The Bow School District's
Long-Range Planning Committee on Technology
April 1993
Table of Contents
| Executive Summary |
| Mission Statement |
| Introduction |
| Acknowledgments |
| Current Technology Environment |
| Methodology |
| Problems, Cause, and Effects |
| Requirements, Solutions, and Benefits |
| Still Coming....... |
| Action Plan |
| Conclusions |
| Glossary |
The Bow School District is committed to excellence in education for all students. As part of the commitment, it is essential to prepare students for the world in which they will work. In order to properly prepare students, the school district must make use of all instructional tools available for this purpose.
The Bow Technology Committee was created in the fall of 1992. The membership of the committee represents school district personnel, parents of students, and town officials.
The task assigned to this committee was to develop a five-year plan which will address the technology needs of the Bow School District.
The report that follows in these pages reflects the work accomplished. It is dedicated to defining the goals and designing the future of technology (i.e. electronic and/or computer technologies) in the Bow schools. This report encompasses not only a study of needs and a direction for the incorporation of technology into the schools, but a detailed outline of expenditures necessary to meet the goals. The committee felt it important to go beyond examination of the current situation to estimating in detail the cost of a plan to be implemented.
These purchase and implementation guidelines are spread over a period of five years with recommendations for ongoing maintenance and upgrading of equipment. There will be annual review of the progress of the plan and reconsideration of purchases scheduled.
As you review this report, be assured that improving student learning is priority number one in this venture. The Bow School District Technology Committee members recognize that this plan is prodigious. We are committed to the belief that integrating technology into the curriculum is essential for quality education now and in the 21st century.
The committee urges that all constituencies in the Bow School District support this report enthusiastically.
BOW SCHOOL DISTRICT
The planning team created the following technology mission statement to help guide their plan and future acquisitions procedures and policies:
The technology mission of the Bow School District is to incorporate technology into the educational program in order to achieve desired goals in education:
Prepare students for a technologically oriented society
Foster critical thinking skills while meeting individual needs
Foster inter- and intra-school cooperative learning
Provide student access to constantly changing information
Utilized technology as a tool in the education process
Improve delivery of instruction
Streamline administrative tasks
The Bow School District serves approximately 950 students in grades kindergarten through nine, housed in two buildings. Students in grades ten through twelve attend a high school in the neighboring city of Concord on a tuition reimbursement plan.
The Town of Bow has historically been supportive of the changing curriculum needs of the district.
As technology increasingly becomes a major part of everyday life, it is necessary for the district to infuse technology into the education and administrative processes. The technology plan presented here is designed to accomplish this task.
This extensive long-range planning process, initiated in December 1992, is based on the conviction that the use of technology will:
The Bow School District’s Technology Plan for the implementation and utilization of technology has drawn upon a wide range of sources and involved many individuals. The planning team would like to acknowledge the contributions of:
Members of the Long Range Planning Committee on Technology:
Ralph Minichiello, Superintendent
Kirk Spofford, Principal, Bow Memorial School
Nancy Kantar, Media Specialist
Pat Hammond, Business Teacher, Bow Memorial School
Bob Zeman, Teacher, Bow Elementary School
Donna Girard, Teacher, Bow Memorial School
David Gagnon, Science Teacher, Bow Memorial School
Eric Anderson, Selectman, Town of Bow
Erle Pierce, School Board
Pansy Bloomfield, Community at Large
Current Technology Environment
As of April 1993
In the Bow School District, efforts at entering the computer age began in 1984 with the purchase of one Tandy Computer. Although the district has moved forward since then, it continues to lag behind as technological advances in education instruction increase by leaps and bounds.
Currently, the district had 66 computers. Many are on carts so that they may be moved where necessary. Bow Elementary has 26, one in each classroom and one in the library. Bow Memorial has 40, 17 of which are in the 9th grade computer literacy classroom. In the library there is a partial lab setup at one end with 14 computers plus 2, which are shared by the library staff and students when necessary. The remaining 5 are in classrooms, and their locations sometimes change. Additionally, there are 2 Macintosh computers in the Technology education lab (formerly industrial Arts) because funds were recently allocated to upgrade this subject area.
Bow Memorial School administrative tasks such as scheduling, grading, attendance and word processing are performed in the office on 2 IBM’s. An additional Mac with a modem in used in the Assistant Principal’s office for Special education needs. There is no networking at either school; therefore teachers are unable to receive or access student information directly. There is also no networking between the schools or the superintendent’s office.
Without a well-trained and experienced technology coordinator, acquisition and use of software and hardware has been hit or miss. Teachers, lacking the training and proper knowledge of the materials available, have been unable to effectively acquire and utilize technology. At Bow Memorial School, word processing has been the primary emphasis of technology and most of the students have been exposed to this. Some science and social studies materials have been utilized, but there is no cohesive plan to examine the latest materials and determine what would best enhance learning. Use of word processing is increasing at Bow Elementary School, but other software is limited and often restricted to drill and practice. Teachers often spend time troubleshooting rather than instructing during computer use. Little has been done to determine needs and to coordinate acquisitions to enhance circulation.
IBM offers a process called the Joint Education Technology (JET) Planning Session. On December 14,15, and 16 of 1992, the Bow Schools Long-Range Planning Committee on Technology met to develop a five-year plan to improve the use of technology in the Bow School District. The committee was fortunate enough to participate in the "JET" process. This process was facilitated by IBM consultants.
For three days, the team met at IBM’s Bedford facility. After being exposed to the current types of technology available on the market, the committee members determined the needs of the district and developed a five-year plan to implement changes to technology in the schools.
The approach used encompassed six topic areas:
These topics are viewed in the following three sections:
This report represents the recommendations of the committee based on the methodology.
Requirements, Solutions, and Benefits