Technology Program Administrator

Assignment for Professional Portfolio Terry Gough

Executive Summary: The technological goal of Adairsville High School as well as the entire Bartow County School System is to utilize, and improve upon the use of technology in order to improve upon the teaching techniques of its teachers, and to enhance all aspects of learning for each of its students. The faculty, staff, and administration of Adairsville High School have agreed that the implementation and integration of technology should be at the forefront of todays educational process. The community of Adairsville High School has appointed a committee to discuss essential elements that will enhance the effectiveness of the instructional process. This committee consists of the administration, the technology teachers, the media/technology specialist, and department chairs from each content area, and is known collectively as the Technology School Improvement Committee. The main objective of the committee is to seek out and to introduce to the faculty and staff new ways of presenting and integrating technology into the instructional day. Its members, over a period of time, have developed objectives, strategies, timelines, and budgets for the implementation of technology into the classrooms of Adairsville High School. Each month, members of the committee, led by the media/technology specialist, who is also the technology resource teacher of Adairsville High School, introduce various sources of instructional technology and activities which can be utilized by the faculty members of the school. These sources are sent to each faculty member via email. It is then up to the instructional staff to integrate the technology into the general curriculum. Over the past three years, this implementation has become easier due to the Striving Readers Grant obtained by the Bartow County School System. The Striving Readers Grant has made available to the students of Adairsville High School, as well as all students of the Bartow County School System, Mac-books for the students and instructional staff. Those not receiving the Mac-books have received Dell laptop computers instead.

Methods: The methods used for this report were generated from a variety of resources, interviews, checklists, and internal reports obtained from the school media/technology specialist. The interviews conducted were done so with several students of varying grade-levels, who are actual recipients of the technology used in the school, two nontechnology teachers, the media specialist/technology resource teacher, and two of the three administrators of the school. The interviews were conducted by the person presenting the report. The interviewees were questioned separately, in their offices, classrooms, and in the school conference room; all during school hours. A checklist comprised of all technology used in the media/technology center, computer labs, as well as classrooms throughout the school was used to establish this report and was used to inform the interviewer of what technology was being used, and where. In addition, the internal reports provided by the media/technology specialist were reviewed, as well as the 2012-2015 Bartow County Technology Plan. Additionally, a two-year-old needs-assessment conducted on the media/technology center was also used to establish what progress, if any, has been made with regards to the growth and development of technology within the school. Center Context and Goals: Adairsville High School is centrally located in the town of Adairsville, Georgia which lies within the northern-most region of Bartow County. The Adairsville High School media/technology center provides services to 951 students. According to 2013 demographic statistics, Adairsville High School is home to a student population that is comprised of 53% male and 47% female. Of the 951 students, 90% are Caucasian, 6% African-American, and 3% Hispanic. Only 1% of the school population is considered Multi-Racial or Native American. 51% of the student population is classified as Economically Disadvantaged and receive free or reduced-price lunch. According to the Bartow County 2012-2015 Local System Technology Plan, Adairsville High School ranks second to lowest in Bartow County in student to computer ration with 2.43 computers per student. When comparing the three Bartow County high schools, Adairsville High School once again ranks the lowest of the three, again with 2.43 computers per students. The Adairsville media/technology centers mission statement is quite personable and in the words of its media/technology specialist Whether it is

a computer, software, help, a safe haven, a book, a good book recommendation or just some serious fun, the AHS media/technology centers goal is to have everything that students and staff need to feel successful at AHS. On perhaps a more professional sounding level, the vision statement for the center is that; Adairsville High School Media Center is for all students to be proficient readers, tech savvy and prepared to take on the world. The media/technology
center currently has 21 computers with another 48 laptops housed within two mobile-

computer labs. New computers are purchased as funding allows from the Striving Readers Grant money. Additionally, within the media/technology center is a full-sized media production studio which produces weekly sports casts of local high school games. The media/technology center also is home to several thousand books, periodicals, and magazine offerings. In addition to the computers and laptops housed within the school media/technology lab, the school also enjoys 4 computer labs with 30 full-sized computers within. These computer labs are utilized by all instructional staff on an asneeded basis. All computer labs are equipped with printers, scanners, documentcameras, laser pointers, and digital cameras. Also, each classroom teacher has access to a computer and printer within his/her classroom. The technology staff at the Adairsville High School Technology Center consists of Dr. Lena Adams-Media Specialist/Technology Resource Teacher; Mr. Jason Rood-Assistant Media Specialist/Technology Resource Teacher and Special Education Department Head; Dr. Alicia Brown-Business and Computer Science Teacher; Mr. Kent HowardBusiness Teacher/Business Education Department Head. The Bartow County School System Technology Staff includes; Mr. Mark Bagnell-Bartow County Director of Technology; and Mr. Chris Forsyth-Bartow County Lead Technology Specialist. Center Activities: Activities are abundant at the Adairsville High School Media/Technology Center. The center activities include: The Peach Book Reading Club where students read, discuss, and vote for their favorite books which are chosen from the Georgia Peach Teen Book List issued each year. Additionally, members of the center take on the huge undertaking of training students to produce and present live-streaming sporting and school events on PlayonSports.com. Every student in the school is encouraged to join the 25 Books Reading Campaign in which readers compete for prizes and gift cards. A yearly field trip is taken each spring to the local Barnes & Noble book store where AHS students read to invited elementary school students. The Adairsville High School Media/Technology Center often plays host to published authors. Recently, authors S.R. Johannes of Untraceable fame, Jennifer Jabely, author of Lipstick Apology and Crush Control, and former AHS teacher Roy Mitchell, author of Gaberdine Swine paid visits to the students of Adairsville High School. Teacher in-service trainings which are conducted by the Bartow County School System are conducted on a monthly basis in the Adairsville Media/Technology Center. In addition to teacher in-service training, members of the of Adairsville community are invited each month to take part in technology training of various levels of difficulty.

Evaluation: Based on information collected from questionnaires, checklists, internal reports, and interviews, it is without question that the Adairsville High School media/technology center is implementing and fulfilling all expectations. The overall goals of integration of technology into the classroom in order to enhance the learning of students; and to enhance teacher effectiveness, are being met. More and more technology is being purchased with funding aided by the Striving Readers Grant. Through this increase in technology, student achievement is being increased. All instructional staff is incorporating technology into each daily lesson and students are benefitting from it. Parents are being afforded an opportunity to be involved in the technology of the school as well by opening up free accounts on the Parent Portal website which enables them to keep track of their students daily academic progress. All observations of the media/technology center of Adairsville High School point to the mastery of all goals that have been set for the center. The center is implementing many opportunities for its students, staff, and community members as well, and is making available access to technology that, up until only a few years ago, would have only been a dream.

Appendix:

Interview Questions: 1. Whats the reading range of the medial center collection compared to the schools reading level range? 2. How often is the media center reading collection weeded? 3. What criterion is used for the weeding? 4. Who works on the technology plan for this center? 5. Where does the funding come from for the media center supplies (books, technology, etc.) and how often is it allotted? 6. What is the criterion for ordering reading material and technology? 7. Is there any interaction between the media center and the people of the community of Adairsville? If so, what/how? 8. What are the demographics of the school? 9. Do the students participate in helping with the workings of the media center? How? 10. What technology is used in the classroom? 11. When new books and other materials arrive, how are the students, faculty and community (if applicable) made aware? 12. How many labs are used in the center? What kind of labs? What are included in each lab? 13. What technology is available to students who may have a 504, SST, or special education IEP? 14. What part does the faculty play, if any, in requesting books and other materials?

15. How does the media specialist go about preparing students for testing? ( ex. SAT, ACT, state testing) 16. Are there documents available that could be reviewed by the public or faculty members, showing any evaluation that has been performed on the media center? If so, what are they and where are they? 17. Are there internal documents available that might be useful to those wanting to know about the media center and its daily workings? 18. Are there any websites available that would provide information about the media center? 19. Who are the stakeholders? 20. Who is in charge of implementing the technology being taught?

Links used for conducting the program evaluation

Faculty Questionnaire Technology Checklist Bartow County 2012-2015 Technology Plan