Tonight Steve Langford shared his experience as the CIO of the Beaverton School District and his vision of creating a plan to provide equitable technology deployment and use in the district. It made me realize how fortunate I am to be working in West Linn-Wilsonville. We are a much smaller district--we have 13 schools and Beaverton has 50! That creates a huge challenge for Beaverton to provide equitable technology opportunities for all fifty schools.
Our district has used several bonds over the past ten years to fund major technology upgrades district wide. The technology department has developed a plan for our district in terms of both technology purchases and maintenance, but also staff development. This plan is supported periodically through our bond monies and then of course individual schools add to the technology of their building through other funding sources.
I can really appreciate the challenge that districts face in trying to ensure that all schools in their district have the technology they need and that all teachers receive the professional development necessary to integrate the technology appropriately. It is a huge challenge--but a very important one to attempt to resolve.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Debi-after reading your blog I'm curious about the equity issue. WL-WV is pretty widely recognized as a "wealthy" school district. But with wealth being relative, which of the schools in your district are the have-nots? Do they feel the press of inequity? Does admin discussion about tech specifically address inclusion of these schools? As you pointed out, WL-WV has advantages of being small and more focused. Thanks for giving me something to think about.-Pete
ReplyDeletePete's questions are great ones. I'd be interested in your response to them. Thanks for your thoughtfulness of the equity issue. I know we're considering a bond for technology in the coming years, and may seek you out for advice!!
ReplyDeleteDebi
ReplyDeleteI liked your presentation tonight. You have a great plan for the use of the "mini's". Good luck with the plan!
Pete