7.++Discussion

 =**__ Discussion __**** : ** = =**__ Technology solution __**** : **= =** The group met and discussed the results of our survey. It is clear from the data our English department is interested in technology and is willing to put in the time for training. Our results show a few issues and as a group we looked for the proper solutions. The results show teachers find it difficult to stay organized and informed at the same time because they are receiving so much information in so many different forms. The staff was looking for a way to combine everything in one area that would offer all information and allow everyone access to the information. The group came to the conclusion a wikispace would be our best option. If each English teacher was to develop their own wikispace as a home site for their class, it would allow for better organization and offer more access to staff members, students and parents. The staff would be able to place units, worksheets, grades, documents or notes on the site along with many other items. They would have the ability to upload their files or create discussion boards. The English department would run their classes through the wikispace from the first day of school until the end of the year. The site offers everyone the ability to create items as they see fit. Students would gain the ability to log in and check anything they may have missed without having to contact the teacher. It is a situation that allows for great communication and stabilization within the school year. ** = =**__ Policy and guidelines __**** : ** =
 * Our group expects all students, teachers and parents to follow the rules set forth in the Brandywine School Districts Acceptable Use Policy. By clicking on the following link to the Brandywine school district you can read and inform yourself of all the rules and regulations. **

[] =__ Funding and budget __ : = =__ Implementation plan __ : = =__ Maintenance procedures __ : = =__ Security issues __ : = =**__ Professional development __**** : ** = = ** While the initial lesson will be taught to the staff during a one day training, there would be several opportunities to enhance your knowledge of the wikispace. The district offers several development days where the teacher is given the freedom to choose the area they will receive training in. In this case we would expect the staff to choose technology training as their area of study for that day. This is offered to the staff three times a year. The days are often a few months apart and this offers you the chance to implement the ideas and then go back to ask questions or receive more training. It would in no way hurt the budget as these are planned development days through the district. ** = =__ Expected outcomes __ :  = =__Future plans__:=
 * As for funding, it won’t be as bad as we thought, but we will need some help. At this point every English teacher has a computer available to them with the proper operating systems. On top of this the wikispace is free. Even better, the school completes system and software upgrades at their expense each summer. As for the computers themselves, the district recycles them at their own pace and there is no set time. The good news is they cover all costs for faulty equipment they give to teachers. ** ** The only area I can see we need funding would be teacher training. The goal is to have a one day training for the entire English department. We would need to cover the cost of the substitutes. At $100 per substitute and the need for ten substitutes, we would need to come up with $1000. To cover this expense we are looking into several areas. We are going to ask the district if they have funding set aside for individual teacher growth such as this. If this fails, we will go to the PTA, or apply for an AYP Grant. I don’t think there will be much of a problem to come up with the money **.
 * In order for the wikispaces to be created we will need every English teacher to be properly trained. We would offer a one day training for the entire English department. During this time the district technology specialist would explain how the wikispace works and help us create our own. At the same time we would have one person from the department take the necessary time to become more of an expert and become our liaison with the technology specialist. Once we have received the set up training we would have the remainder of the day to build our sites. The key to this is we would all be together to help one another set up all of the individual parts. From ** ** that day on the teacher would begin using the wiki site with their class and at the same time they could always make any necessary adjustments. **
 * In order to maintain the wikispaces two different things will need to occur. The individual teacher will be responsible to maintain their wikispace and update the site at all times. It will be their job to keep the information current and effective. The second issue will be the maintenance of the computers. In this case, the school completes system and software upgrades at their expense each summer. As for the computers themselves, the district recycles them at their own pace and there is no set time. The good news is they cover all costs for faulty equipment given to teachers. **
 * It will be very important for all of the staff using a wikispace to maintain security of the site. In this case, a wikispace is controlled by the individual in charge of the account. There is no outside influence or interference. Each student will need to open their own wiki account and ask for acceptance to the teachers site. On top of this, the teacher has the ability to grant certain amounts of access to the user based on the staff members wishes. **
 * We are expecting the staff, student and parent to utilize the wikispace as a home site for the English class. It will be a site anyone involved can go to gather any needed information on the class. All of the people involved will be use the site as a way to stay updated and aware. Within the class we are expecting the wikispace to help open up discussions, offer more visual aids and enhance student and teacher technological abilities. **
 * __ Evaluation __**** : **
 * There will be no one way of evaluating the wikispace and its success for everyone involved. Each individual teacher will need to determine the necessary changes needed in order to use the site to meet their needs. The committee could meet quarterly to discuss the issues and offer advice to the staff for possible changes, but the teacher would make the final decision. Beyond this, the group felt we could follow the English test scores. If the English scores continue to rise above the scores of other subjects that are not using the technology we would have real evidence of our success. **
 * As time passes we would like the use of wikispaces to begin within the entire school. It is our belief that all teachers should use this technology to enhance the teaching and offer a much easier solution to the student and parent. We have not figured out the exact path for the implementation of the wikispace. Our goal is to allow the English department two full years of use before we integrate the entire school. We feel this offers a fair amount of time to learn the system. After the time has passed we plan to do everything we did with the English department from step one. The only difference is this would include the entire school. **