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I want to publish this page to the blog – I really enjoy my Monday tablet class!
My tablet class was very well behaved and I appreciate their patience and persistence.
Technology Department Forecasts Summer Changes
The technology budget supports three district technology goals and seeks to balance initiatives across grade levels and departments over time. The three goals are:
- Integrate technology with student learning initiatives
- Support continuous improvement through the development or acquisition of new applications
- Maintain system integrity (consistent network performance, reliable applications, etc.)
District Initiatives
- Microsoft Outlook E-Mail (June 24 conversion date) (Meets Goal #3)
- Helpdesk Software Conversion – "biggerWeb" (July 1 conversion) (#3)
- Blackboard & Moodle Renewal (#1)
- Web-based Document Management System (Share curriculum, SMART Notebook lessons, etc) across the district (#2)
Elementary Initiatives
- Tablet Laptops for 150 Classroom Teachers – available June 1 (Goal #2)
- Wireless network in all schools (#3)
- Office 2007 on Teacher Laptop/Office Computers (#3)
- Install SMART Boards at Burleigh (KG), Dixon (LGI), Hillside (KG & Lab), Swanson (Lab), and at least 9 Special Education classrooms (#1)
Middle School Initiatives
High School Initiatives
- Office 2007 in all computer labs and office computers (#3)
- Follow construction to establish Multimedia Classrooms (#1)
Replace 32 CAD Lab computers (#1)
Revision to Policy 4511: Staff Use of Information Technology and Information Resources
Background
The original discussion about policy 4511 started in the Fall of 2008 after a request from a high school activity advisor to open up access to Facebook (in school) so a school's activity group could communicate with its student members efficiently. While this would be an excellent application of a popular social networking tool, the uncontrollable social aspects of Facebook prevent the district from providing access during the school day on school computers. After consultation with the superintendent and assistant superintendents, our district attorney and other district administrators, the following policy language was proposed by the Chief Information Officer and approved by the Board of Education on February 10, 2009.
Extract from Policy 4511 (click here for full policy)
District employees shall use electronic communication responsibly. Practices considered irresponsible can include but are not limited to:
1. Using electronic communication devices for commercial purposes;
2. Sending obscene or patently offensive electronic communications;
3. Accessing, downloading, displaying, or distributing sexually explicit images and materials;
4. Intercepting, disrupting, or altering any electronic communication without proper authorization;
5. Accessing, copying, sending or modifying electronic messages from or within the electronic files or records of another without permission;
6. Allowing another to use one's network or electronic account for fraudulent purposes;
7. Using electronic communication to interfere with the ability of others to conduct District business;
8. Sending unsolicited "junk" electronic communication or mass electronic mailings without a legitimate District purpose or without prior authorization of the Superintendent/designee;
9. Reproducing or distributing copyrighted materials per Practice Statement 6163.2-Copyright;
10. Using electronic mail in such a way that violates District policy, state law, or federal law.
(NEW) 11. Personal communication via non-District sponsored applications/devices between staff and students, including, but not limited to, the use of social networking sites and instant messaging.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a staff member maintain a Facebook account for class use to communicate about curriculum, assignments, activity or club news and information, or general course information?
No, use of Facebook by a staff member for school/course/activity purposes is not allowed. While it is understood that Facebook is the current popular tool of choice with our students and could be used for positive classroom interaction, the risks in supporting or endorsing the use of technology outweigh the benefits. Those risks include:
- Potential Risk to the Student: Exposure to at-risk behaviors by other teens and the potential to disclose personal or private information to strangers, colleges, or future employers
- Potential Risk to the Staff Member: Exposure to at-risk student behaviors that may be reportable to administrators, police, or social service agencies, as well as online conduct by students that would violate school rules such as inappropriate language, bullying, or slanderous comments
- From a district perspective, we also have concerns about encouraging classroom use of a technology like Facebook which could place parents in an awkward position of having to allow their child to access Facebook in order to fully participate in a class.
- Development of casual ("inappropriate") relationships between staff and students with no administration oversight
Can a staff member maintain a personal Facebook account for personal use?
Yes. While District policy does suggest guidelines for personal conduct and a code of ethics, it does not necessarily extend to the use of personal technology (non-district equipment) for personal use. However, because of the nature of Facebook, staff members are strongly encouraged to think carefully about disclosing personal information online and are discouraged from accepting current students or students still in our K-12 system as friends. Even former students as friends can connect existing students to their teachers as 'friends of friends'.
Does this policy affect teachers communicating with students through e-mail?
No. District-wide access to e-mail is provided to both staff and students and is a district-approved communication tool. With the increased use of SMART Phones by staff and students, e-mail has become a "push" technology similar to social networking tools, allowing the user some satisfaction that the message has been received. The use of district e-mail provides for additional protections such as logging of all messages and interaction between staff members and students.
Can I use Skype or other Instant Messaging (IM) applications to communicate with my students?
No. These instant messaging tools are not allowed. Exceptions to this would be instant messaging tools built into district-approved applications such as Blackboard or Moodle.
What options do I have available to me and my students to communicate using social networking tools?
Currently, the district supports two course management systems: Blackboard and Moodle. Both applications have social networking tools built into them such as blogs, wikis, chat, and discussion forums. Any of these tools can be used by staff to manage course content and classroom communication.
I have a classroom blog hosted on a non-district server (i.e. blogspot), is this still allowed?
Some teachers, primarily at the elementary level, maintain a class blog to communicate with parents and students about the activities of the week. In their use as a one-way (teacher posts content, students/parents read content) communication tool this level of blogging is acceptable. Teachers should not encourage, nor require, two-way dialogue on their classroom blog between teacher and students. Teachers should also exercise caution in encouraging students to maintain their own blog on a public blogging site, particularly without extensive conversation and consultation about what is or is not appropriate content to post on the world wide web. If student blogs are desired, the teacher should contact his/her integrator to consider the use of Moodle.
Can I text message my students on their cell phones?
Policy 4511 does not expressly prohibit text messaging, primarily because of the inability to enforce such a policy. However, staff members are encouraged to consider appropriate use, the staff code of ethics, and the risks associated with the disclosure of any personal information including personal cell phone numbers. A reasonable litmus test of staff to student text messaging answers positively the following question: "Is the content of the text message something the principal and the student's parents would approve of and find necessary?"
How should I evaluate other social networking tools (i.e. wikispaces, googledocs, etc.) and whether they are acceptable for classroom use?
I would consider the following questions when evaluating other social networking tools:
- What am I trying to accomplish and do I have any in-District tools available to me? (i.e. Wikis/Blogs are supported in Moodle, chat feature in Blackboard)
- Do all of my students have access to the tool I am considering and what will I do for those who do not?
- Do students have to submit personal information to establish an account with the tool and is that information shared with other users?
- Is the intended use of the tool for student-student communication, or staff-student? If staff-student communication is the primary objective, am I able to capture and archive that communication?
- Does the use of this tool expose me or the District to unnecessary risk or liability?
Is this policy just for high school staff?
No. This policy applies to all district staff K-12.
What is the District doing that is proactive, rather than only restricting staff use of technology?
It is not the District's current practice to just say no to a technology solution, without providing or considering alternatives. While not perfect, it is believed that Blackboard and Moodle can be used to meet some of the needs that could be provided by existing social networking sites. This summer, a blogging tool will be incorporated into our private network for students and staff use in the Fall (2009). Finally, a new web portal is currently in development for staff, students, and parents. It is anticipated these portals (one per stakeholder group) will be phased in over the summer and fall (2009) and will incorporate social networking tools in their design and use. In addition, the District will consider the purchase/integration of a social networking platform during the 2009-2010 school year.
What should I do if I have other questions?
All questions can be directed to Chris Thompson, Chief Information Officer for the School District of Elmbrook.
Agenda for Technology Steering Committee
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
7:15 – 8:15am
CAO – Rm 133
7:15 – 7:40 Social Networking Guidelines
7:40 – 7:50 2009-2010 Budget Priorities
7:50 – 8:10 Technology Issues
- What are they?
- Process to address them?
- Who?
- Prioritization
8:10 – 8:15
Elmbrook Technology Academy
Data review
Feb – 495 Tickets
- Response: 6.5 hours (10.5 hour business day, 10.5 hr goal) – 88.5%
- Closure Avg: 11.5 hours (10.5 hour business day, 31.5 hour goal) – 94.1%
Jan – 461 tickets
- Response: 4.25 hrs –90.5%
Closure: 10 hrs – 95.7%
Elmbrook Technology Academy
"Where your time to get SMART is now!"
The School District of Elmbrook has partnered with the Sally Ride Academy to offer the premier technology academy for SMARTBoard training! Fourteen different SMARTBoard classes will be offered during this 4-day academy with a 2-credit option available through Cardinal Stritch University. Courses will be taught by classroom teachers, many of whom are SMART Master's certified. One, two-day course is offered to Administrators (Aug 5 & 6) at a reduced registration fee. A showcase day (Aug 8) will feature demonstrations of exceptional technology integration, SMART accessory products such as Airliners, Senteos, and Document Cameras, and breakout sessions on how to engage, differentiate and inspire!
Click here for detailed academy and registration information. Elmbrook staff can register online through PDExpress. For other Sally Ride Academies visit their web site.
Contact Chris Thompson, Chief Information Officer, School District of Elmbrook (262-781-3030 x1163) with any questions.
Elmbrook Technology Advisory Groups (e-TAG)
If you are interested in participating on one of the three advisory groups below, please send an e-mail message indicating your interest, the project name, and your area of expertise to chris.thompson@elmbrookschools.org . All meetings will be held at the Central Administrative Office, 13780 Hope Street.
Project: Web Portal Design and Development
- Project Timeline: Phase 1 (Summer '09) – Staff and Students, Phase 2 (Fall '09) – Parents and Community Site)
- Description: based on iGoogle technology, specific stakeholder portals (students, staff, parents) are being developed on top of a SQL database.
- Advisors needed: Professionals with experience in web portal design, web site project management, SQL database development, or specifically developing around iGoogle technology are encouraged to attend.
- Meeting Dates: March 24 (4:30pm-6:00pm), May 19 (4:30pm-6:00pm), September (tbd)
Project: Network Security
- Project Timeline: Wireless in 2009 & 2010, Firewall consideration in 2010, Network Security audit In 2010
- Description: As the district adopts Windows and wireless technologies, the opportunity to consider desktop and network security
- Advisors needed: Professionals with experience in wireless and network security are encouraged to attend.
- Meeting Dates: April 28th (4:30pm-6:00pm), June 16th (4:30pm-6:00pm), October (tbd)
Technology Planning for the Future
- Project Timeline: Ongoing
- Description: This advisory group will consider current and future technologies and their impact on teaching, learning and support.
- Advisors needed: Professionals with experience in technology strategic planning, exposure to futuristic technologies or leading applications of technologies, or with keen insight on aligning technology to support strategic initiatives.
- Meeting Dates: May 6 (4:30pm-6:00pm), October (tbd)
Purpose of e-TAG
The purpose of the technology advisory groups is to access the professional knowledge that exists in our community in order to guide and sustain existing and future technology initiatives within the district. Each advisory group, coordinated by a district staff member, will be specific to a project or topic that will guide frequency of meetings and duration of the group. Meetings will be structured to include a presentation of today's existing environment, goals of the project/initiative, exploration of existing and anticipated technology solutions, and discussion about industry standards, best practices, and performance indicators. Participants will be asked to share their perspectives as parents/students/community members, as well as their professional experience with a given topic.
Technology Overview
The School District of Elmbrook is quickly becoming a technology leader in classroom use, instructional and technical support, as well as through its alignment with District goals and initiatives. New projects and initiatives currently being implemented include:
Instructional
- SMARTBoards in every K-12 classroom (380 classrooms)
- Office 2007 Rollout (K-12)
- Dual-boot Macs to support new middle school curriculum
- Tablet Laptop initiative for elementary teachers to support standards-based grading and reporting
- Adobe CS4 at both high schools for use in Art, Business, Web Design and Graphics Courses
Strategic
- Web Portal Design
- Summer SMART Professional Development Academy
- Data Warehouse and Visual Analysis Tools for Dashboard Development
Operational
- Conversion of 15 servers and 3,400 computers to 100% Windows and Exchange/Outlook environment
- Secured Wireless coverage blanketing all 11 schools
Minutes from Technology Steering Committee
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
7:15 – 8:15am
CAO – Rm 133
Attendance: Monica Lentz, Dan Paese, Kristin Konitzer, Amy Andersen, Maxine Weisz, Angela O'Reagan, David Peterson, Rick Ziolkowski, Glen Allgaier, Rachel Russell, Jeanne Siegenthaler
7:15 – 7:20 New Equipment Installation Process
Tracking:
- Requisition created – Product received (help to manage vendors)
- Receipt date – installation (help to manage workload and customer response time)
Historically, Tech Services has not done an adequate job at informing users when their software or equipment has arrived at CAO and then installed it on a timely basis. To strengthen communication and support the centralized receiving of all technology equipment, as soon as equipment arrives at CAO we will open a ticket in bigWeb to track progress.
We do not have a commitment as to what is reasonable for installation time, but will review the process in two months to determine a target/goal for completion.
7:20 – 7:30 - Netbooks
- Quick presentation/description
- Would they meet any existing/future needs
Netbooks are mini-laptops, currently with a 10" display, full keyboard, limited memory (1gb) and hard drive (40gb), wireless access and in the $400 price range. They could be a cost effective solution to computer access at middle school or elementary. They could be a solution for a 1-1 initiative (1 student, 1 computer). We may try them on a limited basis to see if they adequately meet the needs without investing too much product development time (not a priority but could meet accessibility/portability needs). Chris does not see this as the solution to teacher laptops at secondary.
7:30 – 8:15 Facebook
- Build common understanding of application
- Identify Risks and Concerns
- New Staff Policy considered by Board on 2/10
- Student safety training ideas
- Staff safety training ideas
Internet Safety -
Monica, Angela, and Kristin demonstrated how Facebook worked and talked about the dangers of "friending" others. Because friends of friends can see one's facebook site, there is absolutely no way to control visibility. Various risks come from this personal use, more from a "teacher sponsored" site for his/her students:
Teacher is exposed to all student posts – parties, use of controlled substances, etc. – put in a position where he/she has to report
No documentation of "online" conversations for protection of the teacher/district
Blurred boundaries between professional classroom communication and casual social conversation
Potential for disclosure of too much personal information – exposing students
Policy: On Tuesday evening (2/10) the Board of Education passed a revised policy for staff use of technology that discourages:
"the use of non-district approved social networking and instant messaging sites by staff.."
This will be communicated to all staff the week of 2/16 – including clarification on existing blogs on blogspot, facebook sites, others.
Great discussion on what we can do for three different stakeholder groups:
Staff – need an overview on what the technologies are and how they are used/mis-used – texting, bullying, cheating,
Students – need training at all levels, coordinated approach to internet safety – 4th grade (ITL, 6th Gr computers) - 10 th grade (Health?). Perhaps it would be more effective if high school students (NHS or Key Club) presented to elementary/middle school students?
Parents – need awareness, tools to monitor.
- Parent Recommendations – facebook settings, location, monitor account frequently
- Videotape – facebook presentation – available for checkout or podcast
- Parent Network – Event –
- Continued message – newsletters or district events e-mail
- Aggregate resources – direct people to for education/awareness/training
- Collect benchmark district – education efforts
- Survey staff – parents of teenagers – how do you monitor – dangers/pitfalls
- Do we have a parent network advocacy group –
- Evaluate and recommend resources
Suggestion to invite FBI – Eric Szatkowski – eszatkowski@wi.rr.com, . Parent network brought him in last year but failed to invite Brookfield PD which caused some bad feelings. Chris would rather have a co-presentation with Brookfield Police and Elmbrook students.
Data review
Jan – 461 tickets
- Response: 4.25 hrs –90.5%
- Closure: 10 hrs – 95.7%
Dec – 325 Tickets
- Response: 5.5 hours (10.5 hour business day, 10.5 hr goal) – 88.5%
Closure Avg: 14.5 hours (10.5 hour business day, 31.5 hour goal) – 88.3%
Agenda for Technology Steering Committee
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
7:15 – 8:15am
CAO – Rm 133
7:15 – 7:20 New Equipment Installation Process
Tracking:
- Requisition created – Product received (help to manage vendors)
- Receipt date – installation (help to manage workload and customer response time)
7:20 – 7:30 - Netbooks
- Quick presentation/description
- Would they meet any existing/future needs
7:30 – 8:15 Facebook
- Build common understanding of application
- Identify Risks and Concerns
- New Staff Policy considered by Board on 2/10
- Student safety training ideas
- Staff safety training ideas
- Parent Safety training ideas
Data review
Jan – 461 tickets
- Response: 4.25 hrs –90.5%
- Closure: 10 hrs – 95.7%
Dec – 325 Tickets
- Response: 5.5 hours (10.5 hour business day, 10.5 hr goal) – 88.5%
Closure Avg: 14.5 hours (10.5 hour business day, 31.5 hour goal) – 88.3%
Minutes for Technology Steering Committee
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
7:15 - 8:15am
CAO - Rm 133
Attendance: Dan Gebauer, Rachelle Russell, Amy Andersen, Glen Allgaier, Chris Thompson, Maxine Weisz, Daniel Paese, Dave Peterson, Jeff Gryzwa, Missy Petersdorf, Rick Ziolkowski
Notice To All: Read eCurrently for article summaries, forecasting events/upgrades like Office 2007, and for professional development opportunities (new this month).
Virus Outbreak
Chris recapped the major events of the virus outbreak - which were also captured in eCurrently and on the technology blog (http://community.elmbrookschools.org/technologyservices).
Post-summary analysis: Desktops, including external devices like jump drives, are more secure now with tightened security from our anti-virus program.
Windows Conversion
Chris outlined the Windows conversion that has already begun (High Schools converted last summer) and continues during this year (WHMS - Feb, PPMS - Mar/Apr, Elementary - Summer '09). Besides standardization on the Microsoft platform (simplify support resources), the three major changes are:
-
Change Login Screen
- Change Program applications (from start menu)
- Faster login time
As soon as dates for middle school are determined we will let those impacted know. This does require touching all computers (by technology staff) but can be done during the day without down time.
Office 2007
Office 2007 is coming with the following timeline for each level:
Microsoft has the option for students to purchase Office 2007 - where a third-party provider administers all aspect of the purchase, including verification they are an Elmbrook student, payment collection, and distribution.
It is important not to confuse the Windows conversion (see above) with the Office upgrade. Office is a much bigger deal and requires some level of training for most/all staff. Resources that are also being considered/developed include:
2-page cheat-sheets with an overview of the application
Online, how-to resources - possibly provided by a company called Atomic Learning (http://www.atomiclearning.com/)
SMARTBoard
Installation:
Another 35 projectors/SMARTBoards were installed in December. Any installation requests going forward will be deferred until the summer. This is because technology staff need to focus on the above Windows/Office conversions this spring.
SMART Academy
The proposal right now is one week (Aug 3 - 7) - Sally Ride sponsored. It will be offered for 2-3 credits, depending on if participant chooses one extra day of class to make it 3 credits. Courses will be content focused for the whole week, with a day in the middle (Wednesday?) for all participant learning - possible guest speaker, small group breakouts on items like (Differentiating using the SMARTBoard, or SMARTBoard accessories like a document camera or Senteos). Chris is checking with Elementary schools to make sure there is building capacity/availability and if there are any conflicts to that week. Possible consideration for year two would be developing a student-based academy to run simultaneously with teacher academy so teachers with kids would have a supervised, activity option.
SMART Certification
Last summer we certified 6 Elmbrook elementary staff members to help carry our SMART initiative by providing certified instructors able to use SMART's curriculum. This summer we would like to train 6 secondary teachers. Principals will be asked to work with their integrators to identify/recommend teachers to be considered - Chris will make final decision with principal input. We will be looking for a balance by level (between middle/high) and by content area.
HS Classroom design feedback
Chris presented the typical high school classroom and answered questions. The standard classroom will include:
- 94" (diagonal) SMARTBoard - conducive for 16:9 format - wider but a little shorter - than existing
- New computer in the back of the room on the teacher desk with DVD player, cable tv
- Wireless keyboard and mouse for flexible use in the front of the classroom
- Projector mounted
- Wireless laptop for classroom teacher
- *Science rooms would not have desktop, rather they would use their laptop at the lab table at the front of the room
- Classroom TV's will be removed - all TV station and closed circuit broadcasting (announcements) could occur through projector
The front of the typical room will be whiteboard on the left, SMARTBoard in the middle, and whiteboard on the right. Chris has not yet considered department specific needs, nor considered what we will do with rooms that are already equipped with some or all of this equipment.
Data review
Dec - 325 Tickets
- Response: 5.5 hours (10.5 hour business day, 10.5 hr goal) - 88.5% met in 10.5 hour (one day) goal
- Closure Avg: 14.5 hours (10.5 hour business day, 31.5 hour goal) - 88.3% completed in 31.5 hour (3-day) goal
Nov - 400 tickets
- Response: 6.25 hrs - 89.8% met in 10.5 hour (one day) goal
- Closure: 14 hrs - 93.9% completed in 31.5 hour (3-day) goal
Have you set your New Year’s resolutions yet? How about committing to cleaning up your e-mailbox by deleting all of those old messages and sent items you no longer need? As part of a larger initiative to convert to all Microsoft technology, the entire district will move from GroupWise e-mail to Outlook e-mail in July, 2009. In order to facilitate a quick conversion, it is critical that each staff member cleans up his/her mailbox before May 15th. Smaller mailboxes will ensure less down time in July, and increase the likelihood that all of your existing mail messages will be converted to Outlook.
The conversion to Outlook accomplishes three goals:
1. Standardization on Microsoft decreases support costs
2. Outlook synchronizes more easily with PDA’s, SMARTPhones, and Office 2007
3. Better integration with web-based products such as our District calendar
Because the Outlook interface (what you look at on-screen) is very similar to GroupWise, we anticipate little training will be needed. More information on Outlook will follow in the coming months.
To assist your existing GroupWise mailbox clean-up efforts, click here for a document containing step-by-step instructions and screenshots. If you need additional assistance, please contact your technology integrator or call the Help Desk at 781-3030 x411. Please enter your comments or questions here!
The latest version of Office offers a completely new look and menu structure, different document types (e.g. MS-Word is no longer filename.doc but rather filename.docx), increased functionality, and new features such as APA formatting. While Office 2007 has been available on a limited basis to district elementary staff with laptops and high school business education students as part of their curriculum, overall deployment of the software was delayed because of the significant changes in the software, the need for training of all staff, cost of licensing, and hardware compatibility concerns.
A comprehensive plan that addresses training and support resources is in development and includes the following highlights:
· Secretarial staff training (School and CAO) beginning as early as February 23rd
· Take-home rights for installation on your home computer in April
· Training guides highlighting key features are being developed
· Additional resources are being considered to support the deployment of the software
Key dates in the rollout of the software include:
· Middle School – All computers will have Office 2007 by Sept 1, 2009
· High School – Key labs and remodeled computers by Oct 1, 2009 – upgrade will follow remodeling and complete the summer of 2010
· FVS – Administrative/secretaries in Spring 2009, staff in Fall 2009
· Elementary School – Office 2007 on all tablet laptops and administrative office computers by Sept 1, 2009. Computer labs will upgrade in the summer of 2010 (most likely).
While we may seem to be lagging by considering Office 2007 in the year 2009, this upgrade was deemed too complicated to install and let people “figure it out” on their own. We hope that with the right resources wrapped around its release, all staff and students will quickly adapt to the new version. If you have feedback or suggestions about the upgrade process, please visit the technology blog and comment on the Office 2007 article!
On January 5th it was brought to our attention that there were several
machines infected with the W32/Xirtem@MM virus. Quickly those several
machines turned into well over 100 machines. (Specific technical details
about the virus can be found at the link below.)
Full Technical information
on the W32/Xirtem@MM virus found here
How to identify the emails that contain the virus:
The easiest ways to identify the emails that contain the virus are by
comparing subjects, attachments and From address to the table below. The
other piece that is suspicious is the fact that these emails contain zip
files. Rarely if ever will advertisers include attachments with their
emails, especially in .ZIP format
Subject of
E-mail
| Attachment name | From Address
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
You've received A Hallmark
E-Card!
| postcard.zip |
postcards@hallmark.com
Coca Cola is proud to announce our new Christmas Promotion. |
promotion.zip |
noreply@coca-cola.com
Mcdonalds wishes you Merry
Christmas!
| coupon.zip
| giveaway@mcdonalds.com
Post infection what to look for:
Post infection you may notice a few strange issues including browser popups, blocked
websites such as myspace, google, youtube, excessive hard drive
activity, slow system performance. The browser popups and
blocked websites are the most easily diagnosed symptoms that something is
wrong. Additional details are included in the link about
Cleaning your home computer:
If you have this virus on your district computer you should alert Technology
Services immediately. However, if you feel you have this virus on
your home PC the basic instructions below should assist you in its removal.
Technology Services is using several methods to clean infected
machines. First of which is to install a product called MaleWare Bytes (Found Here). After
the install make sure you update the software when prompted and do a full
scan. MaleWare Bytes flags the infection as Vundo. Once the scan is
complete make sure you delete any issues MaleWare Bytes finds. A restart
of your computer is probably required during this step.
Next step is to do a full scan with your virus scanner. If you don't
have a virus scanner a free scanner called AVG can be downloaded and installed (Found Here).
Make sure your virus definition files are up to date and do a complete scan of
your system. Your virus scanner should delete any remaining infected
files.
If those methods combined don't clean the infection from your machine you
may have to find professional assistance.
Minutes for Technology Steering Committee
November 11, 2008
In Attendance: Peterson (Hillside), Gebauer (Swanson), Lentz (BEHS), Paese (BCHS), Weisz (PPMS), Gryzwa (BCHS), Andersen (FVS), Ziolkowski (PPMS/BEHS), Konitzer (Ton), Russell (Brk El), Siegenthaler (Dix), Allgaier (Board), Thompson (CAO)
Minute notes in Italics
Review of Key Data (7:15-7:20)
- Data
- Response Time to bigWeb Tickets
- o Goal: 1 Day (10.5 hour) Response - 96%
- o October Actual: 80.1% (-14.9%)
- o September Actual: 78.6% (-17.4%)
- o October '08: 617 tickets
- o September ‘08: 1190 Tickets
- § Ticket Closure - Issue Resolution
- o Goal: 3 day resolution - 95%
- o October Actual: 85% (-10)
- o September Actual: 82.6% (-12.4%)
- o October '08: 617 tickets
- o September ‘08: 1190 Tickets
Data may be skewed because of a bug in Bigweb, particularly concerning response time - company is fixing this issue this week.
Moodle v. Blackboard (7:20 - 7:25)
- Moodle will ultimately be our District's course management system for two reasons:
- a. More features, options, and flexibility
- b. Cost - $0 annual fee compared to $12,000 for Blackboard annually
- New users wanting a course management system are being directed to Moodle
- District will not switch from Blackboard until course content can be converted to Moodle automatically and existing Blackboard users can be adequately trained
- Estimated timeline for conversion would be summer, 2010 - only a severe budget crunch would accelerate this conversion
- Next Steps
- a. Chris is identifying existing users and courses in Blackboard to determine scope of conversion
- b. Chris will continue to search for a conversion tool (possibly a company) to perform one-time conversions of existing courses
We will not convert until we have a tool to convert courses from Blackboard to Moodle - (biggest challenge is tests/quizzes) and have ample time to train existing Blackboard users. Summer 2010 is projected unless budget cuts dictate earlier consideration.
Shared Storage - coming December 1 (7:25 - 7:30)
- Product is installed and will be tested and configured over next three weeks
- Documents can be uploaded in mass
- Documents are web-searchable (name, type, tag words) and can be tagged (i.e. 4th grade math, or 8 grade social studies) to make searching more meaningful
- Security is also included using network login information
Storage will be for staff only (not for shared student projects) across the district. Sample uses include sharing SMARTNotebook lessons, EveryDayMath Lessons, curriculum, and supplemental course files.
21st Century Classroom (7:30-7:40)
Discuss components of 21st century classroom:
- SMARTBoard
- SMARTBoard computer with DVD and TV Tuner
- Projector, speakers, wireless keyboard and wireless mouse
- Teacher computer - could be laptop or desktop as 2nd computer in room
- Optional Accessories (supported but not installed in every classroom - teacher or curriculum dependent for their success): Document Camera (Elmo TTs - $550 per), Student Response System (Clickers) ($1674 for set of 32), Airliner ($349)
Need: Chris is looking for suggestions on how the high school room is configured with the SMARTBoard computer in the front of the room. Is it on a small shelf, swivel arm, flat panel against the wall, small desk. Concerns raised are space restrictions (smaller footprint the better), teacher having his/her back to the class, functional use when SMARTBoard is not on (does happen quite frequently at Elementary), and possibly room for other equipment like a document camera or VCR. All high school classrooms will have the same setup with the core classroom components described above.
SMARTBoard Integration Strategy (7:40-7:45)
- Post-installation - 8 hours of training for teachers with SMARTBoards
- SMART certification for seven staff members, 6-8 more certified in June, 2009 (secondary focus)
- CEU sessions to provide quick tips, skill development and sharing of lessons as needed by building
- Training and certification of substitute teachers, documentation created to support basic use
- Sally Ride, 1 credit courses offered throughout the year to provide opportunity to collaborate and delve deeper into subject-specific courses, Sally Ride dictates enrollment be split between Elmbrook (10) and Sally Ride registration (10) - outside district registrants pay $100 more than Elmbrook staff, Stritch credit offered for $155
- Sally Ride Academy - week-long academy (3 credits) offered to Elmbrook and non-Elmbrook teachers in summer (early August), variety of content-specific courses
Approaches towards staff development for key initiatives differ by scale and use of the application. SMARTBoard staff development will be a continued focus for many years to come. Office 2007 can be more of a short-term focus, but is necessary because of the drastic change in interface, file type, and new features such as bibliography and citation options now built-into word. Consistent themes throughout all key initiatives should be reason for change, communicating far in advance both changes and staff development needs, appropriate documentation to support initiative and basic use, guaranteed training for all staff to insure consistent expectations of use can be maintained, and, ideally, a pre-test option for either differentiation or opt-out options for staff already knowledgeable.
Tablet Integration (7:45-7:55)
- Year 1: Small pilot to determine value of software and hardware
- Year 2: Expanded phase 1 users (50) to:
- Determine how to scale rollout to broad range of teachers
- Determine training requirements
- Develop training materials
- Develop standard configuration (OneNote) and templates
- Develop and explore collaboration opportunities (shared Notebooks)
- Training Options
- Optional setup/use training in summer
- Small group training for resource staff (by position or by building)
- 2.5 days of substitute time during year
- 1-1 training with integrator
- Year 3: Expand rollout to all elementary teachers with common expectations of use
- Clear outcomes drive core training
- Collaboration needs drive access for all
- Training Options:
- Summer Academy
- Weekly summer-help sessions
- Mandatory day for setup and basic use training
- Integrated use during most early release days
- CEU Sessions to provide quick tips, skill development and solution sharing
- Sally Ride course(s) to develop skills and provide more, in-depth instruction?
- Small group training for resource personnel or building leadership teams
Concerns have been raised about the amount/pace of change at elementary (Standards-based grading, EveryDayMath, SMARTBoards, Tablets) and overall teacher capacity for change. Chris would prefer to reduce expectations but continue to implement technology solutions for two reasons:
The sooner we get on a laptop replacement cycle the sooner we can consider laptops at middle and high school
It will get really complicated if we can only have core expectations of use (say all teachers will share their reading assessments notebook with the reading resource teacher) for a percentage of staff and not everyone. The shared notebook component is only now being explored/implemented and will help realize efficiency gains and communication gains that consume many hours of time right now (or fail to happen because of time restrictions). Chris will have the capacity conversation with the elementary principals and we will discuss these concerns at the next tablet users meeting (12/2) to try to reach consensus on a plan of implementation and core expectations.
Office 2007 Rollout Proposal (7:55-8:15)
- January - March: Begin CAO and office staff training sessions for Word, Excel, Publisher
- Jan - March: Send 2007 version home for office staff interested in home use
- Upgrade CAO and Office staff in the Spring of 2009
- Send 2007 version home for Elementary/MS teaching staff in late Spring
- Targeted installation rollout in summer for:
- Elementary teachers and staff (not students until 2010) on laptop and SMARTBoard computer
- MS Students and Staff - most, if not all computers (changes Computer Class curriculum)
- Summer Academy (June) - training for teachers on Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher (some combined)
- Summer training sessions for office/support staff
- Provide access to virtual test environment for practice and training
- Portion of staff inservice day(s) in August would cover the highlights of the new version and support resources
Training and support resources
- Create virtual environment for use of software from home or work without upgrading local machine (with file access to Home/shared directories)
- Create quick tips sheet for each Office application (above + PowerPoint) for desk reference guides
- Consider subscribing to online, just-in-time professional development site such as Atomic Learning (provide short, how-to clips for tasks/features)
High School - Not sure yet of timeline for implementation
- No real good strategy with remodeling
- Rollout must follow hardware upgrades in each room
- In advance, send home 2007 software for home installation (2-3 months) and provide access to virtual test environment for practice and training
- Concerned about having a mix of users
- If we knew laptops for teachers we could roll these out during 2009 school year with Office 2007 and simultaneously upgrade most computers
Key to this strategy is advance release of Office 2007 for home use, opportunity to test out of any staff development should they already have knowledge/skills of the software, and some plan to meet the high school needs even though a complete rollout is dependent on new equipment in the remodeled classrooms. More information to come as this plan continues to take shape.
Agenda for Technology Steering Committee
November 11, 2008
Agenda also posted at:
http://community.elmbrookschools.org/technologyservices/default.aspx
Review of Key Data (7:15-7:20)
- Data
- § Response Time to bigWeb Tickets
- o Goal: 1 Day (10.5 hour) Response - 96%
- o October Actual: 80.1% (-14.9%)
- o September Actual: 78.6% (-17.4%)
- o October '08: 617 tickets
- o September ‘08: 1190 Tickets
- § Ticket Closure - Issue Resolution
- o Goal: 3 day resolution - 95%
- o October Actual: 85% (-10)
- o September Actual: 82.6% (-12.4%)
- o October '08: 617 tickets
- o September ‘08: 1190 Tickets
Moodle v. Blackboard (7:20 - 7:25)
- Moodle will ultimately be our District's course management system for two reasons:
- a. More features, options, and flexibility
- b. Cost - $0 annual fee compared to $12,000 for Blackboard annually
- New users wanting a course management system are being directed to Moodle
- District will not switch from Blackboard until course content can be converted to Moodle automatically and existing Blackboard users can be adequately trained
- Estimated timeline for conversion would be summer, 2010 - only a severe budget crunch would accelerate this conversion
- Next Steps
- a. Chris is identifying existing users and courses in Blackboard to determine scope of conversion
- b. Chris will continue to search for a conversion tool (possibly a company) to perform one-time conversions of existing courses
Shared Storage - coming December 1 (7:25 - 7:30)
- Product is installed and will be tested and configured over next three weeks
- Documents can be uploaded in mass
- Documents are web-searchable (name, type, tag words) and can be tagged (i.e. 4th grade math, or 8 grade social studies) to make searching more meaningful
- Security is also included using network login information
21st Century Classroom (7:30-7:40)
Discuss components of 21st century classroom:
- SMARTBoard
- SMARTBoard computer with DVD and TV Tuner
- Projector, speakers, wireless keyboard and wireless mouse
- Teacher computer - could be laptop or desktop as 2nd computer in room
- Optional Accessories (supported but not installed in every classroom - teacher or curriculum dependent for their success): Document Camera (Elmo TTs - $550 per), Student Response System (Clickers) ($1674 for set of 32), Airliner ($349)
SMARTBoard Integration Strategy (7:40-7:45)
- Post-installation - 8 hours of training for teachers with SMARTBoards
- SMART certification for seven staff members, 6-8 more certified in June, 2009 (secondary focus)
- CEU sessions to provide quick tips, skill development and sharing of lessons as needed by building
- Training and certification of substitute teachers, documentation created to support basic use
- Sally Ride, 1 credit courses offered throughout the year to provide opportunity to collaborate and delve deeper into subject-specific courses, Sally Ride dictates enrollment be split between Elmbrook (10) and Sally Ride registration (10) - outside district registrants pay $100 more than Elmbrook staff, Stritch credit offered for $155
- Sally Ride Academy - week-long academy (3 credits) offered to Elmbrook and non-Elmbrook teachers in summer (early August), variety of content-specific courses
Tablet Integration (7:45-7:55)
- Year 1: Small pilot to determine value of software and hardware
- Year 2: Expanded phase 1 users (50) to:
- Determine how to scale rollout to broad range of teachers
- Determine training requirements
- Develop training materials
- Develop standard configuration (OneNote) and templates
- Develop and explore collaboration opportunities (shared Notebooks)
- Training Options
- Optional setup/use training in summer
- Small group training for resource staff (by position or by building)
- 2.5 days of substitute time during year
- 1-1 training with integrator
- Year 3: Expand rollout to all elementary teachers with common expectations of use
- Clear outcomes drive core training
- Collaboration needs drive access for all
- Training Options:
- Summer Academy
- Weekly summer-help sessions
- Mandatory day for setup and basic use training
- Integrated use during most early release days
- CEU Sessions to provide quick tips, skill development and solution sharing
- Sally Ride course(s) to develop skills and provide more, in-depth instruction?
- Small group training for resource personnel or building leadership teams
Office 2007 Rollout Proposal (7:55-8:15)
- January - March: Begin CAO and office staff training sessions for Word, Excel, Publisher
- Jan - March: Send 2007 version home for office staff interested in home use
- Upgrade CAO and Office staff in the Spring of 2009
- Send 2007 version home for Elementary/MS teaching staff in late Spring
- Targeted installation rollout in summer for:
- Elementary teachers and staff (not students until 2010) on laptop and SMARTBoard computer
- MS Students and Staff - most, if not all computers (changes Computer Class curriculum)
- Summer Academy (June) - training for teachers on Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher (some combined)
- Summer training sessions for office/support staff
- Provide access to virtual test environment for practice and training
- Portion of staff inservice day(s) in August would cover the highlights of the new version and support resources
Training and support resources
- Create virtual environment for use of software from home or work without upgrading local machine (with file access to Home/shared directories)
- Create quick tips sheet for each Office application (above + PowerPoint) for desk reference guides
- Consider subscribing to online, just-in-time professional development site such as Atomic Learning (provide short, how-to clips for tasks/features)
High School - Not sure yet of timeline for implementation
- No real good strategy with remodeling
- Rollout must follow hardware upgrades in each room
- In advance, send home 2007 software for home installation (2-3 months) and provide access to virtual test environment for practice and training
- Concerned about having a mix of users
- If we knew laptops for teachers we could roll these out during 2009 school year with Office 2007 and simultaneously upgrade most computers
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