Minutes of DLIC MTG - 09/24/13

REGIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICT #19

BOARD OF EDUCATION

DIGITAL LEARNING COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES

E. O. SMITH HIGH SCHOOL

1235 STORRS ROAD

STORRS, CT 06268

September 24, 2013

In attendance: Frank Krasicki, Bruce Silva, Nancy Silander, Alan Trotochaud, Seth Horila, Sue Palmberg.

Frank opened the meeting at 5:40 p.m.

The official munutes;

1. Seth Horila gave a summer up-date – most of the purchases come from the $100,000 budgeted for 2013-14:

• 75 X131E Window machines: 60 to math – on 3 carts – for Smarter Balance and for UCONN ECE Math courses who need particular software; 15 for Career and Tech Ed – need for Windows testing that need Internet Explorer, they will purchase 15 more through Perkins Grant

• 35 Samsung series 3: 15 to depot to replace old ones
  • 7 to science department on a cart to add to 5 already purchased
  • 12 for future distribution

• 37 LeNovo X137 Chrome E-books for English to replace failing laptops (Windows-based)

12 to science as a cart – science is encouraging teachers to only use what are needed if students also have them.

• 7 desk-top computers for science
• Upgraded and expanding special ed work stations – 28 machines to replace aging desktops
• Foundation funded 5 I-pads – G4s to bring to 12 total in Math, 2 HP desktops in WL, 1 I-pad for afternoon school, and a smart-response system for a math class.     
  • State of CT opened grant applications for $100,000 for equipment for Smarter Balance – we asked for 276 Samsung series 3 Chrome Books (11 carts).
  • Google Integration application funding – Apara – google apps for education hook-in – linked to curriculum
  • Up-graded science and math computer (2007) teacher stations with HP computers – monitors stayed same.
  WL Lab – tables, electrical just getting completed; computers almost completed. Should be finished within the next couple of weeks. 38 work stations. Blackboard Collaborate purchased – October 3 launch date.
  Other technology up-dates:
  • Google Apps for Education – all students and staff are on. Email goes to eosmith.org. School Chrome books limited to school email.
  • Tech coaches still active – 10 stipend positions
  • HP printers now come with e-print that now accepts from eosmith.org domain for Chrome and I-pad printing.
    
    
  Summer on-line courses – Jon Swanson and Bill Green ran 2 courses – Jon had 9 students finish, and Bill 7 students. Lost about 25% of original enrollment. Courses this summer were much better due to the learning curve from last year.
  Software –
  • Moodle – summer sessions – 21 teachers – first-time learners. Now about 40 faculty who can use Moodle.
  Talent Ed is running our teacher evaluation system. Not using the state suggested one as did not have some of the __ we wanted. This program will also show strengths and weaknesses. All work done on-line. Seth and Bruce are being trained so that we can set up software the way we want.
  
  
  5. Parent Night – Lou will talk to freshmen parents re: technology, especially Chrome Books – practical from a student stand-point due to price and for what can access, especially with so many classes going on-line - $250 on Amazon.
  Many students are using phone apps in classroom and I-pads for various activities
  
  
  6. Next meetings: Software management, on-line courses, 3-D printers
  
  Bruce will send out suggested meeting days and times.
  Meeting adjourned at 7:00 p.m.
  
  
  Respectfully submitted,
  Nancy Silander
  Region 19 Board of Education Member
  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  
  
  Additional Notes;
  Seth gave us a very interesting insight into the way emails work under Google Apps for education.  Students are given a (first name) first initial, last name, anticipated graduating class@eosmith.org address.  For example; JDoe2018@eosmith.org.  Teachers are JTeacher@eosmith.org. Same with administrators.
  These addresses are independent of any other gmail address anyone may have. So, for example, JDoe2018@eosmith.org can still have a private JDoe2018@gmail.com address [or whatever else they decide to use] if they so chose.
  The school addresses are instrumented to eliminate spam and promote civil email exchange, all of which is in line with growing good virtual citizens.
  A sub-topic on this matter will be further discussed in later meetings - the possibility of keeping persistent addresses that our students and staff can synchronize their personal emails to after they leave.  This provides old students and friends who lose touch to write emails to the last known email address (say, myOldFriend@eosmith.org and have that email potentially reach the individual its intended for.
  One of our future meetings will be dedicated to online learning.  Bill got slightly short-changed Tuesday evening.  We are all more interested in what he and Jon have learned.
  Moodle is amazing.  I attended the Parent's evening on Thursday and the older eBoard sites look very, very dated.  The Moodle sites are rich and aesthetically pleasing.  During the DLIC meeting, Alan noted that he was now familiar enough to be able to share reusable or tweakable lesson plans with other science faculty, something that makes individualizing instruction that much easier.
  I attended Lou's freshman orientation and the emphasis there was giving parents a comfort zone for their student's experience.  Not much was said about Chromebooks or digital learning but that's okay given the amount of information that needed to be disseminated.
  
  
  The school has a 3-D printer that is in disrepair but being mended.
  The DLIC will meet on the last Thursday of every month on a timetable that will vary.  We will also be dedicating a significant body of time in each meeting to a single, actionable topic.
  
  
  - Frank Krasicki, DLIC chair, EO Smith BOE