Achievement hunters around the nation are using corners of the technology treasure map to find value for their students. Yet, only a few of us treasure hunters out there have seen the maps that lead to real booty. Our journey begins below:
I saw a portion of the map in North Carolina at the Red Hat hosted event with NC New Schools Project. Experts, educators, and the business community responded to the elusive technology treasures possible with scaling STEM.
X marked the spot this week in Radford, Virginia where professor Matt Dunleavy debuted his work around augmented reality to engage students with probes for inquiry based science lessons.
Indeed, the Department of Defense Education Activity brought out the big guns this past month to scale online professional development in search of the next treasure clue for their worldwide network of schools.
Such corners of the map are offering new value propositions for the “more resources” theory of action crowd so pervasive in our national education debate.
Some school boards, superintendents, unions, administrator associations, teacher associations, colleges of education, state education leaders, parents, and teachers see treasure as simply more money and positions to hunt the elusive bounty. Those doubloons should solve our education ills right?
Perhaps, the real treasure falls out in theories of action for effective leadership and management, expertise collaboration, and empowering a performance culture when it comes to applying technology treatments that make sense for learning organizations.
Consider the shiny treasure of devices. Do we need to buy more of them? Should we lease them? Or should we ask if students have their own treasure trove at home? All three of the answers to these questions begin to form etches and marks on the technology treasure map for schools and districts.
Content has to be a part of the booty right? Who’s content? Charters? Open education resources? The publishing pirates of the great North Seas? Not unlike a lot of treasure hunters, I’ve used a compelling map this week in Don McAdams book,What School Boards Can Do: Reform Governance for Urban Schools.
Although I’ve been reading the book in preparation for school board training I’m doing with CRSS out of Houston, I was ready to break out my gold pan after looking at his theories of action that can be applied to any technology treasure quest.
Let’s start with effective leadership and management. Great systems, states, networks, and districts scan the environment for technology options. They make decisions based on data as to what is and what's not working in their district. Kudos to Bambi Lockman this month from Volusia County Schools for assembling her whole staff to go through such an exercise.
Next, technology treasure hunters collaborate with experts. I’ve been involved with districts in Vermont, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire this month that have sought the counsel of design firms like2Revolutions to walk them through how to leverage their technologies more effectively on behalf of students. Congrats to these courageous treasure hunters.
The ability to empower a blended performance culture is probably the most direct route to the technology treasure map I’ve seen this month out on the high seas of reform.
Organizations like Wayne Huizenga backed VSCHOOLZ offer districts free technology devices and wireless to hop on their next generation platform.
Yet, they don’t stop there. Instead, they engage in a partnership of consultancy, coaching, and strategy as to how to use the platform. If you want to run a common core aligned course with emerging technology capacity - you can. If you want to mix and match content from a multiple providers – you can change direction on the treasure map. If you want to draw your own map, you can author your own content.
All of these options empower districts with thier own teachers and staff to create new customizable options for kids. Best of all, the treasure guides (administrators and parents) can look in on the different routes to the map at any time.
All of these hunters and technology pirates can be found on your 21st Century looking glass (your mobile phone). Search for the links in this blog to begin your own map today.
