To: Campus Principals

 

Cc: Campus Technology Representatives

 

Re: CTR Meeting Summary - 01/29/2010

 

FINAL VERSION - 02/02/2010

Updated - 02/03/2010

 

Thanks to all campuses who were able to send their campus technology representative(s) to the meeting on January, 29, 2010. A variety of topics were discussed and those included the following:

 

1. Disposition Procedures for Old Equipment
2. Internet Security and Content Filtering
3. Got Carts? Professional Learning Initiative
4. CyberSafety Status Update
5. Sexting Presentation with Instructional Technology, SAISD Police and Hearing Office
6. Technology Applications: TEKS Feature
7. CRUISE Initiative Information
8. Campus/Department Web Site Conversion Update

 

Note: For Topics #1 and #2, the guest speakers were unavailable due to more pressing concerns. So instead, we asked CTRs to share what questions they had. The responses below address Miguel Guhlin's best understanding of the responses to the questions.

 

Topic #1 - Disposition Procedures for Old Equipment

As you may know, much of SAISD technology equipment is obsolete (more than half of the 30,000 computers in the District, as cited in this news article). Campuses are urged to dispose of old equipment, adhering to the Administrative Procedure (C36) . Campuses are urged to complete the Computer Disposition form. Some of the discussion at the CTR Meeting included questions about why it takes so long for equipment to get picked up. This has been due to a variety of factors--including selection of a new vendor (Bass Computers) to do the work, small in-district storage space available to house equipment prior to pickup by the vendor, and Board approval required prior to disposal of any equipment.

 

Once equipment leaves your campus, it is taken to the Surplus Warehouse. Unfortunately, due to the storage space available at the Surplus Warehouse, delay results because there is too much obsolete equipment, the need for Board approval, this results in an unavoidable delay.

 

There are essentially two forms, and those are linked further down below.

 

A quick review of the process appears below:

 

1) Completion of the disposition form by the Campus;

2) Approval of the form by the Technology Department;

3) The Campus contacts "Walt Tilleman" (Email: wtilleman@saisd.net) at the SAISD Main Warehouse at 299-2683 to schedule pickup of the obsolete equipment (fax the appropriate form to 210-227-9099);

 

4) Old equipment is picked up; and

5) Old equipment is delivered to the Surplus Warehouse (a.k.a. Boys' Club). Once the Surplus Warehouse reaches capacity, all existing disposition work-orders are put on hold until steps 6 and 7 are carried out.

6) The School Board has to approve disposal of the surplus. 

 

7) Vendor (Bass Computers) picks up the equipment approved for disposition from the Surplus Warehouse.

 

It is hoped that clarifying this process will be helpful to campuses, especially when understanding the delay in pickup and eventual disposition of the equipment.

 

Relevant Procedures and Forms:

• A1 - Guidance on Excess Items
• A2 - Form - Transfer of Furniture or Equipment
• C36 - Administrative Procedure - Disposal and Transfer of Equipment
• C36A - Form - Disposal and Transfer of Equipment

 

Topic #2 - Internet Security and Content Filtering

Two primary questions came up including finding an alternate image source to Google Images and a concern that students were setting up their own BIOS password on district computers. Below are the responses to these questions:

 

1. Google Images Alternative - There are several alternative image web sites, few that offer Google Images search capability. One suggestion made during the meeting (by Dixie Anderson) was to use Online Library Resources. You can access these resources via your campus media specialist/teacher-librarian. While free clip art and image search web sites abound, you'll want to pay close attention to copyright. You are encouraged to use only Creative Commons NC-SA-Attrib image sites, which are images meant for re-use given copyright holder's expectations.

   Here are some possible Image search engines that may soon be blocked, so no guarantees! Be sure to take model appropriate citation strategies, as evidenced by this web site, The Citation Machine. 

   1. Pics4Learning
   2. Pixsy.com
   3. PicSearch.com
   4. ExaLead Image Search
2. Students Setting BIOS Password on Computer - What is a BIOS? Basically, every computer has a set of basic instructions and setup parameters that are put in place BEFORE your Windows operating system starts up. Currently, those computers do not have a BIOS password set so someone who presses F12 on their Dell Computer can actually go in and change the password to prevent modifications to the BIOS. Changing the BIOS settings can result in a bit of a problem if technical staff need to fix hard drive problems. There are ways to reset the BIOS password back to blank, but they can be time-consuming. This issue has been shared with the Technology Department.

 

 

Topic #3 - Got Carts? Professional Learning Initiative

The Got Carts? Use Laptops to Integrate Technology workshops are available through ePath. They are intended for any campus that has carts of laptop or netbook computers but isn't quite sure what to do with them aside from using them for tutorial or skills review. To register your request, go to ePath and sign up! More instructions are shared in the ePath course description.

 

 

Materials Shared During the Meeting:

Got Carts?: Using Laptops to Integrate Technology Workshops

 

 

 

 

Topic #4 - CyberSafety Status Update

Campuses have been asking, "How do I know who on my campus has completed the CyberSafety course available through ePath?" Now you can access a regularly updated list of completions--organized by campus--online. Look for the following announcement online at http://saisdcybersafety.pbworks.com/Expectations

 

Materials Shared During the Meeting:

 

 

 

Check your school's status for Cyber Safety Course Completion

Report Date: February 1

(Note: Reports will be updated weekly, if there are questions please email Stephanie Correa, scorrea2@saisd net)

 

 

 

Topic #5 - Sexting Presentation

Stephanie Correa (Instructional Technology Services) gave a great presentation on sexting. You can find out more information by reviewing the presentation, as well as the scenarios discussed. Below are the links to the materials shared and discussed during the meeting. If you review the scenarios and are unclear of what the best response would have been, you definitely need to attend a future session!

 

Materials Shared During the Meeting:

 

Sexting Presentation (Stephanie Correa, SAISD Police- Cliff Martinez, Hearing Officer- Evelina Reyna)

1. District Policy
2. Real-life Scenarios

 

Topic #6 - Technology Applications: TEKS for 8th Grade

Last year, SAISD endured a 94% failure rate among ALL 8th grade students for the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) mandated Technology Literacy Assessment, whose results were shared officially with the Texas Education Agency. To address that, the Office of Instructional Technology & Learning Services sought to enlist the aid of campus TA:TEKS teachers--unfortunately, only 13 campuses in SAISD have TA:TEKS teachers working with students in grades 6-8 laboring with aging equipment--and developed a blended (online and face to face) curriculum. 

 

The implementation of the new curriculum--using Moodle and reaching 2000+ students in SAISD schools--resulted in a significant increase in 8th graders passing the assessment, from 9% to 69%! 

 

To showcase the information, as well as other exciting efforts, please visit the TA:TEKS Web site at http://saisdtateks.pbworks.com/

 

Topic #7 - CRUISE Campus Professional Learning Initiative

The Office of Instructional Technology is pleased to offer online professional learning opportunities for classroom teachers!  CRUISE is a series of campus study groups (submitted by principals) who are learning to integrate technology and 21st learning skills into classroom practices. The CRUISE Program was a series of classroom technology integration studies that was offered to campus groups, composed of professional teaching staff. 

 

On January 13, 2010, SAISD Principals were emailed about the launch of the CRUISE Program. "Winning a Cruise" for the campus depended on principals gathering 12 firm participants who are active teaching professionals and being the first submit to the submission area at http://tiny.cc/C2lkF. The first 3 campuses to submit were eligible for participation in the CRUISE Program. For participating, each CRUISE member gets:

• Paid enrollment in an online, professional learning course through LoTi and three "face to face" sessions with Instructional Technology & Learning Services staff. 
• A new Dell Latitude 2100 netbook for use in the classroom.
• Fabulous new teaching strategies and understanding of our learners' preferences and needs.

 

Find out more details online at http://saisdcruise.pbworks.com/

 

3 Campuses were selected from the 17 who submitted...here are the winners:

Hirsch Elementary	Connell Middle School	Sarah King Elementary

 

 

 

 

Topic #8 - Campus/Department Web Conversion Update

Campuses/Departments web sites are being updated over the next 4-5 months. These updates include maintenance and required security updates to the District's web site content management system (Joomla). More details about workshops and how-to self-paced tutorials are available online. In Summer, 2009, the San Antonio ISD revamped the look of its web site to reflect design principles that better served the needs of its constituents. In an effort to align all campus and department web sites to reflect the revised design principles, as well as perform critical security updates, your campus/department web site will be undergoing an upgrade.

 

To facilitate the transition from the old interface to the new interface for adjusting web site content, please be aware that the following professional learning opportunities are available:

 

1) Self-Paced: Your campus/department web coordinator can choose to avail him/herself of the web-based video tutorials that guide him/her through the various backend interfaces. This provides an excellent way for expert campus/department web coordinators to "learn on their own."

 

To access the information, just have your CWC/DWC go to the Instructional Technology Services Campus Web Coordinator Moodle athttp://intouch.saisd.net/itech/course/view.php?id=3 (you may have to log in to view the content of this site).

 

2) Professional Learning: Face to face professional learning opportunities are also available to you. Please do not hesitate to register online via ePath for these workshops during the month your campus is undergoing the upgrade.

 

Course title ‘CWC/DWC Website Upgrade Training session’

Search ePath using the following keywords; CWC, DWC, joomla or upgrade.

 

Miscellaneous Topics Not Covered at CTR Meeting

Below, please find some additional items that might be useful to be aware of:

 

1. iPod Touch Handhelds - Principals have experienced wireless access problems with their iPod Touch devices. These problems may be due to out of date operating system on the iPod Touch. If principals are encountering problems, they are reminded to contact the Technology HelpDesk at 244-2929 or via email at "helpdesk@saisd.net". Several options may be presented for resolving the issue.
2. Get Your Own Web Page - Teachers and staff are encouraged to get their own instructional/organizational wiki-based web page. A wiki is a simple, easy to edit web page that fosters collaborative editing. 
3. Customer Service Feedback on Instructional Technology & Learning Services' Customer Feedback - Please take a moment and give us some feedback on our level of customer service! You can do so using this printable form.

 

CONCLUSION

Thank you for taking the time to review the information shared in this CTR Meeting Summary. The role of the CTR is critical to ensuring an open, reciprocal dialogue about technology use to enhance teaching, learning and leadership in schools. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email Miguel Guhlin (mguhlin@saisd.net) or call the Office of Instructional Technology & Learning Services (ITLS) at 210-527-1400.