3/12/13

Technology and Connectivity in Education: Applications in a Regional Approach

Current Educational Landscape

Na#onal
No Child Le. Behind (NCLB) Common Core P21

State
Flat funding/con#nued shi.s Increased academic accountability Signicant achievement gaps

Local
Declining enrollment Increased dependence on local levies Importance of regional partnerships

3/12/13

Who we are

What weve been working on

Where we are going

What weve learned

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Location

7 school districts and a community college covering 3500

square miles and serving around 7000 students in Northern Minnesota

3/12/13

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Focus turns to organization efciencies; saving money; sharing of people, space

2005

1987

2010

Expanded role in community; examining new business models

2014

IASC formed; Fiber leveraged for ITV

Focus turns towards improving teaching and learning outcomes

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Structure
Group Members Meets
Monthly and as needed

Purpose
Operations, strategic direction Legal governance

Superintendents Superintendents Advisory and Provost Committee

Chair and Vice Chair from SAC; Governing Board board member Quarterly from each school district

3/12/13

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Core Values

Solidarity: We are strongest individually

when we are all strong

Equity:
These are all our kids, and they

deserve rich opportunities

Results:
The purpose of collaboration is not collaboration itself;
it is great results
Morten Hansen

Questions weve learned to ask

Whats next?
Where are we going ?

Where are we now?

3/12/13

VISION

Value proposition for the next 3-5 years

STRATEGY

Key strategic differentiation required to execute vision

EXECUTION

Activities to be implemented and measured over the next 12-18 months

METRICS

2009 Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved.
Cisco Condential

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Collabora#ng to most eciently and eec#vely educate all learners Be the trusted provider of educa#on, promo#ng economic opportunity and life long learning for the Itasca Area.
Mission

Vision

Achieve educa#onal transforma#on and improve sustainable educa#onal outcomes through strengthened partnerships and coopera#on; state of the art architectures, integra#on of func#ons, and enhanced stakeholder understanding.

Overarching Vision

3/12/13

IASC VSEM
Strategies
Enhanced teaching & learning through con#nuous improvement Build and strengthen partnerships within and beyond IASC Improve services and systems for all learners & stakeholders Eec#vely communicate the mission & objec#ves.

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative: VSEM

V
5+ years

Be the trusted provider of education promoting economic opportunity and life long learning for the Itasca Area.

Achieve education transformation and improve sustainable educational outcomes through strengthened partnerships and cooperation, state-of-the-art architectures, integration of functions and enhanced stakeholder understanding.

S
2-4 years

Enhanced teaching & learning through continuous improvement

Develop a common assessment process for rst grade students across IASC.

Build and strengthen partnerships within and beyond IASC

Build strong partnerships within
IASC, between School Boards,
higher education and individual
districts.

Improve services and systems for all learners & stakeholders

Deliver connectivity & learning opportunities 24/7 to enable effective outreach to all learners and families.

Effectively communicate the mission & objectives.

Bring other stakeholders and community members into structured roles for joint problem solving.

E
12-18 Months

Build-Partner-Acquire technologies & processes for curriculum & instruction and staff development.

Continue to analyze and investigate best practices for services.

Demonstrate optimized organizational capability, integration & operational excellence.

12-18 months

Build-Partner-Acquire technologies & processes for Safety & Connectedness.

M
12-18 Months

Presentation_ID

Student data compared across 2 district EOY 2012

Summer technology institute 2011
Common email 9/2011
One Interactive classroom per district EOY 2012

Business manager best practice session

HR/Payroll tie 7-2011
2 pilot learning options 2011

Highlight IASC success

Dene failure of message
Evaluate correct members

3/12/13

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Definition of Success
With the help and active support of education and community leaders, IASC will create a region known and celebrated for its commitment to academic excellence, where access to high-quality education is valued and expected for all learners from prekindergarten through post-secondary, and where employers actively seek out the region because of its workforce and quality of life.

Current IASC Ini#a#ves

Business and Administra#ve Services Community Educa#on Career and Technical Educa#on/ Workforce Development Sta Development

Early Childhood

Curriculum, Instruc#on, and Assessment

Technology Online Learning

3/12/13

Data

IASC Traditional Deployment Model

Voice CCTV / Cable TV Video Clocks & Conferencing Bells Physical Security Surveillance
PSTN

Energy Overhead Management Paging

Fire

Internet

Router ISDN PBX

Data Switch

MCM

The Power of Architecture Convergence

The power of a Network

Data Voice Video Streaming Video Conferencing PA (Intercom) Video Monitoring Building Controls Clocks and Bells

IASC Network (Community)

3/12/13

Evolution of a Connected World

Sense & Respond

Paul Barans Theory of Distributed Networksthe World of Connectedness

IASC Students/Community
MIT chemistry club Chemistry community Central Lakes College Expert Website Alerts Cisco TelePresence Interna#onal library virtual collec#on session iTunes U podcast Digital library STEM to MSU- Mankato Museum virtual tour Helsinki, Finland Na#onal museum virtual collec#on

RSS

Class lecture VOD WebEx with TA

Learner
Expert blog Virtual lab Classroom lecture

YouTube

Open courseware Game Newsleger

Second Life museum tour Facebook Interna#onal newspaper feed Wikipedia Primate community Fauna community

IM scien#st Na#onal Government newspaper research feed organiza#on Chemist broadcast session Second Life island

vBlog

Botany community

3/12/13

IASC Transformation Framework

1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Need for Change Vision Setting Scan the System Plan for Action Adopt the Plan Implement the Plan Monitor and Refresh
Need for Change
District realizes its students are not prepared for the 21st century. Educators and community work together to paint a picture of what education should look like. Identify areas/gaps where reality and vision are far apart. Faculty and leaders work with each other and outside experts to develop concrete plans to close each gap. Leaders communicate the plan, build support in the community, and get final approval. Invest in technical and educational infrastructures needed to support transformation plan. Develop ability of faculty, students, and staff to teach and learn in new ways. Track progress of transformation process and refresh/revise as needed.

Vision

Scan

Plan

Adopt

Implement

Monitor and Refresh

IASC Executions
Problem Disparate and divergent systems, taxonomy Response Build common language, vision

VSEM, definition of success

10

3/12/13

IASC Executions
Problem Incompatible and redundant networks Response Build common, shared architecture

Common core network includes storage, power, wireless, video.

IASC Executions
Problem Response Disparate, Standardize hardware, redundant hardware, software across districts software Standardized routers, switches, labeling conventions. Common email, student information, finance system, voicemail, sub calling, web platform, security.

11

3/12/13

IASC Executions
Problem Incomparable, disorganized data Response Enterprise data warehouse

COGNOS purchased and implemented across all districts, leveraging joint purchasing. Trained experts in each building.

IASC Executions
Problem More to support, no more staff Response Improve technical capacity, share staff, build specialized expertise, implement work-order and regional help desk

Staff are deployed to the district in need or that is currently the focus of cutover or upgrade. Highly trained staff in network administration, physical security, IP phones, etc. Work order goes to the most relevant person.

12

3/12/13

IASC Executions
Problem Staff shortages, inability for some districts to offer courses, opportunity inequity Response 18 seat Telepresence rooms installed in 6 locations; studio carts installed in 13 locations

13

3/12/13

IASC Executions
Problem Staff isolation Response Leverage video to build regional PLCs, learning networks

14

3/12/13

IASC Executions
Problem Difficulty matching up calendars and schedules Response Regional school calendar and regional bell schedule.

Regional calendar accommodates 7 different collective bargaining units. Regional bells schedule adopted that includes early student release every Wednesday for jobembedded professional development.

15

3/12/13

IASC Executions
Problem Response Inconsistent training IASC Summer Technology opportunities for Institute staff

Summer Institute offers pedagogical, practical, and hands-on training on the IASC-wide initiatives.

IASC Road map

Future Work
College courses/degree for adult learners offered at local high schools via Telepresence University of Minnesota instructor teaching from local middle school to St. Paul campus rather than driving Partnership with MacPhail Music School enabling teachers, students, and community members to have access to professional instruction and professional development Grand Itasca hospital doing a visit in two weeks to investigate how to leverage Telepresence for tele-health and training Expanded Community Education classes, especial those with low enrollment Continued deployment of student devices, supported by Active Directory

16

3/12/13

IASC Road map

Future Work
Connection between American Indian students in the Twin Cities area and American Indian students on the Leech Lake Indian Reservation Expansion of IASC Summer Technology Institute to the entire community, with tracks for business, parents, community members and other districts in Northern Minnesota Regional Professional Learning Communities connecting isolated teachers and sharing best practices across all districts Connecting with Community College to offer college remediation courses to high school students Continued development of common assessments given across districts to examine data and identify best practices

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Changing the Experience

Regional
District
School
Teacher
Student

17

3/12/13

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

The Future New Business Model
IT as a Service
Develop a stronger and broader based partner network
New partners, new members, new customers
Increased access for students, parents, community
Sustainability
Exploit mission alignment
Look for compelling events
Take risks

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Lessons learned

Leadership Matters
Identify, respond to, and take advantage of
compelling events: Never waste a good crisis Need to make sure the right people are involved in the right decisions Commitment to the process, decision Be crystal clear about what problem you need to solve Be crystal clear about your Why and how you will define success

18

3/12/13

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Lessons learned

Relationships Matter
Internal Collaboration is hard

Collaborative Continuum
Cooperation
Lower intensity Shorter-term, informal relationships Shared information only Separate goals, resources, and structure Longer-term effort around a project or task

Coordination

Collaboration
Higher intensity More durable and pervasive relationship

Some planning and New structure with division of roles commitment to common goals Some shared resources, rewards, All partners and risks contribute resources and share rewards and leadership

From Collaboration Handbook by Michael Winer and Karen Ray

19

3/12/13

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Lessons learned

Relationships Matter
Internal Collaboration is hard Need to understand each others needs and
how each other communicates Casual participation doesnt lead to maximized results External Cast wide nets Move from vendor/vendee to partnership

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Lessons learned

Communication Matters
Boards Stakeholders People need to see and understand a clear
vision, communicated from many directions Students: Get input Prepare them for different expectations

20

3/12/13

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Lessons learned

Change Management Matters

Culture

Process

Technology

Transforming Pedagogy
Transformation Redenition Modication Augmentation Substitution Enhancement
Dr. Ruben R. Puentedura

Tech allows for the creation of new tasks, previously inconceivable Technology allows for signicant task redesign Technology acts as a direct substitute, with functional improvement Technology acts as a direct substitute, with no functional improvement

21

3/12/13

Itasca Area Schools Collaborative

Lessons learned

Support Matters
Create and incorporate systems that support
success Staff development is crucial initial and ongoing Digital content systems are important Staff must be persistent and resilient Technology will not make someone a great teacher Not all staff can be vanguards: beliefs->behavior or behavior->beliefs

The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise -- with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country. Abraham Lincoln, December 1, 1862 Message to Congress

22

3/12/13

Working to be the trusted provider of education, promoting economic opportunity and lifelong learning for the Itasca area

Matt Grose
mgrose@isd317.org

23