Running Head: SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

Shared Vision for New Holland Knowledge Academy 2015

John W. Phillips, III

Instructional Technology Leadership, ITEC 7410
Summer, 2015
Kathryn Shields, EdS

Keywords: Integrated Technology, Interactive White Boards, Profession Development,

Web 2.0

SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

Shared Vision for New Holland Knowledge Academy 2015

Vision Statement
New Holland will, by infusing technology into the curriculum and
providing 24/7 access to digital resources, texts, and digital
collaboration with peers and experts in the field and by providing
effective, persistent technology professional development designed to
attract and retain highly-qualified teachers, equip students to become
leaders in their communities and workplace that are college and career
ready with an education rooted in enriching literacy, numeracy, and
critical problem solving.

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3
Rationale

The current state of New Holland Knowledge Academy is one of evolving

technological growth. It has been the mission of New Holland to equip every classroom
with an Interactive White Board and assemble a collection of iPad carts that are available
to students and teachers. New Holland has completed its goal of an Interactive White
Board in every room and continues to add iPad carts to the already 4 available. However,
in the schools rush to amass technology for the use of teachers and students, we have
neglected proper professional development to insure the best use of these technologies.
The 2015-2016 school year will begin with the most technology available to our
teachers to date. We will have the materials to infuse technology into every subject and
lesson that we desire. Yet some teachers will not use this technology because they do not
have the knowledge necessary to feel comfortable using the new technology in the
classroom. In order to solve this problem and ensure that students are guaranteed the
most effective and engaging education possible, we will hold professional development
sessions once a month for each grade level in order to properly instruct and provide
instructional and support materials to teachers to add to their teaching toolbox.
Research shows us that proper technology integration can greatly improve the
scores of students in subject such as math, science, reading, and social studies. The ISTE
Policy Brief Technology and Student Achievement the Indelible Link (ISTE, 2008)
provides many examples of schools that correctly implemented integrated technology and
the scores of students jumped dramatically. Texas students that were immersed in a
technology integrated math curriculum showed growth by 5% among 6th graders, 42%
among 7th graders, and 24% among 8th graders (ISTE, 2008). Similarly, students that

SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

regularly engaged in curriculum that infused technology into the curriculum showed
dramatically higher levels of student engagement than the national average (ISTE, 2008).
Based on this research, the proper use of integrated technology in any subject area or
grade level shows the potential for significant student growth.
Evidence for this can be found within New Holland as well. Students of teachers
who regularly practice integrating technology by using laptops, iPads, and Web 2.0
applications regularly outperform their peers who did not participate in an integrated
technology curriculum. The underlying problem that needs to be addressed is increased
comfort to technology and the pedagogical knowledge to use technology effectively in
lessons. The hardware is present in the school. Our teachers now need regular practice
and support within the school to integrate technology into their own curriculum. With
more and more Web 2.0 tools emerging in education, there is no reason that students
should not be regularly engaging in discussion and collaboration via the Internet. Web 2.0
tools improve home-school interaction, create easier access to new ideas and information,
provide foundations for peer-to-peer discussion, and provide the ability to edit product in
real time from different locations (Ullman, 2013).

SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

Diversity Considerations
As a Title 1 school, students at New Holland, year after year, qualify for free and
reduced lunch based on household income level. In fact, 100% of the students at New
Holland are provided free and reduced lunch. The frequency of families that fall under
low socio-economic status makes availability to technology within the school that much
more important. An informal survey conducted on the district level showed that students
at New Holland are more likely to not have access to the Internet at home than to have it.
The survey also revealed that most students who have Internet at home only have it
through their parents mobile devices. Providing access to Internet and proper training in
how to research, collaborate, and navigate technology is not only powerful in the
classroom, but supplies students with the skills necessary to be competitive in the
workplace.
Using technology to teach Web 2.0 practices of collaboration, discussion, and
creating allows students to work side by side, be exposed to new ideas and people, and
become citizens that are more understanding and tolerant of new people and ideas.
Students need to be prepared to enter the workforce as individuals that are capable of
discussion, critical thinking, and supporting their ideas. Using our technology as a
gateway to Web 2.0 practices will build these valuable skills and bolster creativity in our
students. Provenzano (2015) explains that the use of creative opportunities in his
classroom encourage his students to take risks and explore their own passions. The
collaboration of these creative opportunities and the integrated technology that we will
provide at New Holland Knowledge Academy will equip our students to be risk takers,
self starters, and engaged learners.

SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

Stakeholder Roles
In order for this vision to become a success, every administrator, teacher, student,
and parent will have as active role. Administrators will be responsible for facilitating an
environment that supports the new technology vision for New Holland Knowledge
Academy. The principal will publically announce that the Instructional Technology
Specialist will be conducting monthly trainings with grade levels. The principal will also
advise teachers that they may schedule individual meetings with the ITS for more hands
on practice. These meetings may also take the form of modeling during classes to
demonstrate how to properly integrate technology into any curriculum.
The Instructional Technology Specialist will be responsible for coordinating,
planning, and holding meetings with each grade level during one planning period a month
to provide effective and measurable technology support. The ITS will plan specific
trainings to hold with each grade level to encourage the use of integrated technology and
to support the faculty. The ITS will also be responsible for finding coverage for his/her
own classroom in order to be present to support teachers who are using new technology
in their own classrooms. Continual research and training will be one of the many
responsibilities held by the ITS in order to keep New Holland Knowledge Academy on
the cutting edge and providing the most effecting teaching strategies to its faculty.
Teachers will have the role of implementing this new technology effectively into
their curricula. Teachers will be provided as much support as they desire from the ITS
and other teacher leaders. Teachers will be required to step out of their comfort zone, try
new strategies, and work with the ITS to perfect pedagogical changes that incorporate

SHARED VISION & RATIONALE

technology. New ways of incorporating technology will be modeled monthly by the ITS
for teachers as well as often as requested by the teacher.
Students will be required to engage in new strategies and explore new ways of
learning. The technology provided to them will open new ways of collaborating and
creating products. Students will be required to participate in online discussions via blogs
and wikis. Students will be required to complete online assignments and learn how to
research and present their findings.
Parents will be invited to PTA meetings that will demonstrate how we are
incorporating technology into curricula to engage their students and empower them to
take online learning to new levels. Parents will be asked to provide students with access
to computers and Internet at home in order to complete online assignments and
participate in online blogs and discussions. If access is unavailable at home, parents will
be asked to provide access to the public library where Internet access is free to the
students.
Community partners will be contacted and asked for financial support in order to
continue building our technology resources and pay for outside professionals to come to
the school and provide additional professional development.
With all of these targets in place and cooperation from everyone involved, our
students will continue to make academic growth, learn to collaborate and discuss new
ideas with one another. Students will work together to complete online assignments and
learn to respect the opinions and of others even if they are different from their own.

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Students will learn valuable skills that will be carried across all curricula and outside the
walls of the school into the workforce and citizenship.

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10
References

http://www2.gcssk12.net/schoolsites/nhesweb/about-nhka.html
International Society for Technology in Education. (2008). Technology and student
achievement-The indelible link. Retrieved June 27, 2015 from
http://www.k12hsn.org/files/research/Technology/ISTE_policy_brief_student_ach
ievement.pdf
Provenzano, N. (2015, June 25). Creativity in the Classroom. Retrieved June 28, 2015,
from http://www.edutopia.org//blog/creativity-in-the-classroom-nicholasprovenzano
Ulllman, E. (2013). A TECH & LEARNING CUSTOM WHITE PAPER. Retrieved June
28, 2015, from http://resource-center.newbaymedia.com/resource_center/assets/tle/MicrosoftWP_CloudComputingK12.pdf