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Running Head: SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

Shared Vision and Rationale

Ayesha Denny

Instructional Technology Leadership ITEC 7410

Spring 2020

Dr, Julia Fuller

Keywords:
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SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

Shared Vision and Rationale

Vision Statement
At Charter School 55, where education is the priority, the great equalizer, and

essential to a promising and productive future, our vision is to create a community of

students that love to learn. As committed stakeholders, we believe that the utilization of

technology is integral to the accomplishment of this vision. This begins with district and

school leaders working collaboratively with teachers to equip them with 21st century, up-

to-date, and emerging technologies that empower students with learning experiences that

increase student achievement. Modern classroom technology including smart boards in

each class that connects wirelessly with teacher laptops and document cams, true 1:1

touchscreen chrome books for students, modern computer labs with wireless technology,

3D printers, and professional development with in house support for all new technology.

The district and school-level leaders will provide teachers with the proper training and

support that integrates pedagogy with technology to create, implement, and evaluate

learning experiences with fidelity. These experiences support higher-order thinking,

inspire the development and use of creativity, develop global perspectives and build

modern skills that close the digital gap that currently exists.

Rationale

Why a shared vision? A shared vision incorporates the voices of all stakeholders

that have an interest and responsibility in ensuring that students are successful.

According to ISTE, “When a system is guided by a clearly defined vision and leaders

actively collect, incorporate, and share input from stakeholders at all levels, a community
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of understanding and collaboration develops to propel the organization forward in its

mission” (ISTE, 2020). Charter School 55’s absence of a shared vision for technology

integration leaves teachers to their own devices in how to best use technology to enhance

learning experiences and increase student achievement. The creation and implementation of

a shared vision will make clear the expectations of all stakeholders and the support at the district

and school level that will be in place for its success. Our school’s mission is graduating students

that are college and career ready with 21st-century skills. This process starts with decision-

makers at the district level, school leaders, as well as technology leaders having an understanding

of technology’s potential impact on student learning outcomes. It is also important that they

provide the necessary infrastructure, professional development, and teacher support as

well as up-to-date classroom and student technology resources. Teachers and

administrators are aware that having 1:1 technology is not enough to increase

engagement and student achievement. It is important that teachers have the proper

training and support in using technology and integrating it with content and research-

based pedagogical best practices. According to Edutopia, “Teachers who recognize

computers as problem-solving tools change the way they teach. They move from a

behavioral approach to a more constructivist approach” (Edutopia, 2007). Teachers have

expressed their desire for more technology professional learning sessions and time to

practice with new technologies. Under the guidance of an instructional technology coach,

teachers can have meaningful professional development and in-class support that builds

their capacity to design and carry out technology-integrated learning experiences that

support the school’s mission and vision while reaching student achievement goals

outlined in the school improvement plan. These include differentiated learning

experiences that meet students where they are academically and providing the necessary
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support to develop them into independent learners that take full advantage of

personalized learning opportunities (Bray & McClaskey, 2014). Using reliable and

informative technology resources to perform pre- and post-assessments and engaging

them with online formative assessment platforms at key points in the learning experience,

students can expand and sharpen their digital tools while receiving immediate feedback

that is useful to them and their teacher.

Charter school 55 is a project-based learning school, so implementing authentic,

higher level of technology (LoTi) level, student-centered learning activities is the goal for

most teachers. Our teachers have great ideas of what they want students to experience,

but hindrances such as limited funds for resources and field trips as well as unskilled (or

uninformed) technology educators limit the learning that can occur. With the proper

training and support, knowledgeable and skilled staff can design lessons that use

technology to overcome hindrances and meet the ISTE’s essential conditions of student-

centered learning and skilled staff personnel (ISTE, 2020). Using technology can give

students the ability they wouldn’t otherwise have, to go beyond our campus and interact

with outside stakeholders, community members, and any place or person that technology

gives access to for virtual field trips and videocasts. Being able to interact with people

beyond our school will hopefully give students other perspectives of life and increase

their curiosity and thirst for knowledge where they begin to make decisions about the

direction they want their learning to go in and even the technology they will use in the

process (personalized learning). When this happens our shared vision of creating a

community of students that love to learn will begin to manifest.

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Diversity Considerations

Nearly all of Charter School’s population is eligible for free lunch and are

considered low SES students. Teachers are aware of the digital gap that exists and are

invested in closing the divide. The discussions amongst teachers that evidenced the

divide include students not knowing how to compose an email, not being able to share

Google documents or turn in assignments in the Google Classroom, and not knowing

how to access information in their drive or create accounts with online platforms. Some

of these deficiencies are basic career-ready skills that need to be developed before

finishing high school. One way of addressing the lack of digital skills is for teachers to

design lessons that integrate technology on a consistent basis within their curriculum.

Students should use technology on a regular basis, expecting it to be the norm, and

developing skills that make them experts who can assist with helping their peers when

necessary. Many teachers expressed their concern with every student not having their

own technology, some classes being short of as many as 10 Chromebooks. Teachers

agree that our first step to ensuring students have equitable access should begin with us

being a true 1:1 school so that each student can interact with the technology daily. Many

of our students have reading deficits and need to have access to digital tools such as Read

&Write, Snap & Read Universal, and Co: Writer that can provide the necessary reading

and writing support to access information in their class or even create work that

demonstrates their understanding of what they are learning. But if every student does not

have a chrome book, it is impossible for them to utilize the technology consistently. We

also use engaging online teaching platforms that simultaneously assess learning such as

Nearpod, Pear Deck, and Edpuzzle. These are powerful tools but make assessing each
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student difficult or even impossible when students have to work with a partner. Teachers,

technology leaders, and administrators should advocate at the school level by keeping the

district current with needed resources based on student population. Meanwhile, taking

advantage of using mobile apps with students that have cell phones can also alleviate the

technology shortage issues, provided that the online platforms support the use of mobile

devices and that there are concrete procedures and expectations that have been

established in the classroom while using personal devices. Whether it’s using school

provided chrome books, or personal devices, intentional research-based integration for

the purpose of increasing student learning outcomes on a regular basis creates a culture

where technology use is the norm and can move the school towards achieving digital

equity for all students.

Using culturally responsive practices can also support equitable access for our

low SES learners. Zaretta Hammond (2015) describes culturally responsive teaching as:

An educator’s ability to recognize students’ cultural displays of learning

and meaning-making and respond positively and constructively with teaching

moves that use cultural knowledge as a scaffold to connect what the student

knows to new concepts and content in order to promote effective information

processing. (p. 15)

We have noticed that our students thrive in being able to help each other, so forming a

student technology group that helps and supports other students and teachers in the

classroom can inspire and even motivate other students to become technologically skilled

(Edutopia, 2007). These students will be well trained in classroom technologies and

identified as a support person in the classroom. Teachers can only help one student at a
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time, so having an additional person to assist can shorten the trouble-shooting time that

often takes away from instructional time.

Getting families involved in technology for student learning can also increase

digital equity for our low SES students. We discussed having a family day on the

weekend where parents can interact with their child’s teachers in various activities,

including how to use technology at home. Parents can come to “play” instructional games

with their children and learn how to support students at home. Often parents don’t know

how to help students and are uninformed of how technology use in the wrong way can be

distracting to the learning process. This would be a time where they can see and

experience how technology is being used and be informed of the expectations when

students bring and use their own devices.

To encourage increased interest and engagement with technology in females,

using technology in a way that is geared towards their outside interests would be the

starting point. Having a female-headed group that can expose them to technology

integrated culturally relevant experiences, show them the field’s earning potential, and

take them on technology related real or virtual field trips to interact with other minority

females involved in technology could give them a different perspective and make them

feel more comfortable with becoming a skilled technology person. Compugirls, a

program at Arizona State University addresses the gender digital divide by providing

minority females with the training and education necessary to earn a degree in a tech-

related field to close the gender divide. They provide culturally relevant experiences to

build interest and support them from college into the workplace (ASU Center for Gender

Equity in Science and Technology, 2020). Also, having female-gender specific

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technology organizations visit our girls such as female robotic teams and coding groups

to show how they are using technology can be exciting for our female students.

Instructional Technology Coach

Teachers at our school want an instructional technology coach. They would like

to grow in being able to marry technology with pedagogy. With some of the support

they’ve already received, they can see how the use of technology can be beneficial for

them and students. Some feel like they are unaware of all the resources that are available

to them but if there is an instructional technology coach, they would be trained and

supported in how to plan and implement technology-rich lessons. The instructional coach

will use the ISTE standards (ISTE, 2020) for coaches as a guide and provide a menu of

professional development opportunities that teachers can choose from based on their

current technology knowledge and skill level. Some sessions would be mandatory such as

using technology to differentiate activities with diverse populations, while others PL

would be interest-based. Some examples could include how to use Nearpod to address

Universal Design for Learning (CAST, 2020) and multiple intelligences, creating

USAtest lessons to assess student learning, and online platforms such as Kahoot and

Quizizz to increase engagement and assess learning to inform instruction. Other PL

sessions could include how to use chrome extensions for struggling readers, writers, and

ELL students. The instructional coach will receive feedback from teachers to determine

the effectiveness of PL sessions and whether they are being supported enough in the

classroom with technology implementation. The key will be effective PL that empowers

teachers with not just the technology but braiding pedagogy, content, and technology

together. According to research, “the number one factor that impacts student learning is
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the quality of the teacher” (Sheninger, 2019), so when teachers are properly equipped,

trained, and supported, they can successfully design and implement lessons that

support our students in loving to learn and becoming digitally literate.

Administrators

Administrators will embrace the vision by working with the instructional

technology coach and teachers to ensure that the proper technology is available for

technology integration. It is their responsibility to know that each class is properly

supplied with the number of chrome books that are necessary for each student to have

access to technology resources. They will also communicate to students what the

expectations are regarding the responsible and ethical use of technology in the classroom

and on campus, and give appropriate consequences when students don’t meet the

expectations. Administrators will also allow time for technology professional learning

sessions that include sharing sessions and planning time during those sessions.

Administrators will also provide funds for the instructional technology coach and

teachers to attend technology-related professional development for emerging

technologies which will be shared with teachers upon their return. Administrators will

work with the coach and teachers to evaluate if professional learning sessions are

beneficial and being implemented in the classroom with the proper support. Lastly, they

will use the ISTE standards for administrators as a guide for creating and supporting the

use of technology to increase student learning outcomes (ISTE, 2009).

Teachers

Teachers will stay dedicated to the shared vision by doing their best in integrating

technology into lessons and learning activities. They will dedicate the use of technology
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and digital resources and/or platforms into weekly activities. They will use technology

for formative and/or summative assessments and create personalized learning experiences

that develop 21st-century technology skills for our students, to prepare them for post-

secondary education or the workforce. They will give constructive feedback for

technology professional learning sessions and seek support from the instructional

technology coach and other teachers when necessary and work collaboratively with

coaches, colleagues, and students to create a technology-rich learning environment.

Teachers will be the exemplar model in digital citizenship for students and enforce the

expectations for proper technology use in the classroom. They will give school leaders

the proper feedback so they can continue to support the shared vision. Using the ISTE

standards for teachers will help them in solidifying the utilization of technology to

increase student achievement (ISTE, 2017).

Students

Students are always to follow the expectations as technology users and

demonstrate good digital citizenship. They are expected to do their best to learn how to

use technology and work with teachers and other students when appropriate. They will

communicate their needs to their teachers, the instructional technology coach, and

administrators. Students will use technology to enhance their learning experiences,

express themselves creatively and use the feedback they get using technology to

determine their strengths and weaknesses in their learning and make decisions that help

them to master content and digital skills.

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Parents

Parents will support the school in the shared vision by supporting students in the

ways that they can at home. They can support teachers how they can by making sure their

child is using technology responsibly at home and in school. Staying current with what is

happening in the classroom with ways that teachers communicate (email/social

media/remind, etc.) is also helpful. Being open to learning how to use technology when

the school provides opportunities will equip parents in having some familiarity with what

happens in the classroom. Lastly, sharing any resources (people, organizations,

businesses) they have access to that can support the vision and increase digital equity.
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References

ASU Center for Gender Equity in Science and Technology. (2020). Why

COMPUGIRLS? Retrieved from ASU Center for Gender Equity in Science and

Technology: https://cgest.asu.edu/compugirls/whycompugirls

Carver S.T.E.A.M. (2020). Mission and Vision. Retrieved from Carver S.T.E.A.M.:

https://www.atlantapublicschools.us/domain/10604

CAST. (2020). The UDL Guidelines. Retrieved from CAST: http://udlguidelines.cast.org/

Edutopia. (2007, July 12). Help Desks: Teenagers as Classroom Tech Support. Retrieved

from Edutopia: https://www.edutopia.org/students-classroom-tech-support

Edutopia. (2007, November 5). Why Do We Need Technology Integration? Retrieved

from Edutopia: https://www.edutopia.org/technology-integration-guide-

importance

Hammond, Z. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain: promoting authentic

engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students.

Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin

ISTE. (2020). Curriculum framework. Retrieved from Essential Conditions:

https://id.iste.org/connected/standards/essential-conditions/curriculum-framework

McClaskey, B. B. (2014, June 25). Personalization vs. Differentiation vs.

Individualization. Retrieved from Personalized Learning:

http://www.personalizelearning.com/2013/03/new-personalization-vs-

differentiation.html
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Sheninger, E. C. (2019). Digital leadership: changing paradigms for changing times.

Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin.