KROFTON MONTGOMERY BLOG #6 MODULE 7

As new technologies are becoming more readily available and accessible, we must do
our part to support equitable access for our students, parents, and community members. The
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) defines equitable access as “Robust and
reliable access to current and emerging technologies and digital resources, with connectivity for
all students, including those with special needs, teachers, staff and school leaders.” Although
technologies are so thoroughly embedded in today’s world, not all of our students have had or
currently have access to these avenues outside of the school building. In addition, there are so
many different levels of technology schema among our diverse groups of learners that it can be
challenging to support the use of devices inside and outside of the classroom. In their research
study on the usage of technology participation and profiles of two schools, Barron, Walter,
Martin & Schatz (2009) state that “Contrary to popular images of all youth as uniformly
immersed in sophisticated technological activity…learners differed widely in their breadth and
depth of experience” (p. 186). As supporters of using technology to increase student
achievement, we must work to include technology in our daily instructional practices, while
encouraging our students, parents, and community members to participate as well.

Since we are aware of these growing pains associated with the incorporation of
technologies, devices, and the Internet across many facets of our world, we can implement
some strategies and supports to offer equitable access of technology to our students, parents,
and community members. First, we must prepare students for technology usage in our schools.
The ISTE recommends that school systems implement supports to “Ensure individuals know
how to access the technology, outline where to go for help getting access, and be flexible
enough to accommodate diverse learners and instructional needs.” These suggestions can help
teachers, administrators, and other support staff to have a shared vision and awareness of
technology usage in our schools. It is also important for educators to be aware of the usage
and accessibility of technology for students across all grade levels, backgrounds, and
socioeconomic statuses. The National Opportunity to Learn Campaign advises educators to
“Ask your school or district leaders to provide you with information about the level of access
students at your school or within your district have to digital learning and instructional tools
and services.” In this way, teachers, administrators, and support staff can all become more
aware of the availability of technology for our students and their families outside of the school
building.

Additionally, there are ways that schools can encourage home use of technology,
devices, and the Internet as well. Barron, Walter, Martin & Schatz (2009) conclude that “While
access to tools is important, it may be just as important to provide resources for learning in the
form of an engaged social network of teachers, parents, and peers” (p. 188). One specific
strategy to promote a collaborative use of technology at home and at school is to implement a
program to allow students to take home digital devices provided at school. Hohlfeld, Ritzhaupt,
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& Barron (2009) suggest that “Schools can allocate resources by allowing students to take home
digital devices, thus providing family members with access to computers and software” (p.
192). By including a program for take home mobile devices, systems can help to encourage
technology usage by students and families outside of school. Schools can also encourage family
or community involvement in this shift toward technology and learning by creating a parent
resource center in the building that provides stakeholders with access to computers or the
Internet. Hohlfeld, Ritzhaupt, & Barron (2009) state that “Schools can provide access to ICT
resource (e.g. Internet access, digital library services, and general software) to both parents and
members of the local community during school hours or after school hours” (p. 393). We can
also promote a more global concern for the equitable access and use of technology by offering
training sessions or informational meetings open to parents, families, and community
members.

After ensuring that learners, parents, teachers, and community members all have
equitable access to technology and devices, we must also look at the best practices for
including this in our everyday routines. In his article 5 Best Practices for Technology
Implementation, Wong (2011) suggests that educators experiment with new approaches to
using technology in the classroom while also offering “on-demand” professional development.
Johnson (2012) wrote an article, Seven Brilliant Things Teachers Do With Technology, which also
recommends best practices that we can implement in our classroom to maximize our usage of
technology for student learning. He suggests putting students in touch with the real world. By
implementing such technology usage like blogging, podcasts, and social networking, can make
authentic connections to people and content to build valuable learning experiences. Johnson
also recommends that teacher assume the role of a co-learner to further enhance our learning
experiences with technology. In my opinion, one of the best practices we can implement is
fostering a safe, nurturing learning environment where students can feel comfortable working
with technologies and devices they may not be very familiar with.

There are many ways my school and system have worked to ensure equitable access for
our students and families. Over the last several years, my school has purchased many new
technology devices to best meet the needs of our diverse learners across all grade levels, which
includes second through fifth grades. Our technology availability is listed below:

 Second Grade – Each group of five classrooms has a cart of mobile devices (iPad
Minis) to share. Last school year, second grade only had iTouches. This year, we
were able to phase out the small devices and implement the use of iPads for each
pod of five classrooms.
 Third Grades – Each group of five classrooms has a cart of mobile devices (iPads) to
share.
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 Fourth Grade – Each group of five classrooms has a cart of Chrome Books with
keyboards to share.
 Fifth Grade – Every student has been assigned an iPad to use during the school day.

In addition to these mobile devices, the library has two carts of iPads available for teachers to
check-out, as well as mobile carts of Macbooks and Macbook Airs. We have not been able to
successfully implement a “take-home” program for our mobile devices. However, we do offer a
parent involvement afternoon from 3:30-6:00 each week called iRead. During this time,
students and parents are invited to the media center for reading, computer or Internet time,
games, and crafts. There are also computers available for parent usage for registration
purposes, as those needs arise during the school year.

Richardson (2010) states “We are still at the beginning of a radically different
relationship with the Internet, one that has long-standing implications for educators and
students” (p. 155). Knowing this, we must be advocates for the equitable access and usage of
technology across all curriculum, grade levels, and schools across our state and country. We
must also be advocates for the best use of technology in our classrooms for students to make
meaningful connections to curriculum standards being taught.

Barron, B., Walter, S., Martin, C.K., Schatz, C. (2009). Predictors of creative computing
participation and profiles of experience in two Silicon Valley middle schools. Computers &
Education, 54(2010), 178-189.

Hohlfeld, T., Ritzhaupt, A.D., Barron, A. (2009). Connecting schools, community, and family
with ICT: Four-year trends related to school level and SES of public schools in Florida.
Computers & Education, 55(2010), 391-405.

Richardson, W. (2010). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. (3rd
ed.). Thousand Oak, California: Corwin.