Tracey Wetzel

District Technology Training Plan

EDTC 640

The District
The Howard County Public School District is composed of 41
elementary schools, 20 middle schools, and 12 high schools. The
community itself houses over 285,000 people. There are a total of
52,593 students enrolled in its schools. Elementary schools include
24,857 of these students; Middle schools include 12,282 students, and
high schools include 16,466 students. There are an additional 130
students in special schools. Nineteen percent of these students
received free and reduced lunches, and 8.5% are considered special
education. The majority of the students in Howard County are
Caucasian, followed by African American and Asian. Howard County
has a graduating rate of 92.9%, and an attendance rate of 96%. The
operating budget for 2015 is $758.8 million. The county includes 4,073
teachers, and 70.4% of these teachers hold a masters degree or
higher. (Howard County Public School System)
The ratio of students to computers in the district is 1:1.8, and
every classroom has Internet access. Each school has an instructional
technology program, which strives to ensure dynamic and creative
learning environments through the seamless integration of technology
(Howard County Public School System).
The Problems
Lack of technology. In Howard County, Title 1 schools receive the
most funding for academic materials, including technology. This means
that schools in a financially well-off area receive little funding. This
means less technology for those schools. There are no interactive
white boards, and limited computers for student use. This makes it
difficult for teachers to plan lessons involving technology, as they have
limited availability.

Lack of training. Because technology is limited throughout the

county, teachers and students get very little practice using it in the
classrooms. This usually means that teachers are uncomfortable with
the programs being used, and are unsure of how to teach them. There
is little professional development involving technology to help teachers
in this area.
Lack of computer skills This year, our new state assessments (PARCC)
are taken online. This requires students to have a lot of knowledge
about typing, and different tools used on the computers. Students have
little practice with this, and are required to type essays during the
assessment. Because this is so difficult for students, I do not believe
that the online test gives a true representation of their skills.
Lack of time When actually using technology, there is a lot of work
required pulling out all of the computers, having students log on, and
get started with their activity. Because of time constraints, many times,
teachers find it easier to just not use the technology in order to get
through the lesson more easily.
The Needs
Technology Training- Although technology training does occur in the
district, it is clearly not enough for teachers to feel confident and
comfortable using technology in the classroom. In order to help
teachers learn how to use technology in the classrooms, there needs to
be longer, and more frequent professional development for teachers.
This can be done at a school-wide level during planning periods, or
during professional development days, or there can even be
opportunities put out by the county for teachers to attend during or

after the school day. It would also be beneficial for the school
technology specialist to hold periodic training sessions for teachers to
attend on an as-needed basis.
More Time on Computers- Because of the new online testing, students
need increased opportunities to type, and be on the computers. This
could mean increasing the students technology block by an extra 15
minutes. This would give the technology teacher more time to work
with each class. Another way to do this would be to incorporate the
program, Type to Learn in daily activities in the classroom. This would
give students practice with their keyboard skills, helping them with the
essay portion of the testing.
Increased Technology- With little access to technology, it makes it
difficult for teachers to plan lessons using technology. It also makes it
difficult for both students and teachers to feel comfortable on the
school computers. If the district will not provide more money for
technology, perhaps teachers could write grants to acquire the money
needed.
The Audience
This training program is designed for teachers and administrators
in the Howard County Public School System. Additional staff such a
para-educators will also be involved. The program is designed for staff
in all grade levels (elementary, middle, and high).
As mentioned in the district profile, Howard County currently
employs 4,073 teachers, 70.4% of whom hold a masters degree or
higher. Teachers in this district hold an average of 12.9 years of
experience in the classroom. Total staff includes 8,136 people. The
district has a total of 76 principals, and 112 assistant principals. Many
of the schools are so large that they require 2 or 3 assistant principals.

The staff mission is to cultivate a vibrant learning community that

prepares students to thrive in a dynamic world (Howard County Public
School System).
Goals/Objectives
The goals and objectives of this program are as follows:

Increase teacher knowledge of the different technologies and

computer programs that can be used in the language arts
classroom.

Help teachers and administrators understand how technology

programs can be used to extend teaching.

Provide teachers with strategies to help students acquire
necessary typing skills, and have more practice typing on the
computers in the classroom.

Content
The following chart maps out a five-day course for teachers,
administrators, and other staff members to help them better utilize
technology in a language arts classroom.
*Note that each course provides the same type of content, but is split
up into three levels (elementary, middle, and high). That way, staff can
choose the level that is appropriate for them to attend.

Day/Audience

Title and Description of

Course
Day 1

Strategies for Teaching Computer

Elementary level
Middle level
High level

Day 2

Skills
This course will outline for
teachers and staff different
strategies that they can use to
teach students computer and
typing skills. Students need the
computer skills in order to be
successful with the technology
programs. This is the first
stepping-stone to becoming a
more technology-based classroom.
Mastery Connect in the LA

Elementary level
Middle level
High level

Day/Audience

Classroom
This course will delve into how to
use Mastery Connect as a part of
your every day instruction. This
program can be applied to any
grade level, and is an interactive
site for students. Teachers can
also purchase reading materials to
go along with the online
resources.

Title and Description of

Course

Day 3

Using Google Docs in Writing

Elementary level
Middle level
High level

This course will show teachers

explicit ways in which they can
use Google Docs in their writing
classrooms. Students can make
presentations, and use the
documents to share and edit each
others work. Its a great way for
students to work together, and for
a teacher to keep track of all
assignments at once.
Using the Interactive White Board

Elementary level
Middle level

This course will provide teachers

with insight on how to use the

Day 4

High level

white board in their classroom.

This course will only provide the
basics on actual white board use.
It will not go into much detail on
actual lesson ideas.
Interactive White Board Day 2

Elementary level
Middle level
High level

In Day 4, teachers were given

instruction on how to use the
interactive white board. In this
course, teachers will be divided
into grade levels, and practice
creating lessons using the white
boards. These lessons will then be
shared among schools, providing
many new interactive lessons to
choose from.

Day 5

Instructional Strategies

Resources
HowardCountyPublicSchoolSystem.(n.d.).RetrievedMarch6,2015,from
http://www.hcpss.org/