Project MEET Policy Workshops

The yearlong Project MEET program helps participants implement Good Models of Teaching with Technology, but what happens when the year is over? How do schools and districts sustain and scale up the Good Models that they've learned? What are the staffing paradigms that promote effective professional development? How can districts both ensure online and network safety and allow for the higher-level student thinking promoted by these models? How does a principal evaluate Good Models of Teaching with Technology? All of these questions and more are answered in the Project MEET Policy Workshop series.

The true benefit of these workshops comes in the rich discussion from a variety of sources; superintendents, teachers, curriculum directors, technology directors and computer technicians all have varying opinions on educational technology issues, and they rarely get an opportunity to come together in such a forum. Many districts have found that they are able to take the conversations that were started at the workshops and continue them into action planning back in their schools or districts. Project MEET participants have been able to parlay their workshop work into specific actions that support, sustain and scale up Good Models of Teaching with Technology in their districts.

Please RSVP for one or more of the workshop below as soon as possible, as these workshops are certain to fill up. We recommend that whenever possible, schools or districts send a team or at least a pair of people to do action planning for the future.

January 16:
Assistive Technology and MCAS Accommodations

At the request of many participants, we are repeating this workshop that we conduct with ICI's Sue Cusack and the DOE's Pam Green. These experts delineate the differences between the MCAS Alternate Assessment and the MCAS with Accommodations and help participants plan which test best fits the needs of their students. With special emphasis on the technologies that can make curriculum accessible to all learners, Sue Cusack helps teams focus on student learning, not just getting students to pass a high-stakes test.

February 13:
Staffing Models for Good Teaching with Technology

The ITS or TPD position is becoming more common in schools and districts, but just naming someone to this position is only the beginning of appropriate staffing. With the budget crunches of the past year squeezing academic and technology staff to the ends of their abilities, it is more important than ever to have everyone working as efficiently and effectively as possible. In this workshop, participants will learn to differentiate among network administration, user technical support and training and curriculum support and assistance. They will be introduced to a simple needs assessment tool that will help them determine their specific staffing needs, and they will begin planning for meeting those needs.

March 19:
Supervision and Evaluation in a Technology-Rich Environment

In spreading any initiative from the school to the district level, the leadership of each school must buy into and support the process. In the case of technology use, all too often teachers learn how to appropriately use technology to support student learning, but they receive appropriate support for this type of instruction. This workshop will focus on bringing supervising staff fully on board in both formal and informal evaluation of teachers. In a best-case scenario, a school or district will be able to add a set of technology use criteria to formal evaluation. In a worst-case scenario, an evaluator will understand how a technology-rich classroom is different from a traditional classroom and will not "mark down" for technology use.

April 17:
Network Security vs. User Flexibility: Striking a Balance

We are running this successful workshop for the third year in a row, building on the experience of over 30 districts of wildly varying size and makeup. We have learned that networks are administered most efficiently and securely when they are centralized and standardized, but that education happens most meaningfully when it is decentralized and differentiated. How can these differing requirements be reconciled in a district's technology policies? Building on previous years' discussions, districts will work towards creating their own comfortable compromise.