New to Tech Integration? Aha's for Principals and Their Teams

Right now, many of us are preparing for next school year.  Common Core and an explosion of technology resources are making everyone question where technology fits into the future of their schools.

This school year, my school has been implementing 1:1 Chromebooks, and I wanted to share some a-has that might help other principals and their teams as they start their planning.

Start with your bandwidth.  Almost any tech you buy now is going to depend on wi-fi, not hardwiring.  What is the bandwidth in your building?  Do you have the building infrastructure (i.e. drops) to maximize the bandwidth?  Knowing this one simple thing will help you know if your plans are implementable.  Ask your tech coordinator or your district office - they should be able to tell you this in one or two calls.

The cost of tech is down for a variety of reasons - many which make technology possible for schools.  Depending on your tech buys (Chromebooks, IPads, etc.), some operating systems are now internet-based rather than hard drive based - this means continuous updates that don't require individual attention or purchased upgrades.  It also means that your hardware will last longer than 3 or 4 years.

Additionally, the internet based operating systems have management consoles, which means updates and upgrades can be done by one person from one device.

Speaking of....shifting from software suites to apps.  Google Apps for Education (GAFE) is definitely leading the way, but there are a plethora of education apps in both the iTunes store, Google Play store, and stand alones that are beneficial for classes.  This means no more packages that force you to buy what you don't need or won't use; instead, get the same capabilities for FREE.

Additionally, many apps are device agnostic, meaning that even if you aren't 1:1, teachers and students can access them from multiple devices including smart phones in a classroom.  My teachers are loving FREE apps such as Kahoot (assessment), Desmos (math support), and Splashtop (screen mirroring - better than buying SmartBoards).

Even better, teachers can CHOOSE what they want and don't want to use.

Dashboard Add-Ons.  One of our biggest fears is understanding technology use and it's impact on student achievement. There are now add-ons to maximize data generation for both administrators and teachers.  Hapara provides both management and stats on GAFE usage; Clever works with multiple programs to provide school and teacher dashboards of student performance and provides single log-in entry for all users (Achieve300, Discovery Education, Scholastic, and the list goes on and on).

Due to the student information that is being crunched, you most likely will have to work with your district on this.  I'm patiently waiting for this in my district, but know it's coming like Christmas.

Schedule PLAYdates.  Even before you launch your tech integration, schedule times for teachers and students to play with and find apps and programs that you are thinking of using.  The learning is infectious, and the students will raise the bar for your staff.  You'll be surprised how many teachers will wander into other teachers rooms just to find out what the students are talking about.

Jenny Magiera is one of the teacher gurus of the nation.  Her website and ideas are inspirational - she started me on my path to tech integration three years ago.  Like her, you will find that your teachers will lead you and your school no matter what your own technology proficiency is.  The biggest challenge is going to be access - give the access, and you will be pleasantly surprised.

Join Twitter and encourage your staff to do so.  You don't have to Tweet, but you will have a stream of articles, tech recommendations, and collaborative resources that you don't have to search for.  Add cool people like Eric Sheninger, Jenny Magiera, the Chromebook Institute, etc. and you will have everything you need with a click and a scroll.

Additionally, if your staff joins and tweets from their classroom, you will have a quick way to check on your tech integration throughout the school day and share what you are doing.

Enjoy the ride.  Your role will be to problem solve and support - not to introduce and teach.  You will hear plenty about what needs to be fixed as well as what's going great; you will just need to support your brilliant teachers.