GIANNA GURGAFUTURE OF EDUCATION- EDU 505.91

Future Vision of Jonathan E. Reed School

Waterbury, CT

Jonathan E. Reed School

•Opened in 2012 as the third out of four “Elemiddle” schools in the city

•Racially diverse, currently serving approximately 350 students grades PK-7; 8th grade will be added 2014-2015 school year

•Focuses on Math, Science, Reading and Language Arts, and Social Studies in addition to six specials

• 4 co-ed intramural sports

•Successful Positive Behavior Intervention and Support System (PBIS) Program; has decreased incidents of referrals

Technology

Many educators are not taking advantage of the technologies afforded to them (NMC Horizon Report, 2013)

Inconsistent use of gameplay in classrooms

Recommendations

Incorporate iPads and other mobile devices in the

classroom

Educational Trends (Mobile Technologies)

•Positive Implications for Utilization at Reed School

•Captures the attention of students, making learning more meaningful •Blogging and Videoconferencing

•“enable students to raise cultural awareness, know about their own cultural identities and understand and explain the cultural differences and similarities” (Erişti, 2012, p. 81).

In the past 5 years mobile device ownership has made a significant increase in the lives of

children ages 8-18 (Herro, Kiger, and

Owens, 2013, p. 30)

Economic Trends and Public Policy

“Each year, the Legislature and governor decide how much funding will go to public education and how those funds will be allocated” (Edsource, 2006, para. 1).

Recommendation(s) Funding needs to be available and consistent

throughout the state/district Minority students are receiving proper funds, however,

the decision as to how the funding is allocated depends on the geography of the situation

Futuring and Scenarios

•What is “futuring”?•Reed needs to take the Positive, Visionary, Evolutionary Futurist position

•Allows students to become life-long learners and maximizes their development of human potential

•What is the purpose of scenarios?

•Work in unison with futuring•Important for Reed (elemiddle) to think of needs of all students

Environmental Scanning

“Helps an organization learn about the potential influences from external environments and how it can respond strategically” (Albright, 2004, p. 40).

Recommendation(s) Incorporate local learner and stakeholder input

Benefit/challenge If the stakeholder is not actively involved in their

child’s school life, data collection is useless.

Vision for 2017

Incorporate mobile technologies into the classroom in all subjects GOAL: to increase student

achievement levels at all grades

Videoconferencing as a key tool Establish communication with

students throughout the country and world, providing students with various skills that make them more marketable in the future

Opportunities and Challenges

Opportunities Increase in student

achievement Increase in diversity and

positive communication through videoconferencing Supports Common Core

Standards Teaches digital citizenship Can save district money

E-Books

Challenges District approval High cost for technology No time to teach how to use

the technology in the classroom

Access appropriate materials Emphasizing digital

citizenship

Call to Action

Students at Reed School are NOT technologically literate

Recommendations Teachers need to be given the proper training

Administration and IT need to work together Establish a concise system to access materials

Establish leadership or technology committee to oversee how technology is being used and to teach/assist teachers

Support between all parties involved: district, administrators at Reed, and faculty and staff

References

Albright, K. (2004). Environmental scanning: radar for success. The Information Management Journal. 38(3), 38- 45.

Brainshare. (2012, 28 May). [Photograph of pros vs cons]. Retrieved from http://blog.brainhost.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-shared-hosting/

Chee, Y. & Tan, K. (2012). Becoming chemists through game-based inquiry learning: the case of legends of alkhimia. Electronic Journal of e-Learning. 10(2), 185-198.

Coppedge, A. (n.d.) [Photograph of mobile technologies]. Retrieved from http://anthonycoppedge.com/problog/2011/03/why-mobile-technologies-will-force-churches-to-change/

Duhaney, D. (2000). Technology and the educational process: transforming classroom activities. International Journal of Instructional Media. 27(1), 68-72.

EdSource (2006). The school district budget process. Retrieved from http://www.edsource.org/pub_QA_BudgetProcess06.html

Erişti, S. (2012). A multi-cultural interaction through video conferencing in primary schools. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education (TOJDE), 13(3), 70-86.

Evergreen Valley Church. (n.d.) [Photograph of vision]. Retrieved from http://evcsj.com/cpt_news/the-value-of-clear-vision

Groff, L. & Smoker, P. (n.d.).  Range of futurist views and perspectives. Retrieved from  http://www.csudh.edu/global_options/IntroFSTopics.HTML 

References (cont.)

Herro, D., Kiger, D., & Owens, C. (2013). Mobile technology: case-based suggestions for classroom integration and teacher educators. Journal of Digital Learning In Teacher Education, 30(1), 30-40.

Hough, D. (2009). 5 findings from the first & only national data base on elemiddle & middle schools (executive summary). Middle Grades Research Journal. 4(3), 81-96.

  Johnson, L., Adams Becker, S., Cummins, M., Estrada, V., Freeman, A., and Ludgate, H. (2013). NMC Horizon

Report: 2013 Higher Education Edition. Austin, TX: The New Media Consortium.

Lundt, J. (2012). A curriculum for foresight. The Futurist, 46(6), 6-8.

Mietzner, D. & Reger, G. (2005). Advantages and disadvantages of scenario approaches for strategic foresight.  International Journal of Technology Intelligence and Planning.  1(2), 220-

239.

Office of the Mayor. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.waterburyct.org/content/9569/10414/

Sobrero, P. (2004). The steps for the future. Journal of Extension. 42(3). Retrieved from http://www.joe.org/joe/2004june/comm2.php

  Strategic Foresighting Associates. (2009). What is it all about. Retrieved from

http://www.strategicforesighting.com/index_files/Page490.html Waterbury Public Schools. (2013, July). The vision- present and future. Retrieved from

http://www.waterbury.k12.ct.us/subsite/dist/page/vision-mission-539 Wong, K., & Langevin, W. (2007). Policy expansion of school choice in the american states. Peabody Journal

of Education, 82(2-3), 440-472.