EDT 634: Blog Post 1 - Response to the Podcast

The podcast was insightful in some aspects and also brought on moments where I thought to myself “I can relate to that”.  One of the things that I really enjoyed were some of the ideas the participants had about achieving buy-in.  I like the concept of creating a promotional video that includes some key stakeholders such as the one they mentioned with the school board president, superintendent and teacher who was also a key union representative.  I also like that they mentioned that some new projects or initiatives will take time and some can be accepted and implemented quite quickly.  The last piece that really struck a chord with me in terms of implementation and getting buy-in from stakeholders was the use of the term initiative.  When they mentioned that ‘initiatives’ are such a buzz word and a phase that comes and goes throughout education, it was as if I had an epiphany.  Here I was calling our 1:1 iPad adventures an initiative, when really, we’re working to help prepare students for their future by gaining and using technological skills appropriately.  It’s not a phase that will go away, but rather will grow.  I had never considered the term ‘initiative’ to have a negative connotation to it, but given the ‘latest, gotta try it’ phases/books/buzz concepts that so many veteran teachers have been through, I could certainly see how it could be interpreted as such.  

While listening to the team in the podcast, I noticed that they seemed to have a good grasp on who the stakeholders were in their building.  They pointed out the usual ‘suspects’ such as lead teachers and principals and spoke about how starting with one or two teachers can sometimes have a snowball effect.  However, there were three significant stakeholders that they pointed out that had not really occurred to me before: school board president (or the school board in general), parents, and union members.  When you think about it, these make perfect sense.  We need parents to buy in to whatever change the school is trying to make.  Sometimes the more proactive and open we are, as schools, the more parents see the benefit of these changes.  But it’s also critical to have the school board on ‘board’ too.  Our district currently works to have a teacher and students from different grade levels attend every board meeting to showcase how we are integrating technology into the classroom.  After all, our board members are directly connected with our community and so it’s imperative to keep them aware and informed about what and how we are utilizing technology in the classroom. 

The one that struck me as odd at first, but then started to make more sense as they discussed more about it in the podcast was the involvement of some key union members.  As mentioned in the podcast, teachers are being asked to do more with less, in terms of classroom funds, teacher salaries, and planning hours.  When there is a plan to add something more to teacher’s already full plates, I can see the value of having union representatives weigh in on the topic.  A few years ago when I was serving as the tech coach, some teachers were asked to share how they were integrating technology into their classrooms during professional development times and sometimes at ‘sharing sessions’ not required by contract.  This brought up some contradictory opinions on whether or not teachers should feel pressured to share at these situations.  

This district really seemed to have a grasp on how to motivate teachers by providing incentives or stipends for completing programs/trainings or even conducting the trainings themselves.  I think another key advantage was that they worked to utilize their local teachers to provide the training rather than bringing someone in from the outside.  There is a level of trust and familiarity that comes from using in-district teachers rather than out-of-district presenters.  Plus the ability to follow up or continue learning with the presenters is certainly an option when they teach in the same district.  

One point mentioned in the podcast that really stood out to me was the need to separate your tech integration specialist from your tech support staff.  This one hit home.  Most likely because I served as one of 6 ‘tech mentors’ in my district last year.  Much like they described in the interview, this person often is the first one people to turn to for tech support (my iPad won’t mirror or my internet’s not working).  While I agree with the statements in the podcast about ‘just in time’ tech support, when you are serving as a full-time teacher with tech mentor status on top of that, it’s difficult to provide and not entirely what our districts had envisioned in the first place.  
        While listening to the podcast, I really enjoyed hearing from individuals who worked cohesively as a team to create a positive environment for change and progress in terms of technology in their district.