Annotated List of Resources for Group 5 & Technology Planning

FRIT 7232

Jessica Shuff
Raymond Miller
Amanda August
Clifford, Mary. (2006, July 17). District Technology Plan Rubric. Retrieved from https://
ed.fnal.gov/lincon/staff_rubric.shtml
An example rubric which lays out key elements in successfully evaluating school
technology plans. Multiple areas are scored, including vision, a school’s current
situation, community support, engaged learning goals and activities, professional
development goals, the timeline, assessment, and design. Full points are awarded for
clarity throughout the plan, while loosely defined elements rank in the middle tier. These
resources really demonstrates the need for schools to be precise in their technology
plans.

King, J., Smith, J., & Stevens, K. (2017, January). Reimagining the Role of Technology in
Education: 2017 National Education Technology Plan Update [PDF].

This is a comprehensive document from the Office of Educational Technology. The

document details how technology can be a transformative resource for 21st century
learners. When implemented well, technology can allow students to collaborate with
others, become engaged and active in the learning process, provide individualized
instruction, and develop leadership qualities. This document lists recommendations for
teachers and school leadership to become proponents of these future-ready technology
practices. The document also includes how technology-based assessments are
improving our data collection and helps to paint a more accurate picture of students’
needs, abilities, and interests. Lastly, this resource includes ways to develop and
maintain the digital infrastructure in schools. Ultimately, this is an important document to
review prior to completing a district-based technology plan.

Knowing Tech. (May, 2015). 7 Steps for Preparing a Technology Plan for an Independent
School. Retrieved from https://knowingtechnologies.com/7-steps-to-preparing-a-technology-
plan-for-an-independent-school/

While this article focuses on independent schools, it offers many great ideas that can be
used in our schools as well. One of the most important items I read in this article was to
focus on the learning and the plan rather than focusing on which devices you want
purchased. Technology changes constantly and you need to focus on creating a plan
that is flexible and can change with the technologies. This article focuses on what the
objective and overall goal of the technology plan should be based on the needs of the
students. This article also suggests collaborating with teachers to see what kind of
technology they are integrating into their classrooms and how those current
technologies can be improved. Also after learning about what technologies the teachers
are using, you will then be able to offer professional development opportunities to
teachers in order for them to enhance their skill set in the realm of technology.

Missouri Office of Elementary and Secondary Education. (n.d). Six-Step Process in Creating a
Technology Plan. Retrieved from https://dese.mo.gov/quality-schools/education-technology/six-
step-process-creating-technology-plan
This resource focuses on the process of bringing together a team for your school to
create a technology plan. Chosen members of this team should be fully committed to the
project, and have a direct stake in the plan’s success. All roles within the school should
 be represented when deciding who will make up the committee, including principals,
teachers, students, technology coordinators, and even some prominent outside
members of the community. When deciding what will be included in the plan, the
committee can then gain various perspectives from the wide variety of people included
within the group.

Morgan, Kendra. (2017, Feb 21). Technology Needs Assessment. Retrieved from https://
www.webjunction.org/documents/webjunction/Technology_Needs_Assessment.html
This article is an excellent resource for beginning a technology needs assessment. It
gives you specific examples of what you need to consider as your technology needs.
The article breaks down the different ways in which you can create an inventory of the
technology assets that your library already has. The three ways to do this would be to
either have a spreadsheet or database already created that you can extract the
information from, use the inventory tool Spiceworks, or use a provided Technology
Assessment Form. The article then goes on to discuss how to conduct a needs
assessment. It suggests contacting library stakeholders, such as patrons or staff and
also creating and utilizing a technology team. The article also explains that the needs
assessment is not to discuss what needs to be purchased, but actually clarifies where
the gaps are in the realm of technology.

National Center for Educational Statistics. (Nov. 2002). Technology in Schools.Retrieved from
https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2003/tech_schools/chapter1.asp

This is an excellent chapter taken from a book published by the National Center of
Educational Statistics. This chapter offers a very specific examples of how to create a
technology plan for a school. It provides strategies for implementing, acquiring, and
accessing technologies through the use of a technology plan. This resource also gives
the user some good questions they need to ask themselves when developing a new
technology plan. They need to consider the policies in place, the mission and vision of
the plan, the budget, and how the plan is going to be implemented. At the end of this
chapter, the authors also give the reader a list of other resources so they can continue
with their research and move forward with creating their technology plan.

New Hampshire Department of Education. (n.d). Technology Planning Toolkit. Retrieved from
http://www.nheon.org/techplanning/

This resources provides the user with information on beginning a technology plan. This
toolkit offers assistance for creating, implementing, and updating technology plans. This
resource is wonderful for anyone that wants a full breakdown and explanation of a
technology plan. It breaks the plan down into parts and gives the user a full description
of what type of information is needed to fulfill each section of the plan. This is a very
useful tool when creating a new technology plan if you have never created one before
now. This toolkit also gives you information on what forms need to be filed and who to
submit your technology plan to for approval. This resource also provides information
about legal program and policy guides that you need to pay attention to when creating or
changing a technology plan.
Ravenaugh, Mickey. (n.d). 10 Tips for School Technology Planning. Retrieved from http://
www.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=52

This article helps those that are designing technology plans see what aspects they need
to focus on during the design process. It gives good advice with the 10 tips it offers
especially when it refers to how each step of the plan is helping reach your ultimate
goals. Another good piece of advice is to keep your technology flexible and open source.
You do not want to buy all of your products from the same vendor and end up only being
compatible to certain brands (think Apple). With that being said, this article also suggests
leaving some of your budget to pilot new technologies. Rather than spending all of your
budget, you could set some aside in order to try new technologies that you may want to
purchase more of in the future. Overall, this article gives excellent tips for technology
planning. It suggests using more of your budget on professional development for your
technology team of teachers and also suggests learning about new technologies from
some tech-savvy kids.

See, John. (1992, May). Developing Effective Technology Plans. Retrieved from http://
www.nctp.com/html/john_see.cfm.

An excellent resource that identifies important ideologies for technology plans. The
webpage notes that successful technology plans emphasize applications before
hardware, meaning that schools need to think about what they will do with technology,
rather than just buying the newest computers on the market. Furthermore, by tying the
technology plan to the development of students and staff, schools can stay consistent in
their all around vision of what type of education they are trying to achieve. Finally, the
author notes that in order to best keep up with the needs of the school, efficient
technology plans are always made for the short term. This means that a good
technology plan should be made on a yearly basis, with revisions to reflect new
programs that may be available.

U.S. Department of Education (2017). Reimagining the Role of Technology in Education: 2017
National Education Technology Plan Update. Retrieved from https://tech.ed.gov/files/2017/01/
NETP17.pdf

This resource is the U.S. Department of Education’s Technology Plan for 2017. This
resource is 111 pages long and provides in depth information about technology planning
and the vision that the U.S. Department of Education has. By reading this resource, you
would know exactly what the visions and goals for technology that our country’s
department of education has for this year and the future. This resource is broken down
into sections: Learning, Teaching, Leadership, Assessment, and Infrastructure. The
guide breaks down the department’s expectations of teachers and administrators while
also providing expectations for the use of technology during assessments. This guide is
a great tool when creating or developing a technology plan because it gives you
concrete examples of what is expected of you by the U.S. Department of Education in
your technology plan.
District Technology Plan Rubric
Well Defined (3 pts)
Layout The layout/design:
● Easy to read and well
organized.
● Free of grammar,
spelling, and
punctuation errors.
● Includes only
relevant information.
Current Status & Access to technology,
Needs infrastructure, software &
Assessment support is clearly defined.
Approaching (2 pts)
The layout/design:
● Generally easy to
read and well
organized.
● Has some grammar,
spelling, and
punctuation errors.
● Includes some
irrelevant information.
Access to technology ,
infrastructure, software, &
technical support is somewhat
defined.
Beginning (1 pt)
The layout/design:
● Difficult to read and
disorganized.
● Has many grammar,
spelling, and
punctuation errors.
● Includes irrelevant
information.
Access to technology,
infrastructure, software, &
technical support is vaguely
defined.

A thorough evaluation of An evaluation of current An evaluation of current

current technology practices is technology practices is technology practices is
conducted regarding all of the conducted regarding most of conducted regarding two or
following areas: the following areas: less of the following areas:
● Technology use in ● Technology use in the ● Technology use in the
the classroom. classroom. classroom.
● Technology ● Technology integration ● Technology
integration & student & student integration & student
engagement. engagement. engagement.
● Staff development ● Staff development ● Staff development
and/or professional and/or professional and/or professional
learning. learning. learning.
● Communication with ● Communication with ● Communication with
stakeholders; stakeholders; parents, stakeholders;
parents, community, community, parents, community,
administration, administration, administration,
teachers, school teachers, school teachers, school
board members. board members. board members.
Goals The goals are written with the The goals are written with the The goals are not written with
SMART (specific, measurable, SMART (specific, measurable, SMART (specific, measurable,
achievable, result-focused and achievable, result-focused and achievable, result-focused and
time-bound) guidelines in mind time-bound) goals guidelines in time-bound) guidelines in mind
and based on the needs mind but do not pertain to the and do not pertain to the
assessment. needs assessment. needs assessment.

The goals relate to the district The goals are loosely related to The goals have no correlation
mission and vision and, they the district mission and vision, to the district mission and/or
support the whole district. and they support the whole vision, and do not support the
district. whole district.
There is evidence that the
goals have been developed There is evidence that the There is little to no evidence
with a technology committee goals have been developed that the goals have been
that includes stakeholders with a technology committee developed with a technology
who are responsible for that includes some committee.
implementing plan and goals. stakeholders who are
responsible for implementing There is little to no mention of
The goals highest priority is plan and goals. student improvement and
given to student improvement engagement.
and engagement. The goals suggest student
improvement and engagement
is a priority.
 Implementation The plan includes specific
action steps, strategies, and
objectives that relate to the
goals; realistic timelines for
implementation are listed.
Professional A plan for professional
Learning learning based on the needs
of each school is addressed.
Professional learning is
planned for effective
technology integration in all
content areas.
Adequate time and practice is
given to acquire and
implement new strategies.
Accessibility The plan clearly addresses all The plan addresses some but The plan does not address the
of the following:
● UDL principles.
● Technology access
for all learners.
● Individualized
learning.
The plan has some action The plan has little to no action
steps and timelines that relate steps and timelines that relate
to the goals. to the goals.
A plan for professional learning The plan briefly discusses the
based on district needs is need for professional learning.
addressed.
The professional learning is
Professional learning is planned to introduce some
planned to introduce many new new technology in the
technologies in the classroom, classroom but does not
but does not address address technology
technology integration. integration.
There is little mention regarding There is little to no mention
time and practice to acquire regarding time and practice to
and implement new strategies. acquire and implement new
strategies.
not all of the following: following:
● UDL principles. ● UDL principles.
● Technology access for ● Technology access
all learners. for all learners.
● Individualized ● Individualized
learning. learning.

Budget The budget is clearly defined. The budget is loosely defined. The budget is not defined.

Budget spending is directly Budget spending is somewhat Budget spending is not

correlated with the goals of correlated with the goals of the correlated with the goals of the
the plan. plan. plan.

Funding sources and Funding sources and estimated Funding sources and
estimated costs for achieving costs for achieving goals are estimated costs for achieving
goals are listed. rarely listed. goals are not listed.
Ongoing A short term plan is A plan is implemented for 3-5 The plan is implemented for 5
Evaluation & implemented (1-3 years). years. or more years.
Timeline
The plan is revised each year The plan is not revised each The plan is not revised each
to remain up-to-date. year. year.

The plan is tied to the district’s The plan is not tied to the The plan is not tied to the
budget cycle. district’s budget cycle. district’s budget cycle.

Comments: Total: /24

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The plan we can evaluate using our rubric: https://www.mcduffie.k12.ga.us/apps/pages/

index.jsp?uREC_ID=1008060&type=d&pREC_ID=1320317
McDuffie County Technology Plan
Well Defined (3 pts)
Layout The layout/design:
● Easy to read and well
organized.
● Free of grammar,
spelling, and
punctuation errors.
● Includes only
relevant information.
Current Status & Access to technology,
Needs infrastructure, software &
Assessment support is clearly defined.
Approaching (2 pts)
The layout/design:
● Generally easy to
read and well
organized.
● Has some grammar,
spelling, and
punctuation errors.
● Includes some
irrelevant information.
Access to technology ,
infrastructure, software, &
technical support is somewhat
defined.
Beginning (1 pt)
The layout/design:
● Difficult to read and
disorganized.
● Has many grammar,
spelling, and
punctuation errors.
● Includes irrelevant
information.
Access to technology,
infrastructure, software, &
technical support is vaguely
defined.

A thorough evaluation of An evaluation of current An evaluation of current

current technology practices is technology practices is technology practices is
conducted regarding all of the conducted regarding most of conducted regarding two or
following areas: the following areas: less of the following areas:
● Technology use in ● Technology use in the ● Technology use in the
the classroom. classroom. classroom.
● Technology ● Technology integration ● Technology
integration & student & student integration & student
engagement. engagement. engagement.
● Staff development ● Staff development ● Staff development
and/or professional and/or professional and/or professional
learning. learning. learning.
● Communication with ● Communication with ● Communication with
stakeholders; stakeholders; parents, stakeholders;
parents, community, community, parents, community,
administration, administration, administration,
teachers, school teachers, school teachers, school
board members. board members. board members.
Goals The goals are written with the The goals are written with the The goals are not written with
SMART (specific, measurable, SMART (specific, measurable, SMART (specific, measurable,
achievable, result-focused and achievable, result-focused and achievable, result-focused and
time-bound) guidelines in mind time-bound) goals guidelines in time-bound) guidelines in mind
and based on the needs mind but do not pertain to the and do not pertain to the
assessment. needs assessment. needs assessment.

The goals relate to the district The goals are loosely related to The goals have no correlation
mission and vision and, they the district mission and vision, to the district mission and/or
support the whole district. and they support the whole vision, and do not support the
district. whole district.
There is evidence that the
goals have been developed There is evidence that the There is little to no evidence
with a technology committee goals have been developed that the goals have been
that includes stakeholders with a technology committee developed with a technology
who are responsible for that includes some committee.
implementing plan and goals. stakeholders who are
responsible for implementing There is little to no mention of
The goals highest priority is plan and goals. student improvement and
given to student improvement engagement.
and engagement. The goals suggest student
improvement and engagement
is a priority.
Implementation The plan includes specific
action steps, strategies, and
objectives that relate to the
goals; realistic timelines for
implementation are listed.
Professional A plan for professional
Learning learning based on the needs
of each school is addressed.
Professional learning is
planned for effective
technology integration in all
content areas.
Adequate time and practice is
given to acquire and
implement new strategies.
Accessibility The plan clearly addresses all The plan addresses some but The plan does not address the
of the following:
● UDL principles.
● Technology access
for all learners.
● Individualized
learning.
The plan has some action The plan has little to no action
steps and timelines that relate steps and timelines that relate
to the goals. to the goals.
A plan for professional learning The plan briefly discusses the
based on district needs is need for professional learning.
addressed.
The professional learning is
Professional learning is planned to introduce some
planned to introduce many new new technology in the
technologies in the classroom, classroom but does not
but does not address address technology
technology integration. integration.
There is little mention regarding There is little to no mention
time and practice to acquire regarding time and practice to
and implement new strategies. acquire and implement new
strategies.
not all of the following: following:
● UDL principles. ● UDL principles.
● Technology access for ● Technology access
all learners. for all learners.
● Individualized ● Individualized
learning. learning.

Budget The budget is clearly defined. The budget is loosely defined. The budget is not defined.

Budget spending is directly Budget spending is somewhat Budget spending is not

correlated with the goals of correlated with the goals of the correlated with the goals of the
the plan. plan. plan.

Funding sources and Funding sources and estimated Funding sources and
estimated costs for achieving costs for achieving goals are estimated costs for achieving
goals are listed. rarely listed. goals are not listed.
Ongoing A short term plan is A plan is implemented for 3-5 The plan is implemented for 5
Evaluation & implemented (1-3 years). years. or more years.
Timeline
The plan is revised each year The plan is not revised each The plan is not revised each
to remain up-to-date. year. year.

The plan is tied to the district’s The plan is not tied to the The plan is not tied to the
budget cycle. district’s budget cycle. district’s budget cycle.

Comments: Total: 22/24

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Layout: The layout of McDuffie County is very clean and well organized. It is a fairly short
plan, but all the necessary information is included. There is one table that organizes the three
major goals the county strives to achieve. The strategies, yearly benchmarks, evaluation
method(s), funding source, and person(s) responsible are all found in this very concise, easy to
read table. The remaining sections: vision, current reality, communication and marketing, and
professional development are all written clearly and free or spelling and grammatical errors.
There are three appendices that detail the county’s Accessible Use Policy, CIPA policy, and LoTi
results. No recommendations for the layout are needed.

Current Status and Needs Assessment: The technology plan for McDuffie County states that
the district wants students to have access to technology every day and mentions that the district
implements new technologies. The plan vaguely mentions actual technology use in the classroom
or what devices are being used by the district. The plan does mention staff development and
professional learning by utilizing the LoTi technology survey. This survey assesses where the
teachers stand with their understanding of the technology and provides them with professional
development based on their own individual needs. The plan mentions that the district has a
county technology team that assesses the needs of the county as well as taking surveys from
teachers. This shows that the county involves it’s stakeholders in the decision making process.
While the plan does not directly mention their own access to technology, the district does
conduct an access survey for families so they can determine what percentage of the students have
access to technology outside of the school. The school district also has a hardware inventory that
gives the stakeholders an exact spreadsheet of what the district has purchased and is currently
using.

Goals: The goals are focused on student, teacher, and school improvement. They align with the
vision of honing the students’ higher order thinking skills, providing teachers with technology
skills, and technology playing a key role in data driven instruction. There is evidence that the
goals have been created with stakeholders because the goals matrix includes a section for the
people responsible for each goal and those people include Superintendent, Department of
Curriculum and Instruction, teachers, principals, assistant principals, technology departments,
media specialists, and the Title I director. The involvement of all of these people shows that the

district is using its’ stakeholders to develop this technology plan. The plan’s goals also give
priority to student achievement. The goals include: Increase the number of high school graduates,
increase standardized test scores, maintain student email accounts, entering student work into the
Georgia Student Media Festival, implementing a BYOD (bring your own device) plan, and
creating a 21st century learning environment. These goals are also considered SMART goals
because the goals are specific, include percentages of expectations (i.e. a graduation rate of 80%
in the first year), are result-focused, and are time-bound. They are not only time-bound by one
year either, they are time-bound for each year for the next three years.

Implementation: The plan has clear cut strategies to meet the county’s goals of integrating
technology into the classroom, using technology to diversify learning, collecting data, and
allowing teachers and students the opportunity to utilize tools that develop new ways of problem
solving. Since it is a three year technology plan, there are benchmarks present for each strategy
as to what progress should be made per year. Most of these timelines are realistic, with the
exception of several 100% goals in the plan’s final year. For example, a 100% graduate rate is
highly unlikely in any year, even with the aid of credit based computer recovery. Outside of that
flaw, however, most percentage growths each year are moderate enough to be feasible.

Professional Learning: The plan includes professional learning activities and strategies in order
to meet the overarching technology goals. The plan mentions there will be ongoing professional
learning on various topics although it doesn’t specifically mention if those topics will be school-
based or district-based. It suggests however, the professional learning opportunities and topics
will be based from the needs assessment. The need for CTAE teachers to attend technology
training is included as well as encouraging all staff to attend state and national trainings that can
help support technology integration and support. During the three year period this technology
plan has been implemented, six instructional technology coaches have been hired to support the
technology integration needs. The professional learning section is thorough, but it does not
address the needs of school-based professional learning. It also states that during the 2015-2017
school years, only 1-2 technology based professional learning classes would be offered. We can
infer that with the implementation of the instructional technology coaches that more school-
based learning would occur, but it is not clearly stated. Also, there is no mention of adequate
time to acquire and practice the new technology skills. It does not suggest that the topics will be
revisited, assessed, or monitored for effective use. The plan should include specific topics that
will be addressed in professional learning throughout the plan’s implementation. This
information would be gathered from the needs assessment. District- based professional learning
could address district technology needs while specific school-based needs can be addressed
within each school. Also, there needs to be more opportunities than just 1-2 classes throughout
the year. Lastly, these technology skills should be practiced and revisited throughout the year. If
not, teachers will not use the technology to the best of its abilities.

Accessibility: The plan clearly and directly states its intention to bring technology to all learners
and allow for individualized learning. Each year, the county sends out a survey of teacher needs
in order to replace outdated or broken hardware in the classroom. Hardware is then quickly

replaced by an established computer replacement cycle. Similar surveys are sent out each year to
evaluate the number of students with computer and internet access at home, although it would be
nice if the school could find room in its budget to allow students to rent laptops. As far as the
school’s UDL implementation is concerned, using technology to increase diversification of
learning is a direct goal listed by the school. This goal is achieved through the school purchasing
a variety of accredited software meant to aid learners with IEPs as well as those with different
learning styles.
Budget: The school states the funding source and total cost of each of its eighteen strategies used
to meet its technology goals. As all of the strategies are seen to be directly related to a goal, this
funding is all appropriate. The school also requires any new software purchased by schools to be
approved by a county committee to ensure that it directly relates to the stated objectives. While
the total cost of the approved programs is most likely tied into a variety of the above mentioned
strategies, having the specific total of bought software would be an improvement. The county
would also do well to list its total amount of money available rather than simply stating how
much investment goes into each individual strategy.

Ongoing Evaluation and Timeline: The technology plan lasts three years, ranging from July
2014 to June 2017. While this is the longest the plan could exist while still receiving full credit
on the rubric, yearly revisions do occur via committee and board meetings. The plan is also fully
tied to the district’s budget cycle, meaning that a replacement has already been released as of this
year (2018), but is not currently posted online. Although it is only a few months old, the county
should work to make their plan visible to the public for further review.