Presented by Gregory Schwab, Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education and Facilities and Operations, Edmonds School District (WA); Chris Bailey, Director of Technology, Edmonds School District (WA); and Johnathan Skaris, Instructional Technology Coordinator, Darlington County School District (SC)
Moderated by Amanda Cadran, Ph.D., Program Director, Rapid Cycle Evaluation, LearnPlatform by Instructure
When students with disabilities come to your school, the technology that can help them succeed should be immediately available. Therefore, strategies for identifying and selecting accessible and inclusive tech should be top of mind.
With all the learning benefits of EdTech, it’s surprising that almost 60% of students are less engaged in the classroom than they were with less technology. It seems technology has become too much of a good thing, reducing student energy and concentration during the school day.
Presented by Madeleine Mortimore, Global Education Innovation Lead, Logitech; Alice Keeler, EdTech Expert; and Bedston Burrell, Technical Operations Analyst – Audio Visual Services, Edina Public Schools (MN)
Presented by Janna Greathouse, District Assistive Technology Coordinator, Jenks Public Schools (OK); Samantha Reid, M.Ed., Educational Technology Coordinator, Jenks Public Schools (OK); and Christine Fox, CITES Project Director, CAST
A recent edLeader Panel, “Utah Spotlight: A ‘State’ of Alignment,” featured a panel of experts that included Rick Gaisford, Education Specialist, Education Technology and the SETDA Chair Elect, Utah State Board of Education; Melanie Durfee, Ph.D., Education Specialist, Digital Teaching & Learning, Utah State Board of Education; Nancy Mangum, Director of Learning Partnerships, Leading EDge Learning; Theresa Gibson, Director of Operations, Leading EDge Learning; and Darren Hudgins, Founder and CEO, Think Do Thrive.
Keep these tips top of mind during your edtech search: Just because tools are pretty doesn’t mean they correlate to academic achievement. Student engagement with a product does not equal learning. Research should inform any edtech selection.
Presented by Maya Gat, Former Educator, Current Co-Founder and CEO, Branching Minds; Vic Vuchic, Chief Strategy Officer, Digital Promise; Dr. Ann White, Associate Superintendent for Student Services, Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District (NC); and Dr. Eva Dundas, Chief Product Officer, Branching Minds
As highlighted in the EmpowerED Superintendent Toolkit, there are three essential focus points of smart IT decision making: total cost of ownership (TCO), student outcomes and budgeting management, and the value of the investment. In “Leadership Strategies for Scaling, Sustaining, and Budgeting for Education Technology Innovations,” three education leaders discuss critical strategic technology planning and investments implemented in their districts to scale and sustain long-term innovation effectively.
As school districts continue to amass large amounts of data about students, teachers, and educational resources each year, using the data in ways that lead to effective decisions and inform stakeholders has become increasingly important.