Governor’S Advisory Council On Educational Technology

West Virginia Board of Education

Educational Technology for 21st Century Learners

Strategic Work Plan 2005-2008

Integration/Instruction Committee Report

March 27, 2006

The Working Committee report to the Advisory Committee will indicate:

1.  Progress, updates and work completed on each action step;

2.  Documentation associated with the completion of action steps/task (may be link on web site or attached to report);

3.  Summarization of task findings and recommendations to date.

Please number the “Progress of Action Steps” information to correspond with the associated “Action Steps.”

/ Tasks / Action Steps / Progress of Action Steps / Documentation /
2. Provide students an equitable access to curriculum/ instruction offerings through the use of technology. / 1. Review data regarding course offerings and determine areas of need.
2. Summarize in the CRF the existing courses and define new rigorous courses that may be delivered via technology (virtual courses).
3. Maintain existing online rigorous courses that align with WV CSOs and meet SREB evaluation guidelines.
4. Submit to the Legislature a budget to support new virtual school courses.
5. Develop or procure additional online courses that align with WV CSOs and meet SREB and WV Virtual School online course evaluation guidelines. / 2.1.1 Data studied as follows:
·  State list of course offerings in WV schools
·  List of courses offered through the West Virginia Virtual School and a matrix of the courses offered through video-conferencing technologies in the state.
·  Graphs posted reflect the results of online needs assessment completed in the spring of 2005. The graphs compare student need to course offerings in the Virtual School as well as student enrollment numbers
·  Areas of need were determined by survey results as well as by the course requests that have been made to the WV Virtual School. Many requests were met; where courses were not available, the requests have not been met.
2.2.1. We examined the state course-offerings available in face-to-face classrooms and those offered through technology. Comparing the course offerings available to the stated need, the committee considered the following:
o  Schools need to provide the opportunity for more students to take the many rigorous courses that have already been evaluated and approved for the West Virginia Virtual School. (This will take more funding to serve more students since the WVVS expended the funding available for tuitions by October in each of the past two school years.)
o  Schools continue to provide the opportunity to students to take the rigorous courses available to them through video-conferencing technologies.
o  The West Virginia Virtual School continue to evaluate newly developed coursework from emerging course providers in order to find those with rigor and appropriate CSO alignment.
o  The West Virginia Virtual School begins to develop a few courses a year that would provide the rigor and CSO alignment needed.
2.4.1. A Virtual School budget is being developed which includes funding for a three-tiered approach to providing appropriate coursework. Those three tiers would provide funding for the following:
·  Tuitions for student enrollment in courses that have already met the evaluation standards for rigor and are appropriately aligned with the CSOs.
·  Purchase, with rights in perpetuity, courses that have met the evaluation standards for rigor and are appropriately aligned with the CSOs. These would be courses for which there are large enrollments, and for which it would be more cost effective to own the course and provide delivery with our own teaching staff.
·  Development of a limited number of courses for subject areas in which existing courses, that meet our WV CSOs, are not available from other course providers. / 2.1.1.1.
A. List of Course offerings in WV.
B. Original, unabridged document can be found on the WVDE website.
C. Student Need / WVVS graphs
D. List of Course Needs and List of Graduation Requirements
E. Video conferencing courses in K-12 schools
F. Video conferencing self-reported data
2.5.1.1
A. List of courses that need to be purchased or developed, based on requests and student need.
Task 2 Work Committee Findings:
·  Through the data collected, we find that, in order to more completely serve the number of Virtual School requests and provide more equitable access to courses, current funding must be increased.
·  There must be enough money to fund new enrollments past the October cessation date of the past two school years.
(When the tuition funds had been expended, by October in both 2004 and 2005, new enrollments had to be paid for by either the parents or the local school or district.) / Task 2 Work Committee Recommendations:
·  Considering the depth and quantity of information we have gathered so far, we recommend that this subcommittee continue to study the following tasks:
o  Analyze data and gather specific information as to the number of 9-12 schools teaching Advanced Placement courses, as well as the specific courses they teach.
o  Study data of the WV schools that offer three credits in one or more foreign languages.
o  Study the data to determine the ideal curriculum for West Virginia’s secondary schools in AP courses and foreign language courses delivered by both technology and traditional course delivery models
·  Determine what is the best way to deliver this ideal curriculum to WV students. How much of it should be delivered face to face and how much of it could / should be delivered via technology?
Task 2 Advisory Committee Input:
Task 2 Comprehensive Report of Findings and Recommendations:
9. Provide schools with access to Technology Integration Specialists. / 1. Analyze current data to determine availability of existing technology integration specialists.
2. Determine areas of need.
3. Summarize in the CRF the recommendations for staff and funding requirements.
4. Submit a report to the Legislature for required funds to support technology information specialists. / 9.1. 1. Data examined indicates the following:
·  26 federally funded TIS in WV schools for the 2005-6 school year. County districts fund several other locally funded TIS positions.
·  The federal evaluation of the program indicates that the TIS model is a highly successful model.
·  The spreadsheet that lists TIS positions is not all-inclusive, and many of the county-funded TIS are not following the WVDE model.
9. 2.1. All West Virginia K-12 schools need a technology integration specialist. Posted document establishes the cost of providing at TIS in every school via a phased-in approach.
9.2.2. Office of Special Education has funding and has sent a request to cabinet to develop job posting for Special Education Technology Specialist.
o  WV 9-12 schools will apply through an incentive package for professional development for special education teachers to assume the role and responsibilities of special education technology specialists.
9.2.3. A legislative resolution was offered (without funding) to propose consideration of adding a library media specialist coordinator to provide professional development for K-12 library media specialists to become library media technology specialists.
9.4. 1. Senate originated SB 633 bill that included a provision to fund 2 TIS per RESA. The bill was passed; however, the TIS funding was removed from the bill. / 9.1.1.1. TIS spreadsheet:
9.2.1.1. TIS funding document
Task 9 Work Committee Findings:
·  Work committee finds that the best model of implementation for West Virginia schools is to have a technology integration specialist (TIS) in every school.
·  According to the federal evaluation grant being completed by Dale Mann, the TIS model has proven to improve mathematics achievement. His research concludes that students in TIS schools outscored their counterparts in the control schools by statistically significant margins.
·  Federal technology integration specialist evaluation indicates that the TIS model is highly successful.
·  Work committee finds and agrees that having TIS in every school is beneficial.
·  Work committee finds that the WVDE is making strides in providing more TIS support through other offices.
·  Work committee finds that the legislature is supportive of the TIS model but has not provided funding for the model.
·  In Voices from the Field forums – WV teachers emphasized a strong need for technology support through both hardware (tech specialist) and curriculum (TIS) is a must for the 21st century classroom.
·  The Office of Special Education will add a pilot program in the spring/summer of 2006 to fund 70-100 existing special education personnel in secondary schools to become special education technology integration specialists. / Task 9 Work Committee Recommendations:
·  Using the federal evaluation of the highly successful model of technology integration specialists in WV schools, the committee recommends that legislation for funding technology integration specialist (TIS) for every school (phased-in approach) should be submitted to the legislature for its approval in January 2006 session. Legislation was drafted and shared.
·  Work committee recommends that the legislature provide funds to support a TIS in every school.
·  Work committee recommends that all available avenues should be explored to increase the number of TIS in West Virginia.
·  Work committee recommends that the WVDE continue to explore the procurement of funding for library media technology integration specialists in WV schools.
·  After the completion of the pilot, the work committee encourages and recommends that the Office of Special Education expand the TIS training to a special education teacher in every secondary school in WV.
·  Work committee recommends that the WVDE look at existing staff in WV schools to ascertain how the existing staffs can be utilized /trained as technology integration specialists. .
Task 9 Advisory Committee Input:
Task 9 Comprehensive Report of Findings and Recommendations:
11. Provide software that supports basic skills acquisition and aligns with the WV CSOs. / 1. Analyze current software programs to determine if they address 21st Century skills, in addition to the basic skills of reading, mathematics, composition, and technology.
2. Summarize in the CRF and make recommendation for addition, modification and funding requirements. / 11.1.1. The Office of Instructional Services, The Office of Assessment and The Office of Technology reviewed the current software programs to look for alignment to 21st century skills in addition to reading, mathematics, composition and technology.
11.1.2.CSO Revision process timeline is as follows:
The West Virginia Content Standards and Objectives (WVCSOs) for Reading/English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies are currently being revised. In addition, content standards and objectives are being developed to include 21st century learning skills, 21st century technology tools and 21st century content including civic literacy, global awareness, and financial, economic and business literacy. In preparation for the next round of assessment development, the WVCSOs are being revised to
·  ensure that students graduate from high school with the knowledge, critical thinking skills, and problem solving skills needed to succeed in the 21st century workplace or post graduate experience;
·  ensure that, upon mastery of the WVCSOs, West Virginia students can be successful on national assessments such as the National Assessment of Educational Progress, the ACT Assessment, and the Scholastic Assessment Test; and to
·  develop crosswalks so that the resources currently mapped to the existing WVCSOs can be linked to the revised content standards and objectives.
11.1.3. Committee begins to analyze current software programs.
·  Software vendors that are represented on BSCE and SUCCESS contracts will be asked to provide alignment to 21st century skills and revised WV CSOs.
·  Compass Classic, Compass Odyssey, Riverdeep, Inspiration/Kidspiration/SAS/Marco Polo/SchoolKit/PDPoint were presented and analyzed for reading, math, and writing content.
·  Compass Odyssey and Riverdeep software assessment features were presented.
11.1.4. Office of Assessment and Office of Instructional Services met with Office of Technology to review/analyze software programs.
11.1.5. Office of Assessment, Office of Instructional Services and Office of Technology meet to discuss the possibilities of providing formative assessments for schools through BSCE software
11.1.6. SASinSchool curriculum pathways and SchoolKit(EdClass) curriculum modules were demonstrated.
11.1.7. SASinSchool usage statistics were studied/analyzed. / 11.1.7.1 SASinSchool statistics
Task 11 Work Committee Findings:
·  The Office of Instructional Services, The Office of Assessment and The Office of Technology reviewed the current software programs; the committee finds that the software programs on the contracts do address 21st century skills in addition to reading, mathematics, composition and technology.
·  Committee finds that BSCE and SUCCESS software are aligned to the current WV CSOs. When CSOs are revised to reflect 21st century skills, software alignment will be revisited.
·  Committee finds that consistent statewide implementation of software provides for economy of scale with pricing, correlation to the WV CSOs, custom WV-focused professional development and support services.
·  Many counties voiced support of the state (WVDE) role in researching appropriate instructional tools and the ease of buying from the state contracts rather than the local bid process. Counties enjoy the equity in software selection, and they validate the state’s focus in equity of distributing funds on a per-pupil basis.
BSCE findings
·  The committee finds that the BSCE contract includes options for annual renewal until June 2010.
·  The committee finds that Compass Odyssey includes instructional content K-8 for Reading/English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, and Social Studies
·  Committee finds that there is inequity among counties and schools in the access to the desired level of browser-based instructional software because of limited funding.
o  69 schools have Compass Odyssey software
o  34 schools have Riverdeep software
o  470 schools have Compass Classic
·  The committee finds that the assessment features of BSCE browser based software provide access for WV schools to formative classroom assessments with an item bank of over 19000 assessment questions.
o  Browser-based BSCE software assessments include questions that can be aligned to WV content standards, national standards, and national norm-reference tests.
SUCCESS Findings
·  The committee finds that the SUCCESS initiative is aligned with the recommendations from the Partnership for 21st Century Skills
·  The SUCCESS contract will expire at the end of July 2007.
·  The committee finds that SchoolKit/EdClass is aligned to current West Virginia Content Standards and Objectives, and that the software includes a strong 21st century learning skills and tools component.