By David Lankford
David Lankford has worked in independent schools since 1992, currently he serves as the Director of Technology at the Episcopal High School in Houston Texas where he lives with his wife and two children. David has worked in both boarding and day schools. His hobbies include studying leadership and volunteering with The U.S. Army Cadet Corps.
Lets look at how an independent school could invest in its technology and personnel by taking a closer look at the ways in which the school’s leadership promotes communication.
In many independent schools, technology was put in place to serve two functions. First technology was purchased to assist the administration in storing and processing information complied from internal and external communications. Secondly, the school deployed computers for education to support students and /or teachers in the classroom.
In both cases the school leaders had planned to support the educative mission of the school with technology that was affordable, promised to do everything requested of it, and that was similar to what other schools of the same size were doing. What the school actually acquired over time is an impediment to communication. The seduction is subtle at first and transpires invisibly. That is until is becomes obvious that the right communication is not occurring. The symptoms first appear at the extremities of the organization.
- A teacher asks why can she not save the smart board drawing to her computer for an absent student.
- The head of school arrives at a rival school with no sign of an athletic competition. Only to discover later that the game was moved to the following evening.
- The help desk technician declares, “If we replaced our projectors, new ones would be brighter, save money on bulb replacements and could be operated wirelessly which would cut costs on cables and dongles.”
- In the alumnae office they discover that name of an influential alumni has been misspelled because the school’s data bases from admissions to development are not connected.
As an independent school administrator, would you notice the creep of miscommunication and be able to suggest a remedy for the situation?
Consider that email, website and voice mail communications could well be functioning despite the obvious need for more communication. Just identifying the conundrum could be the biggest step toward righting the school and putting it back on course. Remember that as our institutions grow and change, so do our students and they ways the learn.
I would suggest addressing the problem that was created by technology to the Director of Technology. This person should report to the Head of School and serve on the administrative team. The Director of Technology should learn the fundamentals of leadership and management and with the Head of School should develop a set of metrics that are communicative in nature. The metrics should be based on the school’s ten year plan. Then develop a clear set of goals. Consider both long and short term goals. Ask for and expect results from the entire community.
The metrics that are developed with Director of Technology should be collected through human interaction and not through digital means. Ask questions:
- How many teachers use web 2.0 applications in class?
- How many teachers have web pages that were updated recently?
- How do teachers communicate homework to parents and students?
- Do teachers meet students where the need to be met? Online?
- Before a new technology item is purchased ask who at school is asking for that item? How many are choosing that item?
Create some social mechanisms to collect these metrics collaboratively. Create a technology committee (TC) that meets monthly and is composed of teachers who volunteer to be on the committee. A teacher should run the TC with guidance from the Director of Technology.
The TC can also lead to creating a structure for teachers to share their technology expertise. One example is to create a mentor program in which a teacher from each department joins a group of subject matter experts who use good teaching techniques to leverage technology in their classrooms. Call this second group mentors, as they will be teaching other teachers in their area of expertise.
The two groups will feed information to the Director of Technology to support the metric questions you have asked. Through this process, your school can improve conversations about teaching several fold. Where you had one person helping solve teacher technology questions, you will now have dozens offering options and solutions. Each month, the group should celebrate one teacher from each department who is moving forward with technology, but in terms of pedagogy. The one caveat is that your Director of Technology be adept at communicating and exchanging pedagogical terms with your teachers. Weekly training session at lunch or after school can also enhance this work. In these sessions, the Director of Technology would mentor the workshop method of teaching technology to your community.
As you voice the technology goals of the school, use the technology department to deliver the message. Let it resound with positive time saving and collaborative tones and resonate with promise and excitement. Consider those who use technology well and celebrate their accomplishments as highlights in your goals.
In short time, you should see positive change and people communicating vertically within your organizational tree through these new groups. From this model, consider working with the entire administrative team in a similar fashion. Create a climate that offers tolerance and support for new ideas and the opportunities to try something new.
You did not become a school leader by keeping quite, so ask for results. Set goals, have the right people listen with you. Meet regularly with your team and ask for examples to the metrics as they are announced. Put names to accomplishments.
Before more technology is purchased, ask for a consensus on how it will be used and who will benefit. Talking about the future is fun, but working with the technology of the future is real and exciting. The excitement is especially true when we remember that we are serving the needs of our students. Are me meeting them where they need to be met? Are we listening?
Pingback: Leadership In Technology