NETC Technology Review Process
Purpose
The purpose of a technology review is to provide a description or summary to a district of how its education technology is being used and what its effect/impact has been.
It's an evaluation of the status and results of technology expenditures and implementation and an analysis of the results in terms of the district's goals and plans. The outcome of the review is a report, including the evaluation data, analysis, and recommendations regarding their goals, plans, and implementation.
Why Conduct a Review?
A variety of questions from the school community - trustees, parents, teachers, administrators, business - may prompt such a review.
- We have investing in technology for a long time. What difference has all the money we have spent on technology had on student learning? What difference has it made in helping all students be successful? Is it worth it?
- Have we deployed our technology (hardware, infrastructure, and software) efficiently? Is our technology current?
- How well is our district technology supporting our school and district improvement goals? Have we integrated technology into our improvement processes?
- Does our district technology plan align with and support our curriculum and instruction plans?
- Do we know if our technology efforts are helping students meet state/local standards?
- Is technology helping us get and use data about student performance so we can monitor growth, make adjustments, and better individualize instruction?
- Is technology helping us communicate more effectively with parents to assist them in being involved in their children's education?
- How do we take advantage of the strengths of our teachers and our current programs in order to meet the rising and changing demands of education?
- What concerns about our facilities should we be aware of as we look ahead to the next 3-5 years?
- What kinds of modifications do we need to make in our planning and purchasing of new technology and training to keep up?
Conceptual and Research Bases
Two aspects of a Program Review need to be research based: the review process, and the recommendations. The NETC Program Review Process is grounded in NWREL evaluation strategies and procedures of the NWREL Evaluation Program which are based on research and accepted professional evaluation standards, and on the assessment process developed and tested by the Metiri Group and State Education Technology Directors Association (SETDA). The recommendations in a NETC Program Review are grounded in the school improvement process developed from research conducted over a period of 25 years by the NWREL School Improvement Program, and on other research such as that summarized by the Center for Applied Research in Technology (CARET) organization in conjunction with ISTE. They are also done in the context of the ISTE National Education Technology Standards (NETS) for teachers, students, and support staff.
References:
Evaluation Program: Subsection on Summative Program Evaluation
http://www.nwrel.org/evaluation/summative.shtml
School Improvement Program: OTE school improvement process
Metiri Group technology assessment process
http://www.setda-peti.org/
CARET research analyses
http://caret.iste.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=topics
NSF-funded report entitled "Effects of Using Instructional Technology in Elementary and Secondary Schools: What Controlled Studies Say". James Kulik - SRI International 2003
Components or Modules of a Technology Program Review Contract
The following modules could stand alone as contracted activities, or modules 1 and 2 could be combined in a contract, or all three.
Mod. 1 - Review a district technology plan
- Evaluate the district plan according to a set of criteria defining a good plan.
- Develop an analysis report
Mod. 2 - Conduct a program review of a district technology implementation
- Determine purpose and scope.
- Conduct or administer data gathering activities: surveys, interviews, observations.
- Analyze the data in comparison with the district plan, goals, and objectives.
- Develop recommendations and report
Mod. 3 - Develop or assist in developing a district technology plan or a revision
- Assist in establishing goals and objectives, identifying options and strategies.
- Identify relevant research and best practices
- Design and conduct needs assessment.
- Develop plan activities and timeline.
- Write a draft.
- Interact with technology committee and contract officer regularly.
- Write a final plan.
- Present and discuss plan at meetings with staff, board and public.
Assessing Educational Technology Implementation