Standard+VI+-+Reflection

I really liked the way chapter six on Standard VI: Social, Ethical, Legal, and Human Issues started out by stating, “In an era of rapid change, technology leaders and facilitators are constantly grappling with how to structure technology programs in positive ways” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 123). It then proceeds to state, “Because other educators look to technology facilitators and leaders for guidance, technologists must understand the emerging issues and shape technology use for the common good” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 123).

This standard is perhaps the one area I feel that I have been the least influential. With the understanding that I am a novice in the field of educational technology, I have not been in a position that allowed me to make decisions on the structure of a district-wide technology plan. However, I do understand that “Some of the most prominent contemporary issues facing school technologists today are digital equity, privacy of electronic student records, students’ online safety, and copyright infringement” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 124).

As a CIT, for the past 4 years, my job mainly called for me to do what I was instructed to do. My district technology leaders did the overarching planning. They were the ones with the knowledge and experience necessary to make the decisions. CIT’s had very little influence as it pertains to Standard VI at a district level.

The only time I had any decision-making authority in the area of Standard VI, was at a campus level. One of my responsibilities was to research and purchase equipment and various types of technology resources for my campus. One of the most important, and at times somewhat difficult factors I had to keep in mind was that of digital equity.

One example was when the district technology office decided to purchase laptops and computer carts for each campus in the district. The number of each was based on student enrollment at each campus. As a result, my campus ended up with 11 C.O.W.s (Computers on Wheels) with 13 laptops on each cart.

After receiving these C.O.W.s it was up to each campus to decide who, when, and how teachers and students were to access them equitably. In short, my Technology Committee (of which I was the Coordinator) developed a plan to equally assign C.O.W.s to each grade level, an electronic sign-out system, policies and procedures, a list of Professional Development topics, and a schedule for the delivery of these trainings.

The topic of professional development was of particular importance, for two reasons. First, “Teachers often feel uncomfortable using computers and are unaware of the teaching and learning pedagogies that computers and the Internet are able to support” (Mouza, 2002/2003, p. 273). Secondly, “Teachers are often unsure about how to integrate technology in their lesson plans and, often, administrators have little, if any, guidance to give them (Prensky, 2008, p. 4).

Some of the most essential topics addressed in the Professional Development trainings were on our district’s AUP, Online Safety, Privacy and Student Records, and Copyright and Fair Use. In retrospect, it really took a lot of work to get this whole initiative up and running. Our technology leaders came up with the big idea, funded it, and purchased the equipment, but then it was up to us, the facilitators, to develop a workable plan, get administrative approval, and then implement it.

These types of initiatives “Require technologists to consider the social and ethical role of technology in promoting (or denying) educational equity. As daunting as these challenges may be, technologists must embrace them as an opportunity to promote safe, healthy, and equitable education for all students” (Williamson & Redish, 2009, p. 133).

**References** ﻿﻿Mouza, C. (2002/2003). Learning to teach with new technology: Implications for professional development. Journal for Research on Technology in Education, 35(2), 272-89.

Prensky, M. (2008). Adopt and adapt: Shaping tech for the classroom. Edutopia: The George Lucas Educational Foundation.

Williamson, J & Redish, T. (2009). ISTE’s technology facilitation and leadership standards: What every K-12 leader should know and be able to do. Eugene, OR: International Society for Technology in Education.