IMMOOC Blog Prompt (EDCI Week 9)

“How do you create or build on these (ITSE) conditions to support innovation? What has been the impact on those you serve? Blog your “what if’s” for education? What impact would those have?

I think that in order to create or build upon the ISTE essential conditions, you really must begin with the first condition - building a shared vision. I think in most cases, a school or organizations leadership is responsible for undertaking this condition, and incorporating as many stakeholder voices as possible. Secondly, a school or organization must have the resources to support the adherence to and achievement of this shared vision by the stakeholders within and outside the organization. Consistent and adequate funding is a big "what if," as many schools or businesses would be able to provide increased technical support for students and staff, as well as for hiring and continually training and developing skilled personnel within the organization. 

What if schools were fully and consistently funded?

Often times organizations are better able to recruit skilled talent when they offer competitive compensation and/or economic incentives for development. Having consistent and adequate funding also supports an organizations ability to provide equitable access to connectivity and technology. What I'm really trying to say here is that the better funded (and consistently funded) schools and organization will be more likely to carry out a shared vision for technology. Lesson: Pass your town school budgets!

Drafting a Vision Statement

Currently I'm struggling with creating a vision/mission statement for a school that I would like my children/grandchildren to attend. I understand the various elements I would like the school to achieve, but I'm struggling to articulate the how I'm going to achieve them. I've created a draft vision statement, as well as a mind map ( Vision Artifact The Innovative and Empowered Global Learner.pdf ) of a school vision and the various elements of it. The (very) draft vision statement is:

"Our school is a place where, through a differentiated curriculum and learning environment, students become innovative and empowered leaders, capable of acknowledging and improving upon their strengths, guiding their own learning, and able to collaborate and engage with others at the local, global, and digital level, in a multicultural world."

Again, what I feel I have here is essentially a string of key-words that have been finessed into a sentence. I'm missing the how, and I feel my "why" is implied, not deliberately stated.

ISTE Essential Conditions and Technology Integration

The ISTE or International Society for Technology in Education, lists fourteen critical elements necessary to "effectively leverage technology for learning" in today's schools. These fourteen elements offer educators, administrators, and school planners a framework for creating technology integration and innovation plans for their respective school or school district. While all schools will very in their successes or challenges with each of these elements, there are certain steps within the framework that are attainable through actionable steps taken by the administration. For example, it's not necessarily an educator or school administrators fault that they can not maintain consistent and adequate funding for technology integration, maintenance, and continual improvement. It's also not an educator or administrators sole responsibility to make sure all students have equitable access. Some schools might not have the resources available to even provide high quality, technological instruction to their students, though they should continually strive for it. Even if teachers and administrators can maintain equitable access within the school boundary, they unfortunately may not be able to affect connectivity or access when the student is outside of school. 

What educators, and especially administrators can do to meet at least some of the ISTE essential elements, pertain to professional alignment, planning, and consistent equitable implementation whenever possible. First, the entire school community including students (and wherever possible, parents and guardians) should be involved in creating a shared vision for technology and learning within the school. Students have a rich background of experience with technology having had access to various tech and software for the entirety of their lives. Their input is valuable, and we should listen. In the process of creating a shared vision among members of the school community, a culture will begin to take shape around the ways school stakeholders view technology and it's role in education. While this culture is being created, the school administration should set and uphold norms or technological innovation and empowerment among educators, students, and the administration. With a culture of empowerment in place, empowered leaders within the organization will continue to champion the schools new shared vision. Ideally, this technology infused vision should trickle down into a student centered, curricular framework. Support policies, in particular accountability to the technology culture, should be aligned with this new vision. What financial resource or incentive is available, should be utilized by the administration to support this vision.

#IMMOOC4 Season Four Innovator Mindset

EDCI 325: Innovators Mindset and IMMOOC4
Brittany Stevens
3/2/18

Prompt: What do you see as the purpose of education? Why might innovation be crucial in education?

I think that ultimately the purpose of education should be to empower people think critically about the world around them, and in turn empower them to take action on their thoughts and ideas when necessary. I think the purpose of education should be to ignite within people a spark of curiosity, and provide some basic skills and forays into collaboration for people to be able to act on or leverage that curiosity. A meaningful education should be actionable and experiential, and whenever possible, guided by the interests of students with purposeful facilitation by an instructor.  I think innovation is crucial in education because of the changing Geo-political, social and economic landscape of our increasingly globalized world. As we continue further into the digital/information age, schooling will need to keep pace with the change and innovation taking place outside it's walls. Innovation is crucial in education because without it, we are leaving our kids in the past.