many reasons, including, but not limited to:
° Describing the current status of programs, courses, student
achievement, technology, infrastructure, and
other existing situations ° Determining the needs of clientele,
identifying stan-dards,
and discovering opportunities and problems ° Formulating and
fine-tuning values, visions, missions,
and goals ° Deciding how to fulfill needs, implementing plan
steps, and accomplishing specific objectives ° Controlling the
process, evaluating results, and revis-ing
plans
Data may be of many types, for example: demographic, descriptive,
subjective, objective, and many others. Data may
be collected from existing records, surveys, observations, and
physical measurements. Data may describe attitudes,
abilities, capabilities, status and characteristics of people,
processes, curricula and other soft items, hardware, equip-ment,
budget, finances, and other entities.
Data may be collected from various individuals at various locations.
For example: the planning committee should visit
all sites; office staff may extract information from student records;
and students, teachers, and others can keep logs.
Data may be analyzed by a variety of analytical, graphical, and
holistic techniques. The types of analyses employed will
depend on the data collected and the questions to be an-swered. It is
advisable to obtain the aid of a skilled re-searcher/
evaluator.
Interpretation and dissemination of data are equally as important as
collection of data. Periodic reports (concerning
data and other items) throughout the planning process will be
necessary. It is important that reports be accurate, clear,
and concise. Include in a report only what is necessary. Place
tabulations and lengthy lists in appendices. Reports should
be tailored to the reader. An interim report to the district
superintendent should look very different compared to a
technology newsletter for parents. The data dissemination portion of
the plan document should reflect the format and
printed quality of the rest of the document, that is, very
professional.
When collecting, analyzing, or reporting data for evaluation or other
purposes, several considerations are important,
including:
° Before any data are collected, make sure you know for which purpose
you are collecting the data.
° Collect only data needed, but make sure you collect all the data you
need.
° Collect data in an unintrusive manner. ° Maintain confidentiality of
respondents.
° Participation by respondents should be voluntary. ° Do not use data
to prove a preconceived idea; use data
to discover, describe, and provide other information necessary for
decision making.
° All instruments and techniques should be sensitive to bias and
diversity issues.
° Make sure that what is reported is logically derived from what is
collected.
° Keep surveys and other instruments as short and easily interpreted
as possible.
° In surveys and questionnaires, avoid questions which lead to
preconceived answers. Questions should not
restrict input; open-ended questions are generally best.
The components listed under the Plan Preparations should be included
in all plans and located near the beginning of the
document. They are as follows:
° GoalsÑ should say specifically what you plan to accom-plish
° ObjectivesÑ how you plan to achieve the goals you have stated; state
goals in measurable terms
° TimelineÑ states the period of time in which you are to complete the
plan or goals; states approximate
date( s) for completion of each phase; states major events with the
use of graphics (i. e. charts and
calendars)
Plan Preparations
Numerous critical issues exist in planning for pragmatic use of
technologies for instruction. A particularly effective strat-egy
in preparing the section of your plan that deals with these issues is
to assign different ones to committee mem-bers.
You may want to assign a special task force to each issue, then let
these people focus on a specific area. As the
committee gives periodic progress reports, the entire com-mittee can
stay abreast of overall action. Sample issues to be
considered in writing a plan should include, but are not limited to,
the following:
The development of public relations is the process of strate-gically
communicating with the people who are important to
your ideas. Public relations programs can be big and expen-sive. They
can also be small and inexpensive and still be
effective. There is no direct correlation between the amount of money
you spend and the success of your program. The
success of a public relations program depends more on what is
happening within an institution than on the public rela-tions
effort, in the way that great wine starts with great grapes.
When developing a public relations program the following points may be
considered:
° Determine your position in your institution. What makes you unique?
° Determine your key audiences. ° There are other groups that may have
a significant
impact on your ideas: employees, the community, government agencies,
educators, etc.
° Determine which media will best target your selected audiences.
Media might include trade and technical publi-cations,
business press, television, radio, newspapers, and magazines. For
special purposes, appropriate media might
even be imprinted balloons, skywriting or racing cars. There are no
limits except those imposed by who you are
trying to reach and what you are trying to tell them. ° Formulate a
strategic message to target audiences. Put
together a plan outlining objectives, strategies, tactics, timeline,
and budget.
° Good public relations illustrates needs and creates desires for
implementing technology.
Public Relations
Critical Issues
° Go forth and communicate. Tactics involved in execut-ing a public
relations program are virtually unlimited.
They include standard news releases, media liaison, press tours, and
so forth, but they can also include
direct mail, special events, contests, and speakers' bureaus. The
criteria for judging the appropriateness of
a tactic include: u Will the tactic support the overall strategic
objectives?
u Is a key audience targeted?
u Is its cost justified by its potential effectiveness?
Choosing hardware should come after deciding curriculum and looking at
available software. When choosing equipment,
these are some of the questions that should be addressed:
° What equipment is available in the district? ° What will be the
budget?
° What instruction will be necessary for staff/ students? ° What
functions and capacities must the equipment possess?
° What will be the minimum specifications for the equip-ment?
° Is the equipment user-friendly?
When preparing to evaluate software, consider the following questions:
° Can vendors give demonstrations of current technology? ° Is the
software user-friendly?
° How does the software meet curriculum objectives? ° What software is
presently in use?
° Have you used the Software Publishers Association as a resource?
Implementation as a part of the plan document answers the questions
when and who is responsible for acting on the
plan. This component can outline and include:
° The estimated timeline and proposed schedule for completing the
various components of the plan
° The necessary steps involved for completing each component
Equipment
Implementation
° The person( s) responsible for each component and seeing that each
step is completed at all levels of involvement
° Checkpoints for formal evaluation of implementation ° Relevant
funding information (how much and when it
will be available) or where to find this information ° References to
the incentives proposed in the Technol-ogy
Professional Development section of the plan
This section of a technology plan describes innovations that are
foreseen.
° Investigate and research to see if your current technol-ogy is up to
date. If not, salvage what you can, scratch
the rest, and start over again. ° Technology changes every day. Is
your plan and the
equipment you intend to buy able to change with it? ° Ask for
volunteers or possibly assign several people
who are interested in emerging technologies to report every so often
on areas they think need to be addressed
in the school's technology plan. ° If you cannot afford to buy new
equipment as it comes
on the market, ask around and locate someone who would demonstrate new
technology to students and teachers.
° Allow staff to attend state, regional, and national technology
meetings so that they may keep up to date
on technology. ° Allow staff who attend technology conventions to
present their findings to the building or district when they return.
As concerns have been expressed about technology plan-ning, at the top
of the list is professional development and
training. The number one question is, "How can we teach everyone how
to use technology effectively?"
It has been said that you train animals and develop people. Semantics
are important to project your plan in a positive
way. "Professional development" and "instruction" sound better than
"training" to many people. Staff members seek-ing
personal growth will be more motivated to participate when they hear
"development."
New and Emerging
Technologies
Professional Development
A necessary component of an instructional technology plan should
include technology awareness and skills instruction.
The educational institution's professional development programs need
to provide learning opportunities for all
personnel by offering them instruction at workshops, confer-ences,
etc.
Decide to make a full commitment to staff development from the start.
As you prepare this component you might
consider:
° What research should be done to see how much in-struction the staff
may need
° How much appropriate technology instruction is available
° What technologies should be included in the instruc-tion such as use
of: projection technology; computer( s)
with modem, videodisc, and CD-ROM; distance learning; and computer
networks
° Opportunities for personnel to attend professional development
sessions (examples: Are substitutes
provided? Are teachers penalized by losing sick or personal days?)
° How the district will reimburse or prepay for person-nel to attend
workshops, etc.
° Hiring a full-time professional development instructor who is not a
"techie," per se, but who understands how
to utilize technology in education ° Use of a
"teachers-teaching-teachers" approach by
reallocating time for technology-oriented teachers to instruct their
peers.
Incentives are given to staff as motivation to continue to learn and
implement higher technology skills. Rewards are "com-pensation"
staff receives for carrying out these objectives. Congratulate and
celebrate technology learning achieve-ment.
° Plan your budget so that money is allocated for the incentive/
reward program.
° Make sure staff are given a clear outline of what they must do in
order to receive rewards.
Incentives/ Reward System
° Possible rewards include: u A cash bonus
u Trips to conferences, etc. (to learn technology and/
or present a successful program that is being implemented)
u Extra personal days
u District or school achievement certificates pre-sented
at meetings to recognize staff achievements u Recognition for
innovators and early adopters
u Articles to the local newspaper or in a district
newsletter u Technology equipment as a reward for learning
how to use it
Purchasing is the process of researching, comparing, and actually
paying for equipment.
° Make sure everyone understands the rules and regula-tions involved
in purchasing equipment and software.
° Unless you must take a certain bid, shop around for bargains. If it
means saving money, beg.
° Do your research! Never purchase equipment without first knowing
what you are going to do with it.
° Don't get so excited about buying equipment that you forget about
the cost of software, repair, and mainte-nance
agreements. ° Make sure the software/ hardware you intend to buy
meets minimum standards set by the state. °" The bitterness of poor
quality is remembered long after the
sweetness of low price has faded from memory."Ñ Aldo Gucci
Community resources do not always refer to money. Use the resources
available that are unique to your community.
Consider the following:
° You can save money by asking a company to donate the materials and/
or labor needed to rewire buildings, etc.
° Instead of paying a consultant's or trainer's fee, ask a
representative or individual industry if they have
someone who can do it for free. ° Ask industry or knowledgeable
individuals to under-
Purchasing
Community Resources
take the task of physically setting up and putting equipment on-line.
If you accomplish this, consider
sending a school employee who can learn by watching and helping.
° If your plan calls for extra lab time after school or in the
evenings, ask for volunteers (who meet such criteria
as understanding the program being used, etc.) to run or supervise the
lab. This might ease a teacher's workload.
° Conduct brainstorming sessions with community members to discover
some resources your community
can contribute.
Legal aspects can cover a multitude of areas from pirating software to
insuring that a state's or district's technology
curriculum is achievable.
° Make sure ALL staff understand the copyright laws of technology
materials.
° Make sure your district is using the minimum specifi-cations for
technology. If not, does your district realize
they could lose state accreditation? ° Consider an Acceptable Use
Policy to guard against
e-mail harassment and access to pornography. Some schools take the
positive approach by referring to these
policies as Responsible Use Policies.
Curriculum is what is learned by students. Instruction is the method
in which curriculum is learned. Evaluation is the
process of determining if curriculum goals and objectives have been
met.
Learning may occur in the absence of teaching, but teaching does not
necessarily mean learning has occurred! One must
keep technology in mind when developing curriculum goals and
instructional and evaluation methods. While the estab-lished
curriculum, instruction, and evaluation do not necessarily have to
change, they can be enhanced by integrating technology.
Curriculum and instructional methods can be a dynamic process by
exchanging ideas among students, teachers, and
others from around the world.
Legal Aspects
Curriculum, Instruction,
and Evaluation
When developing curriculum, instruction, and evaluation the following
points may be considered:
° Establishing multiple objective areas such as cognitive, behavioral
and personal development
° Instilling the realization that learning is not confined to the
classroom
° Developing life-long learning skills such as critical thinking,
information processing, problem-solving,
studying, decision-making, communication, and creativity
° Establishing global collaborative and cooperative learning
experiences
° Developing instructional methods that meet individual students'
needs, interests and learning styles
° Developing instructional methods that allow students to express
their individuality
° Allowing students to express in multiple ways knowl-edge and skills
learned
° Establishing a variety of evaluation methods ° Creating
opportunities for accessing "real-life informa-tion
and experience" ° Establishing methods in which students can
contribute
to and improve society immediately rather than at some future time
° Utilizing simulations and modeling programs ° Establishing immediate
and multiple feedback
° Developing multidiscipline and multicultural learning environments
° Instilling the realization that the responsibility of learn-ing is
shared by teachers, parents, students, and the
community ° Developing curriculum and instructional methods
which include multiple intelligences, for example, Howard Gardner's
social understanding intelligence
and Robert Sternberg's experiential intelligence ° Developing ways in
which students can evaluate and
assist others in learning
A school's philosophy should include making preparation and plans to
accomplish goals and objectives. The plan will
consist of several preliminary steps in order to reach the final
Philosophy
stage. Consider the role technology has in the school and community
and establish a plan for implementation. Time,
support, commitment, teamwork, and flexibility are required to
guarantee acceptance and implementation of the technol-ogy.
Goals must be established to envision the future of the technology
plan.
Teaching transferable thinking skills is important in prepar-ing
students to adapt to a changing environment. Each
student should be furnished written documentation detail-ing specific
competencies achieved through participation in
the educational program. However, this would not necessar-ily include
incidental learning experiences that occur outside
the formal curriculum. In order to create a vision that en-compasses
the entire community, the vision for the technol-ogy
plan must be written in broad terms.
The reason for inclusion of this section is to help a school
determine, then place in writing for all to see, precisely the
technology oriented philosophy.
A network is a collection of interconnected, individually-controlled
computers, together with the hardware and
software used to connect them. A network allows users to share their
data and resources.
In order to provide equitable access to information for
ad-ministrators, teachers, students, and parents in a state's or
provinces' educational system, there must be a statewide information
network. This network must integrate data,
voices, and video and extend to every school district and library. An
effective statewide network will provide:
° Distance learning that enables students in rural areas to receive
the same quality and breadth of courses as their
peers in metropolitan districts ° Ongoing (inservice) instruction of
teachers that is con-ducted
without requiring teachers to travel ° Global connectivity to enrich
the learning environment
by allowing teachers and students to access leading libraries, access
remote information sources (databases),
and converse with other students and colleagues
Networking
An effective technology plan must be based upon an under-lying
infrastructure, the key component of which is network-ing.
This element of the technology plan should encompass all local area,
(i. e., intra-building ) and wide area (inside and
outside building) networks and the associated interconnec-tivity
equipment and network operating system necessary to
implement a fully-networked computing and information technology
environment.
Networking must be considered an essential part of technol-ogy plans.
This element of a plan may be an advanced tele-communication
system that provides the necessary electronic communication
capabilities at all levels, from the classrooms,
buildings, and districts, to the world. This system will provide
two-way interactive video and data communication, two-way
interactive data communication (Distance Learning), Internet
connectivity (i. e., network, electronic mail, file transfer
proto-col,
gopher, World Wide Web), and voice-based information service.
Furthermore, the networking and the interconnectivity component of the
technology plan must be designed and
implemented so that it is capable of meeting the needs of the school,
district, and state/ province in the near future. Tech-nology
planning may consider the following: intra-building and inter-building
connectivity; connectivity and access to
the outside world; network hubs; Local Area Network (LAN); Wide Area
Network (WAN); television distribution; satellite
delivery; network operating systems and protocols; bulletin boards;
Internet Access Providers; and on-line services.
Note: It is not the purpose of this portion to educate the planner or
the committee about networksÑ many books and
other resources exist to do that.
Maintenance may be defined as any repair or upkeep per-formed on
equipment or facilities. A comprehensive mainte-nance
plan is a necessary component of a technology plan. This comprehensive
plan will ensure: longevity of the
equipment; adequate staff instruction; and budgets that are cost
effective.
Maintenance
When developing a maintenance plan, the following points may be
considered:
° Solve maintenance problems before they arise by keep-ing printers,
computers, monitors, and keyboards free
from dust, grime, and foreign objects. ° Develop a budgetary process
to provide for ongoing
repairs. ° Train people (possibly two or three from each school)
to provide repair services. (e. g., computer teachers, administrators,
and frequent users)
° Provide regular updating sessions for personnel in order for them to
stay abreast of current practices and
techniques. ° Consider asking qualified and trustworthy persons
such as parents, industry, business, or community residents if they
would offer to repair and maintain
equipment for free or at a reduced rate. (e. g., Partner-ships with
Businesses)
° Arrange printers, scanners, copiers, and other periph-erals so that
they are accessible for maintenance.
° When purchasing classroom equipment, consider asking for a contract
that includes a warranty package
and provides special training. ° Examine maintenance contracts
carefully and be alert
for any hidden costs. ° Maintain a maintenance log on each piece of
equip-ment
(e. g., date of service, who performed the service, next service date,
equipment problem, what was done
to solve the problem, and cost). ° Monitor all classroom labs to
prevent maintenance
problems. ° Train students to perform minor repair functions (e. g.,
printer jams, computer lock-ups, and mouse malfunc-tions).
° When purchasing computers, purchase extra equip-ment to keep in a
box in case of an emergency (e. g.,
mouse, inside computer parts, and keyboard). ° Repair technologies as
expeditiously as possible.
Technology is an excellent tool that students with disabilities may
use to access learning. When developing a technology Special Needs
Learners
plan one must provide for special needs learners. While the main focus
may be on the disabled, the plan must also pro-vide
for learners who are classified as gifted or talented. The Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 requires that all
private and public schools, libraries, businesses, and facili-ties are
accessible to people with disabilities. Of course,
schools will comply with the mandate of reasonable accom-modations,
but they can do much more if they become
familiar with the variety of disability categories and research the
adaptive technologies which are available to assist in
overcoming these disabilities.
The following are a few examples of why special needs learners must be
considered when planning a technology
program:
Visual Impairments
This can include students who are partially sighted or have low
vision, as well as those who are blind. Problems include
inability to see the screen, orient on the keyboard and read the
computer printout as well as the inability to write and
read printed information. Adaptive technologies include:
° Speech synthesizers ° Large monitors
° Talking computers ° Braille embossers and printers
° Scanners and scan-reading software
Physical Impairments
This can include students who have limited or no use of their hands
and who experience difficulty in writing, hold-ing
books or papers, and turning pages. Adaptive technolo-gies include:
° Voice recognition systems ° On-screen keyboards
° Enlarged or mini keyboards, trackballs, joysticks, and Morse Code
sip and puff switches
Hearing/ Speech Impairments
Generally, students with hearing and speech impairments
have little difficulty using computers, but they can still benefit
from emerging technologies which include:
° Communications software which displays dialog on computer screens
° Speech output devices ° Visual displays and printouts
Learning Disabilities
Some disabilities that affect learning include dyslexia, dysgraphia,
dyscalculia, language deficit and attention
deficit disorder. Adaptive technologies are available to enhance the
learning capabilities of students with learning
disabilities.
Exceptional Students
Students who are recognized as gifted and/ or talented create yet
another challenge for schools. Educators want
students to expand their knowledge base, and to develop creative and
complex thinking processes, while challenging
them to realize their full potential. Technology can be used in a
variety of ways to improve the curriculum for talented and
gifted students. Access to the Internet can bring enormous resources
into a school including, but not limited to:
° Weather maps and forecasting ° Astronomy and geography
° Electronic publishing and on-line technology ° Music, the arts, and
literature
° On-line discussion and news groups
Programs of enrichment and acceleration usually involve the greatest
amount of curricular adjustment, but they also have
the greatest effect on student learning. Evaluations show that
students enrolled in accelerated classes outperform non-accelerates
of the same age and IQ by almost one full year on achievement tests.
All this information compels the planner to seek to create and
maintain robust, expansive programs that challenge all
learners. This allows every student the privilege of exploring
learning vistas, regardless of personal disability or gift.
Community involvement is described as the interweaving of the best
efforts of both the community members and the
educators in producing the highest quality environment, equipment, and
facilities available for the education of our
youth, our greatest natural resource.
When planning for the development of community involve-ment the
following points may be considered:
° Discuss with community members how education has changed and how
technology can play a positive role
in transforming learning. ° Involove parents, grandparents, and
community mem-bers,
making them aware of the technology being used in the schools, by
having Family Technology Night.
° Invite civic clubs to meet in the computer labs and have students
show club members how to create elec-tronic
presentations. ° Invite the Board of Education to a "hands-on,"
state-of-the-
art learning workshop. The students can guide them on their first trip
down the "information highway."
° Invite business leaders and corporations to the school for Business
Technology Night. Students can design
advertisements, tri-fold brochures, and electronic pre-sentations for
the various "adopted" businesses.
Implementing the above suggestions will accomplish the following:
° Form a bond between civic organization members and students
° Promote a community spirit ° Promote lifelong learning
° Encourage funding from corporate sponsors ° Promote pride in the
school
° Promote "real-life" application of skills learned in the classroom
° Encourage the use of the latest and highest quality technology
available
Security is freedom from worry. By providing security you are
protecting your computers, networks, personnel, and
Community Involvement
Security
software from destruction, misuse, and harm. There are at least three
areas to consider in the security area: security of
data, personnel, and facilities. Every security plan should be
creative in investigating unique techniques/ strategies for
dealing with security.
When developing a security plan, the following questions may be
considered:
° Why do you need security? u People Threat (human error, dishonest
employees,
disgruntled employees, and hackers) u Physical Threat (fire damage,
water damage,
electrical outages, vandalism, viruses, earthquakes, and tornadoes)
° Are budgeted funds sufficient to provide and sustain the type and
level of security program you desire?
u Will budgeted funds be ongoing?
° What type of network security will be provided? ° What type of
computer security will be used?
u How will the staff, students, and community mem-bers
access computers? u Will passwords be assigned?
° Will you hire someone to be responsible for data, pro-gram, virus,
and network security?
° Should you have a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for handling
security problems?
° Where should security systems be installed? u Do you need security
in each room?
u Do you need security in each building?
° Do you need cameras to monitor people and equip-ment?
° Do you need to provide after-hours security for protec-tion from
theft or vandalism?
° Should diskettes be stored and locked in a central loca-tion?
° Should measures be taken to prevent students from obtaining
materials that are of adult content?
When developing an effective instructional technology plan, a
committee should remember the importance of funding.
The first step is to look at the school district and to assess the
Funding
need. The dollars allocated should be shown as an invest-ment rather
than an expenditure. With both investments and
expenditures, there is an initial outlay of dollars. However, with
investment one gets back much more in return than the
initial outlay. With an expenditure, one may never see the results of
the outlay.
There are various concepts that can be addressed regarding funding:
° Budgets should be a technology line item to indicate that support
for funding is an ongoing process.
° Financial officers need to be involved in the funding process.
There are alternative techniques or strategies available in the
funding process:
° Fund-raising activities ° Rent-a-student programs
° Sale of outdated technology equipment
There can be local financial support programs available for school
districts. For example, banks can make low interest
loans to a particular school as its partner-in-progress. Also, local
universities can form partnerships with school districts.
Partnerships can represent projects showing how resources and tools of
the Internet can improve educational opportuni-ties
and develop parental involvement in grades K Ð 12.
It is important to point out that this guide is not complete. This
list, in conjunction with resources in your area, will
provide funding sources in educational technology. New technologies
will continue to emerge and must be funded
continually to prevent the plan from becoming obsolete.
The fine arts curriculum in the past often has been treated as an
optional rather than an essential part of education. With
the establishment of the "Goals 2000: Educate America Act," the arts
is acknowledged as a core subject, as important
to education as English, mathematics, science, foreign lan-
Fine Arts
guages, civics and government, economics, history, geogra-phy, and
other traditional "subjects."
Arts education cultivates the whole person. Education in the arts, in
part, helps students to understand human experi-ences,
past and present; learn to respect other's ways of thinking; learn to
solve problems and make decisions; un-derstand
the influences of the arts; develop skills in analyz-ing,
synthesizing, and evaluating; communicate in a variety
of modes; and build skills needed for success in the work-place and in
life. Furthermore, numerous studies show a
positive correlation between a substantive education in the arts and
student achievement in other subjects and on stan-dardized
tests.
A good education in the arts should provide a thorough grounding in a
basic body of knowledge as well as the skills
necessary to make both sense and use of the arts disciplines. To
fulfill this objective, "National Standards for Arts Educa-tion"
have been developed, determining what the nation's school children
should know and be able to do in the arts.
"Fine arts" may comprise numerous forms of visual and performing arts.
The National Standards for Arts Education
divides the discipline into four areas: Dance, Music, Theatre, and
Visual Arts, realizing that each of these encompasses a
wide variety of forms and subdisciplines.
These standards address competencies rather than predeter-mined
courses of study and they are arranged by grade
levels (K Ð 4; 5 Ð 8; 9 Ð 12). With implementation of these standards,
students in all grades are involved actively in
comprehensive, sequential programs that include creating, performing,
and producing as well as opportunities for
study, analysis, and reflection. With the emphasis on sequen-tial
learning, each area is outlined by content standards
(specifying what students should know and be able to do in the arts
discipline) and achievement standards (specifying
the understandings and levels of achievement that students are
expected to attain in the competencies) for each of the
arts, at the completion of grades 4, 8, and 12.
When developing fine arts the following points may be considered:
° Consult the "National Standards for Arts Education" with the goal of
bringing together and delivering a
broad range of competent instruction. ° A fine arts curriculum can
help children develop in
most of the seven types of intelligences: visual/ spatial, bodily/
kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal,
intrapersonal, linguistic, and logical/ mathematical. These are seven
distinct learning styles identified by
Howard Gardner of Harvard University. Gardner has documented "the
extent to which students possess
different kinds of minds and therefore learn, remember,
perform, and understand in different ways."
° Integration of art into the teaching of other subject areas causes
the related learning to be more relevant.
° Participation in the arts elicits pleasure as well as intellectual
and aesthetic stimulation.
° Teachers can use technology to enhance both the cre-ation and the
understanding of all areas of the fine arts,
including movies and animation. ° Use of multimedia aids learning.
° With the use of multimedia development tools, stu-dents can learn
through construction of their own
projects. ° Examples of the use of computers, scanners,
camcorders, printers, and any new technologies that allow for
exploration and creative design include the
following: u Students can capture, process, and manipulate
words and images using various software pro-grams.
u Students can compose, revise, edit, and print music
using a MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Inter-face) keyboard
connected to a computer containing
composition software. u Students can explore all areas of the arts
using CD-ROM
disks: styles, periods, artists/ composers, and cultures.
u Students can visit museums around the world or
participate in a worldwide art exhibition of student art.
° Interesting and engaging technologies can intrigue a student, but it
is only through instruction, study, and
practice that a student becomes competent. With in-creasing levels of
competence a student becomes more
empowered and productive. ° Students need to be well guided toward
choosing,
compiling, and arranging materials appropriate to specific artistic
ends.
° Success is measured by how well students achieve artistic and
intellectual objectives, not by how adept
they are in using a certain technology. ° Teachers and students can
use the Internet as network-ing
tools to discuss art-related subjects and events. ° Creative and
continual utilization of community re-sources
is a good means of exposing students to the arts:
u Partnerships with area arts organizations can be
developed. u Teaching alliances with art specialists can be
formed. ° Address the issues of teacher preparation and profes-sional
development in the arts. ° Consider grants funding via arts
organizations.
Support is the provision of tangible or intangible apprecia-tion,
motivation, or rewards for an idea, a situation, a prod-uct,
or a person.
Everyone involved in the planning process is expected and should
provide some sort of support, depending on his/ her
role and/ or position, in order to gain and maintain the maximum
support possible. Support includes, but is not
limited to, the following: state legislators, school district leaders,
schools administrators, teachers, community mem-bers,
and students.
Support must begin with the birth of the technology plan idea,
maintained through the process, and nurtured to an
endless period of time. When providing support, the follow-ing should
be considered:
° Financial support to purchase hardware and software
Support
° Financial support for the infrastructure ° Training for faculty and
staff members
° Provision of incentives to teachers who participate in inservice
training programs
° Elimination of teachers' routine tasks in order to have more time to
help peers and students
° Provision of technical support to maximize the use of the hardware
and software
° Provision of consultation and advice for safety and re-lated legal
issues
A lifelong learner is a person who, having recognized the importance
of education and technology, continues to search
for new and exciting ways to accomplish life's tasks.
° Emphasize that being a lifelong learner does not neces-sarily mean
pursuing formal education and research.
° The district should provide opportunities for learners other than
students by designing adult evening classes
that allow the community to use the technologies.
Facilities relate to anything needed to house or power the chosen
technology equipment. When planning for facilities,
consider the following:
° Location ° Buildings
° Rooms ° Wiring codes (example: In older buildings, can fuse
boxes handle the additional power needed to run the equipment?)
° Data lines ° Security
° Furniture u Ask teachers' opinions about classroom layout.
u Do you want furniture built into walls or flooring
so that there is no exposed wiring, etc.? ° Fire codes
° Panic buttons
Lifelong Learners
Facilities
There are other critical issues which may be considered when
developing a technology plan:
° Obsolescence ° Environmental Issues (conservation)
° Access/ Equity ° Ergonomics (making equipment and furnishings
user-friendly,
e. g., table height, comfortable seating) ° Standards
° Communication
Objectives and their delivery are of paramount importance. However,
without evaluation, only gut-feelings can indicate
if effort and resources expended have produced the desired results.
Evaluation should be built into the planning cycle
and not be an afterthought. Also, evaluation should be continual and
not just at the end of a cycle.
Every step in a plan should be evaluated. Evaluations will be
performed at varying points in the planning cycle. The type
of evaluation, its detail, and duration will depend on the step being
evaluated and the decisions that have to be made
that surround or interact with that step. As in reporting data, the
purpose of the evaluation and the intended audience are
prime considerations. It is prudent to seek the advice of an
evaluation expert.
Evaluation may be covered in multiple parts of a technology plan, e.
g., implementation plans, critical issues, needs analy-sis,
reporting, and other sections. In addition to other sec-tions,
evaluation usually warrants a dedicated section to
clarify evaluation purposes and procedures.
The budget shows allocation of available funds and their sources.
Purchases and other expenses incurred during
implementation of the technology plan are included. This information
could be displayed in chart form showing
budget breakdowns and total costs.
° The actual budget may be included in the appendix.
Other Critical Issues
Evaluation
Budget
° This section may include a narrative justification or explanation of
various components in the plan.
The bibliography is a collection of sources that have been used to
compile data and which have been referenced in the
report. (examples: books, periodicals, contacts, interviews, Internet
sources, etc.)
The glossary is a list of all obscure or technical words used
throughout the plan and their meanings. The glossary is
arranged alphabetically.
The appendix section allows you to accumulate many docu-ments and
source information that have assisted you in the
planning process. Here you should include samples of your surveys,
staff development sessions, committee minutes,
inventories, and committee members' resumes. The appen-dix is a
section to which you can refer throughout your
plan without having to include the original documents at the specific
points where you mention them; you can direct the
reader to a particular appendix.
An especially good appendix entry enumerates activities in which most
school personnel are involved. This will give
people an opportunity to see their name in print and to give evidence
of the widespread input you had in developing the
plan. Use this section wisely.
The index is an alphabetical list of names, subjects, titles, etc.,
giving page numbers where references are made. It is
generally placed at the back of the plan.
Bibliography
Glossary
Appendices
Index
Index A
Abstract 15, 18 Acceptable Use Policy 26
Achievement 19, 25, 32, 36 Achievement certificates 25
Acknowledgment 2, 15 Administrator 9, 11, 17, 28, 30, 38
Agreements 25 Al-Weshail, AbdullahÊS. 4
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 31 Anderson, Dr. Larry S. 1
Appendices 3, 19, 41 Assessment 10
Attitude 16, 19 Audience 21, 22, 40
Authors 4 E-Mail Addresses 4
B
Baxter, Amanda L. 4 Bibliography 3, 41
Bitterness of poor quality 25 Brainstorming 26
Budget 3, 12, 19, 21, 22, 24, 29, 30, 34, 35, 40 Building 11, 17, 23,
25, 29, 34, 39
C
Camcorder 37 Cash bonus 25
CD-ROM 24 Celebrate 24
Cherry, Wynelia 4 Classroom 5, 10, 16, 27, 29, 30, 33, 39
Commitment 16, 24, 28 Committee
2, 9, 10, 14, 17, 18, 19, 21, 29, 34, 41 Committee Membership 2
Community Involvement 3, 33 Community leader 9
Community Resources 2, 25 Compensation 24
Competencies 28, 36 Component 10, 11, 14, 16, 20, 22, 23, 24, 29, 41
Confidentiality 20 Congratulate 24
Connectivity 28, 29
Consultant 17, 25 Copier 30
Copyright laws 26 Council 9, 10
Cover Sheet 2, 14 Creativity 6, 27
Critical Issues 2, 3, 21, 40 Curriculum 3, 22, 26, 27, 28, 32, 35, 37
Curriculum, Instruction, and Evaluation 26
D
Data 2, 17, 18, 19, 20, 28, 29, 34, 39, 40, 41 Data Collection 2, 18
Data Collection, Analysis and Reporting 2 Decision-making 27
Demographic 2, 16, 17, 19 Distance Learning 28, 29
Diversity issues 20
E
E-mail 4, 14, 26 E-mail harassment 26
Early adopters 25 Educational environment 9
Educational institutions 8, 10 Educator 5, 6, 21, 32, 33
Electronic classrooms 10 Electronic communication 29
Emerging technologies 2, 23, 32 Environment 9, 11, 12, 27, 28, 29, 33,
40
Equipment 2, 19, 22, 23, 25, 26, 29, 30, 33, 35, 39, 40
Equitable access 28 Ergonomics 40
Evaluation( s) 2, 3, 10, 11, 12, 20, 23, 26, 27, 32, 40
Exceptional Students 32 Executive Summary 2, 15
Extra personal days 25
F
Facilities 3, 29, 31, 33, 34, 39 Feedback 12, 27
Finance 19 Financial support 15, 35, 38, 39
Fine Arts 3, 35, 36, 37
Flexibility 16, 28 Funding 3, 23, 33, 34, 35, 38
Future needs 10
G
Gardner, Howard 37 General Introduction 2
Glossary 3, 41 Goal 8, 10, 11, 18, 19, 20, 26, 27, 28, 35, 37
Goals 2000: Educate America Act 35 Gopher 29
Government agencies 5, 21 Graduate Students 1, 5
Graphic( s) 2, 14, 16, 20 Guidebook 1, 4, 5, 6, 10
H
Hardware 19, 22, 25, 28, 38, 39 Hearing/ Speech Impairments 31
Hill, Evelyn W. 4
I
Implementation 2, 9, 11, 12, 22, 23, 28, 36, 40 Implementing 11, 16,
19, 21, 33
Incentive 2, 23, 24, 39 Incentive/ reward 24
Incentives/ Reward System 2, 24 Incidental learning experiences 28
Index 3, 41, 42 Individuality 27
Information processing 27 Infrastructure 19, 29, 39
Innovation 23 Innovator 25
Instruction 3, 16, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 37, 38 Instructional
methods 26, 27
Instructional technology 1, 5, 18, 24, 34 Instructor 1
Internet 1, 5, 29, 32, 35, 38, 41 Internet Access Providers 29
Involvement 3, 23, 33, 35 Issue 2, 3, 5, 10, 20, 21, 38, 39, 40
J
Job descriptions 18 Jones, Charles R. 4
K
no entries
L
Leadership 15, 17 Learner 3, 6, 16, 30, 31, 32, 39
Learning Disabilities 32 Learning experience( s) 16, 27, 28
Learning is not confined 27 Learning opportunities 24
Learning styles 27, 37 Legal Aspects 3, 26
Librarian 17 Life-long learning 27
Local Area Network (LAN) 29 Log( s) 9, 19, 30
Love, Lyle Thomas 4
M
Maintenance 3, 29, 30 Maintenance contracts 30
Media 21, 22 Meeting 18, 23, 25, 29
Message 14, 21 MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) 37
Minimum specifications 22 Minimum standards 25
Mission 2, 8, 11, 12, 16, 19 Mission statement 2, 16
Mississippi State University 1, 5 Modeling programs 27
Montgomery, Fairfax H. 4 Motivation 24, 38
Motivational 11 Multicultural 27
Multidiscipline 27 Multiple intelligences 27
Multiple objective areas 27
N
National Center for Technology Planning 6 National Standards for Arts
Education 36, 37
Needs 3, 5, 8, 10, 19, 21, 27, 29, 30, 31, 40 Networking 3, 28, 29
New and Emerging Technologies 2 Newsletter 19, 25
O
Objective 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 26, 27, 36, 38, 40 Observation 19
Obsolescence 40 Open-ended questions 18, 20
P
Philosophy 3, 27, 28 Physical Impairments 31
Plan Preparations 2, 20 Planning document 2, 9, 10, 14, 15, 19
Planning Process 2, 9, 10, 11, 19, 38, 41 Planning resources 10
Planning responsibilities 10 Podwika, Deborah S. 4
Pornography 26 Preface 5
Printer 30, 31, 37 Problem-solving 27
Professional development 2, 23, 24 Progress 2, 4, 11, 12, 16, 21, 35
Progress reports 21 Public relations 2, 21, 22
Publication 4 Purpose of Technology 2, 9
Purpose of Technology Planning 2, 9
Q
Quality of instruction 16 Questionnaire 20
R
Rawlings, Betty Lang 4 Recognition 25, 31
Recognize 4, 15, 25 Reed, Angela G. 4
Repair 25, 29, 30 Report 2, 12, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 40, 41
Research 5, 8, 19, 23, 24, 25, 31, 39 Resource relationships 11
Responsibilities 10, 18 Responsible Use Policies 26
Result 5, 6, 19, 35, 40 Review 12, 15
Revise 1, 8, 11, 12, 37 Revision 4, 12
Reward 2, 24, 25 Risk-taking 11
S
Satellite delivery 29 Scanner 30, 31, 37
Schedule 11, 18, 22 Security 3, 33, 34, 39
Simulations 27 Software 22, 25, 26, 28, 31, 32, 34, 37, 38, 39
Software Publishers Association 22 Special Needs Learners 3, 30
Special needs learners 31 Staff development 24, 41
Stakeholder 8, 9 State accreditation 26
Statewide information network 28 Strategies 21, 34, 35
Strategy 21 Student 1, 4, 5, 6, 9, 16, 17, 18, 19, 22, 23, 26, 27,
28, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 Student achievement 19, 36
Studying 27 Superintendent 14, 19
Support 3, 15, 16, 17, 22, 28, 35, 38, 39 Support personnel 17
Survey 18, 19, 20, 41
T
Table of Contents 2 Taghavi, Seyed E. 4
Teacher 9, 11, 17, 18, 19, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28, 30, 37, 38, 39
Teamwork 16, 28 Technical expertise 15
Technology awareness 24 Technology conventions 23
Technology coordinator 18 Technology curriculum 26
Technology in education 9, 16, 24 Technology meetings 23
Technology oriented philosophy 28 Technology plan 1, 5, 4, 8, 10, 14,
15, 17, 23,
24, 28, 29, 30, 34, 38, 40 Technology planner 5
Technology planning 2, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 19, 23, 29
Technology Planning Model 2, 8 Technology skills 11, 24
Television distribution 29 Tilley, Joseph E. 4
Time 4, 9, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 24, 26, 27, 28, 38, 39
Timeline 11, 12, 20, 21, 22 Title Page 2, 14
Trip 9, 25, 33
U
User-friendly 22
V
Vendors 22 Vision 2, 8, 11, 12, 16, 19, 21, 28, 29, 31, 38, 39
Vision Statement 2, 16 Visual Impairments 31
Volunteer 23, 26
W
Warranty package 30 Wide Area Network (WAN) 29
Wiring codes 39 Woods, Judy C. 4
World Wide Web 5, 29 Written plan 10
X
no entries
Y
no entries
Z
no entries
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