NEWS

Districts expanding technology, but training is key to success

Lori Higgins

When Lorri Lewis' English students leave her class and head home from University High School and Preparatory Academy in Southfield this school year, they won't be lugging along a hefty textbook. That's because for the first time in Southfield Public Schools, students in core classes will access their books and class materials online.

The 2014-15 school year that officially opens today in Michigan will mark a big expansion of technology in many metro Detroit school districts, with thousands of students in some districts getting access to laptops, iPads, tablets or Chromebooks. Some of the work — particularly behind-the-scenes work to expand network capacity and ensure wireless access districtwide — is tied to state exams that will be given online for the first time this school year.

But mostly it's about preparing students for the future.

"Our kids are competing globally and the competition is really focused on using technology in a meaningful way," said Ecorse Superintendent Thomas Parker.

Ecorse is going to a one-to-one technology program, meaning that at some point early in the school yearevery child will have access to a digital device such as an iPad or a laptop. The district will pay for them in part by using grant money and district funds.

Southfield Public Schools invested $3.5 million to replace physical textbooks with e-textbooks for middle and high school students. They'll access English, math, social studies and science classes materials online using their own digital devices. Traditional textbooks will be available for students who don't have a digital device.The district also outfitted each classroom with an Apple TV or interactive whiteboard and a projector, and each teacher received or will receive an iPad, said George Chapp,director of secondary education and virtual learning.

Successful bond proposals are key to technology initiatives in a number of districts, including Plymouth-Canton and Troy.

The Troy School District is rolling out the first phase of its One2World program that eventually will ensure one-to-one digital access for every student. Sixth-graders were given iPads during the summer. Third-graders will get them at the end of September, said Kris Young, director of technology.

Plymouth-Canton Community Schools is rolling out similar one-to-one efforts. This school year, students in kindergarten and first, sixth and ninth grades will be assigned a digital device — a tablet for elementary students, a Chromebook for older students. That will be about 6,000 devices, said Elson Liu, director of integrated technology systems. The middle and high school students will be able to take their devices home; elementary school students will keep theirs at school.

And that's just part of the technology rollout in Plymouth-Canton. The first phase of a three-year project to create what Liu described as 21st-Century classrooms will mean interactive projectors, document cameras and voice amplification systems in every classroom in the district's three high schools and its alternative school this year.

Superintendent Michael Meissen said its the biggest rollout of technology in the district's history.

"This large infusion of technology into our classrooms will be a great advantage for our classroom teachers," Meissen said.

Powerful tools

Punya Mishra, professor of educational technology and educational psychology at Michigan State University directs a masters program in education technology and researches how teachers can integrate technology effectively. He says without a doubt schools need to integrate technology, but he is cautious.

"Every field of human activity has changed because of this technology," he said. And, he said that some of the tools, if used thoughtfully, "allow for ways of thinking and engaging with knowledge that is really powerful."

But he said there's too much focus on giving these devices to kids and providing basic training, not enough on giving teachers the kind of training they need to integrate the devices into their specific subject matter.

"How you would use it in a fifth-grade math classroom is different than how you would use it in an AP biology classroom," Mishra said. "You have to start customizing your professionaldevelopment to the context with which these teachers are working."

Learning to use technology is a gradual process. Ideally, Mishra said, teachers should get to the point where they're so fluent in the technology they're "creating new ways of using these tools for teaching."

But getting to that phase is difficult because so often "these things are thrown at them and they're struggling just to maintain."

Teachers must learn first

Teacher training has been an important part of the rollout in many local districts.

In Plymouth-Canton, teachers will have at least a year to become familiar with the devices before they have to start using them with children, Liu said.

Likewise, teachers in the Troy district will receive ongoing training in technology, Young said.

During a session a week ago, teachers were given tips for how to use technology in specific subjects, said spokeswoman Kerry Birmingham.

"The point for us was not to just hand a student an iPad," Birmingham said. "The point was to make sure our teachers had the resources and training to be able to guide those students and teach those students."

In Southfield, it's been important to train teachers and help parents and the community understand how to use technology to help students, Chapp said.

He said the district recognizes that not all students have access to the Internet or a digital device. That's why they've worked with Comcast to offer reduced rates for families of students who are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. They've worked with the library to ensure students can take advantage of services there, too.

Lewis, the Southfield teacher, likes the district's new emphasis on technology. Her son is a student at the school where she teaches.

"It's really going to become like virtual learning, where learning isn't just contained in the classroom. Students will be able to access it at all hours."

Four ways school districts are incorporating technology

— In Southfield Public Schools, physical textbooks are being replaced with e-textbooks for middle and high school students in some core classes.

— In Troy, sixth-graders got iPads. Third-graders will get them this month. The goal is to distribute them to all students.

— In Plymouth-Canton Community Schools, students in kindergarten and first, sixth and ninth grades will be assigned a digital device this year — a tablet for elementary students, a Chromebook for older students.

— In Ecorse, every child will have access to a device such as an iPad or a laptop this school year.

Three tips for teachers

Are you a teacher who's just been handed a nice, shiny iPad or other digital device? Here are some tips from Michigan State University professor Punya Mishra — an expert on educational technology — on how to take advantage of the new technology.

— Keep your eye on the goals. Mishra said teachers should keep asking themselves what they want students to learn. Build teaching strategies with the technology that will help reach those goals.

— Take baby steps. "Don't think you're going to transform your teaching because this device has arrived," Mishra said. He recommends making a small change for the first semester, then building on that change for the next semester, and so on.

— Find like-minded people. Seek out colleagues at your school for help. Also, use resources on the Internet. Take advantage of webinars. Look for teachers online. If you're a science teacher, for instance, find out what Twitter hashtags are used by other science teachers and follow the conversation.