Status Update –Technology in Garden City Public SchoolsOctober 6, 2015

Update• Infrastructure:

• Wireless network up and running in all buildings

• Decided not to extend BYOD to students as staff access to BYOD proved to be complicated

• Staffing

• Hired a technology integration specialist

• Hired a technology aide

• Staff Development

• Summer staff development for 40 teachers who will be using Chromebooks, iPads and Google apps for Education which include Classroom

• Budgeting

• Financed $405,000

• Purchased 590 Chromebooks for MS & HS and 360 iPads for grades 4-5

• Currently we have 590 iPads and 650 Chromebooks

Themes of Technology Use

Garden City schools, a community of learners

• Increased collaboration between teachers, students and staff

• More opportunities for hands-on learning, sharing and creating. Students are more engaged in the learning process and take more ownership

• Meeting individual student learning needs with technology

• Increased communication between parents and school community

Our Instructional Vision

• Support innovation, exploration, and creativity

• Foster high-order thinking and understanding over

simple knowledge of facts

• Connect to real-world inquiry based-learning,

where critical thinking and problem solving are key

components of instruction

• Drive collaboration

• Support engaged, active and self-directed learning

• Encourage taking responsibilty for learning

Technology Integration

Typing a story or poem

Reading an e-book

Using online dictionary

Slideshow presentations

Online polls and quizzes

Notability/Evernote

Video production

Creating interactive e-books

Nearpod/interactive presentation software

Create comic strip

Using QR codes

Classroom

Integration

Examples

Google Classroom-

Elementary

Google Classroom-GCHSClassroom

Integration

Examples

Teacher View- Grading/Responses

Supporting Students and Faculty

Using Technology Is A Team Effort

• Guided research

• Availability of physical and digital resources

• Appropriation of digital tools

• Professional development

Technology Encourages Collaboration

Vision for Student Learning

*Students will use inclusive features in iPads and Chrome Books alongside mainstream peers.

*More web-based software allowing accessibility everywhere and anytime to students.

*Continue to align student’s AT with what is available at the post-secondary level for college and career readiness.

*Web-based programs allowing access everywhere and anytime to Accessible Educational Materials (AEM). Kurzweil, Learning Ally, Vizzle, News2You and Unique, Office 365* More students using AT tools for assessments: classroom, NY State, College Board (AP and SAT) and ACT.*Students’ success writing with Dragon Naturally Speaking.*Team approach includes everyone; administrators, teachers, students and parents.

Assistive Technology in our Schools

Examples of AT around the District

FM units for hearing impaired

New2You: Visually scaffolded reading

Audio books for print disabled Kurzweil to support reading and writing

disabilities

Dragon Naturally Speaking:Speech to text software

High School students using ATon AP exams, PSAT , SAT and ACT

Program Evaluation

• Ongoing collection of feedback from students and faculty using Google forms

• Reflection on use of technology in the classroom Including successes and challenges in terms of:

• Technical and support issues

• Classroom management issues

• Planning time issues

• Professional development issues

• Various software needs

What Needs to be Addressed?• Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) in IT

• Smart Schools Bond plan development and submission to SED

• Financing for future IT initiatives--Assess value of leasing

• Extending the iPads and Chromebooks to be used in every classroom grade 4-12 – a three-year plan

• IT hardware budget alone will be over $700,000 to maintain the level of 1:1 access

• Software applications, subscriptions will surpass $300,000

• Internet bandwidth cost for increase to 1 Gig - $59,000 to $79,000

• Continued updating of the infrastructure and devices - $350,000

• Licensing and software

• Cost of acquiring eBooks, eTextbooks and online subscriptions

• Online testing

• Security & threat monitoring – ($20,000 annual subscription for active & live monitoring of incoming network traffic for possible threats and vulnerabilities)

Thank you for your continued support!