Observer - Participant - Leader

O-P-L Record

The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) developed the Framework of Essential Skills for K-12 Technology Leaders. According to the Consortium's website, the framework is divided into three professional category areas (Leadership & Vision, Understanding the Educational Environment, and Managing Technology & Support Resources) containing a total of ten essential skill areas (Consortium for School Networking, 2015). 

Ten Essential Skill Areas

1. Leadership & Vision
2. Strategic Planning
3. Ethics & Policies
4. Instructional Focus & Professional Development
5. Team Building & Staffing
6. Stakeholder Focus
7. Information Technology Management
8. Communication Systems Management
9. Business Management
10. Data Management

In order to be an effective educational technology leader, one must exhibit and demonstrate skills and knowledge in each area of the Framework. As a student in the Ed.S. Instructional Technology Program, as well as technology coordinator (TC) at my current placement, I have experience in various areas of the Framework, as shown in my O-P-L Record. Alternatively, there are also some areas that I have yet to perform. 

For the purposes of this post, I will outline three areas of the Framework with documentation of my experience in each area. 

• 2. Strategic Planning: "Have a high-level view across the school system and work with instructional and technical teams to identify steps needed to transform the technology vision into a long-range plan, complete with specific goals, objectives, and action plans" (Consortium for School Networking, 2015). 
• 2C. Align technology team activities with the school district goals.

As TC I work closely with the county technology department to oversee and implement district goals at a local level. This year and last, I coordinated the system-wide special events. Figure 1 is a snapshot from our technology plan detailing how our school planned to participate in the required technology initiatives this year. As TC, I work with the department chairs to make sure that these technology initiatives are put into place. 

Figure 1

Additionally, as the social media/PR team adviser, I planned and coordinated the Social Networking and Cyber-bullying Education for Digital Citizenship Week this year and last. Below are resources used in our program. Our social media/PR team members (comprised of students in 10th-12th grades) conducted the lesson in history classes. 

Figure 2

Brief History of the Internet

Cyberbullying Commerical

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• 4. Instructional Focus and Professional Development: "Budget, plan and coordinate ongoing, purposeful professional development for all staff using technologies; ensure a sufficient budget through the implementation and assessment process of emerging technologies" (Consortium for School Networking, 2015).
• 4A. Plan for and coordinate ongoing, purposeful professional development. 

As the school TC, I plan and oversee various professional development opportunities throughout the year. At the start of the school year, I coordinated a Google workshop for our faculty (Figure 3) as well as went over important technology reminders in regards to communication and technology requests. As an on-going "tech tip" resource, I reinvented our faculty meeting "Monthly Share Dare" to Monthly Share Dare 2.0 (technology edition). Each month I created a newsletter with one digital tool, tech tip, etc. for our faculty members to try. All Monthly Share Dates were shared in our Faculty\Technology folder as well as emailed once released. 

Figure 3

Perhaps my most enjoyable professional development venture this year was the opportunity to coach four of my colleagues. I coached two other history teachers in the fall and we focused on the use of Nearpod in the history classroom. In the spring, I coached an English teacher and biology teacher and our focus was on digital assessments, specifically Google Forms. Figure 4 is a survey response from research conducted on instructional coaching this spring. 

Figure 4

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• 7. Information Technology: "Direct, coordinate, and ensure implementation of all tasks related to technical, infrastructure, standards, and integration of technology into every facet of district operations" (Consortium for School Networking, 2015).
• 7F. Direct, coordinate, and ensure implementation of all tasks related to the integration of technology into every facet of operations. 

As TC, I am not only in charge of coordinating district required initiatives and planning local technology professional development, but also overseeing the technology in the building. This includes keeping the inventory up-to-date when new technology comes into the building and when old technology goes out. Additionally, I am the first point of contact for technical issues within the building. I designed a Tech Coordinator Request form to document all technical requests throughout the school year. The accompanying spreadsheet provides me with a checklist to visit classrooms in the order I am requested, as well as give me an overall view of what our school technical needs are. There are some things that must be redirected to the county technology help desk, but many things can be handled locally during my technology period or before or after the school day.

References:

Consortium for School Networking. (2015). Framework of Essential Skills of the K-12 CTO. Consortium for School Networking: Washington, DC. 

Online Course Design

Online courses are becoming more and more commonplace in higher education as well as secondary education settings. Unlike the students that I now teach, I did not have the opportunity to take any online courses while in high school. During my masters program, the extent of the online component of my courses was uploading an assignment to Blackboard or engaging in a discussion board with classmates. Now, at the end of my Ed.S. program, I've taken a total of ten completely online courses as well as some experience with course design.

I've been lucky to have great experiences with online courses which is a driving force in my wanting to teach online courses one day. Effective and enjoyable courses have several common aspects. These courses typically include an introductory activity that eases you into the course while allowing the student the opportunity to share some personal and professional information about their self. Effective courses are set up in modules that simulate a unit of study. There are various assignments and activities that keep the student engaged, motivated and curious. Additionally, there is always timely communication and feedback from the professor. Furthermore, interaction between classmates is encouraged and required throughout the course so the student never feels isolated in their learning.

The components of the effective and enjoyable online courses described above owe credit to good instructional design. According to Moore and Kearsley (2012), Instructional Systems Design (ISD) emerged after World War II with its beginnings in "the origins in the pressure for designing training more efficiently during the war" (p. 97). One of the well-known models for creating instructional design is ADDIE, which stands for Analysis, Design, Development, Implement and Evaluation (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 98). Planning is strongly emphasized in both models and is crucial to designing an effective online course. One of the most integral parts of an online course is the interaction of learners; interaction between learner and the material as well as interactions among learners. According to Moore and Kearsley (2012) one of the most prominent elements in a designer's mind must be the extent of student participation (p. 113). Alternatively, online courses that are not effective or enjoyable lack timely feedback from the professor, various assignments and activities, and very little interaction between classmates.

Tips for creating a successful online course:
5 Must Have Elements
How NOT to Design an Online Course
NEA: Guide to Teaching Online Courses

References

Image retrieved from: http://cognitiveperformancegroup.com/tag/addie-model/

Moore, M. & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance Education. Wadsworth Cengage Learning: Belmont, CA. 

Virtual School Policy

On February 18th, 2016, the Shelby County Board of Education approved the Virtual Shelby County policy as presented at the board meeting. The policy was created by the Shelby County Schools technology department, overseen by a small committee which included the high school coordinator and secondary program area specialist.The policy has similar aspects of other virtual options throughout the state but is also worded to allow for a lot of growing room. At this point in the process, students are registering for classes for the 2016-2017 school year and counselors are working on schedules. School administrators, counselors, and the school board will soon see how many students will sign up for virtual classes, and how many of those will actually be eligible. 

According to Moore and Kearsley (2012) strategic planning at the institutional level involves defining a mission, goals, and objectives for the program regarding distance education (p.175). Shelby County Schools' Virtual Shelby County policy has a clear long-term direction. In the first year of implementation (2016-2017) only English and history courses for sophomores, juniors, and seniors will be offered with an orientation module for freshmen. In the second year, math and science options will be added. In year three select electives will be offered with full course offerings in the fourth year of implementation (2019-2020). Although there is a clear long-term mission, there are still many questions to be answered regarding the new policy.


Since board approval, the policy has not be vastly shared or advertised, therefore, teachers, students and parents have questions about the repercussions of this new policy. Who will teach the courses? What learning management system(s) will be used? How will students' schedules be affected? In the first stage of the policy, the only clear information are eligibility requirements. Students must be enrolled in Shelby County Schools for at least their second year, read text at or above their grade level, have a cumulative 3.0 GPA and at least a B average in the most recent course in the online subject area, have no more than five unexcused absences during the previous year, be on track to graduate with his or her graduating class, have access to adequate technology at home, provide his or her own transportation, and demonstrate school-appropriate behavior and maturity (Virtual Shelby County, p. 2). Hopefully in the future, as the program emerges, Shelby County will develop a comprehensive overview such as Hoover City School's ENGAGE. 

In whatever ways Alabama schools determine to provide virtual schooling, the research is there: "Digital literacy goes beyond basic reading and writing skills to encompass being able to input information into a computer, phone, or other electronic device, and to be able to understand the output of such devices. This includes being able to navigate through screens, operate controls, troubleshoot problems. Until recently these were not skills taught in schools, so when technology is introduced to a population, there is a knowledge gap that can take considerable time to overcome" (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 280).  

References: 

Moore, M., & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance Education. Wadsworth Cengage Learning: Belmont, CA.

Shelby County Schools (2015). Virtual Shelby County. Columbiana, AL. Retrieved from https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxO1Xb1Dt7QqVGhSVE5tMGRFMmc/view

Education and Youth Affairs Act of 2015, Act No. 2015-89. (2015). Retrieved from https://web.alsde.edu/legislativebills/2015Regular/SB0072_ENACTED.pdf

Virtual Learning

As of the 2016-2017 school year, all Alabama schools will be required to establish a policy for virtual learning for high school students. Although not mandated until now, virtual learning is not new to Alabama schools. Alabama launched the ACCESS distance education program during Governor Bob Riley's administration. Since that time, Alabama students have been able to take virtual classes that were not available within the confines of their home school. As of April 2015, 27,000 Alabama students were enrolled in ACCESS courses. 

During our study of virtual learning in the United States. I found several things impressive, while some things were surprising and others left questions unanswered. I was impressed by the considerable amount of research surrounding interaction and the hierarchy of interaction. According to Moore and Kearsley, there are three distinct types of interaction in distance education and each are equally important: learning-content interaction, learner-instructor interaction, and learner-learner interaction (2012, p. 132-133). Instructors should use this information to build their courses. Additionally, I was impressed by Distance Education as a whole as a resource for online educators. There are countless tips and guidelines that would be helpful to new and veteran teachers of online courses. Lastly, I'm impressed by the overall concept of virtual learning and the amount of flexibility it allows students, as well as teachers. I was only vaguely familiar with ACCESS but after learning more about it, as well as Hoover´s virtual programs, I am intrigued in its future success.

I was surprised by the number of students enrolled in virtual learning as early as the 2011-2012 school year. According to my research, and as listed on my info-graphic below, there were 199,593 students enrolled in online courses during the 2011-2012 school year. On another note, I was surprised by some of the student attitudes and perceptions of virtual learning. Most surprising to me, yet encouraging, was that students noted missing the "father figure" or "mother figure" presence they feel in a traditional classroom setting (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 163). On the other hand, I was left questioning why only 27,000 Alabama students took advantage of ACCESS courses in 2015. I will be interested to see how much this number increases during the 2016-2017 school year. 

References:

Moore, M., & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance Education. Wadsworth Cengage Learning: Belmont, CA. 

Virtual schools coming to every Alabama school system by 2016-2017. Retrieved from: http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2015/04/virtual_schools_coming_to_ever.html

Distance Education & Learning Management Systems

With the increase of distance education courses being offered at the collegiate level, in the corporate world, professional world, and in the military, it is imperative that K-12 schools, and especially high schools, keep up with the trend. In the spring of 2015, Alabama lawmakers passed a bill requiring all public school systems to establish a policy to offer some level of virtual schooling for high school students by the 2016-2017 school year. After passing through the House of Representatives, Governor Robert Bentley signed his mark of approval on April 28th. With the passage of this innovative law, and the 2016-2017 school year quickly approaching, school boards, administrators, stakeholders and educators in Alabama are forced to consider the platform they will use to offer online courses to their students. While there are many options to choose from, school systems must take their particular situation into consideration when selecting the right learning management system for their very own, and in many cases first, platform for virtual classes.

Virtual schools incorporate the basic idea of distance education which according to Moore and Kearsley is defined as, ¨teaching and planned learning in which teaching normally occurs in a different place from learning, requiring communication through technologies as well as special institutional organization (2012, p. 2). All levels of distance education require careful planning and considerations. One of the most important considerations is evaluating and determining which learning management system (LMS) will fit the needs of the school´s teachers and students. After the task of determining the best fit, the next most time consuming effort is designing the courses. Preparing distance education courses requires not only experts in each subject area but also instructional designers who can ¨organize the content according to what is known about the theory and practice of knowledge management and the theory of learning¨ (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 15). Therefore it is essential that a team of specialists work together to create effective online courses (Moore & Kearsley, 2012, p. 15).

While the task of selecting and designing effective online courses is a huge and time consuming effort, it is nonetheless essential for today´s learners. According to Moore and Kearsley, 81% of degree-granting higher education institutions offered distance education courses as long ago as the 2006-2007 academic year (2012, p. 49). Additionally, the corporate world spent $45.48 billion between face-to-face training and distance education training in 2008 (2012, p. 57). The United States military was an early proponent of distance education, even before that correspondence was online (2012, p. 28). Today, all branches of the military incorporate distance education courses into their programs, with a total of more than 6,000 independent study courses available to military personnel and dependents through the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) (2012, p. 61). Furthermore, countless professions require continuing professional education (CPE) credits, many of which are online courses and Webinars (2012, p. 62).

Locally, Shelby County Schools has offered teachers Moodle as a learning management system for years. While online classes have not previously been required, many teachers chose to use Moodle to create a blended learning environment for their classroom. Moore and Kearsley refer to this as the individual teacher level of distance education organization (2012, p. 5). During the 2012-2013 school year, I personally taught government and economics to seniors via Moodle. It was my first experience using a learning management system (with the exception of Edmodo) and I was tasked with creating an economics course from scratch. While it was time consuming (as is any course creation effort) I found it manageable and an effective platform for my needs as well as my students´ needs. After comparing Moodle to other learning management systems and reviewing updates and new features of Moodle from my classmate´s wiki page, I believe that Moodle still fits the needs of Shelby County Schools. It is my opinion that as Shelby County prepares their online courses, in accordance with the new legislation, Moodle is the best learning management system to adequately prepare students for life after high school, whether that path includes higher education, the workforce, or the military.

Visit DANTES Home for more information on the Department of Defense Digital Network. 

References:

Moore, M., & Kearsley, G. (2012). Distance Education. Wadsworth Cengage Learning: Belmont, CA.

Untitled image of distance education. Retieved from https://shimaaismail.wordpress.com/