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MODESTO CITY SCHOOLS ADMINISTRATION 426 Locust Street

Modesto, CA 95351-2699 209-576-4011

Board of Education

Nancy Cline Board President Cindy Marks Board Vice President Steven Grenbeaux Board Member Stacie Morales Board Member Amy Neumann Board Member Ruben Villalobos Board Member Sue Zwahlen Board Member

Superintendent

Pamela Able

Associate Superintendents

Julie Chapin Associate Superintendent, Business Services, Chief Business Official Virginia Johnson Associate Superintendent, Education Services Craig Rydquist Associate Superintendent, Human Resources

Information and Technology Services

John Scott Director II, Information and Technology Services Jim Gain Supervisor, Instructional Technology

TECHNOLOGY MASTER PLAN CONTACT INFORMATION

PLAN DATES July 1, 2014 – June 30, 2017 DISTRICT NAME Modesto City Schools CDS CODES 50-71167 and 50-71175 ADDRESS 426 Locust St. Bldg K CITY Modesto ZIP 95351 CONTACT NAME Jim Gain CONTACT TITLE Supervisor, Instructional Technology CONTACT EMAIL ADDRESS Gain.J@monet.k12.ca.us CONTACT PHONE NUMBER 209-576-4106 CONTACT FAX NUMBER 209-576-4599

PURPOSE OF PLAN

The overarching purpose of the Modesto City Schools Technology Master Plan is to establish a three-year blueprint for building a rigorous, sustainable, and equitable 21st Century teaching and learning environment for all MCS students, teachers, administrators, and support staff. It is also is to meet the certification requirements of the California Department of Education. It serves as the reference document for the FCC’s E-Rate Reimbursement Program, the Microsoft Settlement K12 Voucher Program, and any potential State, Federal, or private education technology funding initiatives.

SUPERINTENDENT’S MESSAGE

I wish to thank all of the stakeholders who contributed to the development of our Technology Master Plan. The hard work and honest feedback of our teachers, classified staff members and administrators, from both the District Office and school sites, will help improve our systems and ultimately increase academic achievement throughout our district.

This Plan is an important part of the District’s mission “to prepare our students for the first day after graduation.” We must use technological resources to enhance teaching and learning, and equip our students with the skills necessary to be productive citizens in a diverse and competitive world.

The Technology Master Plan fits in well with other district-wide efforts: It supports implementation of the Common Core State Standards by focusing on readying the District for the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium; it feeds into our Strategic Plan; and it goes hand-in-hand with School Site Single Plans. All efforts are reflective of our belief in continuous improvement.

Once again, I am grateful for the contributions of every member of the Modesto City Schools family to this important work, and I look forward to the outcome of the Technology Master Plan – an increase in our students’ academic achievement.

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Contents

MODESTO CITY SCHOOLS ADMINISTRATION ................................................................................. i

Board of Education................................................................................................................................... i

Superintendent .......................................................................................................................................... i

Associate Superintendents........................................................................................................................ i

Information and Technology Services ..................................................................................................... i

TECHNOLOGY MASTER PLAN CONTACT INFORMATION ........................................................ ii

PURPOSE OF PLAN .............................................................................................................................. ii

SUPERINTENDENT’S MESSAGE ...................................................................................................... ii

PART 1 - TECHNOLOGY MASTER PLAN DURATION .................................................................... 11

District Mission ..................................................................................................................................... 11

District Vision ......................................................................................................................................... 2

Strategic Use of Technology ................................................................................................................... 2

Critical Elements:................................................................................................................................ 2

About the District .................................................................................................................................... 3

About the District Technology Master Plan ............................................................................................ 3

PART 2 - STAKEHOLDERS ..................................................................................................................... 4

PART 3 - CURRICULUM ......................................................................................................................... 5

3a. Description of teachers' and students' current access to technology tools both during the school day and outside of school hours. ........................................................................................................................... 5

General Access to Technology Tools ................................................................................................. 5

K-6 Access to Technology Tools ........................................................................................................ 6

7-8 Access to Technology Tools......................................................................................................... 7

9 - 12 Access to Technology Tools ..................................................................................................... 7

3b. Description of the district's current use of hardware and software to support teaching and learning. ......................................................................................................................................................................... 8

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE CURRENTLY USED IN CLASSROOMS ................................. 8

THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY TO SUPPORT AND DELIVER INSTRUCTION .......................... 8

EDMODO AND GAFE ....................................................................................................................... 9

TECHNOLOGY USED TO PROMOTE EFFECTIVE CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION ............... 10

TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES FOR SPECIAL NEEDS ................................................................ 14

CURRENT USE OF TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES FOR ENGLISH LEARNERS (EL) ............ 15

TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES FOR CREDIT RECOVERY ......................................................... 16

TECHNOLOGY USED IN LIBRARY MEDIA CENTERS & COMPUTER LABS ...................... 16

SBAC TECHNOLOGY READINESS & IMPLEMENTATION ..................................................... 17

TECHNOLOGY USED IN SCHOOL MANAGEMENT ................................................................ 17

3c. Summary of the district's curricular goals that are supported by this tech plan. .............................. 19

MCS Curriculum Goals ......................................................................................................................... 19

Single Plan for Student Achievement .................................................................................................... 20

3d. List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan for using technology to improve teaching and learning by supporting the district curricular goals. ................. 21

Goal 3d.1 All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and out of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society. .................................................................................................................................... 21

Goal 3d.2 Modesto City Schools administrators and teachers at all levels will use real-time assessment data to determine appropriate interventions to improve instruction and student achievement.................................................................................................................................................................... 26

................................................................................................................................................................ 28

NARRATIVE......................................................................................................................................... 29

PARENT INVOLVEMENT .............................................................................................................. 31

Epstein's Framework of Six Types of Involvement ........................................................................... 31

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FLIPPED CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION ...................................................................................... 32

What are the key elements of the flipped classroom? ....................................................................... 33

3e List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan detailing how and when students will acquire the technology skills and information literacy skills needed to succeed in the classroom and the workplace. ........................................................................................... 34

3e.1 All students will become technology literate as designated in the NETS Standards for Students, at their appropriate grade level. ................................................................................................ 34

Student Technology Survey .............................................................................................................. 37

3f. List of goals and an implementation plan that describe how the district will address the appropriate and ethical use of information technology in the classroom so that students can distinguish lawful from unlawful uses of copyrighted works, including the following topics: the concept and purpose of both copyright and fair use ................................................................................................................................... 37

3f.1 All students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial, successfully complete the Student Internet Safety Quiz and accept the “Student Internet and Network Agreement.” .......................................................................................................... 37

3g. List of goals and an implementation plan that describe how the district will address Internet safety, including how to protect online privacy and avoid online predators. (AB 307) .......................................... 39

3g.1 All students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial which includes a section on cyberbullying, complete the online Safety Quiz and accept the Student Acceptable Use Policy (AUP). ............................................................................................. 39

3h. Description of the district policy or practices that ensure equitable technology access for all students. ........................................................................................................................................................ 41

The Technology-Based Classroom ................................................................................................... 42

3i. List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan to use technology to make student record keeping and assessment more efficient and supportive of teachers’ efforts to meet individual student academic needs. ...................................................................................... 43

Goal 3i.1 - PowerSchool will be used for student record keeping, attendance, grades and electronic report cards. .............................................................................................................................................. 43

Goal 3i.2 - SchoolCity will be used the interpretation and extrapolation of assessments. ............... 44

Tracking Student Attendance – PowerSchool .................................................................................. 45

Tracking the Student’s Classroom Achievement – District Standard Gradebook Program ............. 45

Tracking Student Test Scores – SchoolCity ...................................................................................... 45

3j. List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan to use technology to improve two-way communication between home and school. .............................................. 46

Goal 3j.1: Improve two-way communication between home and school ......................................... 46

3k. Describe the process that will be used to monitor the Curricular Component (Section 3d-3j) goals, objectives, benchmarks and planned implementation activities including roles and responsibilities. ......... 48

PART 4 - Professional Development ........................................................................................................ 49

4a. Summary of teachers' and administrators' current technology skills and needs for professional development. ................................................................................................................................................. 49

4a. Summary of teachers’ and administrators’ current technology skills and professional development needs .............................................................................................................................................................. 49

4a.1 Administrative Technology Skills ............................................................................................. 49

4a.2 Teacher Technology Skills ........................................................................................................ 49

4a.2a Elementary School Staff Members .......................................................................................... 50

4b. List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan for providing professional development opportunities based on the needs assessment and the Curriculum Component goals (sections 3d through 3j). ................................................................................................... 50

Goal 4b.2 90% of administrators and teachers will improve their technology abilities in at least one skill in each of the three Common Core Skills Areas as measured by the MCS Self-Assessment Survey of Technology Skills ................................................................................................................................. 51

Staff Development Models ................................................................................................................ 53

Application Training .......................................................................................................................... 54

Professional Development Support Needed ...................................................................................... 54

Online Tutorials ................................................................................................................................. 56

Product Training ................................................................................................................................ 56

One-on-One Training ......................................................................................................................... 56

Integrating Technology into the Curriculum ..................................................................................... 56

CTAP ................................................................................................................................................. 56

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4c. Describe the process that will be used to monitor the Professional Development (Section 4b) goals, objectives, benchmarks, and planned activities including roles and responsibilities. .................................. 57

PART 5 - Infrastructure, Hardware, Technical Support, and Software .................................................... 58

5a. Describe the existing hardware, Internet access, electronic learning resources, and technical support already in the District that will be used to support the Curriculum and Professional Development Components of the plan. ............................................................................................................................... 58

Current Services ................................................................................................................................ 58

Other Services ................................................................................................................................... 63

ALL DISTRICT COMPUTERS BY AGE ....................................................................................... 67

INSTRUCTIONAL DEVICES BY SITE ........................................................................................ 70

COMPUTER BIOS AGE ................................................................................................................. 71

SBAC ASSESSMENT READINESS - COMPUTER LABS BY ELEMENTARY SITE .............. 72

SBAC ASSESSMENT READINESS - COMPUTER LABS BY JUNIOR HIGH SITE ................ 74

SBAC ASSESSMENT READINESS - COMPUTER LABS BY HIGH SCHOOL SITE .............. 75

5b. Describe the technology hardware, electronic learning resources, networking and telecommunications infrastructure, physical plant modifications, and technical support needed by the district's teachers, students, and administrators to support the activities in the Curriculum and Professional Development Components of the plan. ........................................................................................................ 77

Hardware Needed.............................................................................................................................. 77

Electronic Learning Resources Needed ............................................................................................ 77

Networking and Telecommunications Infrastructure Needed .......................................................... 77

Physical Plant Modifications Needed ............................................................................................... 78

Technical Support Needed ................................................................................................................ 78

Professional Development Support Needed ..................................................................................... 79

5c. List of clear annual benchmarks and a timeline for obtaining the hardware, infrastructure, learning resources and technical support required to support the other plan components as identified in Section 5b. ...................................................................................................................................................................... 80

5d. Describe the process that will be used to monitor Section 5b and the annual benchmarks and timeline of activities including roles and responsibilities. ............................................................................ 82

PART 6 – Funding and Budget ................................................................................................................. 83

6a. List of established and potential funding sources. ........................................................................... 83

Equalization Funds ............................................................................................................................ 83

E-Rate ................................................................................................................................................ 83

Carl Perkins – Regional Occupation Programs ................................................................................. 84

Information and Technology Services ............................................................................................... 84

6b. Estimate annual implementation costs for the term of the plan. ...................................................... 85

HARDWARE, SOFTWARE AND INFRASTRUCTURE ............................................................... 85

SUPPORT STAFF COSTS ANNUAL OPERATING COSTS ........................................................ 86

6c. Describe the district's replacement policy for obsolete equipment. ................................................. 88

6d. Describe the process that will be used to monitor Ed Tech funding, implementation costs and new funding opportunities and to adjust budgets as necessary. ............................................................................ 88

PART 7 - Monitoring and Evaluation ....................................................................................................... 89

7a. Describe the process for evaluating the plan's overall progress and impact on teaching and learning. ......................................................................................................................................................... 89

7b. Schedule for evaluating the effect of plan implementation. ............................................................ 89

7c. Describe the process and frequency of communicating evaluation results to tech plan stakeholders. ....................................................................................................................................................................... 90

PART 8. Collaborative Strategies with Adult Literacy Providers ............................................................. 91

8. If the district has identified adult literacy providers, describe how the program will be developed in collaboration with them. (If no adult literacy providers are indicated, describe the process used to identify adult literacy providers or potential future outreach efforts.) ....................................................................... 91

Parent Institute ................................................................................................................................... 91

Yosemite Regional Occupation Program .......................................................................................... 92

PART 9. Effective, Researched-Based Methods and Strategies ............................................................... 93

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9a. Summarize the relevant research and describe how it supports the plan's curricular and professional development goals. .................................................................................................................. 93

Technology-Integrated Instruction.................................................................................................... 94

Teacher beliefs and technology integration practices: A critical relationship .................................. 95

Exemplary Technology-using Teachers: Perceptions of Factors Influencing Success .................... 98

Collaborative, Student-Centered Learning ....................................................................................... 99

Equitable Access to Technology for All Students .......................................................................... 100

Students with Special Needs ........................................................................................................... 100

English Language Learners............................................................................................................. 100

Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) ......................................................................................... 100

Professional Development .............................................................................................................. 101

Technology-rich model schools. ..................................................................................................... 104

Data-Driven Instruction .................................................................................................................. 104

Data-Driven Decision Making: Using Computer Data ................................................................... 104

9b. Technology to Deliver Rigorous Curriculum................................................................................ 105

Distance Learning ........................................................................................................................... 105

District Website: ............................................................................................................................. 106

Modesto Virtual Academy .............................................................................................................. 106

Internet Use: .................................................................................................................................... 106

Distance Learning Classroom Resources ............................................................................................ 107

RESEARCH REFERENCES .............................................................................................................. 107

PART 10 - ADDENDUM LIST ............................................................................................................. 108

10.1 SOFTWARE LIST ...................................................................................................................... 109

10.2 Student Internet and Network Agreement ................................................................................... 111

10.3 Student Internet and CyberSafety Tutorial .................................................................................. 112

10.4 MCS Survey Results – Teachers............................................................................................... 112

10.5 MCS Survey Results – Classified Staff ...................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

10.6 MCS Survey Results – Admin Certificated ................................ Error! Bookmark not defined.

10.7 MCS Survey Results – Admin Classified ................................... Error! Bookmark not defined.

10.8 ISTE NETS for Students ....................................................................................................... 112

10.9 ISTE Student Technology Profiles ........................................................................................ 112

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PART 1 - TECHNOLOGY MASTER PLAN DURATION District Mission

The mission of the Modesto City School District, in partnership with the community, is to provide our students with the knowledge, skills, and educational qualities required to be successful in fulfilling their personal and educational goals. The goal of our district is to produce graduates that are life-long learners with the knowledge, educational experiences, and perseverance to make their own way in an ever-changing world.

Students and staff should view technology as a tool for information access, record keeping, communication, and productive creativity. Technology enables students to have a “classroom without walls,” giving them access to ideas, research, and resources to help them become lifelong learners.

DISTRICT GOALS

Elementary and Junior High School Goals:

Attendance: The elementary school district will maintain a 98% attendance rate.

Achievement: Each school will meet or exceed its Academic Performance Index (API) target.

Promotion: More than 90% of the students will meet the district’s academic standards for promotion to the next grade level.

High School Goals:

Attendance: The high school district will maintain a 98% attendance rate.

Achievement: Each school will meet or exceed its Academic Performance Index (API) target.

Graduation: More than 90% of the students will graduate with their class.

District Vision

Modesto City Schools is committed to providing the best possible training, educational/technical support, and infrastructure available to empower our teachers with the tools necessary to engage students in the educational process, develop skills-based learning, and accelerate academic achievement.

There is universal agreement that planning committees, when creating a learning-based Technology Master Plan, need to spend time creating a vision that all people involved can support. Howard D. Mehninger in School Reform in the Information Age noted that vision is a "mental image of a desirable state of affairs...by setting direction, a vision statement helps set priorities and guides public policy."

Modesto City Schools spent considerable time and effort soliciting staff, parents, students, and business partners regarding their attitudes concerning the use of technology in the classroom. BASED ON THE INPUT FROM THESE GROUPS, the district has developed the following vision and mission statements.

Strategic Use of Technology

Modesto City Schools maintains that in order to be successful in the 21st century workplace, all students, teachers and staff must acquire technology literacy as a means to access, process, evaluate, synthesize, and disseminate information efficiently and effectively.

Critical Elements:

In order to meet the demands of preparing college and career ready graduates, the district’s mission focuses on the following elements:

• promote equitable access to technology resources in every learning environment • enable student engagement through use of appropriate technologies • provide models of effective content presentation strategies which incorporate technology • foster effective communication channels for all stakeholders • provide meaningful assessment strategies to guide instructional interventions • improve faculty and staff productivity through the use of emerging technologies • integrate blended learning strategies in a variety of instructional settings • ensure students become safe and responsible digital citizens

Modesto City Schools’ three-year Technology Master Plan is based upon current and projected levels of support and funding from local, state, and federal sources. As the funding levels for educational technology increase or decline, so will it impact the implementation of the goals and expectations reflected in this plan. Budget is almost always the mitigating factor in deploying new technologies in the classroom.

“People have talked and dreamed about the vision for the classroom of the future for years in a variety of forms: Students partake in interactive learning with computers and other technology devices; teachers roam around as mentors and individual learning coaches; learning is tailored to each student's differences; students are engaged and motivated.” - Edutopia http://www.edutopia.org/student-centric-education-technology

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About the District

Modesto City Schools is located in the Central Valley, 75 miles east of the San Francisco Bay Area and 70 miles south of Sacramento. MCS District is the second largest employer in Stanislaus County. The District is composed of an elementary district (K-8) and a high school district (9-12) with a common Board of Education and administration. Seven other school districts feed into Modesto City Schools at the high school level. The District maintains a staff of 1,700 certificated and 1,200 classified employees.

The current enrollment is approximately 30,000. Students are served in 22 elementary schools (K-6), four junior high schools (7-8), seven comprehensive high schools (9-12), and an extensive alternative education program which includes an opportunity and continuation school, independent study and adult evening high school. A variety of specialized academies and specific programs of instruction are available at each high school. In addition, several courses are offered through our School to Career program and Regional Occupational Program.

The District has provided exemplary educational programs for students in the community since 1871. Education in Modesto City Schools involves not only teaching curriculum based on state standards, but also emphasizes a District-wide Character Education program which recognizes and rewards students for exhibiting specific character traits. District athletic programs further emphasize character development through California Interscholastic Federation’s Victory with Honor Program which promotes humility in victory and grace in defeat.

The District performs benchmark assessments on a regular basis to adjust instruction and identify appropriate interventions, to ensure an individual student’s progress in meeting content standards. As the District implements the California Common Core State Standards during the timeframe of this Tech Plan it will shift its formative and summative assessments to align with the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium.

The District’s ultimate goal is to ensure that students receive the best education possible in order to be able to strive to attain the highest goals of which they are capable.

About the District Technology Master Plan

This Technology Master Plan will be in effect from July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2017. The plan will serve as the guideline for technology expenditures and associated professional development, which includes software, hardware, network infrastructure, programming, peripheral devices, outside consulting, conferences, workshops, and online resources. This plan will also serve as the technology planning document for the E-Rate application and E-Rate discounts.

Some items and actions steps suggested and/or outlined in this technology master plan may be subject to collective bargaining and funding constraints.

PART 2 - STAKEHOLDERS

Type of Partner

Name of Partner and Contact Information

Role in Development of Technology Plan

Role in Supporting Technology Plan

Information Technology Staff

John Scott, Jim Gain, Sally Chapman, Jason Rabbiosi, Matthew Ketchum, Mike Westbrook

Modesto City Schools Director of Information and Technology Services and its staff provide information concerning the district’s infrastructure and future plans to upgrade the district’s wide area network.

Responsible for the support of technology involved in the district technology plan. Includes all hardware, software, ongoing updates, and maintenance of the district network infrastructure.

Education Services Administrators

Michael Coats, Phillip Jaramillo, Darin Willett, Becky Fortuna, Danielle Hinkle, Eric Andersen, Mike Henderson, Ginger Johnson, Thor Harrison, Mark Herbst

Help write and review sections 3 and 4; Curriculum and Professional Development

Responsible for coordinating integration of technology into Common Core implementation.

Teachers Eric Corgiat, Greg Havens, Suzi Tornberg, Papith Lee, Mark Nower, Patrick Durr

Help write and review sections 3 and 4; Curriculum and Professional Development

Responsible for coordinating integration of technology into Common Core implementation.

Parents Stacy Jaramillo, Tami Rhodes, Darin Willett, Yumi Soares, Jason Rabbiosi

Reader/Editor Give input at committee meetings

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PART 3 - CURRICULUM 3a. Description of teachers' and students' current access to technology tools both during the school day and outside of school hours.

Modesto City School’s Educational Services is responsible for comprehensive, instructional programs for all students in the district. The instructional programs provide for active learning, critical thinking, performance assessment, use of technology and relevant materials which incorporate the history and culture of a diverse community, and which are consistent with national, state, and district goals. The programs facilitate professional development activities which address the training needs of the district, career-orientation, school-to-work, vocational and technical opportunities, drug prevention and intervention, and alternative education.

General Access to Technology Tools

All of our classrooms are connected directly to the Internet. There are also computers located in the school’s libraries, which are available to both students and teachers before and after school as well as during the lunch hour. Students access these resources during class visits to the labs as well as in-class workstations. The majority of our classrooms have computers available to both students and teachers that are used throughout the school day for various activities including teacher productivity and student classroom assignments. Special technologies are provided for those special needs students as identified through the IEP process. Teachers at some sites have access to student response systems such as CPS or Qwizdom, as well as projectors and laptops and wireless laptop labs. Mobile devices such as Ipads and tablets are used by staff and students for instruction during the regular academic day, as well as after school learning programs. Teachers are beginning to integrate laptops, tablets, and projectors, for lessons that are increasingly calling for student response systems, and real time feedback. Teachers are beginning to present lessons and assessments, in learning management systems such as Edmodo and Apex Learning that require students and teachers to interact over the internet for instruction, individual or collaborative practice, assessment and reporting.

More specific details can be found in section 3b.1.

K-6 Access to Technology Tools

Modesto City Schools has 22 elementary schools, all of which have computer labs for all students to use for acquiring keyboarding skills, accessing the Internet, and for working with curriculum specific content. The computers listed below vary from one to eight years of age.

SCHOOL

WORKSTATIONS AVAILABLE LIBRARY - Open before

and after school COMPUTER LAB - Open before

and after school CLASSROOMS - Open before

and after school Beard 10 34 46 Bret Harte 4 36 147 Burbank 10 36 76 El Vista 4 34 51 Enslen 5 19 43 Everett 3 32 76 Fairview 5 31 105 Franklin 25 34 214 Fremont 4 38 79 Garrison 8 18 67 Kirschen 5 22 85 Lakewood 7 24 61 Marshall 15 32 85 Martone 6 32 119 Muir 5 50 49 Rob Road 7 34 172 Rose 7 37 71 Shackelford 9 21 104 Sonoma 4 20 66 Tuolumne 10 36 73 Wilson 4 36 59 Wright 6 30 169

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7-8 Access to Technology Tools

Modesto City Schools has four junior high schools. All of our junior high classrooms are connected directly to the Internet. There are also computers located in the school’s libraries that are available to both students and teachers before and after school as well as during the lunch hour.

SCHOOL WORKSTATIONS AVAILABLE LIBRARY - Open before

and after school COMPUTER LAB - Open before

and after school CLASSROOMS - Open

before and after school Hanshaw 27 33 276 La Loma 12 35 126 Mark Twain 8 64 366 Roosevelt 11 69 150

9 - 12 Access to Technology Tools

Modesto City Schools has seven high schools and an alternative education-site, all of which have computer literacy labs for all students to use for acquiring keyboarding skills, accessing the Internet, acquiring application skills, and for working with curriculum specific content. All of our high school classrooms are connected directly to the Internet. There are also 10-20 computers located in the schools’ libraries. A like number of computers in the Career Centers are available to both students and teachers before and after school, as well as during the lunch hour. The computers listed below vary from 1 to 8 years of age.

SCHOOL WORKSTATIONS AVAILABLE LIBRARY - Open before and

after school COMPUTER LAB - Open before

and after school CLASSROOMS - Open

before and after school Beyer 38 129 266 Davis 25 221 258 Downey 32 284 248 Elliott 10 51 149 Enochs 55 217 100 Gregori 56 212 50 Johansen 18 185 307 Modesto 20 281 311 Pearson 0 45 0

3b. Description of the district's current use of hardware and software to support teaching and learning.

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE CURRENTLY USED IN CLASSROOMS

The District recognizes that technology is an essential component of instructional delivery, classroom management, collaboration, and communication. The District set technology standards for classroom and works to ensure that all classrooms are equipped accordingly, and that adequate technology training is available to all staff.

The technology standard for classrooms includes:

• a computer or laptop that has high speed access to both internal and external network resources, • a projector or large digital display for presentation, • a document camera or tablet for image capture, • a printer to produce reports and supplemental materials.

All district computers have a current version of the Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and Publisher) installed (Outlook on staff computers only), as well as any content specific or instructional applications.

The minimum network connection speed is 100 megabits, 20 school sites connection at 1 gigabit, and 19 of the 34 school sites have medium density wireless networks to support instructional delivery and school operations. The long term goal, contingent on funding, is to acquire and deploy a high density wireless wide area network (WWAN) at all District sites by 2018 to support a 1:1 student to device model, and accommodate the use of personally owned devices by staff and students.

Addendum 10.1 provides a complete listing of the software currently used.

THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY TO SUPPORT AND DELIVER INSTRUCTION

Levels of technology use and access vary from site to site, classroom to classroom, as does the level of user proficiency. All teachers use email to correspond internally, to communicate with parents, and to collaborate with their peers. All teachers collect daily attendance data and perform student record keeping tasks electronically. Most teachers use technology in some form to develop, support, augment, or deliver instruction. The use of teacher created websites is sporadic with less than 30% of the staff maintaining active content, while the use of Facebook , Twitter, and Edmodo increases weekly.

In its preparation for Common Core State Standards (CCSS), the District has focused on improving the use of technology to support instructional delivery and standardizing instructional technology in all classrooms. The District’s Instructional Technology (IT) Department has been restructured to better meet the challenges associated with CCSS and develop a comprehensive repository of online resources that are both timely and useful to staff, students, and parents. The IT staff provides

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and coordinates technology training for all district staff, and is the application support source for Apex Learning, Edmodo, Google Apps for Education (GAFE), Microsoft Office, and PowerTeacher Gradebook.

A variety of technology applications are used throughout the District at all grade levels and content areas. The Computer Systems department installs, updates, and maintains a standard base image which includes the current version of the Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, and Publisher) and Adobe Reader on all District computers. Desktop shortcuts to critical web applications are incorporated into the user’s logon scripts. The student logon script presents shortcuts to applications and resources based on his or her group membership, and the same process is used for teachers, administrators, and support staff.

Specific content area resources including Scholastic’s System 44, Read 180 and Math 180 web-based applications; MySkillsTutor, Catchup Math,ThinkCentral.com, iLearn.com, Khan Academy, Edmodo, Google Apps for Education and Apex Learning are integrated into the district’s instructional strategies. These resources are used for targeted support, credit recovery, flipped instruction, IEP interventions, online independent study (Modesto Virtual Academy) as well as blended distance learning. A comprehensive listing of all software used throughout the District is included in Addendum 10.2. The list of these instructional assets and adaptive interventions grows continually and further shapes the District’s digital landscape.

EDMODO AND GAFE

The use of Edmodo and GAFE are coordinated and supported by the District’s IT staff, and the use of these assets exceeded 5,000 active users at the writing of this plan. Edmodo is a social learning platform for teachers, students, and parents. It is commonly thought of as the Facebook of schools, as called by pupils and teachers alike. Google Apps for Education (GAFE) is a free service from Google providing independently customizable versions of several Google products under the Modesto City Schools monet domain. It features several Web applications with similar functionality to traditional office suites, including Google Calendar, Drive, Docs, and Sites. Edmodo and GAFE work hand-in-hand as a Learning Management System and content creation suite. This interconnected functionality allows users to sync their Google Docs with their Edmodo Library so users can easily access and share Google Docs with Edmodo groups. This integration also allows teachers to create a paperless classroom by using Google Docs for assignments and submitting them through Edmodo.

TECHNOLOGY USED TO PROMOTE EFFECTIVE CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION

Grades K - 6

When the previous tech plan was written, K-6 student report cards were paper-based and hand written. Today, grades are entered electronically and teachers are working in partnership with the District to transition to Standards Based Report Cards while incorporating performance data collected from computer-based benchmark assessments.

Technology used in the elementary grades includes content presentation, engagement activities, classroom management, check for understanding and assessment, as well as school-to-home communication.

SITE SAMPLES

FAIRVIEW ELEMENTARY Over the past two school years Fairview Elementary School has made a significant investment in technology. In the 2011-2012 school year all classrooms (K-6) received a Mobiview to support and deliver instruction. This gave teachers the accessibility they needed to better use their Smartboard technology while giving them the ability to be mobile. Use of the Mobiviews gave teachers the ability to switch between different programs; from Powerpoint to Word, from an Internet browser to a document camera, all with ease and fluidity.

Classrooms in grades 2-6 received responders for every student. The responders allowed instructors to immediately check for understanding and redirect instruction as needed. Additionally, the site ensured that all classrooms had a teacher workstation, printer, document camera, and projector.

In the 2012-2013 school year all classrooms were updated with new NEC projectors. The computer lab was updated with new computers. The site’s computer lab tech worked to set up GAFE accounts for their students. All teachers received training on the SBAC assessments, which were piloted at the site in grades 3 – 6.

BRET HARTE ELEMENTARY Document cameras and projectors connected to teacher computers have never worked so hard at Bret Harte Elementary. Teachers in all grades wonder how they ever taught without them! Whether using the document camera to display teaching handouts or accessing the internet to provide various examples and modalities of presentation, teachers have embraced technology in the classroom.

Linda Crow, a second grade teacher, uses Google Apps for Education in her classroom and working with her grade level peers. She uses classroom communication to let parents know how students are responding to l earning. Most of the classrooms have seven to eight-year-old computers running Windows XP as does the computer lab.

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MARTONE ELEMENTARY Our computer lab is going well. We have programs for all grades K-6. One focus is on keyboarding skills and Microsoft Word. This will help us looking forward to the CCSS. Even K students are learning how to keyboard. Once touch screen comes into style they will shift to that. Grades 4-6 spending time later in the year on internet research, report writing, and power point. The focus is on 4th – California History Content Research; 5th – States History Research projects; 6th – Ancient Cultures Research projects. Students will be using power point and Publishing.

SHACKELFORD ELEMENTARY Currently all teachers in grades 4th-6th are equipped with Ipads and apple TVs. We have also

purchased airports so that all Ipads have wireless internet connection. This equipment has allowed teachers to use their technology in a variety of ways. Teachers have replaced their Document Cameras with their Ipads by using the camera on the Ipad, an Ipad stand, and their Apple TV connection. They are using ClassDojo to provide students with constant positive praise and feedback. Teachers have used their Ipads and Apple TVs to show videos to provide their students with background knowledge. Ipads are being used as handheld whiteboards which gives them the flexibility to roam around the classroom while the Ipad is being projected onto the screen. A variety of Apps have been downloaded and are being implemented in the classroom. Teachers are using Apps to random select students. They are also using Apps to help support instruction. During grade level PLCs, teacher will be using their Ipads to access their data on SchoolCity to share during their meetings.

WILSON ELEMENTARY At Wilson Elementary, students at ALL grade levels have access to Google Apps for Education (GAFE). The teachers at Wilson actively use Edmodo as an informational hub for their Professional Learning Community and as the primary conduit for student - teacher interaction and engagement. The student body voted for ASB officers using Edmodo so grades 3-6 students have an Edmodo account.

Ipads are currently in all classrooms (10 ipads in upper and 6 ipads in lower grades). All staff members have ipads and laptops and we use these to review SchoolCity and CDE data during staff and PLC grade level meetings. Mr. Havens has teacher training Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays where he volunteers his time teaching teachers about PowerSchool, useful apps and other technology issues

Grades 7 - 8

The District’s four junior high schools (Hanshaw, La Loma, Mark Twain, and Roosevelt) began a pilot program for trailing math students using Scholastic’s Math 180 to support direct instruction. Each site hosted two sections daily, using 18 computer workstations equipped with headphones, enabling the students to work at their own pace without disruption or distraction.

Through an EETT competitive grant the District acquired 11, 20-unit MacBook Air carts in 2010. Two carts were initially assigned to a Roosevelt Junior High. Two additional carts were subsequently placed at Mark Twain Jr. High. These MacBook Airs are used to provide supplemental math instruction with the Skills Tutor and Catch-Up Math applications. Individual instructors branched out and incorporated online assets which included the Google Apps for Education, and a broad range of Khan Academy offerings into their supplemental and direction instruction strategies.

Three years ago, La Loma Junior High Science Teacher Lee Ollar started using GAFE to connect with students, and provide them a place to collaborate, share documents, and create content. He soon expanded his classroom successes to the La Loma staff, where he created forums, calendars, and collaboration spaces to support the school.

LALOMA JR HIGH THESTARCENTER is a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math Program which concentrates on reinforcing STEAM standards through modern technological methods, and hands on activities. Students have the opportunity to extend their learning beyond the traditional classroom setting, by participating in a Lego Robotics competition, the Future City Competition, the Regional Science Olympiad, the Regional Academic Pentathlon, the school science fair, the SCOE Science Fair, and / or the Math Super Bowl. Students utilize laptops, computers, iPads, smartphones, chromebooks, video production equipment, and the scientific method, to develop, hypothesize, and draw logical conclusions about the world they live in, and they construct and prepare projects and presentations to display that information in an informed and artistic manner.

To increase communication and collaboration among students and teachers, students are responsible for completing independent and group based projects via Google Apps for Education's free collection of cloud-based software. Students communicate important tasks, to-do lists, and event deadlines, via Gmail, Calendar, and Google+. Students collaborate on research projects and produce essays, documents, spreadsheets, and presentations together via Google Drive. Students construct websites and project locations via Google Sites, and students practice proper search and citation techniques with Google Search. In addition to the Google Apps for Education collection, students also have access to other web-based programs such as the KhanAcademy, and students have the opportunity to assist and tutor other students and teachers with learning and implementing these skills, during in-school and after-school sessions as well.

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Grades 9 - 12

Teachers at the high school sites are using technology to develop lesson plans for in-class presentations and to deliver content. Each high school site has a district website for posting school information for the general public. As technology and training becomes available, the goal is to have all teachers post secure class information using District standard software. All seven high school sites are developing teacher websites using Google sites and/or Sharepoint websites for school-to-home communications. Teachers can post grades, classroom assignments, downloadable documents, and parental information on a regular basis with a faster implementation timeline using services such as PowerSchool Parent Portal and School Center.

Students use the technology on and off site. Computers in the libraries, computer labs and career centers are available to students before and after school and during their lunchtime. Some high schools have multiple computer labs where teachers reserve time to bring their entire class to research topics and developing their student presentations and reports.

Through an EETT competitive grant the District acquired 11, 20-unit MacBook Air carts in 2010. Eight (2 per site) were assigned to Beyer, Davis, Downey, and Modesto High Schools, and one was assigned to the ITS Training Lab at Pearson Education Center. These MacBook Airs are used to provide supplemental math instruction with the Skills Tutor and Catch-Up Math applications. Individual instructors branched out and incorporated online assets which included the Google Apps for Education, and a broad range of Khan Academy offerings into their supplemental and direction instruction strategies.

Students graduating from Modesto City Schools are required to be proficient in the use of technology. Proficiency can be demonstrated by successful completion of a computer literacy course or passing an online examination.

JOHANSEN HIGH SCHOOL

Johansen High School featured a Video Game Design Camp over the summer for 6th to 9th grade students. The kids represented a wide range of backgrounds and experience levels. There were a total of 66 children participating. The originally planned morning session quickly filled up, so the camp was expanded to include a pm session as well. Students gained video game designing skills including, indoor and outdoor level design, visual scripting, artificial intelligence, animation, graphics, special effects, and much, much more. By the end of the week, they built a solid foundation to get them started with video game designing. The Video Game Designing Camp by Brad Cornwell and the Multimedia Pathway at Johansen High hoped to provide its participants with job skills they can expand on and develop, such as 3D lighting and animation, 3D modeling, visual scripting, game engineering, level designing, idea organizing, visual planning and more.

TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES FOR SPECIAL NEEDS

Modesto City Schools has over 3,800 students with exceptional needs. Those students run the gamut from vision, speech or hearing challenged to emotionally disturbed. Whatever their least restrictive environment may be, the use of Assistive Technologies and Interactive web resources can be of great help. Assistive technology is used in special education classes to help students move, communicate, perform everyday tasks, class work or other functions as defined in an individual education plan (IEP). As Ted S. Hasselbring, Ed.D., and Candyce H. Williams Glaser, Ph.D. reported in their paper (Use of Computer Technology to Help Student with Special Needs), computer-based technologies can play an especially important role for students with special needs. Not only can computer technology facilitate a broader range of educational activities to meet a variety of needs for students with mild learning disorders, but adaptive technology now exists than can enable even those students with severe disabilities to become active learners in the classroom alongside their peers who do not have disabilities.

Boardmaker by Mayer-Johnson visual assistance. Voice to Text Dragon Text Reading programs Wynn by Freedom Scientific Testtalker by Freedom Scientific Write:Outloud by Don Johnston

Software with Word Prediction Co:Writer by Don Johnston On Screen Keyboard REACH by Applied Human Factors Book Reading Bookshare.org Learning Ally

Other assistive devices: • Joysticks, • Alternative Keyboards, • iPads, • iPhone, • Digital Cameras, • Scanners, • Laptops, • Audio Readers, • MP3 Players, • Static Display Voice Output Devices

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CURRENT USE OF TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES FOR ENGLISH LEARNERS (EL)

Instructional technology, in its various forms, offers tremendous opportunities for the English Learners to be successful in school and beyond; in many situations, technology “levels the playing field” for EL students as they study alongside their English Only speaking peers.

In the classroom, instruction for English Learners and other students needs to be “scaffolded.” That is, information must be presented in its essential framework, with additional information and examples gradually added so that students of all language and ability levels can comprehend and apply it. Information, examples, and non-examples must be presented in a number of formats, with emphasis on the visual and auditory modalities. Technology makes “scaffolding” not only easier to accomplish for the teacher, but more effective as technology is adapted in the classroom. Additionally, technology offers opportunities to “individually scaffold” lessons and topics.

Writing is the most difficult of the communication skills, and writing is especially difficult for EL students; writing is usually the last academic skill acquired by an English Learner. Writing is greatly improved for all learners through the use of technology, but various programs available on various forms of technology help English Learners improve rapidly, to say nothing of the translation opportunities available in subject areas.

Common Core goals in ELA and Math, and extended in all subject areas, require students to become involved in the process of solving problems and creating solutions to situations. Students must justify their thinking process through writing. Indeed, anticipated Common Core assessments will rely heavily upon the skills of reading and writing. Technology can be of great assistance in providing guided reading opportunities and in assisting the EL student through the writing process.

Technology, in the classroom and out of the classroom, permits the practice and support necessary to acquire, use, and eventually master a new language. An English Learner must acquire a new language, and at the same time learn subject content. Technology can speed up and make more comfortable the process of language acquisition and content learning.

TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES FOR CREDIT RECOVERY

The District has been a pioneer in the use of online content delivery to support its credit recovery efforts. In the summer of 2009, the District transitioned from a traditional “paper and pencil“ summer school structure to a blended learning environment using the MOODLE LMS and content from Class.com.

This shift toward blended learning scaled quickly and promoted the establishment of the Modesto Virtual Academy and the contracting with Advanced Path Academy (APA) to provide online independent study and viable options for off track students. The use of blended learning enabled the District to expand its Extended Summer School offerings and develop other interventions like the Turnaround Opportunity Program (TOPS) programs at Gregori High School and Johansen High School. TOPS focuses on trailing 9th and 10th graders through a well-supported school within a school setting, where blended learning is used to support core content areas.

In August 2013, the District adopted Apex Learning as their learning management content system and provider. The coursework is fully hosted and supported on Apex servers which enable students to access their online classes anywhere there is an Internet connection, at any hour of the day, and at an appropriate pace.

Apex courses are aligned to California State Standards, and a number of their courses meet the UC a-g student requirements for freshman admission. Additionally, this consolidation of online content delivery freed-up District owned server resources for other projects, and reduced the District’s involvement in the management and maintenance associated with online content delivery.

The District’s adoption of Apex Learning has provided the District accredited content, better management tools, and continuity in its online learning efforts; the APA program at Beyer High uses Apex Learning as its core content.

TECHNOLOGY USED IN LIBRARY MEDIA CENTERS & COMPUTER LABS

The library media centers and computer labs at the seven comprehensive MCS high schools have a variety of technology tools that students and staff use on a daily basis to enhance learning. Some schools have separate computer labs within the library media center; all media centers have computer workstations accessible for students to use before, during and after school. Libraries and computer labs with wireless access points allow students and staff to bring their own wireless devices (known as BYOD) and staff may connect to the wired network with their personal laptops to access the Internet anywhere in the District.

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Examples of regularly used technology include:

• Hardware such as desktop workstations, online library catalogs, notebook computers, tablets, LCD projectors, Apple TV, wireless access points, scanners, printers, and document cameras

• Web-based tools such as online subscription databases (ProQuest, EBSCO, Cengage, Career Cruising), EdModo, Google Apps for Educators, Follett Bookshelf and other teacher-created sites.

The shift toward Common Core State Standards places an emphasis on digital content creation as a key component of both instructional outcomes and summative assessments. Pairing intervention with need is a deliberate and dynamic process that has replaced traditional “bubble and scan tests” by the implementation of computer-based testing. Skill sets, such as word processing, online research and collaboration normally associated with grades 7 - 12, must now be developed as early as 2nd grade. Library-based and mobile media centers are essential elements in this preparation.

The research outcomes identified in the CCSS include:

• Conduct short research and more sustained research projects • Gather relevant information from multiple sources, including digital and print • Demonstrate understanding of the subject matter • Assess credibility and accuracy of sources • Integrate information while avoiding plagiarism • Draw evidence to support analysis, reflection, and research

District staff plays a vital role in teaching online research skills and many serve as the school’s primary instructional technology resource. As the District moves toward the adoption of digital textbooks they will be key personnel in assisting students, staff, and teachers in this transition.

SBAC TECHNOLOGY READINESS & IMPLEMENTATION

To support interim and annual assessments, the District provides and maintains both permanent (wired) and mobile (wireless) computer labs at each of its school sites. Ratios for these labs are determined by SBAC assessment windows and student populations.

TECHNOLOGY USED IN SCHOOL MANAGEMENT

The District’s Information Systems programming staff created a number of powerful applications and reporting tools that enhance school management and provide immediate feedback.

The Classroom Visitation Application enables administrators to take an objective snapshot of a lesson in progress, and send immediate feedback to teacher. The information collected is stored in a SQL database, allowing the teacher or administrator to disaggregate each snapshot to identify areas of need

and track their progression. This application was written to evolve as District emphasis and needs change.

The IS staff develop and maintain a feature-rich SQL based data warehouse called MOSIS (Modesto Student Information System) which includes a host of powerful workflows, processes, and applications. MOSIS interconnects data tables across multiple applications and data sets, enabling staff to perform tasks like changing a student’s Active Directory password from a dashboard, or access emergency contact information with simple search. MOSIS’s Discipline application is highly refined workflow that tracks a student’s discipline from infraction to intervention in a secure data structure which is only accessible on a need to know basis. Additionally, documents and reports entered into the system cannot be altered after posting, ensuring a solid chain of information fidelity throughout the process.

MOSIS is an essential tool for ensuring the submission accuracy of time critical CALPADS reporting. It also contains robust reporting features that enable users access the data they need in a simple, intuitive workflow.

Mike Rich, Principal of Davis High School comments:

“As an administrator the use of technology is integral not only to my daily responsibilities but in the ongoing efforts to educate all students. PowerSchool, SchoolCity and MOSIS are invaluable as information systems. Regular use of these services is essential to reviewing data globally and then drilling down to the individual student level. Without them it would be impossible to identify and prescribe personal interventions for students. Parent portal access of student grades and attendance has become a powerful ally to help bridge the home to school communication. Outlook has also become a needed staple for communicating with parents, staff and other stakeholders. Without email our efficacy rate would plummet. Our school website is also a great piece of software to help with the communication and dissemination of vital information to the community.

From a hardware standpoint I use my laptop and iPad every day. The use these devices helps me create professional development, research new ideas and present them to the staff and faculty to better educate the whole child. Computer labs, both fixed and mobile, have become a valuable teaching tool in the hands of teachers and students. As we move towards more online assessment tools, it will be essential to place devices in the hands of all students regularly and efficiently to prepare them for 21st century careers and expectations.

The new digital version of the Walk Through Protocol is a great improvement to its predecessor. The data it provides us is timely and accurate. The ability to send the notes to a teacher and share a professional conversation is invaluable.”

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3c. Summary of the district's curricular goals that are supported by this tech plan.

The Modesto City Schools (MCS) Technology Master Plan is aligned and influenced by various district strategic documents, programs, state and federal guidelines, and the newly adopted California Common Core State Standards. The MCS District Strategic Plan was revised and rewritten in 2013-14 to provide essential district-wide objectives that give direction and meaning to the goals and implementation plan set within Modesto City Schools. This plan is also guided by the recently updated California legislation (AB307) and the revised Federal laws (CIPA and Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act) which influence district policy, teaching, and learning in areas related to digital safety, ethics, and citizenship.

The purpose of this Technology Master Plan is to meet the certification requirements of the California Department of Education. It also serves as the reference document for the FCC’s E-Rate Reimbursement Program, the Microsoft Settlement K12 Voucher Program, and any potential State, Federal, or private education technology funding initiatives.

MCS Curriculum Goals

Our specific curricular goals are directly tied to making a smooth transition from California Content Standards to the California Common Core State Standards. All components of the Master Plan goals and strategies support this transition, and staff is currently exploring technology to enhance instructional practices and promote student mastery of CCSS.

To significantly reduce the achievement gap and access gap over the next three years by personalizing instruction and learning for each student, holding high expectations, and providing additional supports for students who require them

• Redesign district services for effectiveness, efficiency and equity • Ensure all students achieve proficiency on state standardized assessments • Expand access to online course offerings and develop a certification process for online instruction

based on the International Association for Online Learning (iNACOL) standards

Assignment of Common Core State Standards Implementation Fund in Support of Technology

The transition to Common Core State Standards represents a fundamental shift in how teachers will use technology to deliver instruction and assess student performance. Recognizing the significance of this shift, the Governing Board allocated $2,100,000 from the state’s Common Core State Standards Implementation Fund to be used towards three essential implementation steps:

• upgrades to or replacement of teacher workstations that exceed five years,

• ensuring that K-12 sites have adequate technology to deliver the Computer Based Testing (CBT)

• professional development for technology mastery.

Subsequent phases will be delineated over the transition of this plan.

Single Plan for Student Achievement

At the school level, the School Site Council annually prepares a Single Plan for Student Achievement. The plan includes a continuous development, implementation, and monitoring cycle to provide a means to monitor student achievement.

Within the “Actions to be Taken to Reach This Goal” section, schools determine the role of technology in their plans. The plans MAY include the allocation of resources to purchase hardware, software, or to provide additional staff development for the use of these electronic resources.

Mark Nower, an agriculture sciences teacher at Gregori High School uses technology to support project based learning in all his classes. His students routinely use their 36-station computer lab to conduct Internet based research, create reports, write speeches, and track their live animal projects.

His students use an Excel based record book program to keep records (receipts and expenses), log their FFA Activities, keep track of non-depreciable and depreciable property, track calendar events as well as their community activities. Students also use their books as the basis to apply for the chapter farmer, State Farmer and American Farmer degrees.

Nower said, “This coming year we are switching to an ‘E book” so students will be able to log in at home and keep better track of their records.”

He added their record book project has been a key factor in his students’ success in state level competitions and that Gregori FFA students have made it to the finals the past three years.

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3d. List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan for using technology to improve teaching and learning by supporting the district curricular goals.

By providing teachers with ongoing opportunities to participate in effective professional development activities and by giving them easy access to integrate quality online resources, students will participate in engaging and empowering learning experiences. This any time, any place, any pace student access to online resources will be facilitated through active use of school-to-home communications and through the utilization of appropriate social media.

GOAL 1 of 2

Goal 3d.1 All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and out of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society.

GOAL All learners will have engaging and empowering learning experiences both in and out of school that prepare them to be active, creative, knowledgeable, and ethical participants in our globally networked society.

OBJECTIVE 3d.1.1 By June 2017, Modesto City Schools will continue to develop a comprehensive web presence that provides online materials for the support of professional development and curriculum delivery for the Common Core implementation of English Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Science.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3d.1.1a By June 2015, Modesto City Schools will continue to develop and maintain a combined Windows SharePoint Services 2013 and Google Sites web presence that focuses on providing online materials for the support of Professional Development of Common Core implementation of English Language Arts.

Year 2: 3d.1.1b By June 2016, Modesto City Schools will continue to develop and maintain a combined Windows SharePoint Services 2013 and Google Sites web presence that focuses on providing online materials for the support of Professional Development of Common Core implementation of English Language Arts and Math.

Year 3: 3d.1.1c By June 2017, Modesto City Schools will continue to develop and maintain a combined Windows SharePoint Services 2013 and Google Sites web presence that focuses on providing online materials for the support of Professional Development of Common Core implementation of English Language Arts, Math, Science and Social Science and Career Technical Education and Electives.

OBJECTIVE 3d.1.2 By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers and will be trained to effectively utilize technology-based resources to deliver, enhance and differentiate content that fosters engaging learning experiences regardless of subject area or learning environment.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3d.1.2a By June 2015, 90% of administrators and 50% of teachers will be

trained to effectively utilize technology-based resources to deliver, enhance and differentiate content that fosters engaging learning experiences regardless of subject area or learning environment.

Year 2: 3d.1.2b By June 2016, 90% of administrators and 75% of teachers will be trained to effectively utilize technology-based resources to deliver, enhance and differentiate content that fosters engaging learning experiences regardless of subject area or learning environment.

Year 3: 3d.1.2c By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will be trained to effectively utilize technology-based resources to deliver, enhance and differentiate content that fosters engaging learning experiences regardless of subject area or learning environment.

OBJECTIVE 3d.1.3 By June 2017, 90% of all students will use technology to practice and increase their skills in reading and math as aligned with the California Common Core State Standards and NETS (National Education Technology Standards for Students).

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3d.1.3a By June 2015, 50% of students will use technology to practice and increase their skills in reading and math as aligned with the California Common Core State Standards and NETS (National Education Technology Standards for Students).

Year 2: 3d.1.3b By June 2016, 70% of students will use technology to practice and increase their skills in reading and math as aligned with the California Common Core State Standards and NETS (National Education Technology Standards for Students).

Year 3: 3d.1.3c By June 2017, 90% of students will use technology to practice and increase their skills in reading and math as aligned with the California Common Core State Standards and NETS (National Education Technology Standards for Students).

OBJECTIVE 3d.1.4 By June 2017, Modesto City Schools will ensure learner online access to content and resources anytime anyplace any pace by providing student accounts to both Google Apps for Education and Edmodo and teacher training in both programs.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3d.1.4a By June 2015, Modesto City Schools will provide its students with a Google Apps for Education student login and teacher access to Google certified training.

Year 2: 3d.1.4b By June 2016, Modesto City Schools will continue to provide its students with a Google Apps for Education student login and teacher access to Google certified training and add Edmodo at the secondary level.

Year 3: 3d.1.4c By June 2017, Modesto City Schools will ensure learner online access to content and resources anytime anyplace any pace by providing student accounts to both Google Apps for Education and Edmodo and teacher training in both programs.

OBJECTIVE 3d.1.5 By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will be trained to create and promote clear channels of communication through the use of school-to-home communication resources such as: websites, email, social media, PowerSchool

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portal, school messenger. BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3d.1.5a By June 2015, 90% of administrators and 50% of teachers will be

trained to create and promote clear channels of communication through the use of school-to-home communication resources such as: websites, email, social media, PowerSchool portal, school messenger.

Year 2: 3d.1.5b By June 2016, 90% of administrators and 75% of teachers will be trained to create and promote clear channels of communication through the use of school-to-home communication resources such as: websites, email, social media, PowerSchool portal, school messenger.

Year 3: 3d.1.5c By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will be trained to create and promote clear channels of communication through the use of school-to-home communication resources such as: websites, email, social media, PowerSchool portal, school messenger.

OBJECTIVE 3d.1.6 By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will be trained to leverage appropriate social networking technologies and platforms to create interactive personal learning networks using FaceBook, Google +, Twitter, and Edmodo.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3d.1.6a By June 2015, 90% of administrators and 50% of teachers will be trained to leverage appropriate social networking technologies and platforms to create interactive personal learning networks using FaceBook, Google +, Twitter, and Edmodo.

Year 2: 3d.1.6b By June 2016, 90% of administrators and 75% of teachers will be trained to leverage appropriate social networking technologies and platforms to create interactive personal learning networks using FaceBook, Google +, Twitter, and Edmodo.

Year 3: 3d.1.6c By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will be trained to leverage appropriate social networking technologies and platforms to create interactive personal learning networks using FaceBook, Google +, Twitter, and Edmodo.

Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible Monitoring & Evaluation

Site Administrators schedule collaboration time for Site Administrators and teachers to align standards-based instruction, analyze district and standardized assessment data, identify student strengths and needs, and plan next steps, including re-teach and check-for-understanding strategies

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Site Administrators District and Site Administrators, Department Chairs and Curriculum Coaches will place appropriate items on agendas and facilitate discussion; agendas will be forwarded to the District Technology Committee (DTC).

using technology resources (video, tutorials, manipulatives, and games).

Provide in-class, after-school and release time support for teachers on an as-needed basis, by skilled in-district staff member expertise.

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Site Administrators Comments and observations from the Classroom Visitation Application.

MCS Technology Assessment

Site administrator comments and observations.

Utilize Google Forms to survey staff and develop targeted staff trainings in support of district initiatives, Common Core Standards, 21st Century Skills, and NETS (Info/Digital Media Literacies).

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Site Administrators

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

Reports made to the DTC highlighting new and evolving educational technologies.

MCS Technology Assessment

Develop and offer a summer technology institute that focuses on technology integration in core curricula (aligned with district initiatives, Common Core Standards, 21st Century Skills, and NETS (Info/Digital Media Literacies).

Spring and Summer – Year 1, 2, 3

Office of Instructional Technology

MCS Technology Assessment

Reports made to the DTC highlighting new and evolving educational technologies.

Review of new electronic/digital learning resources that facilitate differentiated instruction using 21st Century and Information/Digital Media Literacy (IDML) skills (NETS) and Common Core Standards.

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Office of Instructional Technology

Director II, Information and Technology Services

Reports made to the DTC highlighting new and evolving educational technologies.

Determine purchase of new electronic/digital learning resources, which facilitate differentiated instruction using 21st Century and Information/Digital Media Literacy (IDML) skills.

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Director II, Information and Technology Services

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

Reports made to the DTC highlighting new and evolving educational technologies.

MCS Technology Assessment

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Teachers plan units of practice that incorporate use of technology and that have "real world" relevancy and are integrated to the grade level curricula (in alignment with Common Core Standards, 21st Century Skills, and NETS (Info/Digital Media Literacies).

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Teachers

Site Administrators

Comments and observations from the Classroom Visitation Application.

Site administrator comments and observations.

Develop a template outlining levels of technology proficiency for each grade in alignment with NETS.

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Director II, Information and Technology Services

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

MCS Technology Assessment

K-6 teachers will utilize technology resources to augment the delivery of a minimum of two lessons per trimester.

Each semester Teachers

Site Administrators

Results from the MCS Technology Survey

Site administrator comments and observations.

7-12 teachers will utilize technology resources to augment the delivery of a minimum of four lessons per semester.

Each semester Teachers

Site Administrators

Results from the MCS Technology Survey

Site administrator comments and observations.

Teachers will complete the MCS Assessment Profile annually to monitor use of technology in instruction.

Annually, in Aug.

Supervisor of Instructional Technology

Results from the MCS Technology Survey

District Technology Committee will review results to consider modifications to Tech Plan.

GOAL 2 of 2

Goal 3d.2 Modesto City Schools administrators and teachers at all levels will use real-time assessment data to determine appropriate interventions to improve instruction and student achievement.

GOAL Modesto City Schools administrators and teachers at all levels will use real-time assessment data to determine appropriate interventions to improve instruction and student achievement.

OBJECTIVE 3d.2.1

By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will design, develop, and implement assessments that give students, educators, and other stakeholders timely and actionable feedback about student learning to improve achievement and instructional practices.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3d.2.1a By June 2015, 90% of administrators and 50% of teachers will design, develop, and implement assessments that give students, educators, and other stake holders timely and actionable feedback about student learning to improve achievement and instructional practices.

Year 2: 3d.2.1b By June 2016, 90% of administrators and 75% of teachers will design, develop, and implement assessments that give students, educators, and other stake holders timely and actionable feedback about student learning to improve achievement and instructional practices.

Year 3: 3d.2.1c By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will design, develop, and implement assessments that give students, educators, and other stakeholders timely and actionable feedback about student learning to improve achievement and instructional practices.

OBJECTIVE 3d.2.2

By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will continue professional development activities which focus on building capacity to use technology to improve assessment materials and processes for both formative and summative uses.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3d.2.2a By June 2015, 90% of administrators and 50% of teachers will continue professional development activities which focus on building the capacity of teachers and administrators to use technology to improve assessment materials and processes for both formative and summative uses.

Year 2: 3d.2.2b By June 2016, 90% of administrators and 75% of teachers will continue professional development activities which focus on building the capacity of teachers and administrators to use technology to improve assessment materials and processes for both formative and summative uses.

Year 3: 3d.2.2c By June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will continue professional development activities which focus on building capacity to use technology to improve assessment materials and processes for both formative and summative uses.

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Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible

Monitoring & Evaluation

Evaluation Instrument

Assessment and data-driven instruction will become a regular agenda item at site and district department chair meetings and Professional Learning Community meetings that all teachers participate in.

Monthly, Aug. – May each year

Site Administrators

Department chairs and Program Manager will place appropriate items on agendas and facilitate discussion; agendas will be turned in to principals.

SchoolCity reports, agendas and minutes.

Utilizing the reporting capabilities of SchoolCity, teachers will access Weekly, Unit, and Benchmark Assessment results and adjust instruction accordingly.

Weekly, Aug. – May each year

Teachers and Site Administrators

Site administrator comments and observations.

Results from the MCS Technology Survey

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NARRATIVE

Our curriculum goal is to deliver technology rich instruction in all appropriate areas. All those who design, develop, and implement the district curriculum strive to infuse technology standards (ISTE NET*S/NET*T) into the instructional programs by:

• Using technology as a learning tool. • Matching technology use objectives to the curriculum standards and benchmarks in appropriate

subject areas. • Reinforcing student technology user skill standards. • Requiring the student to acquire hardware and software user skills. • Integrating the use of technology into the body of lesson plans. • Using teaching strategies that are based on current learning theory. • Requiring the student to solve authentic problems through project‐based assignments with

technology. • Providing an effective library/media technology resource program to all students. • Coordinating activities among teachers who are integrating technology into the curriculum.

Technology offers students possibilities for exploration, reinforcement, remediation, acceleration, creativity, and collaboration across the curriculum. Teachers are seeking and discovering innovative ways to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse student population.

All students will benefit from increased access to technology with opportunities to:

• Engage in a wide variety of multimedia and telecommunications projects • Master curricular objectives. • Develop real‐world computer skills that will enable them to be more productive when they exit high

school.

Our adoption of ISTE NETS complements research provided by the Partnership for 21st Century Learning, whose findings confirm that in increasingly complex life and work environments of the 21st century, a "focus on creativity, critical thinking, communication and collaboration is essential to prepare students for the future." Technology integration into the curriculum is aligned to ISTE NETS Standards for Students and Teachers included in the chart below:

National Educational Technology Standards and Performance Indicators for Students (NETS*S)

National Educational Technology Standards and Performance Indicators for Teachers (NETS*T)

1. Creativity and Innovation 1. Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity

2. Communication and Collaboration 2. Design and Develop Digital‐Age Learning Experiences and Assessments

3. Research and Information Fluency 3. Model Digital‐Age Work and Learning

4. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making

4. Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility

5. Digital Citizenship 5. Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

6. Technology Operations and Concepts

Software will be used on a regular basis to help support core instruction as well as differentiate for the needs of individual students. Examples of activities that meet these criteria include:

• Basic skill math practice: Using the software to cumulatively track individual student progress towards proficiency in data identified weaknesses

• Core curriculum exploration: Using dynamic models students will manipulate, hypothesis and discover mathematical properties such as the triangle midpoint theorems, tangents to circles and roots of higher order polynomials.

• Differentiated instruction: Students will access content at their level. This may include, but is not limited to, lesson specific interactive examples for strategic learners, higher order thinking activities for the advanced learner and core content support for benchmark learns. Virtual manipulative, lesson specific videos and online research will help the every student learn at their level.

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PARENT INVOLVEMENT

The following information points regarding parent involvement in their children’s education provides insight into its importance:

• The earlier in a child’s educational process parent involvement begins, the more powerful the effects.

• The most effective forms of parent involvement are those, which engage parents in working directly with their children on learning activities at home.

• Family participation in education was twice as predictive of students’ academic success as family socioeconomic status.

• Parents of high-achieving students set higher standards for their children’s educational activities than parents of low-achieving students.

• Although most parents do not know how to help their children with their education, with guidance and support, they may become increasingly involved in home learning activities and find themselves with opportunities to teach, to be models for and to guide their children.

• Parents need specific information on how to help and what to do. • The strongest and most consistent predictors of parent involvement at school and at home are the

specific school programs and teacher practices that encourage parent involvement at school and guide parents in how to help their children at home.

• School activities to develop and maintain partnerships with families decline with each grade level, and drop dramatically at the transition to middle grades.

Joyce Epstein of Johns Hopkins University has developed a framework for defining six different types of parent involvement. This framework assists educators in developing school and family partnership programs. "There are many reasons for developing school, family, and community partnerships," she writes. "The main reason to create such partnerships is to help all youngsters succeed in school and in later life."

Epstein's Framework of Six Types of Involvement

1. PARENTING: Help all families establish home environments to support children as students. 2. COMMUNICATING: Design effective forms of school-to-home and home-to-school communications about school programs and children's progress. 3. VOLUNTEERING: Recruit and organize parent help and support. 4. LEARNING AT HOME: Provide information and ideas to families about how to help students at home with homework and other curriculum-related activities, decisions, and planning. 5. DECISION MAKING: Include parents in school decisions, developing parent leaders and representatives. 6. COLLABORATING WITH COMMUNITY: Identify and integrate resources and services from the community to strengthen school programs, family practices, and student learning and development.

Modesto City Schools envisions an expanded relationship with the community through the development of parent volunteer programs and parent outreach classes. Working with the Instructional Technology Department and Community Outreach Programs schools will be encouraged to host parent training events which may include the following topics:

• California Common Core State Standards • Smarter Balance Assessment Consortium (SBAC) computer-based testing • Using the PowerSchool Parent Portal • Monitoring your child’s Edmodo account • Basic computer skills training • Internet security

FLIPPED CLASSROOM INSTRUCTION

A flipped classroom inverts the traditional educational model so that the content is delivered outside of class, while class time is spent on activities normally considered “homework.” For example, students may access instructional material through videos, podcasts or online tutorials before the class meeting. Then during class time, students work on activities which force them to apply what they have learned.

Students watch the lesson at home, where they can speed through content they already understand or stop and review content they missed the first time the teacher discussed it (and might have been too embarrassed to ask their teacher to repeat in class). Online lectures can also easily incorporate visual representations, such as interactive graphs, videos, or photos of important historical events.

Moving instruction online and application into the classroom requires that the instructor relinquish some of their control to the students. In doing so, instructors using the flipped model empower students to take an active role in their education and academic output.

“Our results suggest that students are better prepared to understand a theory after first exploring by themselves, and that tangible user interfaces are particularly well-suited for that purpose,”

What inverted classrooms may really be flipping is not just the classroom, but the entire paradigm of teaching—away from a traditional model of teachers as imparters of knowledge and toward a model of teachers as coaches who carefully observe students, identify their learning needs, and guide them to higher levels of learning. Evidence on Flipped Classrooms is Still Coming In

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The following is an excerpt from Cynthia Brame’s article on Flipping the Classroom. Used with permission. http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/teaching-activities/flipping-the-classroom/ 9/11/2013

What are the key elements of the flipped classroom?

1. Provide an opportunity for students to gain first exposure prior to class.

The mechanism used for first exposure can vary, from simple textbook readings to lecture videos to podcasts or screencasts. For example, Grand Valley State University math professor Robert Talbert provides screencasts on class topics on his YouTube channel, while Vanderbilt computer science professor Doug Fisher provides his students video lectures prior to class. These videos can be created by the instructor or found online from YouTube, the Khan Academy, MIT’s OpenCourseWare, Coursera, or other similar sources. The pre-class exposure doesn’t have to be high-tech, however; in the Deslauriers, Schelew, and Wieman study described above, students simply completed pre-class reading assignments.

2. Provide an incentive for students to prepare for class.

In all the examples cited above, students completed a task associated with their preparation….and that task was associated with points. The assignment can vary; the examples above used tasks that ranged from online quizzes to worksheets to short writing assignments, but in each case the task provided an incentive for students to come to class prepared by speaking the common language of undergraduates: points. In many cases, grading for completion rather than effort can be sufficient, particularly if class activities will provide students with the kind of feedback that grading for accuracy usually provides.

3. Provide a mechanism to assess student understanding.

The pre-class assignments that students complete as evidence of their preparation can also help both the instructor and the student assess understanding. Pre-class online quizzes can allow the instructor to practice Just-in-Time Teaching (JiTT; Novak et al., 1999), which basically means that the instructor tailors class activities to focus on the elements with which students are struggling. If automatically graded, the quizzes can also help students pinpoint areas where they need help. Pre-class worksheets can also help focus student attention on areas with which they’re struggling, and can be a departure point for class activities, while pre-class writing assignments help students clarify their thinking about a subject, thereby producing richer in-class discussions. Importantly, much of the feedback students need is provided in class, reducing the need for instructors to provide extensive commentary outside of class (Walvoord and Anderson, 1998). In addition, many of the activities used during class time (e.g., clicker questions or debates) can serve as informal checks of student understanding.

4. Provide in-class activities that focus on higher level cognitive activities.

If the students gained basic knowledge outside of class, then they need to spend class time to promote deeper learning. Again, the activity will depend on the learning goals of the class and the culture of the discipline. For example, Lage, Platt, and Treglia described experiments students did in class to illustrate economic principles (2000), while Mazur and colleagues focused on student discussion of conceptual “clicker” questions and quantitative problems focused on physical principles (2001). In other contexts, students may spend time in class engaged in debates, data analysis, or synthesis activities. The key is that students are using class time to deepen their understanding and increase their skills at using their new knowledge.

3e List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan detailing how and when students will acquire the technology skills and information literacy skills needed to succeed in the classroom and the workplace.

3e.1 All students will become technology literate as designated in the NETS Standards for Students, at their appropriate grade level.

GOAL MCS will work to ensure that students become technology literate as designated in the NETS Standards for Students, at their appropriate grade level.

OBJECTIVE 3e.1.1 3e.1.1 By June 2017, 80% of K-12 students will demonstrate proficiency in technology, information, and digital literacy skills at the appropriate grade level, as measured by the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) Performance Indicators. (See Appendix for NETS Performance Indicators for Technology‐Literate Students)

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3e.1.1a By June 2015, 40% of K-12 students will demonstrate proficiency in technology, information, and digital literacy skills at the appropriate grade level, as measured by the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) Performance Indicators.

Year 2: 3e.1.1b By June 2016, 60% of K-12 students will demonstrate proficiency in technology, information, and digital literacy skills at the appropriate grade level, as measured by the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) Performance Indicators.

Year 3: 3e.1.1c By June 2017, 80% of K-12 students will demonstrate proficiency in technology, information, and digital literacy skills at the appropriate grade level, as measured by the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) Performance Indicators.

Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible Monitoring & Evaluation

Students will complete the pre/post assessment of technology skills and use administered through SchoolCity.

Annually, in Aug.

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

Pre/Post Student Technology Survey results.

Reports made to the District Technology Committee highlighting classroom activities.

Assist teachers in implementing technology activities in their classroom through coaching, demonstration lessons, and modeling.

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

Site Administrators

Instructional Coaches

Site administrator comments and observations.

Instructional Coaches anonymous reports.

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Implement model lessons and curriculum that scaffold skills for teaching technology and information literacy.

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Classroom & computer teachers, curriculum specialists & coaches, Supervisor, Instructional Technology, Math and ELA Coordinators

Site administrator comments and observations

Instructional Coaches anonymous reports.

Gather and review sample teacher and student activities that demonstrate the achievement of appropriate NETS standards.

Throughout the school year – Year 1, 2, 3

Classroom & computer teachers, curriculum specialists & coaches, Supervisor, Instructional Technology, Math and ELA Coordinators,

District and Site Administrators, Department Chairs and Curriculum Coaches will place appropriate items on agendas and facilitate discussion; agendas will be forwarded to the District Technology Committee (DTC).

K-6 teachers adapt lessons so that students create at least two assignments that demonstrate appropriate use of technology skills to communicate understanding of learning objectives.

Each trimester

Classroom & computer teachers, curriculum specialists & coaches, Supervisor, Instructional Technology, Math and ELA Coordinators, Site Administrators

Site administrator comments and observations

Instructional Coaches anonymous reports.

7-12 teachers adapt lessons so that students create at least four assignments that demonstrate appropriate use of technology skills to communicate understanding of learning objectives.

Each semester

Classroom & computer teachers, curriculum specialists & coaches, Supervisor, Instructional Technology, Math and ELA Coordinators, Site Administrators

Site administrator comments and observations

Instructional Coaches anonymous reports.

PK-6 - Computer literacy expectations that have been traditionally associated with high school are now being shifted to elementary grades. Exposure to, and the use of interactive devices that connect students to Internet based resources are being incorporated into PK classrooms to support ELA skills development and to support early reading instruction. Child Development Classes (CDC) use the i Start Smart Android tablet by Hatch. This children's educational software consists of skill development games with a focus on school readiness in the fields of phonological awareness, numeric operations, language development, alphabet knowledge, and logic and reasoning, and featuring free play games and administrative/reporting features in the nature of built-in, standards-based progress monitoring with online and printable reports for teachers and administrators.

The use of iPads varies in PK-6 classrooms, as the purchase of these devices has been largely dependent on categorical and discretionary funding. These devices are replacing traditional student computer workstations for content generation with GAFE and the incorporation of Edmodo by teachers to coordination instructional activities. Teachers have also integrated a variety of technology-rich projects that include multimedia presentations, research brochures, reports and photographic shows using PhotoStory.

Basic computer and keyboarding proficiency, regardless of platform

(computer workstation or touch tablets) is an essential skill set for students entering grade 4 due to the SBAC writing requirements.

7-8 MCS has a Computer Literacy Graduation Requirement and there are three ways to pass it (details at mcs website). By the time students reach middle school they can elect to take a Computer Literacy class that meets the graduation requirement. At this level students are fully immersed in technology-using projects in their science classes (Probeware, acceleration measurement, etc.), History (multimedia group presentations), English Language Arts (Read 180) and Math (textbook review drill and practice).

9-12 Students are taught how to improve their report writing skills, graphing and chart making, and Internet Researching and Information validity skills through their 9th grade English classes.

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Student Technology Survey

Students in grades 6, 8 and 12 will complete the Student Technology Survey in August and again in May using a SchoolCity survey that measures answer choice responses. This survey will be distributed to the sites and the IT department will work with Assessment and Evaluation and each site to create and distribute both the survey and answer sheets. Yearly results will be shared with the District Technology Committee.

3f. List of goals and an implementation plan that describe how the district will address the appropriate and ethical use of information technology in the classroom so that students can distinguish lawful from unlawful uses of copyrighted works, including the following topics: the concept and purpose of both copyright and fair use

3f.1 All students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial, successfully complete the Student Internet Safety Quiz and accept the “Student Internet and Network Agreement.”

GOAL All students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial, successfully complete the Student Internet Safety Quiz and accept the “Student Internet and Network Agreement.”

OBJECTIVE 3f.1.1 3f.1 By the end of the third year students will have to view an expanded version of the current Student Internet Tutorial and teachers and staff will be in-serviced on the ethical use of technology in the classroom.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3f.1a By June 2015, students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial and accept the “Student Internet and Network Agreement.”

Year 2: 3f.1b By June 2016, students will continue to be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial and a district webpage featuring fair use, copyright, peer-to-peer networks, social websites and plagiarism will be developed.

Year 3: 3f.1c By June 2017, students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial, successfully complete the Student Internet Safety Quiz and accept the “Student Internet and Network Agreement.”

Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible

Monitoring & Evaluation

Evaluation Instrument

Review of collected data for program modification.

District staff will receive detailed

Yearly, June

Supervisor Instructional Technology

Student Internet Tutorial and Network Agreement data

Read and Delivered

Active Directory deny Internet access reporting in the Student Information System MOSIS.

information regarding how copyright and fair use applies to students and staff.

receipts from Outlook as well as staff in-service agendas.

Continue to require students to complete the Student Internet Use Tutorial.

Yearly, Aug Teachers Active Directory deny Internet access group membership control settings.

Active Directory deny Internet access reporting in the Student Information System MOSIS.

Teachers will continue to model the appropriate utilization of electronic resources in the delivery of their curriculum, thereby reinforcing what students have learned through the Student Internet Tutorial.

Weekly Teachers and Site Administrators

Site administrator comments and observations.

Comments and observations from the Classroom Visitation Application.

In 2006 the Legislature passed Assembly Bill 307. Districts must now educate their students in the ethical use of information technology including, avoiding plagiarism, the concept, purpose, and significance of a copyright, and the implications of illegal peer-to-peer network file sharing. Internet safety is also an added requirement. In order to follow copyright laws, students, teachers, and staff must know them. Teachers need to teach about copyright first by setting a correct example themselves and second through direct instruction to their students.

Currently, Modesto City Schools has a mandatory Student Internet Tutorial that students must view prior to being given access to the Internet or email. Once students view the tutorial and agree to the Student Internet and Network Agreement they are removed from the deny internet access group. Not only are our students taught proper use of copyright (which includes the use of peer-to-peer networks and plagiarism) through the Internet Tutorial, they also receive constant reinforcement through the model use by teachers.

Starting with the 2011/12 school year MCS added an Internet Safety Quiz at the end of the Student Internet Tutorial. Once students complete the Internet Tutorial, they proceed through a 10 question quiz. If the wrong answer is chosen, the student is taken to a page with the tutorial slide information. They are again given the option choices for the question. Once the correct answer is chosen they can proceed to the next question. At the end, they must read through the Student AUP and click accept. They are then moved into the Internet Use Group in AD.

Modesto City Schools has also completed an extensive 22 page Digital Literacy Website that features pages on cyberlaw, copyright, communications, Internet Safety and Web 2.0 tools. http://www.mcs4kids.com/itech/DL

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3g. List of goals and an implementation plan that describe how the district will address Internet safety, including how to protect online privacy and avoid online predators. (AB 307)

3g.1 All students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial which includes a section on cyberbullying, complete the online Safety Quiz and accept the Student Acceptable Use Policy (AUP).

GOAL Students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial which includes a section on cyberbullying, complete the online Safety Quiz and accept the Student Acceptable Use Policy (AUP).

OBJECTIVE 3g.1.1 3g.1.1 By June 2017, students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial, successfully complete the Student Internet Safety Quiz and accept the “Student Internet and Network Agreement.”

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3g.1.1a By June 2015, students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial and accept the “Student Internet and Network Agreement.”

Year 2: 3g.1.1b By June 2016, students will continue to be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial and a district webpage featuring fair use, copyright, peer-to-peer networks, social websites and plagiarism will be developed.

Year 3: 3g.1.1c By June 2017, students that need access to the Internet will be required to view the updated Student Internet Tutorial, successfully complete the Student Internet Safety Quiz and accept the “Student Internet and Network Agreement.”

Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible

Monitoring & Evaluation

Evaluation Instrument

District staff will receive detailed information regarding the steps the district is implementing to ensure privacy as well as additional steps users can deploy to further safeguard their personal data.

Yearly, June

Director of Information and Technology Services

Cyber SafetyWebsite

Website access as verified by hit counter.

Students must complete the Student Internet Tutorial, pass the check for understanding questions and agree to the Student Use Policy prior to being removed from the Deny

Yearly, Aug. Information Systems, teachers and computer lab /library media center staff

Student Internet Tutorial and Network Agreement data

Active Directory Deny Internet access reporting in the Student Information System MOSIS.

Internet Access AD group.

The Student Internet Tutorial is a 36 slide multimedia presentation that incorporates frequent check-for-understanding questions. The presentation is interactive and students are redirected to supporting information when incorrect answers are entered by them. The tutorial (see Addendum 10.4) covers logins, privacy, sharing of personal information, social networking safety, inappropriate behavior, cyberpredators, copyright and plagiarism, citing sources, harmful material and netiquette. The district currently uses a CIPA-compliant Internet filtering process. Students are not given Internet access unless they view the Student Internet Tutorial, pass the CyberSafety Quiz and accept the terms of the Student Acceptable Use Policy. Parents wishing to have their students excluded from Internet access can fill out a district exclusion form. More information about cyber safety will be built into the district webpage dealing with fair use and copyright issues. Teachers and staff will be in-serviced about this important component as well.

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3h. Description of the district policy or practices that ensure equitable technology access for all students.

The fundamental goals of this plan are to integrate technology into the full spectrum of the curriculum, provide the required technology, and teach all students a wide-range of technical skills, regardless of grade level, educational achievement, or physical ability.

To achieve these goals:

• the District has rewritten its “Standard Classroom Equipment Document” to include basic technology components in all classrooms - page 8

• the District’s Instructional Technology (IT) Department has been restructured to better meet the challenges associated with CCSS and develop a comprehensive repository of online resources that are both timely and useful to staff, students, and parents - page 9

• the District entered into a partnership with Google and launched the monet.google domain to provide Google Apps for Education (GAFE) - page 10

• reduced rate internet access from Comcast is available to MCS families that qualify to receive free or reduced meals

• open access to the District’s Wi-Fi is available where these networks are present to students and staff • every school provides Internet access to students before school, during lunch, and after school in their

libraries or media centers - page 6

The Modesto City Schools District will make adequate provisions to provide current and emerging technological resources for students and teachers, and will provide access for the broader community. n order for technology to be used effectively, it must be both accessible and reliable. In order for teachers to give students assignments and use technology effectively in the classroom, students and teachers must have access to technology both in and outside the classroom. In addition, if students are going to prepare technology-based presentations, they must have access to enough resources on-site to get the presentations ready in a timely manner.

Those students who require specialized technology to assist them in achieving their educational goals will be provided them through various programs such as GATE, Special Day, Title I, Bilingual, and classes which support those with physical disabilities.

Technology will continue to develop and provide new and expanded opportunities to enhance learning. However, hardware and software must be compatible with its intended use. Rather, hardware should be replaced or upgraded only when the need for more sophisticated equipment specific to the instructional or administrative purpose has been established. Frequently, technology that is replaced in one location can serve useful purposes in another setting. However, instructional use, increased maintenance costs, and unavailability of replacements limit the life expectations of specific technologies.

The Technology-Based Classroom

Appropriate access by all students is best achieved when all schools have access to the funding that will enable them to provide a high level of technology-rich resource to all students, regardless of their socio-economic level. Until equitable funding is available at all levels, appropriate access to technology will be a goal that can only be achieved very slowly. The current State budget crisis has added to the challenge of securing funding for district technology projects. However, what this plan strives to accomplish is to establish a common vision of what every classroom should have in order for the teacher and the student to achieve their personal educational goals.

The District established technology standards for classrooms and works to ensure that all classrooms are equipped equally, and that adequate technology training is available to all staff.

The technology standard for classrooms includes:

• a computer or laptop that has high speed access to both internal and external network resources, • a projector or large digital display for presentation, • a document camera or tablet for image capture, • a printer to produce reports and supplemental materials.

The following table indicates potential additional technology resources which might be in place within the classroom to enable a teacher to totally integrate technology into their daily lessons and activities. What follows is not an exhaustive list, or even the ideal list, but simply a vision to the future of what a technology-based classroom might contain. This list does begin to address the issue of equity for students at all sites and at all grade levels. It also recognizes that there is still much discussion that needs to transpire in the coming years of this plan.

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3i. List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan to use technology to make student record keeping and assessment more efficient and supportive of teachers’ efforts to meet individual student academic needs.

Goal 3i.1 - PowerSchool will be used for student record keeping, attendance, grades and electronic report cards.

GOAL 3i.1 PowerSchool will be used for student record keeping, attendance, grades and electronic report cards.

OBJECTIVE 3i.1.1 3i.1.1 The district will continue to use PowerSchool for tracking student attendance with access to online resources and training for new staff.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3i.1.1a The district will continue to use PowerSchool for tracking student attendance with access to online resources and training for new staff.

Year 2: 3i.1.1b The district will continue to use PowerSchool for tracking student attendance with access to online resources and training for new staff.

Year 3: 3i.1.1c The district will continue to use PowerSchool for tracking student attendance with access to online resources and training for new staff.

OBJECTIVE 3i.1.2 3i.1.2 By the end of June 2017, all 7-12 grade teachers will continue to use the district standard electronic grade book program and all elementary teachers will be trained on the use of PowerTeacher Gradebook as the electronic report card tool.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3i.1.2a By the end of June 2015, 7-12 grade teachers will continue to use the district standard electronic grade book program and all K-1grade elementary teachers will be trained on the use of PowerTeacher Gradebook as the electronic report card tool.

Year 2: 3i.1.2b By the end of June 2016, 7-12 grade teachers will continue to use the district standard electronic grade book program and all 2-6 grade elementary teachers will be trained on the use of PowerTeacher Gradebook as the electronic report card tool.

Year 3: 3i.1.2c By the end of June 2017, 7-12 grade teachers will continue to use the district standard electronic grade book program and all elementary teachers will be trained on the use of PowerTeacher Gradebook as the electronic report card tool.

Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible

Monitoring & Evaluation

Disseminate the Parent Portal information to parents at BacktoSchool

Annually, Aug

Supervisor, Instructional

Results from the MCS Technology Survey

nights at each site and add announcements to the main district website.

Number of teacher access accounts created in PowerSource

Technology,

Software Development Manager

Site administrator comments and observations.

Goal 3i.2 - SchoolCity will be used the interpretation and extrapolation of assessments.

GOAL 3i.2 SchoolCity will be used the interpretation and extrapolation of assessments. OBJECTIVE 3i.2.1 3i.2.1 By the end of June 2017 90% of district administrators and teachers will use

SchoolCity for the extrapolation and interpretation of a variety of formative and summative assessments to assist the teacher in identifying and tracking students’ progress towards graduation.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3i.2.1a By the end of June 2015, 90% of district administrators will use SchoolCity for the interpretation and extrapolation of California Standards Examination, Benchmark Assessments/Standards Verification, and the High School Exit Examination data to assist the teacher in identifying and tracking students’ progress towards graduation.

Year 2: 3i.2.1b By the end of June 2016 90% of district administrators and secondary teachers will use SchoolCity for the interpretation and extrapolation of California Standards Examination, Benchmark Assessments/Standards Verification, and the High School Exit Examination data to assist the teacher in identifying and tracking students’ progress towards graduation.

Year 3: 3i.2.1c By the end of June 2017 90% of district administrators and teachers will use SchoolCity for the interpretation and extrapolation of California Standards Examination, Benchmark Assessments/Standards Verification, and the High School Exit Examination data to assist the teacher in identifying and tracking students’ progress towards graduation.

Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible

Monitoring & Evaluation

Evaluation Instrument

Use of SchoolCity reporting tools for gauging student progress towards graduation.

Ongoing, Aug - May

Director, Evaluation and Assessment, site administrators, counselors and teachers.

Tracking progress towards completion of graduation requirements

SchoolCity reports

Site reports to District Technology Committee

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Tracking Student Attendance – PowerSchool

Modesto City Schools utilizes Pearson’s PowerSchool to track and report student academic progress in the classroom. Currently, teachers enter attendance online in their classroom. School site personnel have the ability to download unverified student absences into a file that is processed by the district’s School Messenger parent notification system. During the afternoon and evening hours, the School Messenger system calls parents with a recorded message about their child’s attendance for the day.

Tracking the Student’s Classroom Achievement – District Standard Gradebook Program

The district deployed a new student information system in the Fall of 2010. The system is Pearson’s PowerSchool. This program replaces Making the Grade, which was in wide use in the past. Teachers are required to record classroom grades for each student and progress reports for parents. PowerSchool has a parent portal for posting attendance and grades online. These are available to any household with an Internet connected computer or device. PowerTeacher Gradebook was required of all 7-12 teachers starting in the 2010-11 school year. It is anticipated that it will be required for all K-12 teachers starting in the 2011-12 school year, if negotiated with the teacher’s union. It is the goal of the district to make grades and attendance available to all students and parents online by the 2011-12 school year.

Tracking Student Test Scores – SchoolCity

In addition to using PowerSchool to store student test scores, Modesto City Schools utilizes SchoolCity. SchoolCity is an online assessment management, analysis, and reporting system tailored to provide anytime anywhere access to student assessment data. Data stored in SchoolCity includes STAR, CAHSEE, and interim assessments/benchmarks. SchoolCity provides a standards-based item bank and assessment platform that assists the District and schools in creating standards aligned interim assessments/benchmarks. With all assessments, teachers have access to a comprehensive analysis of test results at the individual, class, school, and district level. Assessment reports can be disaggregated to gain additional information about specific groups of students. Teachers and administrators meet regularly for data discussions in which they analyze results to drive and modify instructional practices.

3j. List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan to use technology to improve two-way communication between home and school.

Technology has, and will continue to, help Modesto City Schools communicate with both students and parents. Through the PowerTeacher Parent Portal, parents can log in and check their students’ grades and attendance on a daily basis.

All teachers and site administrators have email accounts. All schools have a website linked from the Modesto City Schools website that list teacher email addresses. There is also a web application on the district website that allows a student or parent to look up a teacher’s email by site and name. As stated previously, Modesto City Schools also utilizes a system called School Messenger to notify parents of unverified student absences. This dialer is also used to notify parents of emergencies and to make announcements to groups of parents about important school events. Each day the district’s auto-dialer calls the homes of those students with unverified absences (automatically pulled from the student system) and reports absences recorded for that day. The telephone message supplies instructions on how to contact the school about attendance issues.

The District added an SMS text feature to School Messenger in August 2013 to give parent subscribers the option to receive text messages rather than voice calls from the system.

Another tool that the district will continue to use to communicate with staff, parents, and the community will be the “School Accountability Report Card.” This document outlines the goals and objectives of the school, reports on student academic achievement, student attendance and drop-out rates, site funding for special programs, and local and state test scores. These accountability report cards are posted on the district website.

Goal 3j.1: Improve two-way communication between home and school

GOAL Improve two-way communication between home and school OBJECTIVE 3j.1.1 3j.1.1 By June 2017, teachers will continue to use Outlook for email

communication with parents, colleagues and students, district provided Google sites and SharePoint services for district, site and teacher web pages and continue to participate in professional development on appropriate professional social media networks to collaborate and communicate with colleagues and community members.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 3j.1.1a By June 2015, new teachers will be trained in Outlook for email communication with parents, colleagues and students, district provided Google sites and SharePoint services for district, site and teacher web pages to collaborate and communicate with colleagues and community members.

Year 2: 3j.1.1b By June 2016, teachers will continue to use Outlook for email communication with parents, colleagues and students, district provided Google sites and SharePoint services for district, site and teacher web pages and receive introductory professional development on appropriate professional social media networks to collaborate and communicate with colleagues and community

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members.

Year 3: 3j.1.1c By June 2017, teachers will continue to use Outlook for email communication with parents, colleagues and students, district provided Google sites and SharePoint services for district, site and teacher web pages and continue to participate in professional development on appropriate professional social media networks to collaborate and communicate with colleagues and community members.

Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible

Monitoring & Evaluation

The District Technology Council will meet on a regular basis to review the data and recommendations for program modification.

Focus training delivered by Office of Instructional Technology to assist teachers who need additional training.

Annually, May

District Technology Council

Director II, Information and Technology Services

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

Training sign ins, agendas and minutes

To promote the use of the Parent Portal, sites will set up kiosks manned by staff at back-to-school nights and post announcements on the schools and district websites.

Annually, Aug Director II, Information and Technology Services

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

Number of parent portal accounts.

3k. Describe the process that will be used to monitor the Curricular Component (Section 3d-3j) goals, objectives, benchmarks and planned implementation activities including roles and responsibilities.

Departments involved with the collection, review, and dissemination of this data will be: Assessment and Evaluation, Educational Services, Information and Technology Services, Budgeting, State and Federal Programs and site staff.

To determine the level of technology engagement as set forth in section 3d annual technology self-assessment surveys will be delivered to all staff to determine progress and to adjust professional development offerings. User data from applications like Edmodo, GAFE, and School City will be disaggregated to formulate participation rates and duration of use.

Anecdotal information will be solicited from staff and students quarterly to assess ease of access to and the value of online technology training resources.

Student performance using computer-based formative assessments will provide immediate feedback to staff regarding basic technology skill sets to complete tasks in a timed setting.

At the junior high and elementary sites, much of the required data is being collected and evaluated as part of an ongoing school progress report, involving site action plans developed by site administration and staff. The district will provide professional development technology training records to the sites to be incorporated into their site action plans and evaluations.

As indicated in the goals and objectives of each component, data will be collected on a regular basis by site level administrators. Some goals and objectives such as student skills or teacher training will be evaluated on a semester basis, while other benchmarks such as API scores will be evaluated on a yearly basis. The district already has in place a number of review cycles for assessing student achievement and site action plans.

The Technology Master Plan itself will be reviewed annually to assess the effectiveness and progress toward its stated goals and objectives. Departments involved in the review of this plan will be: Assessment and Evaluation, Educational Services, Information and Technology Services, Budgeting, and site staff.

Final program reports and recommendations for program modifications will be reported to the district Superintendent, the Superintendent’s Cabinet, and Board of Education. A report will also be made available to: parents, teachers, business partners, and site administration for their reactions and comments.

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PART 4 - Professional Development 4a. Summary of teachers' and administrators' current technology skills and

needs for professional development. Modesto City Schools staff completed the District Technology Skills Self-Assessment during the 2013-2014 school year. This information was analyzed and the results were used to plan for staff development opportunities.

Professional Development in Modesto City Schools is supported by the Office of Instructional Technology, through the Supervisor, Instructional Technology and a full-time technology trainer. They also act as support for both the classroom teacher and site classified staff to answer many of the application questions that arise from day-to-day. Technology classes are offered on almost a daily basis for the various segments of the district’s technology user population. The Information Systems Department also has two full-time support staff trainers to provide training for the district’s PowerSchool users located at school sites throughout the district.

4a. Summary of teachers’ and administrators’ current technology skills and professional development needs

Modesto City Schools staff completed a self-assessment survey created by the Office of Instructional Technology using SurveyMonkey which measures the same skills and training needs as found in the EdTechProfile. The 2013 survey helped to capture the attitudes, technology utilization, and skills of teachers at all grade levels across the district. The elementary school district had a completion rate of 72% of all teachers and administrators, while the high school district had a completion rate of 89%. This high completion rate allows for more detailed planning in regards to technology training needs and implementation.

4a.1 Administrative Technology Skills

Administrators generally rated themselves high in email and Internet use – and to a lesser extent – in word processing and information literacy skills. Few have skills in spreadsheet, multimedia, or database operations (except where SASI, our previous student information system, was concerned when looking up student records). When surveyed about professional development, many administrators found training desirable for using applications such as spreadsheets for creating charts and graphs to report student achievement to parents and district personnel, and using multimedia applications for creating staff and parent presentations.

4a.2 Teacher Technology Skills

The proficiency charts in Addendum 10.3 indicate how teachers in both the elementary and secondary districts rated themselves in each of the nine categories. The results of these surveys are used to construct learning opportunities and professional development for teachers at every level of proficiency.

4a.2a Elementary School Staff Members

Of the teachers at the twenty-two elementary school sites, 685 (72%) teachers participated in the 13/14 MCS Self-Assessment Survey of Technology Skills. As expected, most of the teachers assessed themselves as being most Proficient/Intermediate in the area of word processing and lesser in the areas of general knowledge and presentation software (PowerPoint). What was worth noting was how low they rated themselves in the use of email and Internet, especially since other responses tended to indicate they used email and the Internet from both school and home.

4b. List of clear goals, measurable objectives, annual benchmarks, and an implementation plan for providing professional development opportunities based on the needs assessment and the Curriculum Component goals (sections 3d through 3j).

GOAL 4b.1 Expand the professional development opportunities for all staff OBJECTIVE 4b.1.1 4b.1.1 By June 2017, elementary teachers will be trained in the use of

PowerTeacher Gradebook to submit an electronic report card. BENCHMARKS Year 1: 4b.1.1a By June 2015, K-1 teachers will be trained in the standards-based

electronic report card process. Grades 2-3 will continue using the Score-based electronic report card. Grades 4-6 will continue using the grades-based electronic report card.

Year 2: 4b.1.1b By June 2016, standards-based electronic report cards will expand to 3rd grade. Grades 4-6 will continue using the grades-based electronic report card.

Year 3: 4b.1.1c By June 2017, K-6 teachers will be trained in the use of PowerTeacher Gradebook to submit an electronic report card.

OBJECTIVE 4b.1.2 4b.1.2 By the end of June 2017, support staff district-wide will be provided with in-person and online training opportunities in the use of Google Apps for Education, Microsoft Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook and Publisher.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 4b.1.2a By the end of June 2015, 50% of support staff district-wide will be provided with in-person and online training opportunities in the use of Google Apps for Education, Microsoft Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook and Publisher.

Year 2: 4b.1.2b By the end of June 2016 75% of support staff district-wide will be provided with in-person and online training opportunities in the use of Google Apps for Education, Microsoft Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook and Publisher.

Year 3: 4b.1.2c By the end of June 2017, support staff district-wide will be provided with in-person and online training opportunities in the use of Google Apps for Education, Microsoft Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, Outlook and Publisher.

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Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible

Monitoring & Evaluation

Training resources including handouts and screencast video provided online.

Expanded live training sessions at District training labs.

Coordination with sites to provide onsite training and assistance.

Monthly

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

Instructional Technology Trainer

Application Specialist I (or II)

Training sign ins, training calendars, electronic communications with site staff.

Goal 4b.2 90% of administrators and teachers will improve their technology abilities in at least one skill in each of the three Common Core Skills Areas as measured by the MCS Self-Assessment Survey of Technology Skills

BACKGROUND – In the 2013/14 school year staff completed the MCS Self-Assessment Survey of Technology Skills. The survey asked staff to evaluate their comfort level in the following:

1. Integration of CCSS Technology Foundation Skills, Digital Citizenship Skills and Learning and Motivation Skills (certificated teachers and administrators only)

2. Use of technology resources and devices 3. Use of Innovative and Emerging Technology

Staff was also asked to indicate their professional development wants and needs and training delivery option preferences.

Based upon the Common Core State Standards technology skills requirements, certificated teachers and administrators were asked to express their comfort level in the three general technology integration areas of Foundation Skills, Digital Citizenship Skills and Learning and Motivation Skills. Twelve total abilities were identified within those three general areas.

GOAL 4b.2 90% of administrators and teachers will improve their integration of CCSS Technology Foundation Skills, Digital Citizenship Skills and Learning and Motivation Skills abilities as measured by the MCS Self-Assessment Survey of Technology Skills

OBJECTIVE 4b.2.1 4b.2.1 By the end of June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will improve technology skills in each area as reported in the MCS Self-Assessment Survey.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 4b.2.1a By the end of June 2015, 90% of administrators and 50% of teachers will improve technology skills in each area as reported in the MCS Self-Assessment Survey.

Year 2: 4b.2.1b By the end of June 2016, 90% of administrators and 75% of teachers will improve technology skills in each area as reported in the MCS Self-Assessment Survey.

Year 3: 4b.2.1 By the end of June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will improve technology skills in each area as reported in the MCS Self-Assessment Survey.

OBJECTIVE 4b.2.2 4b.2.2 By the end of June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will improve their understanding of copyright, privacy and Internet Safety as recorded in the MCS Self-Assessment Survey.

BENCHMARKS Year 1: 4b.2.2a By the end of June 2015, 90% of administrators and 50% of teachers will improve their understanding of copyright, privacy and Internet Safety as recorded in the MCS Self-Assessment Survey.

Year 2: 4b.2.2b By the end of June 2016, 90% of administrators and 75% of teachers will improve their understanding of copyright, privacy and Internet Safety as recorded in the MCS Self-Assessment Survey.

Year 3: 4b.2.2 By the end of June 2017, 90% of administrators and teachers will improve their understanding of copyright, privacy and Internet Safety as recorded in the MCS Self-Assessment Survey.

Implementation Plan

Activity Timeline Person(s) Responsible

Monitoring & Evaluation

Workshop outlines and materials will be developed and approved by the Technology Council and

2014, Aug

District Technology Council

Director II, Information and

Results of MCS Self-Assessment Survey of Technology Skills

Screenshots of website

Links to resources

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Educational Services.

Online tutorials and classes will be made available to all staff.

Yearly administration of the MCS Self-Assessment Survey of Technology Skills

Technology Services

Supervisor, Instructional Technology

In Modesto City Schools, the Department of Instructional Technology provides technology training for a diverse staff with varying technical skills. While many teachers still need basic application training on district standard software such as Microsoft Office, PowerTeacher GradeBook, PowerSchool, and email, still other teachers, especially at the high schools, need more training in technology integration. Professional development is provided to classified staff, administrators, and teachers by using a number of training models that research shows to be effective.

Modesto City Schools has chosen to closely align its teacher proficiencies to the current International Standards for Technology and Education (ISTE), Common Core State Standards and with the Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment’s (BTSA) SB Draft 2042, “Standards of Quality and Effectiveness for Professional Teacher Induction Program” for teacher credentialing.

Staff Development Models

Modesto City Schools currently uses a variety of models for training and for ongoing professional development. The Instructional Technology Department trainers and support staff provide teachers and clerical with immediate answers to technical and application issues, as well as assist in the development of subject or technology specific workshops for district school sites and administrative departments. Courses are offered in a variety of formats and times, throughout the school day, and continuously throughout the school year. District and site needs determine the frequency of each application offering.

Classes are offered for classified and certificated staff on a variety of applications and are scheduled at various times throughout the day. Application courses are broken down into 2-6 hour training components that allow the user to learn and apply specific features or tasks. Courses are offered in applications such as: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Outlook, Photoshop Elements, PowerTeacher GradeBook, Google Apps for Education, Edmodo, using video in the classroom, and Windows SharePoint Services (WSS). To complete a full complement of training for any one application can involve up to 20 hours of professional development.

Training is also offered at the school site for site-specific training needs involving subject or grade-specific training. Instructional Technology staff offers training at the convenience of the site and district with training being held, not only during the workweek, but also in the evenings. In an effort to establish an “anytime – anywhere” philosophy of training, Instructional Technology will be placing application training components on the Internet/Intranet and network for all of Modesto City Schools staff.

Application Training

With a high percentage of new staff and teachers coming into the district, there is always a need for technology training that focuses on specific applications. The Office of Instructional Technology provides professional development on classroom applications such as:

• Microsoft Word • Microsoft PowerPoint • Microsoft Excel • Microsoft Outlook • Microsoft Publisher • Microsoft Windows SharePoint • Photoshop Elements • PhotoStory • Internet Resources • Google Apps for Education • Edmodo • Apex Learning LMS • Access • PowerTeacher (Grade Book) • Computer Basics

Professional Development Support Needed

Leading research clearly identifies the challenges faced when an institution desires to cultivate an environment that promotes, supports and encourages the integration of technology into instructional practices. There are external and internal barriers that may slow down or completely derail this integration at a school site. The external barriers such as access to proper hardware, software and technology support are factors that should be addressed globally by the district. With the district’s commitment of $2.1 million toward removing the external barriers, it is incumbent upon the individual sites to address the bigger challenges faced by the teacher perceived internal barriers; namely:

• The teacher’s confidence in their personal general technology skills • The teacher’s belief in how students learn • The teacher’s perceived value of technology to the learning process

We believe that the site principal is the instructional leader and motivational coach of the teaching staff. It is the principal’s responsibility to:

• Provide clear, consistent direction and expectations • Promote and model effective use of technology • Routinely evaluate site technology needs and resources • Foster opportunities for collaboration among peers

To properly support the site principal, staff recommends the following positions to assist with the integration of technology for professional development and Common Core implementation.

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• Reinstate Technology Mentor Optional Period Assignments at each high school and junior high to facilitate the use of technology to support instruction, assist with the implementation of SBAC assessment, and serve as a Technology Ombudsman for the site; 8 high school and 4 junior high

• Create a K-6 Technology Mentor stipend, with similar duties and compensation as the 7-12 Tech Mentors for each of the 22 K-6 school sites

• Create a cadre of four, district level, certificated Instructional Technology Coaches to support professional development, integration of technology to instruction, and work directly with the site based Technology Mentors (two K-6 and two 7-12)

Support Expenses for the above positions:- Desk, office supplies, laptop, registration to the CUE for FTE positions

Under the combined support of the Instructional Technology Staff and Education Services, these Technology Coaches/Mentors will undertake the following responsibilities at each site:

• Conduct a technology needs assessment (empirically from interviews, observations, surveys) • Create a Technology Individual Training Plan for each teacher • Collaborate with other technology mentors, Instructional Technology and Ed Services to establish

best practices and develop instructional video vignettes • Assist the site principal with data-driven remediation strategies which incorporate technology • Model examples of integration • Work with the District and site principal to prepare and deliver appropriate professional development • Help teachers problem solve technology problems • Source of encouragement

In support of the Technology Coaches, it is recommended to:

• Provide equal and sufficient access to hardware, software and Internet in all instructional environments

• Ensure access to online resources • Deliver responsive technology assistance • Coordinate access to quality professional development opportunities • Develop and distribute timely video vignettes of technology-integration best practices • Provide a cadre of well-trained veteran (certificated) technology coaches • Establish technology standards for instructional delivery and integration that are measurable and

evaluated

These classes are offered throughout the day and early evening for the convenience of our staff. Classes are well attended and personalized follow-up is provided after the training as requested. The District has purchased an application called Skills Assessment Manager (SAM) to aide in the assessment of personal application skills for the Microsoft Office Suite of products. The application presents the user with a variety of application tasks and asks them to replicate the task using the proper application features. Their response is recorded and stored in a database. After the assessment, the trainer can review the tasks with the teacher or employee and set a training strategy for acquiring the deficient application skills.

Online Tutorials

The Department of Instructional Technology currently maintains an Internet site where district teachers can download training materials and files. These tutorials can be used independent of the formal classroom setting so that teachers can download these materials and associated files to complete the exercises at their own convenience. Additional online training is available through the Skills Assessment Manger (SAM) application. District employees can request to have training set up on SAM so they can access training site and complete the training on their own computer at their desk.

Product Training

Modesto City Schools also provides professional development on various technology-based products as necessary. These trainings focus on products such as electronic data collation devices for science and mathematics applications for testing and prescribing specific lessons for elementary and junior high mathematic students. An example of recent trainings includes:

One-on-One Training

The Office of Instructional Technology and Information Services provide one-on-one training when necessary. The technology trainers and support staff are sensitive to the technology needs of both the classified and certificated staff at the various K-12 sites. When questions arise concerning the specific use of technology in the classroom or with a job task, district staff can contact the respective offices and obtain one-on-one training and advice. Both teachers and clerical staff take advantage of the wealth of knowledge that the trainers and support staff have in regard to application use and classroom integration.

Teachers can receive assistance with the integration of applications such as PowerPoint, Word, or Excel into their classroom activities. A highly trained and qualified staff trainer can assist the teacher and make suggestions on how the various applications might be used with the students.

Integrating Technology into the Curriculum

Current district curriculum planning involves teachers in developing course outlines that lead to restructuring classroom presentations to match district standards within curriculum frameworks. Subject-specific teachers will be offered the opportunity to participate in training provided by the District in all subject areas.

CTAP

The District coordinates integration workshops closely with the Region 6 California Technology Assistance Project (CTAP6) and California Learning Resources Network (CLRN) to offer courses that focus on utilizing outside resources for lesson planning and integration. Modesto City School’s teachers participate in various summer workshops sponsored by the District and taught by CTAP6 and CLRN personnel.

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4c. Describe the process that will be used to monitor the Professional Development (Section 4b) goals, objectives, benchmarks, and planned activities including roles and responsibilities.

The table for each Professional Development objective indicates the responsible person(s) and the plan for monitoring and evaluating activities and action steps. The Directors of Curriculum and Instruction and the Associate Superintendent of Educational Services will inform site administrators about the progress toward implementation and recommend program modifications where needed. The Site Administrators will be responsible for the analysis and modifications necessary at the site and communicate their findings to the Directors of Curriculum and Instruction and Associate Superintendent of Educational Services. Staff professional development will be a standing agenda item on a monthly basis at the district-level principals’ meetings.

Site administrators will report to their site-based advisory groups about site and district technology goal progress of students, teachers, and administrators. The District Technology Committee will meet each month to review progress. An annual report to the Superintendent and Board of Education will be made by the Associate Superintendent of Educational Services regarding the progress of professional development.

PART 5 - Infrastructure, Hardware, Technical Support, and Software

5a. Describe the existing hardware, Internet access, electronic learning resources, and technical support already in the District that will be used to support the Curriculum and Professional Development Components of the plan.

Current Services District Network Infrastructure and Internet Access

The District made a substantial investment in our fiber infrastructure under the City Cable Franchise Agreement, which expires June 30, 2016. This fiber is part of an Institutional Network (INET) that the City of Modesto offered to all public agencies in the Modesto Comcast service area. The agreement provides Modesto City Schools with six strands of dark single mode fiber between all sites in the district, in a hub and spoke configuration centered at the Reno Avenue Technology Center.

There are also fiber cross connects between the City of Modesto, the County Office of Education and various local school districts that are feeder schools for the district. This has initially provided gigabit links between all school sites, with additional dark fiber for future projects (video and voice). Twenty of the schools within the District have been upgraded to 1 Gbps switches for their Local Area Networks (LAN), 19 through an E-Rate project in 2013, and Gregori High School as part of its construction. The remaining 15 schools have been upgraded to 100 Mbps switches as part of a pass down refurbishing project, using the replaced switches from the 2013 E-Rate project. Additionally, the 19 E-Rate sites received WLAN (Wireless Large Area Networks) as part of their network upgrades.

Internet access is provided through CENIC (Corporation for Educational Network Initiatives in California) via the Stanislaus County Office of Education. At present, the District is using only 25% of its 1 gigabit connection. SCOE has the same bandwidth load, and has indicated that once the 70% threshold is reached, a move toward a shared 10 gigabit should take effect. In recent bandwidth testing for the SBAC online assessment, Modesto City Schools has determined it would only use 20% of the available bandwidth during a 5 to 6 week testing window.

Network Support

The Network Support group has a Network Manager and four Network Technicians assigned to it. This group supports all functions related to the District network. The goal is to provide 100% uptime during business hours, and limiting network repairs and downtime to off hours and weekends. The network is

From the National Education Technology Plan 2010 - http://www.ed.gov/technology/

A comprehensive infrastructure for learning is necessary to move us beyond the traditional model of educators and students in classrooms to a learning model that brings together teaching teams and students in classrooms, labs, libraries, museums, workplaces, and homes—anywhere in the world where people have access devices and an adequate Internet connection. An infrastructure for learning is necessary to support a learning society in which learning is lifelong and lifewide.

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always growing and expanding, and this group maintains the District standards and designs any changes or additions to the network. They also work closely with network hardware vendors, network operating systems vendors and consultants in support of network services.

The District has over 8,000 networked desktops, more than 700 switches and associated devices, 670 VoIP phones, 600 wireless access points, and over 140 file servers. The network group is tasked with the enterprise anti-virus, anti-spyware, email SPAM filtering, Internet content filtering, and file server backup services. These critical protective functions are centralized and managed, eliminating the liability that is associated with desktop-based, non-managed, protective software that relies on user intervention for successful operation. Updates to the virus, spyware and spam systems are instant and district-wide because of the centralized nature of these systems.

The network team now controls and coordinates the System Computer Configuration Management software. This move provided greater continuity and consistency in the operation of this vital application. It has improved overall accuracy and efficiency in the deployment of operating system updates, software installations, and imaging services.

Complete full and incremental weekly backups of all critical data on file servers are performed by this group. All backups are staged to a Network Attached Storage (NAS) and then the data is offloaded to tape. By storing the most recent backups to the NAS, the District can often recover files very quickly when notified of the data loss soon after it occurs. The District also has implemented server consolidation. The primary data center at the Reno Tech Center hosts approximately 140 file servers; 75 are virtualized using the District’s HP Blade Server infrastructure.

A major upgrade and expansion of the Blade infrastructure is a key component of this plan, as it is essential on the network team’s effort to upgrade Exchange, provide higher availability of web based resources like PowerSchool, MOSIS, and SharePoint. This upgrade and expansion will also promote greater consolidation of physical server operations and reduce energy costs.

District Internet Filtering

The purpose of the Modesto City Schools Technology Network is to advance and promote excellence in the education of students. The District network is intended to provide educational resources to students, staff, and community, create intellectual projects and collaboration, and to foster communication and the exchange of information and ideas within and between schools, school district offices, and other agencies.

Modesto City Schools recognizes the potential of the Internet and the World Wide Web as extraordinary resources for teaching and learning. The District also recognizes the value of district and school websites as a communications tool to provide information on district schools, programs and events; to promote public confidence, professionalism, and pride in Modesto City Schools; to provide links to local, national and worldwide resources related to education; and to furnish reports and data to the public.

District computers and equipment provide access to the Internet for instructional purposes, research, information and data collection, and communications related to education and district business. The District recognizes that there is considerable information on the Internet designed to achieve and support the district’s educational goals. Internet sites may also be found which promote illegal activities or contain

information that is inappropriate for students. Inappropriate information includes, but is not limited to: materials harmful to minors, child pornography, information on hacking of computer systems, and any materials deemed illegal by State and local laws. Board Policy 6163.4 - Student Use of Technology and Board Policy 4040 - Employee Use of Technology define the acceptable use of these resources by students and staff respectively.

The District employs Internet filtering technologies that are compliant with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) regulations to restrict access to objectionable and harmful materials by minors. The District also subscribes to a filtering service (NetSpective) that categorizes website content and allows specific filtering of materials by the district. The District has the capability to apply individual and unique filtering profiles to both staff and students. The database is maintained and updated regularly by NetSpective to reflect new pages that are added to the Internet. The District realizes that the best filtering device for objectionable Internet sites is still the user, whether staff member or student, and knowing that there is no Web filter that can filter all objectionable sites or topics – it is the primary responsibility of the user to immediately leave any site that contains information or graphics that are inappropriate. Students and staff who intentionally access inappropriate material will have part or all of their district network privileges revoked or restricted.

The District’s Intranet

The district’s Intranet is an internal network which uses Microsoft’s SharePoint services to provide Internet like resources and documents libraries which are only accessible internally. Intranets have reshaped the way people within an organization work, communicate and collaborate. They enable people to get the information they need quickly and easily – regardless of physical location – by leveraging the existing network. The District is in the process of upgrading its entire SharePoint infrastructure, to be completed before 2016.

A Few Examples of the services contained in the district’s MCS Online - Intranet:

• Board Agendas • Board Meeting Minutes • Budget Reporting • Electronic Document Routing • Warehouse Ordering • Forms Libraries • Forms Distribution • Information Services

• Computer Delivery Schedules • E-Tech Newsletter • Help Desk Services • Online Training • Maintenance Requests • Indexed and Searchable Board Policies • Portal Services

Existing Hardware

The District’s technology inventory is aging; more than 70% of its technology inventory is over five-years-old. More than 3,800 computers are running Windows XP, and many of them cannot be upgraded to Windows 7. All teachers have a computer and printer in their classrooms, and 90% have projectors or large displays connected to their computers. Almost 65% of the classrooms have document cameras connected to their projectors. Most school sites have at least one computer lab for student use. See Figures 5a.1 and 5a.2

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Technology Help Desk and Desktop Support

The Computer Systems Department has a Manager of Installation and Support and eleven full-time Computer Technicians. Two technicians staff the Help Desk, and nine work as field technicians. The current ratio of computers and iOS devices district wide to Computer Technicians is approximately 772:1.

The Computer Systems Help Desk is the nexus for computer hardware and software support. When a district employee calls or emails the Help Desk for assistance, the call is logged in a database application for scheduling, tracking and dispatch. Average turnaround time on a service call is dependent upon the severity of the issue and staff availability. Some calls, depending upon the complexity, take longer to resolve. Currently, the Help Desk is staffed daily from 6:30 AM to 5:00 PM.

The District is currently uses two interfaces to support the Computer Systems Help Desk; HEAT Plus Knowledge and HEAT Self Service. From within the Self Service feature, users will be able to interface with the Knowledge Base first to find answers to their support problems, post support questions or problems that will be auto-routed and assigned, browse the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for solutions, find out about their computer hardware delivery schedules, and find out the status of service calls they currently have open. If the user is unable to achieve results, then they can always call or e-mail the Help Desk for solutions.

Technicians routinely use remote service tools to resolve issues without a dispatch to the site. This allows the technician to handle many more service requests without having to incur the time and expense of traveling to the school site. It also provides the user with a much faster turnaround on their service requests, personal hands-on assistance, and a reduction in the expense of supporting the end user by reducing the time expense per call and the mileage expense related to site visits. The ultimate goal for the Help Desk process is for a less than 24-hour turnaround time from when the user first contacts the Help Desk to the resolution of their service request.

Since the writing of the last technology plan, the District has grown increasingly dependent upon technology in every aspect of its operations. Today, teacher use of technology has increased three-fold in frequency for classroom management, record keeping, attendance and grade reporting, electronic communication, curriculum development, instructional delivery, and student assessment. This marked increase has significantly outpaced the Computer Systems staff’s ability to respond in a timely manner, and eroded its overall effectiveness.

With the eventual deployment of 1:1 student devices for textbooks and content generation, both the role and the capacity of a technician’s present day workload will increase and change. It is apparent that staffing levels need to be increased, as well as training opportunities well-prior to the deployment of 1:1 student devices, especially in light of the increased demands for instructional and assessment technologies.

Computer Maintenance/Repairs/Installations

Computer hardware failures, including computers, monitors, scanners and printers are handled by field technicians, unless the unit is under a factory warranty. IT Solutions, a local company, is the District’s HP warranty provider.

The District maintains HP desktops, laptops and servers. It also manages over 1,000 Apple computers and iOS devices. The District only purchases Apple computers for specialized installations, like multimedia classrooms. HP is the standard computer for 90% of the computers in the District.

When hardware failure calls are received by the Help Desk and the repair cannot take place remotely, a technician is dispatched to attempt to make the repair on-site. If the repair cannot be made on-site, and the failed hardware is under warranty it is taken to IT Solutions, if it is not a under warranty it is taken to the Tech Center for further evaluation, repair, or disposition. Administrative computers which cannot be repaired can be submitted for repair replacement approval. These units are often replaced with refurbished computers, or new computers depending on the user’s role within the District. Teacher workstations that are determined unserviceable or obsolete can be submitted for replacement as a standard classroom equipment item.

With the District's commitment to increasing the number of both student and staff users, it is essential that the District consider a five year refresh cycle for essential technology. Units over four years of age have higher failure rates and require more technical support than newer units. The average turnaround time for repairing hardware is approximately 2-3 days, depending on the problem, staffing on hand, and if there are parts available. Usually parts can be acquired within 24 hours in not in stock. The ultimate goal is to have a one to two-day turnaround on major repairs and less than 24-hour turnaround for minor repairs.

Donated Computers

The District does not accept donated computers or related equipment (printers, scanners, monitors, etc.) from any individual or business. The District will only accept new equipment or donations of cash to the District specifically for the purchase of new equipment that aligns with District standards.

All too often donations are of questionable condition and the District ends up having to dispose of the equipment after issuing a tax receipt to the individual or business. The cost to remove the existing operating system and software (most software licenses are not transferable), clean, test components and prep the computer for use (install District software and compatible operating system) is typically more than the used donated computer is worth. The same holds true for printers, scanners and monitors. Other donated equipment also usually need maintenance and repair before they can be put into limited service.

The disposal of used computers and related equipment can be costly as well. This includes the time it takes for a technician to remove all data (wipe the hard drive) and disposal of the monitor and other parts of the computer. Most places that will take an old monitor charge at least $15.00 to take the old monitor, working or not. In fact, the State has now imposed a recycling fee (typically around $8.00 depending upon size) on all new CRT type monitors or TV purchases sold in California. There are many local recycler places that take computer equipment.

When you do receive calls or inquiries about accepting donated computers, please tell the potential donor that the District does not accept computers, printers, monitors or any other used technology related items. The District does accept new computers and peripherals that align with District standards. The District will also accept cash donations that are earmarked for the purchase of equipment for specific sites or uses. Any donations MUST be approved in advance with Computer Systems.

Student Information System

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Modesto City Schools transitioned from the SASIxp student information system from Pearson Education for tracking student attendance and grades, to Pearson’s PowerSchool student information system software in the 2009-2010 school year.

This adoption enabled the District to consolidate SASI’s 34 individual, site based servers into robust virtual server environment that is segmented into a K-8 instance and 9-12 instance, which utilize an F5 load balancer to promote high availability to its 2,000 District users. This consolidation greatly reduced maintenance costs and provided a feature rich Teacher Gradebook that gives students and parents real-time attendance and grade information through easy to use and access portals. PowerSchool was accessed by parents and students more 250,000 times in its first year of use.

Moving from SASI’s terminal service configuration, allowed teachers great flexibility to work from home and increased overall efficiency and productivity. As the District continues to meet many of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) requirements, the student information system and data warehouse become central mission critical systems.

The adoption of PowerSchool has exceeded our expectations for parent and student use to date.

Existing Electronic Learning Resources

The District offers a vast array of resources for instructional delivery including Accelerated Reader, Catch Up Math, Google Apps for Education, Edmodo, Scholastic’s Read 180, Math 180, and System 44, and the District recently adopted Apex Learning as the online content provider for its credit recovery efforts. Student response systems are used sporadically and the District has opened its wireless networks to accommodate the use of personal devices, where wireless is available. See Addendum 10.1.

Assessment and Evaluation (SchoolCity)

In addition to using PowerSchool to store student test scores, Modesto City Schools utilizes SchoolCity. SchoolCity is an online assessment management, analysis, and reporting system tailored to provide anytime anywhere access to student assessment data.

Data stored in SchoolCity includes STAR, CAHSEE, and interim assessments/benchmarks. SchoolCity provides a standards-based item bank and assessment platform that assists the District and schools in creating standards aligned interim assessments/benchmarks. With all assessments, teachers have access to a comprehensive analysis of test results at the individual, class, school, and district level. Assessment reports can be disaggregated to gain additional information about specific groups of students. Teachers and administrators meet regularly for data discussions in which they analyze results to drive and modify instructional practices.

Other Services

District Email Services

The District provides email, scheduling and calendaring services in addition to SMTP gateway services to the Internet. Currently maintaining over 3,800 email accounts throughout the district encompassing clerical, certificated, and administrative accounts, Microsoft Outlook is the principal email application used

within the district. The current Exchange infrastructure is scheduled for a major upgrade during the writing of this plan.

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Voice over IP (VoIP)

In the Spring of 2006 the ITS department conducted a pilot VoIP project to create a blueprint and set standards for best practices. Today, there are over 670 active VoIP extensions in use. Both Enochs and Gregori High Schools are 100% VoIP, and staff is developing a District wide transition plan from existing Centrex phone systems to VoIP.

By the close of School 2013, 85% of all school sites should be VoIP ready through upgrades to existing networks and the installation of at least one PoE (Power over Ethernet) switch in every IDF (Intermediate Distribution Frame) switch cabinet. Additionally, the District’s scheduled upgrade from Exchange 2003 to 2013 will promote the expansion of VoIP and its advanced feature set will fully integrate voice mail to email for all staff. The networking team’s plan offers a smooth and scalable transition.

Wireless Communication

The District has over 600 wireless (802.11n) access points, installed at 17 K-6 school sites and two junior highs. These wireless networks were installed as part of an E-Rate project which was completed in school year 2013-2014. This plan recommends that the District install wireless networks at the remaining five K-6 sties, two junior highs, seven high schools, and the alternative education center. It is recommended that the District Office complex, the Reno Annex, the entire Woodland Avenue Corporate yard be included in this installation.

Information Systems

The Information Systems staff is responsible for the development and maintenance of all applications written specifically for District operations; all data operations and reporting functions; student information systems operations, enhancements, client support, maintenance and updates; business systems support and operations; as well as the development and support of all district and school websites, both internal and external..

The IS staff is led by the supervisor of information systems. She supervises the software development manager, the systems and operations manager, and three application specialists. In addition to running the IS department, the supervisor is the District’s CALPADS coordinator.

Two application specialists support and train District staff in the use and operation of PowerSchool, as well as School Messenger, the District’s automated notification system. The third application specialist provides user support for business systems and validates data for CALPADS.

Four programmer/analysts, the web developer/designer, and the quality assurance technician report to the software development manager. This team maintains all in-house application development, programming support, SharePoint operations, and comprehensive reporting and data operations.

The systems operations manager and the computer operations specialist support and maintain QSS the District’s business system software. They also process all District warrants, general financial reports, student report cards, and print over 250,000 pressure-sealed documents annually.

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ALL DISTRICT COMPUTERS BY AGE

Figure 5a.1

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INSTRUCTIONAL DEVICES BY SITE

Figure 5a.2

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COMPUTER BIOS AGE

SBAC ASSESSMENT READINESS - COMPUTER LABS BY ELEMENTARY SITE

Site Room Model Memory OS Total SBAC 2014 2015 Beard 33 dc7900 4GB Win 7 34 Library 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 10 44 44 Bret Harte 54 dc7700 1GB XP 36 36 0 Burbank 2 dc7700 4GB Win 7 36 Library dc7700 1GB XP 10 46 36 El Vista 25 dc7700 1GB XP 34 34 0 Enslen 3 Mini 5103 2GB Win 7 19 19 19 Everett 3 dc7700 1GB XP 12 dc7800 1GB XP 20 32 0

Fairview 19 TouchSmart 7320 2GB Win 7 31

31 31 Franklin Lab 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 34 34 34 Fremont 24 dc7700 1GB XP 29 dc7900 2GB XP 2 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 7 38 7 Garrison 24? dc7100 2GB Win 7 18 d530 640MB XP 18 18 Kirschen 7 dc7900 2GB Win 7 10 TouchSmart 2GB Win 7 12 22 22 Lakewood 31 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 7 dc5000 512MB XP 10 D510 1GB XP 14 Marshall 12 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 9 dc7600 1GB XP 23 32 9 Martone 18 6000 Pro A-I-O 2GB Win 7 32 32 32

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Site Room Model Memory OS Total SBAC 2014 2015 Muir 15 ProBook 4520 3GB Win 7 35 8300 Elite 4GB Win 7 15 50 50

Rob Road 24 TouchSmart 7320 2GB Win 7 34

34 34 Rose 11 dc7800 4GB Win 7 17 dc7700 4GB Win 7 5 dc7600 2GB Win 7 15 37 37 Shackelford 7 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 7 dc7900 4GB Win 7 14 21 21

Sonoma Lab TouchSmart 7320 4GB Win 7 4

dc7800 2GB XP 10 D510 256MB XP 17 14 4 Tuolumne 1 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 36 36 36 Wilson 3 dc7800 1GB Win 7 25 dc7700 2GB Win 7 11 36 0 Wright 5 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 30 30 30

Meet 2015 Standard 400

Need Win 7 to Meet 2015 Standard 23

Need Win 7 & Memory to Meet 2015 Standard 194

Recycle 92

SBAC ASSESSMENT READINESS - COMPUTER LABS BY JUNIOR HIGH SITE

Site Room Model Memory OS Total SBCA 2014 2015 Mark Twain

8 dc7800 2GB XP 32 8200 Elite 4GB Win 7 3

30 dc7800 1GB XP 29 64 3 La Loma 1 dc7600 2GB Win 7 28 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 2 9 dc7600 2GB Win 7 36

15 8200 Elite 4GB Win 7 16 n-computing

8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 13 54 8300 Elite A-I-O 4GB Win 7 20 115 113

Roosevelt

32 dc7800 2GB XP 36 33 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 17 6 dc7800 4GB Win 7 9 dc7700 4GB Win 7 7

69 33 Hanshaw A-106 dc7600 2GB XP 33 33 0

Meet 2015 SBAC Standard 149

Need Win 7 to Meet 2015 Standard 101

Need Win 7 & Memory to Meet 2015 Standard 93

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SBAC ASSESSMENT READINESS - COMPUTER LABS BY HIGH SCHOOL SITE

Site Room Model Memory OS Total SBAC 2014 2015 Beyer D27 dc7600 2GB XP 25

I13 dc7700 2GB Win 7 34

I15 TouchSmart 7320 2GB Win 7 36

I17 6000 Pro 2GB Win 7 34

Library dc7800 2GB XP 12

6000 Pro 2Gb Win 7 26

167 130 Davis Library 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 25 504 dc7600 513MB XP 30

602 6000 Pro 4GB Win 7 22

610 dc7800 2GB XP 36

612 dc7600 2GB XP 36

613 dc7800 2GB XP 32

614 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 35

Mobile HP Laptops 2GB Win 7 20

Mobile MacBookAir Cart 2GB OSX 40

246 82 Downey Library dc7600 2GB Win 7 27 TouchSmart 7320 2GB Win 7 5

81 dc7700 2GB XP 32

82 6000 Pro 2GB Win 7 30

83 TouchSmart 7320 2GB Win 7 34

210 iMac Lab 4GB OSX 35

211 iMac Lab 4GB OSX 36

91 dc7700 1GB XP 20 n-computing

92 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 32 n-computing AgLab dc7600 2GB XP 15 Mobile MacBookAir Cart 2GB OSX 40 306 239 Elliott 15 TouchSmart 7320 4GB Win 7 26 23 TouchSmart 8300 4GB Win 7 25 51 51 Enochs B103 dc7600 2GB XP 35 B123 (Lib Lab) dc7600 2GB XP 31 B125 (Lib) dc7600 1GB XP 24 C142 dc7600 2GB XP 35 C143 dc7600 2GB XP 36 K103 dc7600 2GB XP 35 M102 dc7700 2GB XP 28 N142 dc7700 2GB XP 36 N143 dc7700 2GB XP 36 272 0

Site Room Model Memory OS Total SBAC 2014 2015

Johansen V102 TouchSmart 7320 4GB Win 7 20

B206 TouchSmart 7320 4GB Win 7 44

B207 dc7600 2GB Win 7 34

B208 dc7700 2GB XP 32

B210 dc7600 2GB XP 32

V203 z420 8GB Win 7 18

HPE-510t 8GB Win 7 14

Library TouchSmart 7320 2GB Win 7 5

dc7800 4GB XP 13

212 117 Gregori B103 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 34

B123 (Lib Lab) 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 32

B125 (Lib) 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 20

C108 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 35

M102 TouchSmart 7320 2GB Win 7 30

N111 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 34

185 185

Modesto 18 TouchSmart 7320 2GB Win 7 29

19 8000 Elite 4GB Win 7 35

20 dc7600 2GB XP 34

50 dc7700 2GB XP 36

50 dc7700 2GB XP 36

61 dc7600 2GB XP 35

62 dc7600 2GB Win 7 36

Mobile MacBookAir Cart 2GB OSX 40

281 100

Meet 2015 SBAC Standard 864

Need Win 7 & Memory to Meet 2015 Standard 74

Need Win 7 to Meet 2015 Standard 696

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5b. Describe the technology hardware, electronic learning resources, networking and telecommunications infrastructure, physical plant modifications, and technical support needed by the district's teachers, students, and administrators to support the activities in the Curriculum and Professional Development Components of the plan.

Hardware Needed

The District’s technology inventory is fast aging. Over 50% of all computers were five-years-old or older on September 30, 2013. In September of 2014 that percentage will increase to 70. To ensure that teachers and students have equitable access to instructional technology, and that schools can deliver computer based formative and summative assessment, the District estimates it will need the following hardware, software, and upgrades:

• Increase the RAM in 200 teacher computers and upgrade the operating systems to Windows 7 and Office 2010

• Replace 645 teacher computers which are over five years old • Upgrade and repurpose 470 of the replaced teacher computers that meet SBAC specifications for

student use • Acquire 125 digital projectors for classrooms that do not have them • Acquire 500 document cameras or tablet devices to provide image capture for classrooms that do

not have them • Acquire 40 mobile computer labs (Cart, 42 Chromebooks, High Availability Access Point, and

Charging System) to supplement existing stationary computer labs, to facilitate formative and summative computer based assessments on a routine basis, develop student technology skill sets, and student content generation

• Install wireless networks for five K-6, two 7-8, seven 9-12, and one alternative education school sites (15 sites total) – 20 wireless controllers, 460 wireless access points and associated switch gear

Electronic Learning Resources Needed

Modesto City Schools, contingent on funding, plans to transition to digital textbooks through a 1-to-1, device to student deployment which provides students both access to required texts, content generation tools, as well as filtered Internet access. Adequate network or cloud based storage, and management tools need to be secured to support this deployment.

Networking and Telecommunications Infrastructure Needed

The District received a $1.88 million for an internal connections project through E-Rate. At the writing of this plan, staff is currently changing out the network switch gear and installing wireless networks at 19 qualifying, elementary school sites. District staff will refurbish the replaced network switches to refresh the non-qualifying sites. This refurbishing project will standardize key core components and set the minimum connection standard at 100 megabits to the desktop. The remaining 15 schools sites require network

upgrades, and wireless area networks to support instructional delivery, student and teacher interaction, and to enhance options and untethered technologies for all staff.

The primary data center which serves the entire District is fast reaching its capacity and it has exceeded the life expectancy of many critical components:

• The current blade server configuration must be upgraded and expanded to support additional server virtualization, and provide higher availability of SaaS (software as a service) for web based applications like PowerSchool, MOSIS, and business applications; host Exchange 2013, Unified Communications, and Call Management services; host both internal and external web services; and district wide data server operations

• Additional storage attached network (SAN) and network attached storage (NAS) is required for expanded virtualization, overall systems backups, and a high availability schema

• Both the network’s central core and its 38 site cores will need to be upgraded from 1 Gpbs to 10 Gbps by 2017 to accommodate greater bandwidth demands and higher speed access both internal and external network based resources to support the development of 1:1 student devices

• Web services and the content management structure is hosted with SharePoint 2007, staff is working toward a complete migration to SharePoint 2013 for both internal and external web services

Physical Plant Modifications Needed

With the eventual transition to digital textbooks, all school sites will require the installation of appropriately sized WWANs (wireless wide area networks) for connectivity to the Internet and networked based resources. At the writing of this plan, 19 of the District’s 34 schools will have WWANs before the end of school year 2013-14.

Technical Support Needed

The growing dependency on technology across every aspect of District operations, instructional delivery, the transition to CCSS, the routine use of computer based assessments, and the eventual deployment of 1:1 digital textbooks, requires the creation and/or evaluation of classified, certificated, and management positions. It is projected that the District, contingent upon actual or realized needs and funding, hire additional staffing. The Information Services and Technology management team recommends the following additions and proposed redefinitions of job descriptions:

• Increase Computer Services staffing to meet the technology support needs required for CCSS instructional support, routine use of computer based assessments, and the eventual deployment of digital text books: four Computer Technician II’s in the fiscal year 2013/14; and two additional Computer Technician II positions in fiscal year 2014/15

• With growing need district wide for visual communication services to support professional development, district initiatives, timely web content, and commercial quality media and graphic services; create and fill a Visual Communication Technician position

• Add an additional Instructional Technology Trainer to support K-6 education • Create a Data Base Administrator position to manage the District’s data bases and standardize data

base structure and operations • Rewrite the Computer Operations Specialist position to address the change in responsibilities

associated with the transition of QSS traditional to QSS version L and the implementation of its enhanced services

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• Add an additional Application Specialist II to support QSS • Add an additional Application Specialist II to provide user support, training and maintain

interventional applications like Accelerated Reader, Catch Up Math, Read 180, Math 180, System 44, and Skills Tutor

• With the increased demand for SaaS, web application development and maintenance, the District may need to add an additional programmer analyst, and an additional quality control technician in fiscal year 2014/15

Professional Development Support Needed

The professional development needs and requirements associated with this comprehensive Technology Master Plan are delineated in section 4 of this document.

5c. List of clear annual benchmarks and a timeline for obtaining the hardware, infrastructure, learning resources and technical support required to support the other plan components as identified in Section 5b.

Goal: Infrastructure, Hardware, Telecommunication, and Online Resources

Objective 1 of 6: Ensure that classroom technology is equitable in all District classrooms

Benchmarks: Year 1: Re-evaluate the classroom technology standards, and development an update path for aging technology. Begin replacing teacher computers based on the revised classroom technology standards.

Year 2: Complete teacher computer replacement phase, acquire and install peripheral devices to meet classroom standards.

Year 3: Ensure that the every classroom meets the revised classroom technology standards.

Objective 2 of 6: Acquire and install the required technology to administer the SBAC computer based assessments

Benchmarks: Year 1: Acquire and install the required technology necessary to support and administer the SBAC’s computer based assessments.

Year 2: Evaluate the technologies associated with SBAC assessment and adjust accordingly. Monitor bandwidth capacity during testing windows.

Year 3: Incorporate SBAC recommendations as they develop and continue to validate its implementation.

Objective 3 of 6:

Upgrade Network Switch Gear and Install Wireless Networks

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Benchmarks: Year 1: Install new network equipment and wireless local area networks purchased with E-Rate funds. Refurbish replaced switch gear and install at non-qualifying schools.

Year 2: Leverage the contractual discounts to improve network connectivity at sites that were not E-Rate eligible.

Year 3: If funding becomes available, install wireless local area networks at remaining school sites.

Objective 4 of 6: Update & Expand Primary Data Center Server Architecture

Benchmarks: Year 1: Add two HP Gen 8 Blades Servers, the associated storage attached network, and necessary network attached storage for expansion and backup.

Year 2: Add two HP Gen 8 Blades Servers and repopulate existing drive arrays with larger drives. Maximize server virtualization to consolidate services, improve availability, and reduce energy costs.

Year 3: If funding is available, add six HP Gen 8 Blades Servers, and validate the performance of the updated architecture.

Objective 5 of 6: Transition to Digital Textbooks Through a 1:1 Digital Device Initiate (subject to available funding)

Benchmarks: Year 1: Solicit proposals for 1:1 consulting services. Develop a comprehensive initiative for individual device deployment that addresses all aspects from device and content management to user support.

Year 2: Based on feedback from key stake holders and the consultant’s recommendations, implement the acquisition phase of the 1:1 initiative.

Year 3: Fully implement all aspects of the Digital 1:1 initiative.

Objective 6 of 6: Ensure that principals have technology integration assistance from site and district mentors for the implementation of all four subject areas for Common Core State Standards.

Benchmarks: Year 1: Create a cadre of technology mentor/coaches for ELA and Math

Year 2: Expand technology mentor assistance to include Science.

Year 3: Expand assistance to include Social Science.

Implementation Steps Date Job Title Responsible Evaluation Data

Meet as indicated on a regular basis to analyze the data and make appropriate recommendations and/or modifications

June 2011-2014 Supervisor, Instructional Technology

Director of Information and Technology Services

Director of Information and Technology Services, District Technology Council

E-rate and supporting documents

5d. Describe the process that will be used to monitor Section 5b and the annual benchmarks and timeline of activities including roles and responsibilities.

The Director II, Information and Technology Services will collect data about each particular activity or benchmark. The District Technology Committee will review the data on a regular basis and make recommendations for program modification. These recommendations will be shared with the Superintendent and applicable stakeholders, to be addressed in reports to the Board of Education.

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PART 6 – Funding and Budget 6a. List of established and potential funding sources.

Since the early 1990s, Modesto City Schools has utilized a number of funding sources to accomplish its technology objectives; E-rate reimbursements, various legislative acts like AB2882 and AB1339, the Digital High School Grant, State Equalization Funds, the Technology Literacy Challenge Grant, Carl Perkins Funding, and California Academy grants have been the most significant. The District will continue to identify future funding sources as they are identified to maximize its investment in technology.

The transition to Common Core State Standards represents a fundamental shift in how teachers will use technology to deliver instruction and assess student performance. Recognizing the significance of this shift, the Governing Board allocated $2,100,000 from the state’s Common Core State Standards Implementation Fund to be used towards three essential implementation steps:

• upgrades to or replacement of teacher workstations that exceed five years, • ensuring that K-12 sites have adequate technology to deliver the Computer Based Testing (CBT) • professional development for technology mastery.

Subsequent phases will be delineated over the transition of this plan.

Equalization Funds

Long after the State curtailed Equalization funding to school districts, the MCS Superintendent’s Cabinet continued to fund the account from general funds to support ongoing projects and maintenance. In fiscal year 2014/15, the District will stop using the term Equalization, but it will continue to fund its technology projects through other departmental accounts.

E-Rate

The FFC’s reimbursement program funded from the Universal Service Fund, commonly known as E-Rate has been the primary funding source for the District’s network infrastructure. E-Rate assists schools and libraries obtain affordable telecommunications and Internet access by reimbursing districts for qualified expenditures. The rate for reimbursement is determined by the district’s percent of students who qualify to receive free and reduced meals. Currently, the District’s overall reimbursement rate is 78% for qualified telecommunications costs.

E-Rate also provides funding for major networking projects which connect the school to the Internet eternally, and projects for internal connections. This funding is typically awarded to schools that have more than 90% of their students on free or reduced lunch. At the writing of this plan, 19 MCS schools met the criteria and were funded to receive new network switch gear and wireless networks. Districts are allowed to apply for internal projects, twice in a five year period and MCS will apply again in 2015.

Carl Perkins – Regional Occupation Programs

The District’s Careers and Regional Occupation Programs (ROP) seek to establish ongoing district-level, occupationally-based programs that integrate technology into a business-based learning environment. With input from the business community through their work on the various district advisory committees, ROP programs and supportive technology has been installed in all district high schools that mirror business practices and workplace standards.

As programs are established in the years to come through the ROP curriculum, program funding will be used to install the equipment, software, and infrastructure necessary to support the learning process, industry standards and student achievement.

Information and Technology Services

Modesto City Schools provides funding for an Information and Technology Services Division that is comprised of three departments: Computer Systems, Information Systems, and Instructional Technology.

Computer Services supports and maintains all District owned technology, which includes computers, servers, user accounts, network switches,, and all of the WAN/LAN infrastructures throughout the district. The CS department also coordinates the purchase and installation of hardware and software.

Information Services’ programming team develops and maintains a host of applications for the District as well maintain all websites, oversees the operation of customization PowerSchool, provides critical reports like CALPADS and HQT, supports and maintain the business systems software and operations, and performs all data warehouse functions and operations.

Instructional Technology coordinates and provides technology training across the spectrum of instructional delivery and classroom innovation to beginning word processing. The IT staff manages Apex Learning, Google Apps for Education, Edmodo, PowerTeacher Gradebook, and maintains a comprehensive online catalog of timely, useful content for all MCS staff.

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6b. Estimate annual implementation costs for the term of the plan.

HARDWARE, SOFTWARE AND INFRASTRUCTURE

ANTICIPATED HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE NEEDS

• Increase the RAM in 200 teacher computers and upgrade the operating systems to Windows 7 and Office 2010

• Replace 645 teacher computers • Upgrade and repurpose 470 of the replaced teacher computers that meet SBAC specifications for

student use • Purchase 125 digital projectors for classrooms that do not have them • Purchase 500 document cameras or a tablet device to provide image capture • Purchase 40 Mobile Computer Labs (Cart, 42 Chromebooks, High Availability Access Point,

and Charging System) to facilitate formative and summative computer based assessments • Upgrade Storage Attached Network (SAN) – add 14 drives, replace 42 drives • Increase Network Attached Storage (NAS) for backup – add 24 Terabytes in fiscal year 2014 and

24 TB in fiscal year 2016 • Upgrade HP Generation 1 & 6 Blade Servers to Generation 8

The following are the estimated costs of the hardware and components as delineated above (include estimated tax and shipping):

Item Description Quantity Estimated Cost Total Memory (RAM) Upgrades 670 $75 $50,250 Teacher Computers 645 $1,050 $677,250 Digital Projectors 125 $550 $68,750 Document Camera or Tablet Devices 500 $572 $286,000 Mobile Computer Lab (42 Chromebooks) 40 $18,500 $740,000 SAN Drives 56 $700 $39,200 NAS for Backup (24 Terabytes & Deck) 2 $10,000 $20,000 HP BL460c Generation 8 – Blade Server 10 $10,000 $100,000 Total $1,981,450

In May 2013, the District contracted with Microsoft through the CETPA and Microsoft Select Agreement. Under the terms of this contract all operating systems upgrades, installations of Microsoft Office, SharePoint Services, and management systems are inclusive with the annual agreement which is included in the ITS budget (see Annual Operating Costs table).

ANTICIPATED INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS

• Wireless networks for five K-6, two 7-8, seven 9-12, and one alternative education school sites (15 sites total) – 24 controllers, 600 access points

Item Description Quantity Estimated Cost Total Wireless Controllers 24 $4,000 $96,000 Access Point Licenses (Legacy Devices) 200 $125 $25,000 High Density Wireless Access Point 600 $900 $540,000 Total $661,000

SUPPORT STAFF COSTS ANNUAL OPERATING COSTS

Ongoing annual general fund obligation for the normal operations of the Information and Technology Services Division based on staffing levels in fiscal year 2013:

Budget Code Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Justification for Expenses 1000 - Certificated employees

$107,243 $107,243 $107,243 Salaries and hourly wages for certificated trainers.

2000 - Classified employees

$2,009,564 $2,009,564 $2,009,564 Salaries and hourly wages for classified staff working on technology and/or training.

3000 - Employee Benefits

$599,042 $599,042 $599,042 Benefits relating to certificated and classified salaries.

4000 - Materials & Supplies

$74,838 $74,838 $74,838 Tech training supplies and technology hardware for use in classrooms and district offices.

5000 - Other Services & Operating Expenses

$613,174 $$613,174 $$613,174 Software licensing and renewals, communication, professional development, transportation, and travel.

6000 - Equipment $35,999 $35,999 $35,999 Replacement data center components. Total $3,439,860 $3,439,860 $3,439,860

SUPPLEMENTAL SUPPORT STAFF

Projected costs for additional technical support staff as specified in 5b contingent upon actual or realized needs, adequate funding, and Board approval.

• Six Computer Technician II’s • One Visual Communication Technician • One Instructional Technology Trainer to support K-6 education • One Data Base Administrator

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• Application Specialist II to support QSS • Application Specialist II to provide user support, interventional applications • Four Instructional Technology Coaches – Certificated Teacher Salary Schedule • 12 Technology Mentor Optional Positions - Certificated Teacher Salary Schedule • 22 Technology Mentor Stipends - Certificated Teacher Salary Schedule • Possible Programmer Analyst • Possible Quality Control Technician

Estimates include salaries plus statutory costs and benefits:

Position Quantity Estimated Costs Total

Computer Technician II (CTII) 6 $79,340 $476,040

Visual Communication Technician (VCT) 1 $79,340 $79,340 Technology Trainer (TT) 1 $79,340 $79,340 7-12 - Tech Mentor Optional Period (TM) 12 $9,200 $110,400

K-6 – Tech Mentor Stipend (TM) 22 $5,000 $110,000

Application Specialist II (ASII) 2 $68,373 $136,746

Data Base Administrator (DBA) 1 $113,050 $113,050

Programmer/Analyst (PA) 1 $110,286 $110,286

Quality Assurance Technician (QA) 1 $79,340 $79,340

Total $1,294,542 Estimated operating and start costs expenses for above positions:

Item Description Quantity Estimated Costs Total

Desk, supplies and phone * - CTII, DBA, PA, QT 10 $5,000 $50,000

Desk, supplies and phone - IT Coaches 4 $3,500 $14,000

Conference and travel - IT Coaches 4 $2,000 $8,000 Desk, supplies and phone * – TT, VCT, AS 4 $4,000 $16,000

Technology - TM 34 $2,000 $68,000

Substitute Coverage – TM Release Days 340 $125 $42,500

Total $198,500 *positions require specialized computer configurations, multiple monitors, and mobile devices

6c. Describe the district's replacement policy for obsolete equipment.

The average student computer is over seven-years-old and will likely be replaced as part of a future 1:1 student to device initiative that is contingent on the receipt of funding specifically identified for digital textbooks. The District has many of the required infrastructure components in place to support a 1:1 initiative, however, like most Districts, lacks the funding to acquire the devices and the associate management tools.

If a third round of the Microsoft Settlement K12 Voucher is released the District will use those funds to replace aging computers and infrastructure components on a needs basis, using an “oldest first” approach. The District will continue to leverage its categorical funding where and whenever possible to keep current technology on hand for its users.

By entering into the CETPA Microsoft Agreement (CAMSA), the District has been able to add life, service, and better performance to some of its aging computers through its savings from CAMSA. At present the District is self-refurbishing computers that will meet the specifications to run the Windows 7, and now manages its entire inventory with Microsoft’s System Computer Configuration Manager. These two projects have produced significant cost savings and standardized systems management.

Any and all grants which the District seeks, routinely include language to secure the funds necessary for any required or associated technology.

6d. Describe the process that will be used to monitor Ed Tech funding, implementation costs and new funding opportunities and to adjust budgets as necessary.

Modesto City Schools will continue to perform periodic reviews of technology and associated systems to determine if their functionality is keeping pace with the demand. Any major changes will be reviewed by the District Technology Council, Education Cabinet, Superintendent’s Cabinet, and departments affected. The Director of Information and Technology Services is directly responsible for monitoring the technology budgets, and submitting budget requests and recommendations to Superintendent’s Cabinet for consideration.

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PART 7 - Monitoring and Evaluation 7a. Describe the process for evaluating the plan's overall progress and impact on teaching and learning.

When trying to determine the effectiveness of educational technology, one is confronted by a number of practical issues involved in the strategies used by teachers within the classroom. Foremost, technology, when used appropriately and integrated into the classroom curriculum, is only one component of an instructional activity. Assessments of the impact of technology are really assessments of classroom instruction enabled by technology and good teaching practices.

Principals, Directors, and the Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services will meet throughout the year to evaluate technology’s impact on student learning and attainment of district curriculum goals. They will review multiple measures such as achievement data, the results of student acquisition of knowledge and skills, staff development feedback, and staff technology survey results. An update will be presented to Cabinet and the District Technology Committee, and planning for next year’s staff development and budget needs will begin based on the findings.

Departments involved with the collection, review, and dissemination of this data will be: Assessment and Evaluation, Educational Services, Information and Technology Services, Budgeting, and site staff.

The high schools, junior highs and elementary sites are evaluated as part of an ongoing school progress report, involving site action plans developed by site administration and staff and are subject to the CBEDS required data collection. Along with the CBEDS data, the District will provide professional development technology training records to the sites to be incorporated into their site action plans and evaluations.

7b. Schedule for evaluating the effect of plan implementation.

As indicated in the goals and objectives of each component, data will be collected on a regular basis, compiled by the Office of Assessment and Evaluation, and distributed to the District and site level administrators. Some goals and objectives such as student skills or teacher training will be evaluated on a semester basis, while other benchmarks such as API scores will be evaluated on a yearly basis. The District already has in place a number of review cycles for assessing student achievement and site action plans.

The Technology Master Plan itself will be reviewed annually to assess the effectiveness and progress toward its stated goals and objectives. Departments involved in the review of this plan will be: Assessment and Evaluation, Educational Services, Information and Technology Services, Budgeting, and site staff.

7c. Describe the process and frequency of communicating evaluation results to tech plan stakeholders.

Final program reports and recommendations for program modifications will be reported to the District superintendent, the superintendent’s cabinet, and Board of Education. A report will also be made available to: parents, teachers, business partners, and site administration for their reactions and comments.

The purpose of monitoring and evaluating technology plan initiatives is to provide data to assure that resources are being used to accomplish state and local goals. Hard data provides information such as test scores and number of computers per classroom. Anecdotal data, on the other hand, allows educators to illustrate how technology-infused instructional practices are improving student learning by affecting such difficult-to-measure student attitudes as self-confidence and motivation. The plan will be revised and improved as needed. This is also a step in the continuous quality improvement process. No single planning committee can possibly foresee all of the underlying circumstances, which might cause detours along the way.

Activities Timeline Responsibility Evaluate the progress of the Technology Master Plan using feedback from the stakeholders responsible for implementation and review.

Semi-Annually • Director, Information and Technology Services (ITS) • Supervisor, Instructional Technology (IT) • District Technology Committee

Conduct staff development needs assessment using the MCS Technology self-assessment online tool. Report the finding back to the District Technology Council

Annually • Supervisor, (IT) • District Technology Committee

Continuously survey site personnel to ensure that training, support, and equipment are meeting their instructional and administrative needs.

Annually • District Technology Committee Director, ITS • Supervisor, (IT) • Supervisor, CS

Monitor 4th, 8th, and 12th grade computer and information literacy skills to insure that students are learning the skills necessary for a knowledge-based economy.

Annually • Director, Information and Technology Services (ITS) • Supervisor, Instructional Technology (IT) • District Technology Committee

Examine data from online technical support request database to determine frequency of support requests/response times.

Quarterly • Director, ITS • Supervisor, CS

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PART 8. Collaborative Strategies with Adult Literacy Providers

8. If the district has identified adult literacy providers, describe how the program will be developed in collaboration with them. (If no adult literacy providers are indicated, describe the process used to identify adult literacy providers or potential future outreach efforts.)

The 1992 and 2002 National Assessments of Adult Literacy use the following definition of literacy: “using printed and written information to function in society, to achieve one's goals, and to develop one's knowledge and potential.” This definition goes beyond simply decoding and comprehending text to include a broad range of information and technical processing skills that adults use in accomplishing the range of tasks associated with work, home, and community contexts.

Literacy is neither a single skill suited to all types of texts, nor an infinite number of skills, each associated with a given type of text or document. The National Adult Literacy Survey measured literacy along three dimensions: prose literacy, document literacy, and quantitative literacy. All are designed to capture an ordered set of information-processing skills and strategies that adults use to accomplish a diverse range of literacy tasks. The literacy scales make it possible to profile the various types and levels of literacy among different subgroups in our society.

The purpose of formal schooling has always been to ensure that new generations develop the skills they require. Yet, the challenge of maintaining and improving the literacy skills of adults is an issue that is much broader than formal education. The International Adult Literacy Survey reveals that literacy skills can be lost if they are not used throughout life. Consequently, the study argues for the development of a culture committed to learning and to the creation of literacy-rich environments wherever people live and work, that is, in the home, in the community and in places of employment. It suggests that an investment in literacy is a long-term interest-bearing bond which pays substantial benefits for individuals, for employers, and for nations.

Modesto City Schools has approximately 30,000 students; 58% are Hispanic, 24% are White, 5% are Asian, and 4% are African American, with the remainder in other ethnic groups. The 6,974 identified English Learners make up approximately 24% of the K-12 student population. In addition, those students qualifying for the free or reduced lunch program totaled 21,279, or 70% of the District student K-12 population.

Modesto City Schools (MCS) currently offers a number of Adult Literacy Programs which seek to meet the national stated goals by integrating technology into the classroom activities. MCS currently offers the following classes where integrated technology is used in the delivery of the classroom curriculum:

Parent Institute

In 2009-2010, seven Parent Involvement Committees meetings were scheduled and held. The purpose of this committee was to develop “strategies to increase parent involvement, especially of struggling students.”

Outcomes from this committee work included the discussion of plans to increase parent volunteers, the writing of individual school site plans to increase parent involvement, investigation of parent involvement “best practices” from other county schools, and organization of a California Association of Compensatory Education parent conference held at Modesto High School. In addition, more parents of Modesto City Schools graduate from the Parent Institute of Quality Education (PIQE) than any other school district in Northern California. All schools host the 9 week parent involvement/education courses on a 3 year rotating basis. During 2008-2010 new participation records were set with Modesto High and Downey High “graduating” over 200 parents each through PIQE.

Yosemite Regional Occupation Program

At the Modesto City Schools ROP facilities and all seven of the high school sites, classrooms and computer labs are used during the traditional school day to provide a wide variety of courses for students. Many of these labs are also used during after school hours to provide adult training to develop or enhance technical skills. The Modesto City School District Learning Center is used as a “One-Stop” adult training center for TANF, GAIN, and WAVE program participants. Adults enrolled at this center receive hands-on computer activities to assist in improving personal skills.

Funding sources utilized in Modesto City Schools are Adult Education, Community-Based English Tutoring (CBETs), Regional Occupation Program funding, Carl Perkins Act, AB 231 Literacy Grants, and the District Technology Master Plan.

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PART 9. Effective, Researched-Based Methods and Strategies 9a. Summarize the relevant research and describe how it supports the plan's curricular and professional development goals.

The Modesto City Schools’ Technology Master Plan is based on sound instructional technology strategies. Our educational practices adapt and evolve with the growth of our technology tools, our understanding of their best instructional implementation, and recognition of what it takes to connect to the twenty-first century student. It is acknowledged that principles, suggestions, and guidelines for high quality, efficient, and effective teaching are becoming more infused in the use of technology. These create an environment where technology has the opportunity to become a seamless medium for information queries, problem solving, and/or product development. Using technology at all levels of the educational structure is done with an approach that involves planning, implementation, and assessment. MCS plans for, implements, and assesses technology with the understanding that the tools we use to reach our educational goals are in constant evolution and so are our clients– the students.

In the article “Digital Immigrants, Digital Natives," Marc Prensky uses an analogy of native speakers and immigrants to describe the generation gap separating today's students (the "digital natives") from their teachers (the "digital immigrants"). Digital media envelops the digital natives so profoundly that their very brain structures may be different from those of previous generations; therefore they think and learn somewhat differently than older generations. On the other hand, those not born in the digital world reveal their non-native status through a "digital immigrant accent" that exhibits itself in a number of ways–printing out a digital document to edit it rather than editing it online, is offered as an example. This description remains apt and salient over a decade later.

2Prensky , Marc. "Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants." On the Horizon Oct 2001. http://www.twitchspeed.com/site/Prensky%20%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.htm

Though released over ten years ago (2001), the CEO Forum in the School Technology and Readiness Report remains relevant today in identifying the building blocks for effective use of technology in schools and the development of 21st Century skills, both essential components of the Modesto City Schools’ Technology Master Plan. It reviews how to use educational technology to focus on student achievement — through assessment, alignment, accountability, access, and analysis.

This report provides six recommendations for ensuring that educational technology improves student achievement and benefits education:

• Focus educational technology investment on specific educational objectives. • Make the learning of 21st Century skills a key educational objective. • Align assessment with objectives and include 21st Century skills. • Adopt continuous improvement strategies to measure progress and adjust accordingly. • Increase investment in research, development, and dissemination. • Ensure equitable access for all students to technology.

3 CEO Forum in School Technology and Readiness Report. Retrieved November 1, 2012 http://www.theceoforum.us/.

John Seely Brown, former director of the Palo Alto Research Center, has referred to teaching in the 21st

Century as focused on learning to “be” someone as opposed to learning about something (Brown, 2006). Technologies can enable teachers to facilitate their own students’ constructions of their “being” but require that teachers speak “digital,” as Brown puts it, in such a way that will enable them to find and use technologies that facilitate productive forms of inquiry. Teachers in the 21st Century should strive to create learning environments that harness the abilities and talents of digital natives and direct emerging ways of thinking about technology toward more sophisticated and meaningful learning opportunities for students. The voices of students should be prominently featured and resonate in this process; by listening to students, teachers will not only be better informed but also be more effective as they facilitate their students’ education.

Our technology plan illustrates and delineates the district’s desire, ability, and strategies to meet these challenges. In this research section of the MCS Plan, key studies and reports are shared which align with its primary goals, objectives, strategies, and resources related to 21st Century skills, technology integration within state content standards (e.g., California Common Core Standards), best practices for incorporating technology use with special needs students, professional development, and data-driven decision making and assessment.

Technology-Integrated Instruction

We believe technology is a tool that can enhance learning and engage students. The decision to use any technology should be based on what is needed in the curriculum rather than using technology for technology’s sake.

There are a number of studies that point to the positive effects of technology integration on student achievement. It is the experience of the District that students in a technology-integrated classroom have elevated attendance rates, are more motivated to learn, are more adept at applying instructional content, and show more gains in achievement as measured by standardized tests. While some of these gains can be attributed to good teaching, it is clear that technology plays a major role.

Most experts agree that students should develop technological skills in the context of learning and solving problems related to academic content (Baker & O'Neil, 2003). In a review of studies, the CEO Forum (2001) concluded, “Technology can have the greatest impact when integrated into the curriculum to achieve clear, measurable educational objectives.” When technology is integrated into the larger instructional framework, students will not only learn how to use the equipment and software but will also gain content knowledge (Silverstein et al., 2000). Overall findings in current literature which examines effective educational applications of computer and web-based technology indicate the following: integrated technologies promote active engagement, resulting in a level of subject-matter understanding that is considerably more profound than that found with more traditional, lecture-based modes of education; integrated technologies support collaborative learning for increased motivation, deeper understanding of course material, and increased self-confidence; and integrated technologies improve the pace and overall quality of the learning process through prompt and frequent feedback on task performance (Roschelle et al., 2000). A meta-analysis of studies that investigated the effect of computers on student writing found that

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“students who use computers when learning to write are not only more engaged and motivated in their writing, but also produce work that is of greater length and higher quality” (Goldberg, Russell & Cook, 2003). Technology improves student performance when the application directly supports the curriculum objectives being assessed.

Alignment of project or lesson content with state content standards is an important first step to infusing technology with curricula. A survey of 465 teachers in California resulted in 92% affirming that the first step in infusing technology into the curriculum is having information about the specific content of a program or use of an application that aligns with state-adopted curriculum standards. A number of the respondents indicated that an online resource that profiles electronic learning resources with the specific skills in knowledge areas that align with content standards would help them select programs that will facilitate curriculum integration with technology (Cradler & Beuthel, 2001).

Technology improves motivation, attitude, and interest when students use technology applications to produce, demonstrate, and share their work with peers, teachers, and parents.

With technology, students can be involved in longer-term projects that engage higher-order thinking skills. Students engaged in these types of assignments utilize the Internet and digital media resources to research information, interact with a group to synthesize and summarize the information, and use presentation software to summarize their findings and present it to the whole class. Educators can make evaluations of student skills by asking the student to perform tasks that demonstrate mastery of these skills. These projects also give teachers new ways to assess student progress. Teachers not only assess discreet skills related to California Content Standards (Common Core Standards), but they also assess elements such as use of factual information to answer problem-solving questions and find greater success in problem-solving.

Teacher beliefs and technology integration practices: A critical relationship

Peggy A. Ertmer a,*, Anne T. Ottenbreit-Leftwich b, Olgun Sadik b, Emine Sendurur c, Polat Sendurur c

BARRIERS TO TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION

In 1999, Ertmer distinguished between two types of barriers that impacted teachers’ uses of technology in the classroom.

First-order (external) barrier

• Hardware resources • Software resources • Training • Support

Second-order (internal) barriers

• Teachers’ confidence • Beliefs about how students learned

• Perceived value of technology to the teaching/learning process.

Although first-order barriers had long been documented as posing significant obstacles to achieving technology integration, the underlying second-order barriers were thought to pose the greater current challenge.

MEANINGFUL STUDENT TECHNOLOGY USE

The relationship between teachers’ pedagogical beliefs and meaningful technology use, specifically that which facilitated student-centered learning. According to Means and Olson (1997), student-centered learning was defined as using technology to “promote student learning through collaborative involvement in authentic, challenging, multidisciplinary tasks by providing realistic complex environments for student inquiry, furnishing information and tools to support investigation, and linking classrooms for joint investigations” (p. 9). McCain (2005) elaborated: “the use of technology in the classroom is not the critical issue facing education in the 21st century. [Rather], the issue of foremost importance is to develop thinking skills in our students so that they will be able to utilize the power of technological tools to solve problems and do useful work” (p. 84). This, then, translates into the requirement that technology be placed in the hands of students, who are encouraged and enabled to utilize it in the same ways, and for the same purposes, that professionals do – that is, to communicate, collaborate, and solve problems.

GLOBAL STATUS OF KEY EXTERNAL (FIRST ORDER) BARRIERS

Hardware and Internet Access - NEA 2008 survey reports 74% report access to tech was adequate to do their job. 81% report they have access to student data.

Software and Tool Access - Wide availability of Web 2.0 tools has made access to tools almost a non-issue

Training - The most cited reason for lack of implementation of new technology is lack of professional development. NEA results showed that 43% of teachers felt inadequately trained to integrate technology into instruction.

Support - There are a number of different types of support needed for effective integration including administrative, technological, professional, and peer. In addition to the use of technology coordinators, a number of different strategies are being employed by school administrators to provide technology support including the appointment of a technology-planning committee, the development of professional learning communities, and the use of teacher leaders

Barriers to technology integration

Teachers were asked to rate, on a scale from 1 (not at all) to 5 (very much), the extent to which various barriers impacted their students’ uses of technology. The top 10 highest rated barriers are listed below

1. Attitudes and beliefs (other teachers) 2. Technology support 3. State standards

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4. Money 5. Technology access 6. Time 7. Assessments (standardized, state) 8. Technology problems 9. Institution (administration) 10. Subject culture

Enablers to technology integration

In contrast, we asked teachers to describe the biggest enablers to their technology integration practices. Five teachers mentioned internal factors (their own attitudes and beliefs or knowledge and skills) as the strongest contributing factor to their abilities to integrate technology. Four teachers mentioned that professional learning networks (e.g., Twitter, blogs, professional development) played the biggest role in their integration of technology. Finally, three teachers mentioned the support of their administrators, while two mentioned student motivation and engagement as the most influential enablers.

TEACHER USE OF TECHNOLOGY FOR INSTRUCTION

Ertmer et al. reported teachers’ technology uses were classified into those that:

1. Technology to deliver content and reinforce skills 2. Technology to complement or enrich the curriculum 3. Technology to transform teaching and learning

FACTORS CURRENTLY INFLUENCING TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION

Change in access - Internet access, when first introduced, provided students with access to information; the evolution of Web 2.0 tools has enabled a greater level of participation, collaboration, and knowledge construction among students (Brandon, 2008). In essence, this has provided a whole new platform for student learning.

Change in students - strong alignment among teachers’ beliefs and practices relates to teachers’ growing understanding of the “new, 21st century” student (i.e., digital natives) and how they learn. According to Prensky (2010), “more and more young people are now deeply and permanently technologically enhanced, connected to their peers and the world in ways no generation has been before”

Change in curricular emphasis - The U.S. Department of Education (2010), national curricular organizations (ISTE, 2008; Windschitl, 2009), and educational researchers have all called for teachers to incorporate 21st century skills within their curricula (Dede, Korte, Nelson, Valdez, & Ward, 2005). Not surprisingly, school corporations are responding by including this goal in their revised strategic plans (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2007). As a result, teachers are being encouraged and supported by their administrators to implement classroom strategies aimed at developing students’ self-directed learning, collaboration, and problem-solving skills (Overbay, Patterson, Vasu, & Grable, 2010), all of which support a student-centered pedagogy.

IMPACT OF BARRIERS

Teachers rated two internal factors (inner drive and personal beliefs) as the most influential. This suggests that the best way to bring more teachers on-board is not by eliminating more first-order barriers, but by increasing knowledge and skills, which in turn, have the potential to change attitudes and beliefs. Previous studies have shown that as teachers develop knowledge about how technology can be used to support student-centered learning, beliefs tend to change (Sandholtz & Ringstaff,1996).

While their beliefs did not impede their integration of technology, other teachers’ technology attitudes and beliefs were the strongest barrier to the integration of technology within their schools. “Constructivist practices and beliefs were significant predictors of technology use”

However, it is important to remember that when teachers begin the process of implementing new pedagogical approaches, first-order barriers may more easily impede the enactment of new … beliefs (Kagan, 1992; Pajares, 1992).

If you can’t surmount the barrier threshold, practices are limited, despite beliefs. As illustrated by the discrepant case in our study, the teacher working in a school with very limited access to technology had difficulty aligning her beliefs with practice. According to Ertmer (1999) the more significant difference between high- and low-level users related not to the barriers themselves, but to the “relative weight that teachers assigned to first-order barriers” (p.52). Thus, even if access and resources were low, teachers might assign these barriers little weight due to strong beliefs about the role technology should play in the classroom.

Finally, the results of this study suggest we should be utilizing the same technology tools for professional development that teachers are able to use in their classrooms. In a recent report on teacher professional development in the United States, the National Staff Development Council (Darling-Hammond, Wei, Andree, Richardson, & Orphanos, 2009) urged educators to provide professional development in more current and authentic ways: “It is time for our education workforce to engage in learning the way other professionals do continually, collaboratively, and on the job to address common problems and crucial challenges where they work” (p. 2)

Teachers should be introduced to the idea of joining and/or developing their own professional learning networks (PLN; Perkins, 2010). PLNs allow teachers to select one or multiple Web 2.0 technologies (e.g., Twitter, blogs, Google Reader) by which they can “follow” individual teachers or organizations.

Exemplary Technology-using Teachers: Perceptions of Factors Influencing Success

Peggy A. Ertmer, Anne Ottenbreit-Leftwich, and Cindy S. York

Exemplary technology-using teachers are defined as those who employ technology in learner-centered, constructivist environments as opposed to traditional teacher-directed environments (Ertmer, Gopalakrishnan, & Ross, 2001; Jonassen, Howland, Moore, & Marra, 2003). In general, a constructivist learning environment engages students in authentic, collaborative tasks, based on their interests. Within this type of environment, technology is used as a tool to support learners’ engagement with the content, ultimately prompting them to use higher-level thinking skills (Becker, 1994; Ertmer et al., 2001). According to Berg, Benz, Lasley, and Raisch (1998), this is due, in part, to technology’s ability to provide students with the tools “to actively process new information, to transform it, and to ‘make it their own’” (p. 120).

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For example, research on self-efficacy, as well as teachers’ beliefs and visions, suggest that intrinsic factors are also important to successful technology integration (Becker, 2000; Ertmer, 1999, 2005; Guha, 2003; Wang, Ertmer, & Newby, 2004). In a series of technology use studies (USEiT), Russell, Bebell, O’Dwyer, and O’Connor (2003) highlighted important relationships among teachers’ levels of computer use and their beliefs about, and confidence for, using technology. Surprisingly, high confidence for using technology was not a direct predictor of teachers’ classroom uses. Rather, confidence appeared to be moderated by years of teaching experience. That is, while teachers who recently entered the profession (within the past five years) reported having more confidence using computers than teachers who had been in the profession for six or more years, their beliefs about the negative effects of computers on students were stronger. In addition, although the newer teachers used technology more often than experienced teachers for preparation of instructional materials and professional communication, they directed their students to use technology significantly less than more experienced teachers. This suggests that while new teachers may be more comfortable with the technology tools, they may lack an appreciation for the value of technology as an instructional tool. Alternatively, they may lack the organization and management skills needed to use technology effectively in the classroom, skills that develop through years of experience.

Participants perceived intrinsic factors to be significantly more influential than extrinsic factors in their ability to become successful technology using teachers. In general, teachers in this study rated intrinsic factors as being significantly more influential than extrinsic factors in their decisions to use technology.

TYPES OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

• courses/workshops (e.g. on subject matter or methods and/or other education-related topics); • education conferences or seminars (at which teachers and/or researchers present their research results and

discuss education problems); • observation visits to other schools; • participation in a Professional Learning Network of teachers formed specifically for the professional

development of teachers; • individual or collaborative research on a topic of professional interest; • mentoring and/or peer observation and coaching, as part of a formal school arrangement. • informal dialogue to improve teaching

Collaborative, Student-Centered Learning

In What Students Think About Technology and Academic Engagement in School (2007), Lee and Spires found that middle school students listed working with computers above all of the following: doing research on the Internet, working on projects in a group, working on a project individually, listening to the teacher explain things, and doing worksheets. Another finding was students are becoming more and more fearful that they are being left behind in an age of technological innovation in which their schools seemed unable to keep pace.

Research indicates that students who engage in collaborative, program-based learning have higher levels of motivation (Guthrie & Wigfield, 2000). When students are motivated, they demonstrate improved achievement (Roderick & Engel, 2001; Haydel & Roeser, 2002; Gulek, 2003) and produce longer and higher quality writing samples (Reeves, 2001; Goldberg, Russell & Cook, 2003). Similarly, teachers using a

constructivist approach have fewer classroom management problems (Marzano et al., 2003) and have more engaged learners in their classrooms (Marzano et al., 2003).

Equitable Access to Technology for All Students

There are many different types of special need learners who clearly benefit under the umbrella of technology and equitable access: Special Education (SpEd), English language learners (ELL), and gifted and talented (GATE) students.

Students with Special Needs

A 2004 publication, republished in 2005, points out that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) amendments of 1997 state that all students requiring Special Education services must be considered for assistive technology. Suggestions for assistive technologies include those to enhance teaching and learning, such as software for drilling and practicing academic concepts, and other technologies, such as screen readers that read the text on the computer to compensate for literacy problems. These enable disabled students to work more effectively, efficiently, and independently (Thompson, J., et al., 2005). Other publications and studies have addressed the benefits of using technology with special needs students. “Technology can provide the means for students with special needs to communicate via email and use the Internet for research, and can also help teachers accommodate students’ varying learning styles” (Silverstein, G., Frechtling, I., & Miyoaka, A., 2000). As cited in The CEO Forum on Education Technology, 2001, “Several research studies offer evidence that educational technology can provide significant benefits for special needs students, including learning disabled, low achieving, special education and gifted students.” Clearly we must use technology to assist our MCS Special Education students.

English Language Learners

Language Development Technologies for Young English Learners examines a variety of technologies for supporting English language learner (ELL) students. The author concludes, “These technologies can support cognitive development; engage learners in tasks and problem-solving; foster student autonomy by individualizing activities that they can do at their own pace; help focus learner’s attention on specific language skills; support students who have different learning preferences by providing multimedia experiences; encourage collaboration among learners; provide a comfortable learning environment; foster appreciation of the target language and culture; and provide specific feedback and assessment to help learners (and their teachers) monitor progress” (Parker, L. L., 2005). Clearly we need to leverage technology use to increase learning for our English language learners.

Gifted and Talented Education (GATE)

The concept of using technology to support individual instructional needs is echoed in Educational Technology by M. H. Siddiqui. The author states, “Gifted students can work at their own pace and explore subjects in more depth than the basic curriculum. Technology can also analyze and provide immediate feedback on performance, and can suggest modifications in instruction where necessary to improve student achievement.” (Siddiqui, M., 2008). Again, we clearly need to bring technology to bear in order to best serve all our students including gifted students who will benefit from its use as well.

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Professional Development

Section 4 of the MCS Plan provides details on the professional development goals and objectives required to support the teaching and learning goals and objectives in Section 3 - Curriculum.

Research indicates that ongoing professional development is essential to the success of the goals and objectives for teaching and learning. Successful implementation of technology-integrated instruction requires training and ongoing support, as well as time to collaborate with peers. One study found that helping teachers to learn to integrate technology into curriculum is a critical factor in the successful implementation of technology in schools (Sivin-Kachala, J., & Bialo, E., 2000).

Professional development has and will continue to emphasize the use of technology as a powerful teaching and learning tool that engages students while addressing content standards within the curricular, instructional framework and adopted curriculum. In The Learning Return On Our

Educational Technology Investment: A Review of Findings from Research, WestED (Ringstaff and Kelley, June 2002) provide an extensive report that examines many studies related to educational technology and school reform. Several key factors are identified as crucial elements for successfully using technology:

• Technology is best used as one component in a broad-based reform effort • Teachers must be adequately trained to use technology • Teachers may need to change their beliefs about teaching and learning • Technological resources must be sufficient and accessible • Effective technology use requires long-term planning and support • Technology should be integrated into the instructional framework

Key to the professional development is the site-based technology integration mentor program. It is our belief that this site-based approach is an effective approach to staff development. Teachers learn best from other teachers. We strive to create a community of learners at each site who are able to assist their peers both in formal and informal settings.

A review of research on staff development for technology insertion (Cradler & Cradler, 1995) found significant factors in effective staff development to be:

• Development of school and classroom level technology plans by and for teachers. • Understanding of ways to integrate technology into education reform. • Teacher-awareness of effective technology applications. • A social network of other technology-using teachers. • Availability of teacher-mentors or other peer support. • Involvement of principals and other administrators in the planning and training. • Development of the knowledge to critique and select technology applications. • Adequate time and increased opportunity for staff development and technical assistance. • Awareness of and access to educationally relevant technology-based programs. • Opportunities for educators to communicate with peers in other schools and at conferences.

MCS recognizes the essential need for supporting its teachers as educators gain the skills to engage this digital generation. The District does so by providing professional development opportunities and provision for technology tools, as funding permits, as integral parts of learning and teaching throughout the educational setting. It also recognizes that listening to its digital natives’ voices is critical as decisions are made about educational policy and school design. NCREL (North Central Regional Educational Laboratory) presents the following: “To reach the goal of preparing teachers for effective technology use, a well-designed professional development program is essential. Professional development in a technological age requires new definitions and new resources. It cannot take the traditional forms of individual workshops or one-time training sessions. Instead, it must be viewed as an ongoing and integral part of teachers' professional lives.” (NCREL, 2000). In a paper discussing the cost, utility, and value of technology, Wahl suggests that organizations should spend 30 percent of their budget on equipment and 70 percent on the “human infrastructure” to support ongoing training and technical assistance (Wahl, E., 2000). This thinking guides MCS’s planning going forward.

Installation of equipment, understanding of technology integration, and information literacy skills do not insure that technology will be integrated into teaching and learning. This requires a commitment of resources to ongoing professional development. Modesto USD is committed to deepening its professional development services to teachers and staff through multiple approaches: train the trainer sessions, library/media librarians teacher collaborations with teachers, administrator sessions, posting how-to help files and videos on the District Website’s help pages, peer-to-peer coaching, et cetera.

Opportunities for peer interaction and collaboration abound. A study by Becker and Riel (2000) found that there is a relationship between professional engagement and teaching practice; it further suggests that professional engagement should involve collaboration of teachers within and across schools. Another study found that “Shared practice and collective inquiry help sustain improvement by strengthening connections among teachers, stimulating discussion about professional practice, and helping teachers to build on one another’s expertise” (McREL, 2003). Sandholtz found that techniques that have been proven most successful are hands-on active learning, exploring, reflecting, collaboration among peers and participating in active learning (Sandholtz, 2001).

The Apple Classroom of Tomorrow (ACOT) is a research and development collaborative among Apple Computer, Inc., the National Science Foundation, and many universities and research institutions. The intervention provided two computers to each teacher and student along with substantial staff development. The project purpose was to investigate how routine use of computers and technology influence teaching and learning. Findings from the first ten years of the project include:

• As teachers became more comfortable and competent with the technology, they began working in teams and across disciplines.

• Classrooms became a mix of traditional and constructivist instruction. • Students became more collaborative. • Teachers altered their classrooms and daily schedules to permit students more time to work on

projects. • Teachers began to develop new forms of assessment that were performance and portfolio based. • Technology encouraged student-centered, cooperative learning. • Technology often inspired teachers to use more complex tasks and materials in their instruction. • The influence of technology on teaching and learning occurred over an extended period of time.

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Extensive research conducted by the Office of Technology Assessment reports that “districts may be well advised to use multiple training and support strategies tailored to the educational goals of the local site” (OTA, 1995, p.130). Data also indicate that no one strategy is best; rather, the strategies are often combined at any given site. Among the strategies used by districts are:

Technology-rich model schools.

Trainer of trainer model where a cadre of teachers receive professional development so they can provide the same and help other teachers.

• Expert resource people. • Providing every teacher with a computer. • Training administrators and teachers together. • Creating teacher resource centers.

Data-Driven Instruction

Teachers and administrators need to learn how to access and use data to focus instruction and meet the needs of individual students. Newer electronic systems with user-friendly interfaces (like the Measures systems, Aeries Gradebook, and School Loop) are essential for effective datadriven instruction. Research reflects the need for easy-to-access and understandable systems.

“Student data is often stored in forms that are difficult to access, manipulate, and interpret. Such access barriers additionally preclude the use of data at the classroom level to inform and impact instruction. Fortunately, there are newly available computer technologies that allow efficient organization and access to student data. In addition to allowing easier accountability reporting, these tools allow user-friendly data access at all educational levels, meaning that teachers can use these tools to engage in the informed reflection necessary to improve classroom practice.” (Wayman, J. (2005). Involving Teachers in

Data-Driven Decision Making: Using Computer Data

Systems to Support Teacher Inquiry and Reflection, Journal of Education for Students Placed at Risk). Technology is most influential when integrated with curriculum and assessment. In a review of studies, the CEO Forum (2001) concluded that "technology can have the greatest impact when integrated into the curriculum to achieve clear, measurable educational objectives." The report also concludes that student achievement is enhanced when teachers use assessments that “accurately and completely reflect the full range of academic and performance skills.”

There has been a movement towards data-driven instruction, using current data on individual student progress, as well as disaggregated socio-economic data to uncover and focus on student needs. MCS has two technology systems that provide data for administrators guiding and supporting the direction of instructional practices and for teachers implementing effective instruction in the classrooms, namely SchoolCity and PowerTeacher Gradebook (please refer to the Curriculum section of this plan for more details.)

The Classroom Visitation Application enables administrators to take an objective snapshot of a lesson in progress, and send immediate feedback to teacher. The information collected is stored in a SQL database, allowing the teacher or administrator to disaggregation each snapshot to identify areas of need and track their progression. This application was written to evolve as District emphasis and needs change.

In The Role of Assessment in a Learning Culture, the author calls for “assessment to be moved into the teaching and learning process instead of being postponed as only the end-point of instruction.” Dynamic

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assessment, as she defines it, allows teachers to provide assistance as part of assessment, gain valuable insights for extending understanding, create targeted opportunities to teach, and scaffold next steps (Shepard, L. A., 2000). A 2005 study found “Teachers are better able to modify their instructional strategies when they have current information about the skill levels and proficiencies of their students.” The authors concluded that having access to data from a variety of sources in a timely manner—and using it constructively—can lead to more appropriate instruction in the classroom and higher achievement for students (Lachat, M. A., & Smith, S., 2005). The data-driven cycle of assessment, analysis, and action, which is indispensable for increasing student achievement, must be deeply embedded in the school's culture and a top priority for schoolwide improvement.” (Fenton, B. and Murphy, M., 2010). MCS aims to heed this call, and this Modesto City Schools’ Technology Master Plan sketches an emerging blue print for how we can attain 21st Century learning and teaching through the use of these new technologies.

9b. Technology to Deliver Rigorous Curriculum

The confluence of emerging technology with digital natives that learn and acquire information differently, combined with a shortage of tech savvy teachers poses a unique set of challenges for delivering rigorous curriculum.

School districts nationwide struggle to keep their technology current and train their teachers to master today’s digital classrooms, while their students outpace them in the use of technology. Most students carry more powerful technology in their pockets than they find in their classrooms. But research shows that few students use that technology to enhance their educational experience.

Modesto City Schools worked to build a robust network infrastructure and re-defined its classroom technology standards to make it possible for their teachers and students to connect electronically. Across the District in classrooms at every grade level, these connections have created a ground swell of digitally-enhanced learning and effective communication between teachers, students, and parents.

The use of Google Apps for Education (GAFE) has grown to over 5,000 active users; roughly 18% of the district’s staff and students from grades 2 - 12.

Future technology goals planned to be explored by the District Technology Council to increase the use of technology in and out of the classroom include, but are not limited to:

Distance Learning

• New, innovative, and creative virtual and physical training and distance learning projects will be explored to enhance the curriculum. Technology found to be effective in delivering a more rigorous curriculum will be used to expand content offerings to 7-12 classes. Various applications and multimedia will be utilized to maximize student and teacher participation in these programs.

• Utilizing various systems, the Instructional Technology staff will work with district technology and BTSA mentors to produce online collaborative educational content for staff, student, and parents.

• The role of Instructional Technology and Computer Systems will be reviewed and continue to adjust technical support, technology professional development, and be the first line of support for trouble-shooting support in instructional applications, infrastructure implementation, and on-site technical assistance.

• Modesto City Schools will seek out and explore new platforms that may be better suited for distance learning applications. Other virtual world technologies such as Google Sites and Edmodo will also be explored to increase participation and reduce overall costs.

• Various approaches and media will be utilized in order to maximize teacher participation in these programs using video streaming on the Web and online training. Utilizing various systems, the district’s Instructional Technology staff will work to produce online educational content for staff training.

District Website:

• The District’s website will be redesigned and expanded to include content rich materials and resources to the classroom and the community.

• The district’s Instructional Technology staff in conjunction with the Computer Systems Department will continue to provide training and Internet resources to schools as new technology is implemented and information and services are added which will enrich the district’s Internet content.

• The district’s Instructional Technology staff in conjunction with the Computer Systems Department will work together to provide a safe environment by which teachers and students create and post their own Web pages that are published on the district Internet server.

Modesto Virtual Academy

Modesto City Schools established a virtual education charter school in the 2010 academic year. A year later the charter was dissolved, however Modesto Virtual Academy continues to provide educational services to the students of Modesto City Schools as an alternative education program in the district. This innovative program serves high schools students of all abilities with curriculum provided by Apex Learning. Modesto Virtual Academy curriculum is as rigorous as what students would find in a traditional classroom.

Modesto Virtual Academy targets long-term independent study students, as well as students who may be struggling in the traditional high school environment that need an alternative to the traditional brick and mortar school.

Modesto Virtual Academy is open and free to any student from ninth to 12th grade. Modesto Virtual Academy provides another option for students to complete high school.

Internet Use:

Teachers will develop and utilize Web-based lessons that enrich the core curriculum in their classrooms. These lessons will be documented and shared with same grade level and/or subject-area staff via the district website and staff training as “Best Practices” model. Using a train the trainer model, all teachers in the district will be exposed to new hardware, software and standards aligned applications appropriate to their subject or grade level.

The district’s Instructional Technology staff in conjunction with the Computer Systems Department will continue to work to define and implement the Child Internet Protection Act (CIPA) provisions to ensure an environment where students and parents feel protected from outside predators. When parents and children feel safe, they are more like to use the technology to expand their knowledge.

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Distance Learning Classroom Resources

While distance learning as described above may not be as effective as learning in the traditional classroom, there is a component of distance learning that Modesto city Schools supports – distance anytime-anywhere resources for the classroom. Modesto City School’s Instructional Technology and Computer Systems Departments work with site teachers to place critical components and resources (lesson outlines, project activities, student grades and academic progress, information literacy and Internet resources) of the classroom on the district’s Internet site. As electronic media and infrastructure bandwidth become more available to enable content rich interactive media, Modesto City Schools will evaluate the effectiveness of distance learning and make its decisions accordingly.

RESEARCH REFERENCES

1. In the video, Khan goes on to talk about the advantages of online learning -- how, in classic disruptive fashion, many assume that it can't be good enough because we tend to think an in-person experience is better and a free one on the Web can't be all that good. But instead online learning enables convenient learning at the needed pace (you can fast forward, stop, rewind); counter-intuitively removes the distance from learning -- the teacher in front of the class at a distance from students is now brought right to you; if you're not sure about a concept on which the lesson is built, you can stop, learn about that concept (even if you're in "fifth-grade math" and the concept is a "third-grade one," which you could almost never do in a traditional classroom!), removes the pressure for the student of having to look good or perform for the teacher or tutor; and so forth. And by the way, he has received letters that suggest that it works for everyone -- students with ADD, gifted and talented students, special needs students, and so forth. This is not just a nice add on, as computer-based learning has been typically treated; there is a fundamental hunger and need for this. From http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-horn/the-khan-academy-brings-d_b_764562.html

The Khan Academy Brings Disrupting Class to Life Michael Horn (Co-author of Disrupting Class) Co-founder and Executive Director, Education of Innosight Institute Posted: October 19, 2010 07:22 PM

2. This vision for the classroom of the future is not new. It's one that people have talked and dreamed about for years in a variety of forms: Students partake in interactive learning with computers and other technology devices; teachers roam around as mentors and individual learning coaches; learning is tailored to each student's differences; students are engaged and motivated. http://www.edutopia.org/student-centric-education-technology

Disrupting Class: Student-Centric Education Is the Future How radical innovation will change the way we teach and kids learn. By Clayton M. Christensen, Michael B. Horn Clayton M. Christensen and Michael B. Horn are coauthors, along with Curtis W. Johnson, of Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns. This article originally published on 8/13/2008

http://www.ed.gov/technology/netp-2010

PART 10 - ADDENDUM LIST 10.1 Software List

10.2 Student Internet and Network Agreement

10.3 Student Internet Tutorial

10.4 MCS Survey Results – Teachers

10.5 MCS Survey Results – Classified Staff

10.6 MCS Survey Results – Admin Certificated

10.7 MCS Survey Results – Admin Classified

10.8 ISTE NETS for Students

10.9 ISTE Student Technology Profiles

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10.1 SOFTWARE LIST

Adobe Acrobat Pro Adobe Bridge Adobe Illustrator Adobe InDesign Adobe Photoshop Adobe Premier Adobe Reader Adobe Sound Booth Animoto Apple Safari Athena Software Audacity Autodesk Avery Babylon Brain Pop Brain Pop Jr Broderbund Catchup Math ClassZone Collaborize Classroom Comic Life Corel Draw Creative Writer Destiny Dictionary Boss Digiarty Software Digidesign Discovering French Discovery Streaming Dragon Speak DropBox Dropbox Inc Easy Book Deluxe EasyRecord EdrawSoft eInstruction Elluminate ExamView Facebook Final Cut Pro Garageband Geospiza Gimpshop Glencoe Glogster EDU Google Chrome Google Docs Google Earth Google Sketchup

GradeCam Halfbaked Software Harcourt Assessment Heartsoft Hellmansoft Hemera technologies HJeDesign Houghton Mifflin iLearn iLife iMovie Infineon Infinite Algebra Internet Explorer InterVideo Intuit iOS Issuu iWork Jay Klein Software Jostens Juniper Networks K-2 Book House Kid Pix 4 Kidpix Kuder Navigator Lavasoft LeapFrog Lego Software Livebinders MapsGalaxy MatchWare Math 180 Math Blaster Math Type Mavis Beacon McDougall Littell McGraw Hill Microsoft Access Microsoft Excel Microsoft Outlook Microsoft PowerPoint Microsoft Publisher Microsoft Word Millies Math H Mozilla Firefox Musicnotes Novatek ObjectPlanet OSX

Pasco Photostory 3 Pixielab Plantronics PowerSchool PowerSource Prentice Hall Printshop Promethean Pygraphics Quizdom Read 180 Reading Blasters ReadWriteType - English Realidades Renaissance Learning Riverdeep Rosetta Stone Roxio Scantron Scholastic- Reading Counts Scholastic-SRI SchoolCity SchoolTube Scott Foresman Scratch Screencast-o-matic SimTech Skills Tutor Slideshare SmartDraw SmartSound Socrative SRI Student Stardock SuccessMaker5 Sunburst SurveyMonkey Talking Typer TechSmith Teck4Learning Thinking Things Thinkmap Timeline 5.0 Tumblebooks Twitter Type to Learn Type to Learn Jr, New Keys Ulead Voicethread

Windows Windows SharePoint Services (WSS) Wondershare Software

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10.2 Student Internet and Network Agreement

Student Internet and Network Agreement

I understand that:

1. The Modesto City Schools (MCS) Network consists of all hardware, software, and other equipment

connected to it. Modifying or inappropriately accessing any part of it is prohibited.

2. All equipment on the MCS Network, all data stored, and all data transmitted through the network is the

property of Modesto City Schools.

3. I shall have NO EXPECTATION OF PRIVACY when using the MCS network, storing files, when using

email or when accessing the Internet or any other resource through the network.

4. I will never give out any personal identifying information, or personal information of others while using

the network, email or the Internet.

5. Accessing adult sites or inappropriate materials on the Internet is strictly prohibited.

6. Just because the district filter does not block a particular website does not make it okay to view if it

contains prohibited material.

7. All information gathered from the Internet is subject to copyright laws. If your project contains quotes,

movies, sounds or pictures that you did not create, you will need to “cite” your sources.

8. If I break the law, Modesto City Schools will cooperate with law enforcement in any investigations

brought on the district and violators will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

IMAGES REMOVED FROM THE FOLLOWING DUE TO UPLOAD CONSTRAINTS AT CDE

10.3 Student Internet and CyberSafety Tutorial

10.4 MCS Survey Results – Teachers

10.8 ISTE NETS for Students

10.9 ISTE Student Technology Profiles