August 2005 — Exclusive
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A Second Look at the Nature of Technology in the Classroom
'The second day was hands-on,' Conroy adds. 'Teachers learned how to use the program. The training software contained a fictitious database that let teachers delve into it, just like they do with their own classes now. They really became familiar with the program's features and payoffs.'
'And has it paid off?' I ask. 'We think so, but this is a several-year effort,' Conroy answers. 'It will be a year or so until the data is definitive, but preliminary results suggest it's paying off. We went live for grades one through six in February. Principals are now analyzing a half-year's results.'
With no hard results yet published, could I call the Winterville computer-based assessment initiative a success? Conroy and Longstreet think so. Their gut feeling, the preliminary results delivered to principals, and the changed teacher attitudes smell like success to them. And they find support in what teachers say:
- 'This is the first time in my teaching career that I've been so aware of standards. With the information from this program, I'm not teaching to a sea of faces but to individuals,' a third-grade teacher told Longstreet.
- 'We talk about curriculum now,' reported a fourth-grade teacher. 'And we're not afraid to share experiences. I taught arithmetic, he taught arithmetic, she taught arithmetic. We can see immediately how our results differ, and we can talk about them.'
According to Longstreet: 'Teachers are starting to bring results from the program to PTO meetings. They are depending on it, building it into their repertoire. It is becoming an important tool.'
'If, in a year from now, the program is deemed a success, what will the reasons be?' I ask. Longstreet answers quickly and Conroy agrees: 'Professional development. That's the No. 1 reason for success. Next are the support mechanisms that make teachers feel 100 percent confident. We guarantee 24-hour tech support; any problem that's reported gets addressed and resolved in 24 hours. And, of course, the publisher was important, first by creating this product, then by taking the teachers comments seriously. That meant a lot.'
'There were bugs,' Longstreet acknowledges, 'but you just expect that. I had a report system so that teachers reported any glitches they encountered. I forwarded them to the publisher, who responded within 24-48 hours. Teachers knew they were being listened to. That helped a lot.'
As I left Winterville, I was disappointed that I came away without hard numbers like I had found at Henderson Elementary. But I came away sharing Conroy and Longstreet's sense that future results would justify the investment. They had a defined goal, they planned well, they had infrastructure and hardware to match the plan, they trained and supported their staff, and they provided a tool that offered practical help to the teacher. Why wouldn't it work?
Common Characteristics for Success
On reflection, I saw five important characteristics that were common to Henderson Elementary and the Winterville schools. These five, I believe, were essentials of their success. They were:
