As always a term starts and you hit the ground running. For me this has been doubly true due to working through the holidays. This had twofold reasons- to get all the new devices up and running ready for week 1 and also to build the professional relationship with our new principal and also our new office manager.
A week into the new term i would say that it was worth the effort throughout the holidays. the teachers and students are really enjoying getting to put into action all the PD we have engaged in around true e-learning and the investment both financially and time wise has been successful.
As far as professional relationships go, it has also been very valuable to have time to engage in some very constructive conversations that mean a more shared understanding of our way forward and also of how we can make these steps.
This first week has also seen me work with my outside appraiser and that has been very valuable, as a way to focus my thinking on me and my leadership values. I often spend 99 % of my time focused on other people and forget to stop and evaluate my own position and goals. Having talked to colleagues I had the notion of sharing the whole of my appraisal process with the staff and my appraiser agreed that this would be a great way to create trust, openness and an understanding of my goals. So this week I will put my reflective journal and my goals into an open Google document. shared with staff and invite their comments. It is a part of human nature to feel wary of being too open with their aims. However I believe that by doing this I am being open to input, creating collaboration and also displaying my trust in other people.
Saturday 10 May 2014
Friday 2 May 2014
Journey to new devices for MBS
The journey we have taken as a school in order to secure new devices has been lengthy...but finally we are there.
When I took over ICT last year I rapidly discovered that 95% of all device in the school where Windows XP operating systems. From April 2014 this system would not be supported by MoE software provisioning or by Microsoft. Hence our year long journey to work out how to acquire new devices on a limited budget.
Through a process which started with setting a school vision and strategic plan specific to our schools vision for our digital citizens, I started dialogues with various parties and companies who could give us options.
Once presented to the BOT the discussions started about budgets, constraints and how this would fulfill our needs as a school/ community.
Towards the end of 2013 we had finalized budgets and quickly realized that this basic option wouldn't be viable or sustainable financially.
A change of Principal meant revisiting the whole concept of where we wanted to be as a school again at the start of 2014
The urgency of the situation started to be borne in upon the BOT and Principal, with the realisation that in two months time we would have NO computers in the school.
This along with the level of staff frustration at the lack of functioning ICT with which to put into practice the years PD on e-learning they had received meant that we put in place a quick move to BYOD in order to cover the gap.
This was already started in years 7 and 8 during 2013 and was highly successful for students, parents and teachers.
The decision was made to roll this down to year 5/6 as soon as was feasible within the structures and procedures I put in place to ensure successful BYOD
With the help of an action plan and regular contact with teachers, parents and students this has rolled out very successfully.
We still needed to fill the gap in devices which would become reality in April 2014
So I went back to the BOT and with the support of the Principal started to breakdown and evaluate all our possibilities within a given budget of 30,000
This time we came to an agreement and three weeks later we signed contracts for our new devices- 43 chrome books and 37 ipad minis. Along with 12 chromecasts to make the tv's in each room more usefull.
The outcome has been that I have learnt a huge amount about myself, my role as ICT and elearning leader, how to create visions and action plans and align them with the schools strategic plan and vision.
At times i have been frustrated with feelings that the board did not fully comprehend how frustrated our teachers where. However as the year progressed I was glad that there where people there who would ask me tough questions and make me double check myself and what I was doing. The responsibility to organise this has been mine, however the reason for all of this has been to ensure the students, teachers and community all get the best fit solution in order to create learning that can be blended to build the skills our student need to leave MBS as problem solving digital citizens. For that I thank everyone who made me stop and check my thinking and solutions:)
I have had no holiday at all over this 2 week easter break...but tired though I am, I couldn't be happier...now I can get these devices out into classrooms and the real work can begin
When I took over ICT last year I rapidly discovered that 95% of all device in the school where Windows XP operating systems. From April 2014 this system would not be supported by MoE software provisioning or by Microsoft. Hence our year long journey to work out how to acquire new devices on a limited budget.
Through a process which started with setting a school vision and strategic plan specific to our schools vision for our digital citizens, I started dialogues with various parties and companies who could give us options.
Once presented to the BOT the discussions started about budgets, constraints and how this would fulfill our needs as a school/ community.
Towards the end of 2013 we had finalized budgets and quickly realized that this basic option wouldn't be viable or sustainable financially.
A change of Principal meant revisiting the whole concept of where we wanted to be as a school again at the start of 2014
The urgency of the situation started to be borne in upon the BOT and Principal, with the realisation that in two months time we would have NO computers in the school.
This along with the level of staff frustration at the lack of functioning ICT with which to put into practice the years PD on e-learning they had received meant that we put in place a quick move to BYOD in order to cover the gap.
This was already started in years 7 and 8 during 2013 and was highly successful for students, parents and teachers.
The decision was made to roll this down to year 5/6 as soon as was feasible within the structures and procedures I put in place to ensure successful BYOD
With the help of an action plan and regular contact with teachers, parents and students this has rolled out very successfully.
We still needed to fill the gap in devices which would become reality in April 2014
So I went back to the BOT and with the support of the Principal started to breakdown and evaluate all our possibilities within a given budget of 30,000
This time we came to an agreement and three weeks later we signed contracts for our new devices- 43 chrome books and 37 ipad minis. Along with 12 chromecasts to make the tv's in each room more usefull.
The outcome has been that I have learnt a huge amount about myself, my role as ICT and elearning leader, how to create visions and action plans and align them with the schools strategic plan and vision.
At times i have been frustrated with feelings that the board did not fully comprehend how frustrated our teachers where. However as the year progressed I was glad that there where people there who would ask me tough questions and make me double check myself and what I was doing. The responsibility to organise this has been mine, however the reason for all of this has been to ensure the students, teachers and community all get the best fit solution in order to create learning that can be blended to build the skills our student need to leave MBS as problem solving digital citizens. For that I thank everyone who made me stop and check my thinking and solutions:)
I have had no holiday at all over this 2 week easter break...but tired though I am, I couldn't be happier...now I can get these devices out into classrooms and the real work can begin
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)