Kelley/ Maxwell

Technology Plan Evaluation FRIT 8132

Technology Planning Analysis Rubric

Created by Dr. Paul Allen at the University of Texas

Components 3 2 1 Score ExecutiveSummary

Identifies clearly and concisely for the readerthe vision, mission, goals and objectives,background, findings, issues, conclusions, andrecommendations of the tech. plan. Submittedon time.

Provides adequate andaccurate information inExecutive Summary.Submitted on time.

Executive summary isabsent or incomplete.(Missing 2 or morecomponents ofinformation.); orsubmitted late.

3

IdentifiesContributors andStakeholder Groups

Membership list has complete description ofconstituencies/stakeholder groups. All areasare equitably represented. Submitted on time.

Membership list is providedand describes constituenciesrepresented. Submitted ontime.

Membership is not listedor is inadequate todetermine representationof stakeholder groups; oris submitted late.

2

Vision Statement Vision is comprehensive and deals with learningoutcomes, not just technology outcomes.Clearly and concisely states your team's visionfor using technology to improve learning;identifies who will be the users of technologyand how it will be used to enhance learning;indicates the benefits that you envision willresult from the use of technology by students,teachers, administrators or others. Submittedon time.

Vision statement providesadequate description of howtechnology will improvelearning but instructionaloutcomes not fullyaddressed. Submitted ontime.

Vision statement is notincluded or does notaddress learningoutcomes; is difficult tounderstand or issubmitted late.

3

Mission Statement Mission statement is focused on instructionaloutcomes and indicates clearly what the schoolor district will do to make its technology visiona reality; why the school or district wants to dothis; and for whom the school or district isdoing this. Submitted on time.

Mission statement addresseslearning outcomes butprovides limited informationabout what, why, and forwhom the school or districtis doing the plan. Submittedon time.

Mission statement ismissing or does notaddress instructionaloutcomes. Providesincomplete and/or isdifficult to understand; oris submitted late.

2

Goals Goals are broad, comprehensive and realistic inaddressing teaching and learning needs. Goals

Goals are mostly equipmentbased and loosely linked toimprovement plans.

Goals are absent or seemto be only equipmentbased; are not

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clearly answer the questions: Who? What? Bywhen? By how much? According to whichinstrument? Submitted on time.

Submitted on time. measurable; areincomplete, difficult tounderstand; or aresubmitted late.

Objectives Objectives are measurable and delineated fromgoals; they clearly define steps to be taken toachieve goals; are clear and realistic.Submitted on time.

Provides most of theobjectives. Some objectivesmay not be readilyattainable or measurable.Submitted on time.

Objectives are absent orincomplete; are difficultto understand,unrealistic; appearunmeasurable, or aresubmitted late.

3

Needs Assessment Assessment is comprehensive and containsdetailed information from hardware resources,technology needs assessment and MaturityModel Benchmark surveys; identifies use bystudents and staff, and training received anddesired. Submitted on time.

Technology has beenassessed and analyzed, butmay not include summariesof information from allelements in the technologysurveys. Submitted on time.

Needs Assessment isabsent, incomplete or issubmitted late.

1

General Issues Clearly addresses issues of: staff development,technical support, technology standards;student access to computers; integrating newwith old technologies; capacity of presentfacilities to accommodate new technologies;how technology resources and budget will bedistributed among schools for equitable access;how needs of students with disabilities orlimited English proficiency will be addressed;student access to computers; integrating newwith old technologies; capacity of presentfacilities to accept new technologies, etc.Submitted on time.

Adequately addresses most,but not all, of the mostsignificant issues specified inExcellent column. Submittedon time.

General issues missing orvery incomplete; difficultto understand; orsubmitted late.

2

Conclusions andRecommendations

Clearly identifies the most important needs andchallenges confronting the school or districtand recommends the projects and steps to betaken to achieve the vision. Conclusions arestrong and relevant. Submitted on time.

Conclusions andrecommendations areadequately justifiedalthough the basis of someconclusions not entirelyclear. Submitted on time.

Conclusions andrecommendations aremissing or are notadequately justifiedbased on the informationgathered in planningprocess; or submittedlate.

3

Acceptable Use Policy

Describes policies that are needed to ensure

Provides an adequate

Policy issues are absent, 2

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proper use of the technology resources (e.g.,guidelines, software and facilities use policies,parental consent for Internet use, etc.)Includes well-written draft of Acceptable UsePolicy. Submitted on time.

description of the mostrelevant policy issues.Includes an adequate draftof Acceptable Use Policy.Submitted on time.

incomplete, or difficult tounderstand; lack ofAcceptable Use Policydraft; or submitted late.

Technology andLearning Statement

Provides clear and strong description of howtechnology is currently used in learningenvironment and ways it will be used toachieve instructional outcomes; describes howtechnology will enhance curriculum andteaching and learning strategies; is tightlycoupled to other reform efforts; indicates whatstudents will do environment; submitted ontime.

Provides overview of thecurrent and future use oftechnology in enhancing theteaching-learning processfor students. Little detail onhow technology will beintegrated into learning andcurriculum. Submitted ontime.

Technology and Learningstatement absent orprovides incompleteinformation on thecurrent use or future roleof technology in theschool or district andhow it will enhancelearning; or submittedlate.

2

TechnologyStandards,Requirements, andModels forTechnology andLearning

Provides clear and comprehensive descriptionof the capabilities of hardware and learningenvironments. It identifies minimum standardsand requirements for computer hardware,software, and connectivity; describes the typesof learning environments that currently existand those to be created by the plan. Submittedon time.

Provides general descriptionof hardware, software andconnectivity standards andrequirements. Althoughclear, may miss someinformation elements.Submitted on time.

Technology standards,requirements and modelsare missing, incomplete,vague, or submitted late.

3

Staff Development Clearly describes current and neededtechnology competencies; Describes how planwill take teachers and other staff from presentlevel of technology competency and knowledgeto the level of skill required in the plan;describes staff development strategies andrecommendations for incentives andprofessional development resources. Submittedon time.

Provides a general overview(not detailed) of current &needed technologycompetencies. Describes afew strategies andrecommendations forincentives and resources.Submitted on time.

Staff Development isabsent or provides onlyminimal information oncurrent and neededtechnology competenciesor how the plan will helpstaff achieve the neededcompetencies; orsubmitted late.

3

Technical Support Provides clear and comprehensiverequirements and plans for services availableand needed to support technology use(network, computer and software support).Submitted on time.

Provides adequate but notcomprehensive descriptionof technical supportrequirements and services.Submitted on time.

Technology support isabsent or provides vagueor little information ontechnical supportrequirements for plan; or

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is submitted late.Projects, Budgets,and Timelines

Provides a prioritized list of major tech planprojects, tasks and timelines. Provides budgetsummary estimate of capital expenses(hardware, software, facilities, infrastructure,staff development, tech support, etc.)Identifies possible alternative fundingresources. Projects, timelines, and budgets arerealistic and consistent with plan goals andobjectives. Submitted on time.

Provides most, but not all, ofthe project, timelines, andbudget estimateinformation. Appears to begenerally consistent withplan goals. Submitted ontime.

Projects, budgets, ortimelines missing;provides vague or littleinformation on project,budgets, or timelines;projects appear notrelevant to plan goals;budget estimates appearincongruent with plan orunrealistic; or notsubmitted on time.

2

Clarity of Writing Writing is concise and clear; uses active voicewhen appropriate. No misspelling, grammar, orpunctuation mistakes evident.

Writing is clear butunnecessary words areused. Meaning is not clear insome instances. Few errorsin spelling/grammar.

Writing is difficult tounderstand. Evidence ofspelling, grammar andpunctuation errors

3

Total 40/48

Introduction

The Clayton County Public Schools Three Year Technology Plan that we evaluated was initially

published on May 15, 2009 and is intended to be followed from July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2012. The plan

was developed through the Clayton County PS Technology Center which is comprised of the two

divisions of the Technology Department, Instructional Technology and Information Services. It lists the

Georgia Department of Education’s Technology Plan vision as one of its guiding principles which is

reflected in the structure of the Vision Statement.

The plan’s goals and objectives seem to be a driving force for the Technology Department and

are strongly reflected in its current budgeting and emphasis of professional development. Beyond the

Technology Department, the plan seems to have a more limited reach with few people being aware of

the plan and its goals and objectives. The technology contact and administrators at a middle school in

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the county that were asked about the plan were completely unaware of its existence. There have been

no updates since its initial release and it is not certain if there are plans for updates or modifications

until the plan’s endpoint of June 20, 2012 is reached.

Rubric Explanation

In addressing the executive summary, the vision is clearly stated in section I at the beginning of

the document. Inside the vision is the mission of CCPS in relation to its technology use. The Goals and

objectives are quite extensive with 7 goals each with many objectives. There is not a section specifically

for conclusions and recommendations; they are addressed as a part of the other sections and in the

Strategic Action Plan. Though there is not a section that lists all stakeholders specifically, most

stakeholders and their roles are included in the vision statement. The vision statement is comprehensive

and covers technological as well as instructional factors, identifies the users of the technology and

indentifies the benefits of use as keeping the students globally competitive. The TP does not include a

separate mission statement and instead has mixed the mission statement with the vision statement. The

mission statement is very broad with its statement about why the plan is in place.

The goals are categorized into instructional, administrative and parent and community focus and

each have several very specific objectives. Though the goals do not contain all of the criteria for 3 points

the objectives are broken down by the indicators listed. The objectives section is hard to complete

because the goals in the Technology Plan for CCPS are broken down into strategies and benchmarks and

not necessarily pure objectives. Within the strategies and benchmarks, the information is measurable

and clearly delineated from the goals. The steps for completion are listed in the benchmarks and the

overall objectives are clear and realistic. Also a part of the Objectives are the evaluation method to be

used to assess progress, the source or sources of funding and the person that will be responsible for the

implementation of the strategies.

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The Needs Assessment was not a separate section of the Technology Plan but most of the

information that would fall into this category was addressed in the Gap Analysis for Instruction,

Administrative and Parent and community. I did not observe any information about a technology

assessment or extensive survey that was administered. In the redevelopment of this plan it will be

necessary to more clearly define what needs are being addressed through the updated technology plan.

In dealing with general issues, the Technology Plan does an excellent job of discussing staff

development and technology standards in a thorough manner. The plan certainly addresses the issue of

student access and has a plan that ensures student access to computers and new technology for years

to come. The plan does address the integration of new technology with old technology, as the school

system makes plans for purchasing new technology on an annual basis. The breakdown of the plan

includes the funding source and amount. The plan is missing how they will handle students with limited

English proficiency.

The Technology Plan does an excellent job within the conclusions and recommendations

section. I found it interesting that this is done toward the beginning of the plan. The plan identifies

needs and challenges and thoroughly outlines the steps taken to achieve the vision.

The acceptable Use Policy contains general guidelines for proper use and outlines what is

expected for use of county software. It also includes statements about the confidentiality of student

data and the proper uses of electronic mail. The policy does not include any information on facilities use.

Within the technology and learning statement section, the plan incorporates a good background

on how technology is currently used and how it will assist n achieving instructional outcomes. A

thorough basis is provided on how technology will enhance the current curriculum, along with teaching

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and learning strategies. The plan does not talk about other reform efforts or what students will do

within the environment.

As it pertains to Technology Standards, Requirements, and Models for Technology and Learning,

the plan includes a comprehensive section devoted to the capabilities of hardware and learning

environments. It includes a thorough review of minimum standards and requirements of current and

proposed hardware, software, and connectivity. Also included are current and proposed learning

environments.

Written into the technology plan is an in-depth portion devoted to staff development, including

technical support development. It incorporates several objectives regarding increasing skill level of

teachers and staff within technology competence and knowledge. The plan provides excellent strategies

and recommendations for professional development resources.

Technical support is addressed in two objectives, which includes clear and comprehensive

requirements and plans for services available and needed to support technology usage within the

system, including network, computer, and software support.

The plan thoroughly provides information regarding timelines, budget resources and estimate

information. However, there is no prioritized list outlined. It does an excellent job of providing current

and projected cost analysis, along with district spending and alternative source spending.

The plan is excellently written with active voice tense when appropriate. There are no misspelling,

grammar, or punctuation mistakes that were observed.

Summary

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In summary, the Clayton County Public School’s Technology Plan is a good document; however,

there are some key elements that are missing within the plan. There are no priorities within the plan, so

one cannot determine what is most important within the technology plan. Also, how the school system

will address students with limited English proficiency is not specifically addressed. In addition to the

actual document’s deficiencies, the awareness of the existence of the document is limited to those

directly involved with the Technology department which effectively limits the impact.

The good structure and thoroughness of the document makes the reader overlook these deficits

and instead focus on the actual content. The plan is not something stagnant and will require updating at

the conclusion of the 2012 year. This shows that Clayton County intends on revising the plan to keep

current on emerging technologies and learning styles. The plan starts with having a clear vision and

outlines the steps necessary to fulfill the vision and thoroughly details the budget and additional funding

sources to fulfill that vision. It includes ambitious, yet attainable objectives that geared to increasing

student and staff knowledge utilizing technology. The plan has an intensive section dedicated to staff

and administrator development. It is very impressive that within staff development there is training of

technical support staff. Not only does the plan address students, staff, and administrators, but the plan

also addresses parents and their use of technology to assist student learning and to help parents stay

abreast of information relating to students. Overall, it is felt that this plan will be an overall positive

factor in the development of the technology acquisition and implementation throughout Clayton County

and gives a clear direction for growth for the Technology Department.

There are some key elements that are missing within the plan. There are no priorities within the

plan, so one cannot determine what is most important within the technology plan. Also, how the school

system will address students with limited English proficiency is not specifically addressed.