The assignment this week was to look at an area of technology and see it through the different “stages” of where the program lies within the organization. Since many conversations are being held around an effective Learning Management System I decided to look into that for the work this week. It was extremely valuable for me, especially in my position as an instructional coach to look at all of the different LMSs being used. Once all of the programs were written out it, it was very effective to see their “shelf life” in terms of building into the program more or retiring the program. As I mentioned in the summary of the assignment, I felt the biggest and most task that was the most valuable was viewing not which programs are being used, but how they are being used. Seeing all of the programs listed out is great but if we are not using them effectively and purposefully- why bother having the programs at all? Time and time again we come back around to the discussion of the importance of creating an effective system where all stakeholders are communicating together. Until then, we will still have programs being slightly used or not at all which creates waste and waste always negatively affects student achievement.
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Overall I was very impressed with how Vista has taken the appropriate measures to ensure our students and teachers are prepared to successfully complete the CASSP. First, looking at our technology plan I noticed that any real gaps have been discussed. The biggest area is that of replacement costs once devices and wiring starts to diminish. There is a plan in place both as a system and as a budget item to ensure that these costs are covered once the need arises.
The other area that I was impressed is our bandwidth for each site. Each of our schools have wifi connection, including some lunch areas. A few years ago we were lucky to have a spotty wireless internet connection. I know this took a lot of planning and resources to ensure for this to happen. As we move toward true personalized learning it is quite easy to see this as the norm when in reality I know many districts are still struggling to ensure wifi for some of their classrooms let alone the whole district. Finally, the overall training and leadership with what tests are going to be taken when, and whom is another area that I thought has been thoroughly planned out. While this is more of a management decision and not necessarily a technology decision it is important to note that more than one department are part of the discussions. When I think about all of the discussions that we have had regarding a strong EA, ensuring that multiple stakeholders are part of the discussion has been evident. Vista is a shining example of this in terms of preparing for CAASP. In this module we looked several components of an application such as their purpose, and any process issues that are related to the application. Doing this assignment made me look at the application not just through the lens of how I have used or use the application but from a wider viewpoint. I imagined the conversations or process that someone else has already gone through when looking at each application to decide if they should renew the contract (if their is a price), cancel or continue looking to see if there is a better application to serve the needs of the user.
I think I may be a broken record but each week the assignments make me look at things from a perspective that I never looked at before. There are times that I am using an application and I think, “if only this program could mix with this other program to be able to merge the data.” Now I know that someone has probably thought of that as well. I imagine they went through a similar process as this assignment and decided it still served the best purpose for the students and staff. In this week’s reading we learned about a five phase roll out for application overhaul. Out of the five I thought the fourth step had key processes to the phases. The fourth step states, “ design, deploy staff and manage the implementation. Develop rules, workflows, forms and user interfaces, define organizational and governance structures. Create a development and test environment. Run tests. Seek user feedback. Manage and monitor risks.” ( Gartner Inc) As highlighted I believe the best any organization can do when looking to overhaul an area is to seek feedback. When we make decisions solely based on a conversation amongst individuals who may or may not use an application or system we are failing to fully support those who can guide us in that decision making process. If I were to lead this an organization that might face these important decisions I would certainly use this method. Creating a plan, workflows and monitoring the plan were other key factors that stood out to me that are extremely helpful and important when making decisions in regards to possibly overhauling an organization.In essence, I see it as a circular movement toward change. We must always be monitoring and reflecting when we incorporate change to assure the change was for good, and if not move towards a different direction before too much time and money has been wasted. Resources: Key Initiative Overview - Gartner Inc. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2016, from http://www.gartner.com/it/initiatives/pdf/KeyInitiativeOverview_ApplicationOverhaul.pdf Working as a support teacher time and time again I see a gap in communication between what is suppose to happen in each classroom and what those in the district office are discussing and deciding. The important piece missing is often times district personnel have not been inside classrooms or front offices to really see the nuances of computer programs and applications to see how the intended use is often misconstrued by the actual use. My suggestion to clarify these programs would be to shadow a teacher and or office personnel to see and hear from those that are using the programs day in and day out to hear their suggestions and or frustrations. Unless we use the programs ourselves there will always be gaps based on our idea of usage versus actual implementation. Only then can we see where programs overlap, or are not necessary all together.
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KellyI like people. I love their stories even more. Archives
April 2016
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