July 2004 — SETDA
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West Virginia: Technology Leadership at the District Level: A Look at the Monongalia County School District
Imperative in an educational setting is the strong connection between technology and curriculum/instruction. In Monongalia County, technology is not an add-on but a critical part of teaching and learning. Therefore, the primary focus of the Monongalia County technology coordinator is the improvement of student achievement.
Leadership Roles
The achievement of a shared vision and annual technology planning has been the driving forces through all stages of technology implementation. Technology leaders and planners from the school system have successfully built a collective county technology plan for all schools and the county. Historically, the county technology committee annually revised the county technology plan and met regularly to make decisions about implementation. In more recent years, the county schools annually develop dynamic school technology plans based on ongoing needs assessments and evaluations. Using the state-provided online technology plan template allows for the aggregation of data, the reports necessary for E-Rate funding, and a standardized format that combines the technology planning requirements of state and federal programs. The online plan template also integrates the school technology plans with the Unified School Improvement Plan. In addition, school and county planners integrate the Title I plans in collaboration with the technology plans. The leadership of the county's technology vision ensures that school and county goals center on high-quality learning for all students. At the county level, though equity is a central focus, the county must also simultaneously allow for a school's innovative use of technology, while meeting state and federal goals and guidelines.
The leadership role of the first full-time district coordinator, hired six years ago, and the needs of the district have changed immensely. The greatest need in the initial years was to ensure that the hardware was functional and efficient. Serving as technology leaders in the schools, each local school's volunteer technology contact and the district coordinator shared the technical support with the assistance of our Regional Education Service Agency. In more recent years, the leadership roles of the school technology contact and the district technology coordinator have evolved to that of curriculum integration specialists. The school leaders/specialists are either paid a stipend or are designated as part-time technology specialists/part-time content teachers.
The Monongalia County Office of Technology now consists of a coordinator, network specialist, and a technician I and technician II, all of whom work closely with the technology specialists at each school. With this additional technical support, the county technology coordinator and the integration specialists have been relieved of the responsibility for much of the computer repair and networking issues. Consequently, their leadership focus centers on helping other teachers to integrate technology into the curriculum and providing continued staff development.
'Teachers Teaching Teachers'
From the inception of our technology plan, staff development has been a crucial component. Early in the process of technology integration, the district embraced initiatives for teachers at each school to participate in technology training.
