School Technology Services

Alberta Education Consultation and Information SessionsSpring 2012

Tell us who you are

A. Superintendent

B. Trustee

C. Secretary-Treasurer

D. IT Leader

E. Other Senior Leader

Tell us your story

A. Very involved in all decisions

B. Involved in many but not all decisions

C. Sometimes consulted or included in technology decisions

D. Advised or informed, but not involved in technology decisions

E. I am not involved in any strategic technology decisions

How involved are you in making strategic technology decisions in your jurisdiction?

Tell us your story

A. Very comfortable making technology decisions

B. I consult with others before making technology decisions

C. I let others take the lead in technology decisions if possible

D. I avoid making technology decisions

E. I am not included in making technology decisions

Considering cost, risks, and benefits, how confident do you feel in your knowledge of technology to make technology decisions for your jurisdiction?

An Aha! Moment

Conversations about technology: then

Teacher Principal Superintendent Parents Treasurer IT Leader

It’s too expensive.

I didn’t have technology

when I was in school. Why do we need it

now?

Technology is a nice-to-

have.

How does technology contribute to improved PAT and Diploma Exam

Results?

There are more important ways to

spend limited funding.

I’m not comfortable using

technology.

How are we going to

support it all?

Tell us your story

A. We cannot enable change without it

B. Enabling change without it would be very difficult

C. Enabling change without it is possible, but would take longer

D. Except for very specific things, it is not necessary

E. It is not at all necessary to enable change

How important do you think technology is or will be to enabling change in your jurisdiction?

Conversations about technology: now

Teacher Principal Superintendent Parents Treasurer IT Leader

How do we pay for all of

this?Is my child learning the right skills?

Technology is necessary – so

why are we fundraising for

it?

How can we be sure that our technology

investments will help us achieve our educational

goals?

My staff want to innovate but we don’t

have enough technical support.

Our network is “locked down”

How are we going to support

it all?

Conversations about funding: today

Education IT

New ideas

New practice

New models

New needs

Fixed budget

Fixed resources

Existing stuff

Conversations about funding: today

January-AprilBudgeting

September

We require funding for IT

IT Leader Budget Committee

We are funding education first

We require IT services

IT LeaderPrincipal

We don’t have any capacity

Tell us your story

A. Essential part of planning for operational and capital funding allocations

B. Considered after all other program and administrative planning is identified

C. New project requests are reviewed if required

D. Discussed as a cost centre/expense

E. Not considered in strategic planning and budgeting, just a budget line item

How is technology included in strategic decisions and budget planning by the leaders in your school jurisdiction?

It’s time for a different conversation.

Education IT

How do we balance financial control and innovation so that we can get the maximum benefit from

technology?

Conversations about IT service: today

IT Leaders

IT is a strategic partner and

needs a seat at the table

IT is a service provider that

needs to meet expectations

Tell us your story

A. Regularly meet expectations

B. Usually meet expectations

C. Sometimes miss expectations

D. Often miss expectations

E. Have not set expectations for them to meet or miss

How reliable are critical IT services to meet the needs of your jurisdiction?

EducationIT

How do we work together to ensure that service level expectations are reasonable and are met as

required?

It’s time for a different conversation.

Tell us your story

A. A cost centre

B. A service provider

C. An education partner

D. Leading significant educational innovation

The IT department in my jurisdiction is…

Tell us your story

A. A cost centre

B. A service provider

C. An education partner

D. Leading significant educational innovation

The IT department in my jurisdiction should be…

EducationIT

What should the role of the IT department be in our jurisdiction and how do we get there?

It’s time for a different conversation.

Education Legal

Too risky…

What are the risks?Too risky…

IT

New ideas

New practice

New models

New needs

Leaders

Conversations about IT risk: today

Tell us your story

A. Risks are identified, analyzed, defined and categorized

B. Risks are identified, but are not very clear, defined or categorized

C. Major, high impact financial risks are considered sometimes

D. Don’t know how to identify, analyze, define or categorize technology risks

E. I am not involved in making decisions about technology risks

How well do you understand the risks associated with technology decisions?

How do we make sound decisions about risk in order to speed technology-enabled innovation?

It’s time for a different conversation.

We’re in IT together

Are we doing the right things?

Are we doing things right?

Are we managing the information

risks?

Helping leaders answer three critical technology questions.

Self-Evaluation Guide

12th Dimension for School System

Success

Educational Technology Risk

Assessment Framework

Training for IT Professionals

Workshops

Presentations

Implementation Tools

Case Studies

Cloud Computing Guide for

Superintendents

Technology Briefings

Building Capacity

Supporting Implementation

Emerging Issues Support

Supporting and engaging leaders.

What it takes.

• Communication

• Commitment

• Patience

• Time

• Commitment

The payoff.

• Greater confidence in IT-related decisions

• Improved oversight of IT

• Improved risk management

• Faster decision-making

What next?

• Talk to your colleagues about what you’ve heard here today

• Learn more at our workshop at the CASS and Alberta Education Annual Conference

• Build capacity in your jurisdiction by encouraging IT professionals to take training

• Begin the journey by contacting us to book a workshop

• Share your successes and challenges

Let’s hear from you.

We’re in IT together.Angie Tarasoff

Senior Manager, Technology Planning &

Management

Alberta Education, School Technology Sector

angie.tarasoff@gov.ab.ca

Erwin Loewen

Advisor, Emerging Technologies

Alberta Education, School Technology Sector

erwin.loewen@gov.ab.ca