Comments

Jim Aldridge:
 * Open the planning (we're doing this), budgeting process for more input.
 * Delineate clear paths for tech requests of all kinds.
 * Support innovation.
 * Recognize that uniformity and innovation are both desirable and often conflicting goals.
 * Free up time for teachers to plan technology integration and for some teachers to help other teachers.
 * We are doing a great job in tech compared to many other schools, but there's lots more to do to leverage our investment in infrastructure.

Teresa Crafton
 * Usernames/passwords should be streamlined. Right now a student's network, portal, and email login info are all different. We should also consider whether we could move to a single sign-on.
 * Is GroupWise where we want to stay for the next few years? What about Outlook? And if we stay with GroupWise, do we want to implement it more fully (i.e., document integration, calendar and scheduling)?
 * Do we want to stay with MS Office apps? Or should we consider Google Docs, etc.?
 * The process of filling out forms needs to be addressed. At the very least, it would be nice to fill out a properly formatted form that uses form fields as opposed to lines that move around. But shouldn't we be moving to online forms?
 * What about comprehensive office app training for our office staff, especially training that takes them off campus away from interruptions to a training center where they can have, for example, 3 days of Excel training? This should be part and parcel of the training that any new office staff member receives, not to mention something that is needed (and wanted) by our current office staff.
 * More computers for students. In the library, we are more often seeing situations where students in a class have to share computers because we can't meet the demand. This is happening most often with middle school classes, which can be as large as 22.

Nate Kogan:
 * I think I made a similar suggestion to Teresa's in another section on the Wiki, but I'd also be interested in exploring alternatives to Groupwise and MS Office apps. I do think looking into Google Apps for Education (which also provides email service) might be a good direction to go. I know lots of students at the upper school level primarily use Gmail instead of Groupwise and are more keen to check those accounts rather than their school ones. Perhaps shifting in this direction will help with the area for improvement in terms of single-sign-on as well? (e.g. use one suite of applications for more purposes.)
 * If 1:1 laptops/netbooks isn't the solution, then perhaps more divisional, departmental, or library laptop carts? The library labs certainly go through ebbs and flows in terms of usage, but it would be nice to accomodate everyone simultaneously, which is presently a challenge with the overlapping MS and US schedules.

Stephen Dickey:
 * Technology is a powerful tool for the educator. It is a great stress, however, for many at FWCD. This could change if teachers were given more opportunities to voice their ideas prior to making sweeping changes. This committee is a step in the right direction.
 * If FWCD is serious about using technology effectively in the classroom, teachers should be given the necessary time and resources to implement those changes.

Sharon Hamilton (Typed by Stephen Dickey):
 * WH gradebook is clunky. When I call up a class, only the first 8-10 students' names show up. Half of the monitor screen is blank. Why not show as many names as possible--up to 18-20? If you don't remember to hit TAB after entering a grade and especially before trying to SAVE the new grades, the system freezes up. Hour glass shows up and stays and stays and stays. System does not provide a class average for a set of grades. Surely it wouldn't cost too much to include an average? The old Gradequick system provided mean and median. I could really use a "help" function OR more tutorials. Had to ask Steve Uhr how to show "cumulative averages" for Quarter 2. I did not reset the computer to *lose* the cumulative average function; it "reset itself." ***Please invite people who actually USE the WH grade book to discuss their questions and problems.***
 * I would like to investigate software called Inspiration. It teaches students how to create graphic organizers (charts, tables, concept maps, etc). I think Lee Anne asked for it a couple of years ago. Perhaps the school has a site license? If so, how do I get to use it?
 * The incoming 9th graders did not know how to find their assignments at the beginning of this year. Many of the struggles we 9th grade teachers had with kids who couldn't "see" the assignments were actually because the default setting for viewing assignments was for date "assigned" rather than date "due." Please change the default to date DUE.
 * As department chair, I sometimes need to review grades of students in grades 8-12 who are not my advisees and are not in my classes. At this time, I cannot do this.

Senior Student (Typed by Teresa Crafton)
 * Change the default of the assignments display on the portal to date DUE and by WEEK instead of month.

Teresa Crafton
 * It has already been mentioned that we need to do a better job of communicating what the process is for submitting technology purchase requests. But it would also help if faculty and staff could know what the criteria are for which items to purchase.
 * The process for requesting help still needs some work. For example, I'm still confused why teachers automatically send students up to the library to find me when they forget their password on the network, portal, or email when all I do is send a message to the Help Desk. But on the other hand, if a faculty member wants training on something, should they send a message to the Help Desk? Or is directly contacting Chris or Mandy or me really the best way?
 * I noticed that one of Sharon's requests is for Inspiration. We have that in Room 103, and I will tell her that. Does it need to be more clearly communicated the types of software and hardware that our labs have? In the universities I worked at, information about each lab (e.g., hours, numbers of computers, hardware and software) was posted on the website.

Laura Terry