Goals & Strategies
- Technology enhanced learning activities
- Educator use of technology resources
- Learning opportunities for students
- School data systems
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Questions to Consider Regarding Access to Technology Enhanced Learning Environments:
- How do you provide technology access to all students, teachers, and administrators so that they can use appropriate technology resources when they need them and where they need them?
- Classroom access
- Lab access
- Before/after school access
- How do you ensure that high needs students have appropriate access?
- How do you provide access to the school’s technology resources to the wider community?
- Parents
- Adult education
- Local businesses
- Others
Questions to Consider Regarding Inventory:
- What kinds of educational technology does your school have?
- Numbers of computers, VCRs, other hardware, software
- This should include an inventory of all resources
Questions to Consider Regarding Computer Servers:
- What is your server going to be used for?
- Do you launch application programs from your server?
- Do your students save their work to the server?
- How much server storage space is required for all administrative and curricular applications?
- Is your critical data backed up often? How often?
Look at a SCSI based “server” that can be easily upgraded. SCSI (pronounced “scuzzy”) stands for Small Computer System Interface, the technology that allows you to connect various internal and external devices to your personal computer or server. This connection is made using a SCSI card that fits inside your computer. Do not use a standard desktop computer as your server. Tier one servers should include hot plug drives, remote access, and management software. Look for management software that supports pre-failure warranty, memory change alerts, and asset management and configuration reports. This reduces Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and reduces staff labor hours on fix and repair issues.
- How much redundancy do you need?
This depends on each client and the importance of data. Servers should be configured for redundant array of independent disks (RAID) level five. If you lose a hard drive the server will not go down. RAID level five also allows you to add more storage as needed without reconfiguring the server. The more schools use servers, the more important this becomes.
- What is your disaster recovery plan? Do you have one?
- What impact will losing all your data have on the school district?
- Can you afford to lose the data?
Schools may choose not to back up their data. This is extremely risky and could be costly to your school district in many different ways. If you backup your data, store the backup media off-site.
Questions to Consider Regarding Desktop Computers:
- What will your desktop computers be used for?
- How old is your current equipment?
- Does your equipment have enough memory (RAM) and hard drive storage to support appropriate educational usage by students, educators, and administrators?
Multimedia and other software applications will require significant storage space, memory, and processor capabilities.
Most major computer manufacturers have a standard equipment configuration with one set of device drivers. Many “build your own” companies do not. Therefore, these “build your own” computers may have a variety of different motherboard, network cards, video cards, storage drives, etc. This makes equipment management and technical support much more difficult and costly.
- What operating system are you using?
Implementing one operating system will keep support time and costs down.
Standardizing on computer hardware and software will reduce support costs, reduce imaging, simplify systems management, and require less training.
Questions to Consider Regarding Laptop Computers:
- What will your laptop computer be used for?
- What wireless standard is in place?
- What kind of drives do you need?
Screen size and wireless technology affect battery life. Available drives include floppy disk, CD, read and write CD, and DVD. Some models will have fixed drives while others will have multi-bay drives enabling you to swap them when appropriate. You should standardize configurations and hard drives for management, support, and cost purposes.
Questions to Consider Regarding Cabling and Network Equipment:
- What percentage of your school’s instructional area is wired for LAN/WAN connectivity?
- Does your school have fiber in place?
- Are you using your fiber to its fullest capacity?
The cost of cable i s generally the least expensive part of a networking project. However, the highest incident of network failures is attributed to cabling. Cabling your network properly is very important for proper network operation. Wherever possible, run your extra directly from the main wiring closet to your wall jack. you may want to pull extra lines for future expansion. Most of the cost of installing cable is labor. Once your cabling project is complete, each line should be tested, certified, and labeled. This is important when you need to troubleshoot a networking problem. Make sure your network wiring scheme can support Gigabit Ethernet speeds.
With the increase and diversity of network traffic, schools should consider installing and/or upgrading to switched networks. Switches create a dedicated rather than shared network environment. Dedicated networks reduce collisions and increase performance.
- What type of printers are you using?
Schools have deployed several ink jet printers in each instruction and administrative room in the district. The cost of ink jet printers is low while the supply costs (ink cartridges) prove to be quite expensive. Multi-function network printers strategically located throughout your school may prove to be a better printing solution. One multifunction printer may replace as many as three or four less expensive printers. This may reduce your total cost of ownership (TCO).
- What will your network look like in five years?
- Will you reduce your costs by running video and voice on your network?
- Will your network support it?
There has and will be a convergence of data, video, and voice on one network. Plan for the future!
Questions to Consider Regarding Wireless Technology:
- Does your school use wireless technology?
- If so, is your wireless network secure?
Over seventy-five percent of wireless deployments in the United States are using the “out of the box” configuration. This means security features are not enabled.
Questions to Consider Regarding Bandwidth:
- How is your bandwidth being used?
Each school connected to STAGEnet has a minimum of one ATM T1 (1.44Mbps) of bandwidth. Bandwidth utilization can be maximized by each school properly planning, implementing, and managing their local area network (LAN).
- Are you blocking and controlling filesharing?
Schools experiencing poor network performance because bandwidth is being taken up by music file sharing.
Questions to Consider Regarding Software:
- Is your current software able to support appropriate educational usage by students, educators, and administrators?
- Does your software allow you to do what you need to do?
- How do you ensure that your school’s use of software, video resources, CDs, print material and other resources is in compliance with copyright laws?
Questions to Consider Regarding Funding:
- How does your school fund hardware, software, and educational technology infrastructure?
- What are your plans for purchasing/upgrading the hardware and software resources in the next 2–3 years?
- How does your school support the maintenance of hardware, software and administrative applications?
- Are technology budgets and resources being made available so that repairs, maintenance, replacement, and upgrades may be made routinely?
Total Cost of Ownership (TCO):
Technology equipment depreciates quickly. Leasing can help you lower your costs by deploying a refresh cycle. This allows you to trade in equipment at the end of the manufacturer’s or dealer’s warranty. This may help you avoid unexpected repairs and upgrades. Leasing gives you a fixed budget for technology and reduces your TCO.
School districts should routinely evaluate TCO. You will have an accurate understanding of technology spending and manage technology investments according to organizational goals and budgetary guidelines.
The Consortium for School Networking is a non-profit association that promotes the use of telecommunications to improve K-12 learning. CoSN launched its “Taking TCO to the Classroom” project to provide school leaders with tools to help them estimate the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) involved when they build a network of computers and wire their classrooms to the Internet.
- How do you provide technology access to all students, teachers, and administrators so that they can use appropriate technology resources when they need them and where they need them?
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Questions to Consider Regarding Educator Use of technology resources:
- How do you assess the technology proficiency of individual educators?
- What is the current status related to administrator, teacher and staff proficiencies in the use of technology to improve student achievement?
- What percentage of your educators (teachers and administrators) is technology proficient and what are your plans for increasing that percentage in the next 2-3 years?
- What types of technology professional development activities focus on building core technology skills?
- What percentage of technology professional development activities focus on the application (integration) of technology into the curriculum?
- What professional development practices that you are currently using are effective and need to be continued?
- What professional development practices that you are currently using are ineffective and need to be modified or discontinued?
- How do you ensure that your technology professional development plans focus on skills and practices that are standards-based?
- How are your technology professional development plans related to the education improvement plan, your general professional plan, etc.?
- What timelines and measure have you established for improving administrator, teacher and staff proficiencies in the use of technology to improve student achievement?
- What funding mechanisms are in place to implement and sustain professional development activities?
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Questions to Consider Regarding Learning Opportunities for Students:
- How do you ensure that technology is being used by students to help them achieve their academic goals?
- How do you measure the impact that technology use is having on student achievement?
- How is technology included in your school improvement plan for improving student achievement?
- What are your plans for ensuring that student/teacher use of technology is authentic, project-based, involves teamwork, collaboration and communication?
- What are your plans for ensuring that all students are technology literate by the end of eighth grade?
- How are you using distance learning and other technologies to ensure that students graduate ready to work or for post-secondary education?
- What is the rationale for the use of technology to improve student achievement?
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Questions to Consider Regarding School Data Systems:
- How do you use data systems such as student information systems, data warehouses, online/computer based testing, to help improve student achievement?
- How do your teachers and administrators use data to differentiate instruction for under-achieving students?
- How does your school use the results of data analysis to communicate to students, parents, teachers and others how well your school is accomplishing its mission?
Last Updated On August 2, 2007