Technology Assessment Plan

There has been an increased demand for providing student centered instruction. In an effort to
address the individual learning needs of all students, teachers must use data to support and guide
instruction, which means that teachers must provide students with specific feedback to encourage
and support academic growth and bridge the gaps where there may be deficiencies with skill sets.
In the past, teachers have kept student portfolios as a way to track student data. In the 21st
Century teachers are still expected to keep student portfolios to track and monitor student
progress. Seesaw provides teachers with a platform to monitor student progress, provide
immediate feedback, and guide teachers instruction. To effectively implement this innovation
we will need to establish buy-in and we will need full support from the entire instructional staff
(teachers, administrators, instructional support team). The SeeSaw Integration Team will take
responsibility for establishing SeeSaw as a tool used throughout the campus by following the steps
below.

Step 1. Meeting with the Administrative Team: The SeeSaw Integration Team will
introduce and explain the innovation to Principals, Instructional Coaches, Data Support
Specialists and other Teacher Leaders (Department Chairs) in the building.
Rationale: This will allow us to have a team that can assist us in rolling out the plan with the
other grade levels. This will also allow us to work with the students who will be in the building
for the next two years, therefore when they transition to the 7th grade they will be familiar with
the tool). Additionally, we must get the approval of the building level administrators prior to
implementing the plan; therefore, the meeting with the administrative team is key to the success
of us implementing Seesaw within the building

Key Actors:

Administrative Team
Instructional coaches
Data support specialists
Department chairs
SeeSaw Integration Team

Resources:

SeeSaw application for demonstration purposes

Timeline: 1 day

Step 2. Meeting with the 6th grade teamduring the weekly Professional Learning
Community: SeeSaw will use the 6th grade team as a pilot group, meeting weekly during
Professional Learning Community Meetings. We establish the purpose for SeeSaw, demonstrate
how it can be effective in the classroom, and teach the group how to use SeeSaw.

Rationale: The purpose of SeeSaw must be demonstrated across different curriculum areas and
initial buy-in from the pilot group established.
Key Actors:

6th grade teachers

Professional Learning Community Meetings
SeeSaw Integration Team

Resources:

School Computer Lab

Timeline: 60 days

Step 3. Instructional Technology: The SeeSaw Integration Team will provide support to
teachers using Seesaw in order to enable students to use SeeSaw across the curriculum.
Instructional technology personnel will assist in finding effective strategies to meet standards.
We will also show teachers how SeeSaw can help with data and assessment.

Rationale: Stakeholders must buy in to SeeSaws effectiveness. They also must feel supported
with technology specialists and feel confident that SeeSaw is a useful tool for meeting
curriculum standards.

Key Actors:

Instructional Technology Specialist

Teachers
SeeSaw Integration Team
Pilot group of 6th grade teachers

Resources:

Internet connected devices

SeeSaw application
Applications for use with SeeSaw

Timeline: On-going

Step 4. Determining Needed Resources: The SeeSaw Integration Team will provide piloting
teachers with Seesaw resources to support students accessibility to the application. In the initial
stages of use, teachers will be given the opportunity to determine what resources they need in
order to integrate SeeSaw use in their classrooms and with their students. These resources may
be hardware-specific or may include software applications that can be used with SeeSaw.

Rationale: The pilot group will be used to determine what additional resources will best make
SeeSaw successful when introduced to the larger group. These resources will be identified by
fellow teachers, giving a larger group more ownership in the success of SeeSaw.

Key Actors:

Instructional Technology Specialist

Teachers
SeeSaw Integration Team
Pilot group of 6th grade teachers

Resources:

Internet connected devices

SeeSaw application
Applications for use with SeeSaw

Timeline: 4 weeks

Step 5. Roll out schoolwide: All teachers in the building will be introduced to SeeSaw
through weekly staff meetings with members of the SeeSaw Integration Team. Included in this
step will be providing all teachers using SeeSaw the software applications identified as useful in
Step 3. This may include photo applications, subject-specific applications, and assessement
applications.

Rationale: Teachers will want to see that SeeSaw has relevant use for their subject matter. They
will want to see that SeeSaw is an efficient use of their time. Providing them with ideas for
applications that integrate well with SeeSaw, and that other teachers have identified, will
increase the likelihood that teachers will continue to use SeeSaw.

Key Actors:

Instructional Technology Specialist

Teachers
SeeSaw Integration Team

Resources:

Internet connected devices

SeeSaw application
Applications for use with SeeSaw

Timeline: Ongoing

Step 6. Establish a dedicated Twitter feed to organize and support teachers in adopting
SeeSaw: To this end issue a preliminary email with a link to a video presentation about the app
and description of the role of said Twitter feed. Included in this email is info to prompt Twitter
follows by current users and set up new Twitter users. Following this inception there will occur 2
Tweets per day during school hours with SeeSaw app tips. Tweets also will encourage users to
Tweet their experiences with SeeSaw. As an incentive to use this platform whomever Tweets at
least 3x over first month will be entered to win a prize gift card.
Additionally a weekly recap via email of Twitter activity/lessons learned/hazards/tips will occur.

Rationale: SeeSaw as an innovation will rely on multiple factors to gain support.

Communication will be key since interactive communication via the Internet has become more
important for the diffusion of certain innovation in recent decades.(An,2015) By looking at
schools in a business sense we find an opportunity to leverage social media as a change
management tool(Clayton,2015) Twitter is already an active education tool as some clever
educators are using it to enrich their classrooms and even forge informal professional networks.
(NEA,2015) Consideration of the ISTE Standards also will help with promoting the SeeSaw app.
Providing understanding that the app will support assessing student learning, differentiating
instruction, and providing rigorous, relevant, and engaging learning experiences for all
students(ISTE,2015) will enable teachers to see its beneficial nature. Through using Twitter we
will also coach teachers in and model design and implementation of technology-enhanced
learning experiences addressing content standards and student technology
standards(ISTE,2015)Similarly, this platform can help us to coach teachers in and model
effective use of technology tools and resources to systematically collect and analyze student
achievement data, interpret results, and communicate findings to improve instructional practice
and maximize student learning(ISTE,2015) via the SeeSaw app.

Key Actors:

Instructional Technology Specialist

Teachers
SeeSaw Integration Team

Resources:

Twitter
Email list of teachers
Link to webpage with instructions
Demo video

Timeline: 3 months

Step 7. Newsletter: A SeeSaw newsletter will be distributed through email to parents via Smore
(https://www.smore.com/ ) as a weekly event to enable adoption of SeeSaw by students and their
families. Members of the SeeSaw Integration Team will rotate taking responsibility for
distributing this brief newsletter.

Rationale: SeeSaw allows parents and students to interact as well. To gain adopters in this area a
newsletter can be helpful to make the innovation understandable and less difficult in both
perception and actual use It is especially effective since it can reach a far smaller, yet much
more motivated group of consumers, customers, or clients..(Murray,2015)We must decrease the
complexity being the degree to which an innovation is perceived as difficult to understand and
use(An,2015) since new ideas that are simpler to understand are adopted more rapidly than
innovations that require the adopter to develop new skills and understandings.
(An,2015) A newsletter also addresses the time factor to increase rate of adoption of the app by
frequently informing the audience about SeeSaw. The weekly issue will showcase examples of
how parents and students alike benefit from developing a digital portfolio.The newsletter will
also promote development of a social system as a set of interrelated units that are engaged in
joint problem solving to accomplish a common goal(An,2015) when parents and students
connect over the app with each other and the teachers involved.

Key Actors:

Teachers
SeeSaw Integration Team

Resources:

List of parent emails

SMore application
Content to populate the newsletter, including student experiences, parent comments, and
suggestions

Timeline: 3 months

Step 8. Peer Groups: Use existing teacher peer groups organized by academic subject. In these
groups, teachers will influence and assist each other in making the SeeSaw experience relevant
to their subject material and in changing how SeeSaw is used. This can be done via social media
groups if the group culture allows it, or can be done face-to-face as a brief part of regular
meetings. Ideally, the groups can then access the earlier use of twitter app tips to now support
each other in making SeeSaw even more relevant

Rationale: Promote reinvention, a key principle in the diffusion of an innovation. Frequently,

innovations fail because the technology fails to meet environmental changes. A users initial use
for SeeSaw may quickly become irrelevant without the ability to evolve.

Key Actors:

Teachers in peer groups

SeeSaw Integration Team
Resources:

Internet connected devices

SeeSaw application
Applications for use with SeeSaw
Twitter Feed

Timeline: 1 year (Year 2 of program)

References:

An,Y.(2015) Elements of Diffusion. Retrieved from

https://westga.view.usg.edu/content/enforced/1022443-
CO.540.MEDT8461.XLS.M4.20162/W1%20Elements%20of%20Diffusion.pdf?_&d2lSessionV
al=H3wrstSeOgBXnyurplXenuOsl&ou=1022443

Clayton,S (2015, November 10) Change Management meets Social Media.Harvard Business
Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2015/11/change-management-meets-social-media

National Education Association (2015) Can Tweeting Help Your Teaching? Retrieved
from http://www.nea.org/home/32641.htm

Supporting Articles:

http://www.enablingchange.com.au/Summary_Diffusion_Theory.pdf
http://www.ou.edu/deptcomm/dodjcc/groups/99A2/theories.htm
http://www.enablingchange.com.au/Summary_Diffusion_Theory.pdf
Brief Table of Steps
Action
Rationale Key Actors Resources Timeline
Steps/Strategies
Admin Team;
Instructional
Coaches;
Data Support
1. Meeting with A team to assist in rolling Specialists; SeeSaw
1 day
administrative team out the plan Department Application
Chairs;
SeeSaw
Integration
Team
6th grade
Demonstrate SeeSaw; get teachers;
2. Meeting with 6th School
initial buy-in from pilot SeeSaw 60 days
grade Team computer lab
group Integration
Team
IT Specialists;
Internet
Teachers; connected
Establish support with IT
SeeSaw devices;
specialists to help teachers
3. Instructional Integration SeeSaw
feel supported in their use On-going
Technology Team; application;
and to help find curriculum
Pilot group ofApplications
connections
6th grade for use with
teachers SeeSaw
Internet-
IT Specialist;
connected
Teachers;
Resources that are identified devices;
SeeSaw
4. Determine Needed by fellow teachers will SeeSaw
Integration 4 weeks
Resources increase ownership and buy- application;
Team;
in Applications
Pilot group of
for use with
teachers
SeeSaw
Internet-
IT specialist;
5. Roll out connected Ongoing
Show teachers relevant use Teachers;
schoolwide, including devices; (initial
for SeeSaw within their SeeSaw
provisioning of SeeSaw phase 4
subject matter Integration
resources application; weeks)
Team
Applications
 for use with
SeeSaw
Twitter;
IT specialist; Email list of
Teachers; teachers;
6. Establish Twitter Establish community of
SeeSaw Link to 3 months
feed users to support one another
Integration webpage with
Team instructions;
Demo video
List of parent
emails;
Teachers;
Allow for interaction SMore
SeeSaw
7. Newsletter between teachers, parents and application; 3 months
Integration
students Content to
Team
populate
newsletter
Internet-
connected
Teachers in devices;
peer groups; SeeSaw
Promote re-invention in order 1 year (year 2
8. Peer groups SeeSaw application;
to keep SeeSaw relevant of program)
Integration Applications
Team for use with
SeeSaw;
Twitter feed
 Technology Assessment Plan Action Plan

Action Rationale Key Factors Resources Timeline

Steps/Strategies
Provide Teachers Stakeholders Meetings Accessibility to 4 weeks
with Seesaw report the between the Seesaw
resources to resources for Instructional Application
support students appropriate tasks Technology
accessibility with Coaches and
Application teachers take
place on a regular
basis
Provide support Stakeholders buy- Instructional Seesaw Ongoing support
to teachers with in to the selected Technologists Application as
Seesaw that resources assist teachers in well as technology
enables students Stakeholders feel using technology assessment plans
productive use supported effectively for
with curricula, throughout the instruction, and
standards, paradigm shift providing relevant
effective engaging learning
strategies, experiences for all
resource and data students (ISTE
Standards)
Provide teachers Teachers utilize Student and Data utilization Ongoing support
with software the resources to school level tools that provide
tools for learning design, deliver success is meaningful data
and evaluate measured against to drive decision
digital age key performance making for all
learning and indicators stakeholders
assessments
aligned to the
curricula and
standards (ISTE
Standards)
Identify and Teachers make Build support staff Professional Ongoing support
provide increased Seesaw capacity with development to
digital resources customizable and improved inspire and
personalize organizational strengthen
learning activities structure, training lifelong learners
and working opportunities for teachers, staff
strategies, and and
abilities of administration
students using using current
digital tools and digital tools
resources (ISTE
Standards)