Monday, August 29, 2011

District Technology Plan

State: Texas
District: Garland Independent School District
When looking at the Garland Independent School District (GISD) Technology Plan, the budget given for Educator Preparation and Development (Professional Development) is $750,000. The district technology plan states they provide ongoing professional development during the school day as well as after. Each month the technology department offers 15-30 hours of professional development in various areas. As a GISD Employee, I feel I am given plenty of professional development opportunities to further my knowledge and to provide an energetic learning environment for my students. Another way Garland ISD provides professional development is by allowing teachers to teach one another. Each campus has at least one Technology Integration Coach. This person provides on-going and on-site help with professional development as well as technology in all curriculum areas. Each campus also has a Campus Technology Assistant (CTA) on-site. This person is in charge of keeping an inventory of all hardware and instructional software. This person is also responsible for repairing minor hardware and software issues. GISD is a very large district and must keep close watch on their technology services in order to provide the best and more up-to-date services for their students. The CTA will also perform assessment data on each student during the school year to ensure student learning. This data is also given to the teacher’s to create their own data spreadsheets. . One way the district evaluates progress of their technology programs is to implement technology into certain classrooms and campuses. Once the pilot is complete, data and assessments are performed. Technology that was high scoring and had a significant positive impact on student learning is then distributed throughout the district. If the technology is negatively evaluated, it is either re-designed or thrown out. As a GISD employee I had no idea our Technology Plan was so well designed and carried out.

No comments:

Post a Comment