I did my survey and evaluation on Tanks Middle School. This is a school in Chillicothe, OH.

The building consists of grades seven and eight. This school is made up of a totally caucasian faculty, with very few students of any other race in the student body. Families in the area vary when income is concerned. This school district has wealthy families as well as families who have very little income if they are not completely government supported. Ultimately the majority of the households within this school district are middle class families. Administrative Policy: In terms of policies for this middle school, Tanks received an integrated level ranking for behavior and island ranking for resource/infrastructure. This middle school does use appropriate technologies within the classrooms as well as in other parts of the school. The students and teachers all put the technologies to good use that is utilized for enhancing the learning of the students. There is a policy that is used when technology is involved in this middle school. At the beginning of the year students must have their guardian sign a release stating that they are allowed to search on the Internet. Once on the Internet there is a program which blocks access to certain websites which have been deemed inappropriate for school. Planning: The planning aspect of technology integration received two rankings of integrated for both of the subcategories. There is a great deal of planning that revolves around the use of technology within this school. Even if the technology is not as advanced as other districts, the students and teachers do make it a priority to use what technologies they have. This planning is not only done throughout the building but throughout the district. This planning and implementation is reviewed by the school board and other administrators before it can be utilized in the classrooms. Budget: The category of budget received two rankings of integrated for the two subcategories of behavioral and resource/infrastructure. The administration has set money aside specifically for technology. This money has to be split between the other buildings in the district as well. One way the school budgets is that in some cases in order to receive newer technology the teachers must apply for a piece of technology. I agree and disagree with logic. I understand that the administration wants to make sure that the technology is going to be used within the classroom, but on the other hand many teachers do not apply because they simply do not want to put in the extra work which is required for the application process. Administrative Information: With regards to administrative information the school building received two rankings of island maturity. The administrative systems are available to all staff members, but many do not utilize them as much as they should. Many of the teachers simply use these systems for simply recording grades or posting them to the Internet so that students and parents can view them. However, there are many different aspects to the systems that would enhance the classroom learning for the students as well as helping the teacher stay organized in terms of missing assignments or simply the assignments that have been completed up to a certain point in the school year.

Curricular Electronic Information: Integrated rankings were received for both subcategories of electronic information. Both students and staff are dependent on technology and their resources to a certain extent. By having Internet and computer access the students are able to do required research as well as being aware of their grades and missing assignments. The teachers must utilize their technologies in order to complete daily tasks such as taking attendance and posting grades and assignments for their students. Assessment: In terms of assessment in the building this middle school received two rankings of island for each of the subcategories. The majority of the teachers within this school building still use pencil and paper as their resources for tests and other assessments. The students are very rarely using some type of up-to-date technology when completing assessments. I think another way to enhance student learning would be to try to implement the technology not only in everyday assignments, but in assessments as well. The staff does use different resources in terms of recording assessments. This technique is primarily used when standardized tests or quarterly assessments are concerned. This resource is to used record student growth. Curricular Integration: Tanks received a ranking of integrated for the behavioral subcategory and a ranking of island in the subcategory of resource/infrastructure. When the technology is available it is implemented into the curriculum, but still some educators who have the technology do not use their resources as often as possible. Many teachers are dependent on technology in their classrooms and if the students are asked those classrooms generally seem to be their favorite throughout their day in the building. It seems between the two different grade levels in the building the technology is consistent in certain curriculum areas with both grades. If a 7th grade reading classroom does not have a SmartBoard, than I have noticed that the 8th grade reading classroom does not either. I am not sure if this is simply a coincidence or if the administration is using some type of logic behind this area in the building. Teacher Use: At this middle school teacher use is at an integrated level for both the behavioral and resource/infrastructure categories. All teachers do use technology everyday when working with their curriculum as well as working with the information in their specified area of teaching. The majority of the staff members try to incorporate as much technology within their classroom as possible, however some teachers still use the textbook the majority of their time in the classroom. The student response to the use of technology is clear and enhances their learning. Student Use: With regards to student use the school building received an island ranking for both subcategories. This ranking was received because all students do receive the use of technologies throughout the day, but often times this is in a limited fashion. The majority of the time that students are working with technology they are simply using the computer for Internet access or for typing a paper. The more I am in the building working with the students the more I notice that many of the students do not have consistent skills in searching for information or even manipulating Word documents they are working in. At this age level there are many more skills that the students could attain if they had the equipment and opportunity.

Support Stakeholder Involvement: In the category of stakeholder involvement the middle school ranked at an island level for both subcategories. The different groups throughout the district who are involved with providing funds and input are represented, but many times they rarely know what their support or funds are directly going to. The stakeholders could be more involved in what goes on throughout the district and made more aware of the direction the district is heading. Stakeholders are great supporters of technology but many times they feel other aspects of the school experience are more important, and this simply is not always the case. Administrative Support: Tanks Middle School received a ranking of intelligent for both subcategories in terms of administrative support. The administration is very involved and supportive in the training that is received within the district. The technology in the classroom is often the topic at school board meetings and I know that the superintendent of the district is often visiting the different buildings to make sure the teachers and students are utilizing the technology. The administration is also open and willing the cover expenses for trainings outside of the district that will enhance technology in the classrooms. Training: In regards to training I ranked the middle school at an intelligent level for the behavioral subcategory and an integrated level for the resources/infrastructure category. I ranked them at these respective levels because all teachers and faculty do receive training on the technologies that are introduced. These trainings take place during professional development sessions as well as additional times throughout the school year and the summer. These activities that take place do come along with additional exercises for the faculty to complete once the initial session has been completed. In terms of resource/infrastructure the integrated ranking was received because each building in the district does not have an expert in individualized areas. The teachers all receive the training, but none are technically considered an expert in the technology area. Technical/Infrastructure Support: With regards to technical/infrastructure support I ranked this school at the integrated level. I ranked it this way because the staff does receive technical support, but it primarily comes from support staff within the school system. This type of training tends to be more informal as opposed to formal. This generally takes place after school or during a professional development session. This type of informal training or spread of information is district wide and building specific. The support staff who tends to lead these trainings or technical support is generally the technology head of the district. Connectivity Local Area Networking (LAN): In terms of local area networking this middle school ranked at the integrated level for both behavioral and resource/infrastructure categories. Staff members do use data for different aspects of education, but they do not use these databases too

extensively. Even though the staff do use the data to a certain extent they are well learned in the data and they do work with high-speed Internet to receive and record their data. District Area Networking (WAN): This was the first time I really thought about or looked into the district networking. I gave this middle school a ranking of integrated for the subcategories. I gave it a ranking of integrated because the faculty and teachers due have different data networks available to them which are used throughout the school district. The school does use different data networks to record different aspects of the classroom. This could include attendance and grades, as well as missing assignments or even simply posting assignments for students to review. Internet Access: Both the behavioral and resource/infrastructure are ranked at an intelligent level for Internet access. All classrooms and faculty members have direct Internet access at all times. This is not only in this specific building, this is throughout the entire school district. This Internet access is used for a number of different things which are school related. Students and teachers both use their Internet access for resources to enhance learning within the classroom. Communication Systems: I ranked the communication systems for this school at an intelligent level for both subcategories. Email is the way that the teachers and faculty communicate with each other as well as with their students and the parents of their students. All students and faculty have a school email account on which they can be reached. Email is often used between the teachers when they are unable to speak face-to-face with each other or when decisions are trying to be made and a meeting time cannot be set. Email is not only an important technology in schools, it is becoming a mainstay in communication within our society as well. Innovation New Technologies: In the category of New Technologies I gave my school a ranking at the integrated level for both subcategories of behavioral and resource/infrastructure. New technologies receive a warm welcome within this school district, however sometimes the excitement for a technology tends to fade after a short period of using the technology or even before the technology is completely implemented within the classroom. The majority of the teachers are interested in the new technologies and the different ways they can use them in their classroom, but there are also teachers who are set in their ways and do not see the need to implement the new technology. Comprehensive Technologies: In the comprehensive technologies section I ranked this school at the integrated level for both behavioral and resource/infrastructure categories. I gave it an integrated rating because technology is used in every classroom, but how advanced the technology is tends to vary from room to room. The advancement of the technology in a classroom tends to depend on how hard the teacher pushes to receive the up-to-date technology. In terms of resources the basic equipment is present in the classroom, but more

advanced equipment is lacking. I have observed that a few teachers do include microphones or extra cameras in their classrooms, however this seems to be the exception, not the rule.