Technology Class Proposal

For
F-M High School

Prepared for
School Board
Fayetteville-Manlius High School
Manlius, New York

By
Emily Bozogian
Morrisville State College

May 2017
Emily Bozogian
8195 Dycus Circle
Manlius, NY 13104

May 3, 2017

Timothy Crisafulli, President

School Board
Fayetteville-Manlius High School
Manlius, NY 13104

Dear President Crisafulli:

I am submitting an enclosed proposal about making technology classes required at Fayetteville-

Manlius High School. The purpose of this proposal is to provide more ways for our students to
grow and get the most out of their high school education. It will consider adding two more
computer classes on top of the four computer science courses that are being offered currently.

While preparing my proposal, I looked into what other high schools do to enrich their students
with technological knowledge. Other schools have been successful with this program and I
believe that this can be successful at our school too. The information that I provided within this
proposal I believe will help you consider the advantages of getting all the students involved in
computing. Not only are there a lot of advantages but it will also bring great benefits and great
futures to the students.

Technology is the future and the students should get the chance to be more involved with all the
exciting concepts that technology brings. This will help prepare for real world situations and can
help with any future career.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Emily Bozogian
 Informative Abstract

Technology brings a lot of new opportunities to grow and learn especially in the 21st century.
Computer courses can teach students design, logical reasoning, and problem solving. Technology
keeps improving and becoming better. It opens a world of opportunities the future is becoming
something no one ever imagined.

Our students should have a greater part in that. Not only should technology be used in the class
settings but students should be pushed past that. Learn the ins and outs behind technology and
the skills needed behind it. This can be done by implementing more classes at Fayetteville-
Manlius High School and making it required for the students to take at least one. This will bring
so many new benefits not only to the students but the community. So many careers are based
around technology that it will help any student no matter the career path they choose. Thats the
beautiful thing about technology.

This proposal will discuss a plan on how to prepare the students for their futures. It will discuss
the benefits and how well this idea went at other high schools. There have also been Fayetteville-
Manlius staff members whom participated in a phone interview about this topic and strongly
supported the idea.
Table of Contents
Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 5
Overview ..................................................................................................................................... 5
Background ................................................................................................................................. 5
Statement of Problem .................................................................................................................. 5
Solution ....................................................................................................................................... 5
Sources of Information ............................................................................................................... 6
The Problem .................................................................................................................................... 6
Causes ......................................................................................................................................... 6
Effects ......................................................................................................................................... 7
What Should Happen ...................................................................................................................... 7
Benefits ....................................................................................................................................... 7
Who Will Benefit ........................................................................................................................ 8
Solutions ..................................................................................................................................... 8
Whats next? ................................................................................................................................... 9
What should you do next?........................................................................................................... 9
Breakdown of Costs .................................................................................................................... 9
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 10
References ..................................................................................................................................... 11
 Introduction
Overview
There is an increasing demand of the knowledge of technology. The use of technology keeps
advancing and people need to follow it. The following proposal addresses how students
Fayetteville-Manlius High School could follow this increasing demand of knowledge. This
success, however, depends on the Fayetteville-Manlius school boards willingness to approve a
change in the required courses.

Background
Within the 21st century technology keeps improving and becoming better. Computers and
information technology have transformed the way the world learns, communicates, and conducts
business. The rate of world change due to technological advances has necessitated a shift in
students' education. We should follow this new technological era while it grows and increase the
knowledge on this topic to the students. Every student should have the opportunity to utilize
technology to access and analyze information, develop higher order thinking skills, solve
problems, and contribute to the global community.

Statement of Problem
The students of Fayetteville-Manlius High school are not forced to learn enough about
technology. According to the Fayetteville-Manlius 2017-18 Course Catalog, the school offers
four computer science classes which include: Computer Science I: Python, Computer Science II:
Swift & Java, Computer Science III: Swift & Xcode, and AP Computer Science: A. These
courses build on one another so one needs to be completed before the next one can be completed.
If this computer science route is taken then 5-units of computer science can be substituted for the
3-unit LOTE (Language other than English) requirement for the Advanced Regents Diploma.
This is an option that the students have but the school guidance counselors encourage students to
take the regular LOTE path instead of the computer science one. According to Ms. Chiesa
(Coordinator of Instructional Technology), 5% of each grade 9-12th end up taking a computer
science course within their four years of high school. This number needs to be increased and
more students need to be exposed to technology to compete in the world today.

Solution
The proposed solution to the problem is to make Fayetteville-Manlius High School students
required to take at least one computer course within their four years of high school. Whether the
course be something like computer applications, computer concepts, basic coding, or computer
science, at least one of these courses should be taken by each student. There are different
computer skill levels and interests so offering this variety of computer classes will offer a fit to
each student. As stated in the District Technology Vision, Fayetteville-Manlius has created an
innovative technology experience for students, teachers, administrators, and the community. This
was said because technology is incorporated into the classrooms anywhere it is possible. The
school has SMARTBoards, Desktop computers, Mobile labs, cameras, and iPods. This
equipment is used for projects or quizzes whenever possible. When all the total desktop and
laptops in the high school are added up, it is shown that the school has 449 computers. The
school already has the hardware needed to implement my proposed plan. The performance-
based approach gives students an overall view of the field of technology and provides
opportunities for students to see how industry and society today use specific applications.
(Quam, Smet, & Ivey, 2008). That quote is from Platteville High School and they implemented a
similar program like the one I am proposing. They had a lot of success with their program and
because of it their enrollment has increased 30%. Their students love it and understand how
useful it is.

Sources of Information
Most of my research was done by contacting members of Fayetteville-Manlius High School
about the issue. I held phone interviews with two faculty members that are involved in the
technology programs at the school. The interviews lasted about twenty minutes long and the
faculty members gave their insights as to how they can see this plan beneficial to the students.
Good feedback was received and match up with my proposal. Some more of my information was
found on the library database as there are many articles about other high schools implementing
the program I am proposing and how successful their program was.

The Problem
Causes

Figure 1.1- Human Intuitive Perspective of Technological Advancement

The 21st century is emerging and becoming more and more technologically advanced. The graph
in Figure 1.1, shows the improvement level that technology will increase throughout the next
five years. Notice that it can clearly be distinguished that technologies will improve and will
likely continue increasing throughout more years. The high school could do more to help
promote the technological advancement. It is said that, low-income teens and students of color
are noticeably less likely to own computers and use the internet than their peers. Because of their
students lack of access, teachers in high-poverty schools were more than twice likely (56
percent versus 21 percent) to say that their students lack of access to technology was a challenge
in their classrooms. Only 3 percent of teachers in high-poverty schools said that their students
have the digital tools necessary to complete homework assignments, compared to 52 percent of
teachers in more affluent schools (Amos, 2014). Fayetteville-Manlius High School is considered
more of an affluent school but those numbers are insane. Not everyone at home has the
technology needed to complete the homework assignments. The lack of knowledge using
technology might also come from a persons culture or lack of money. When our Fayetteville-
Manlius students come to school they should be required to learn and grow with the technology
to improve their knowledge and skills.

Effects
Teaching computer science brings so many helpful effects to the students. Over a telephone
interview with Mrs. Fiorito (Computer Recourse Teacher) she explained that in the long run this
will impact and benefit society significantly. Not only will it increase the interest in the sciences
and get more people involved in the increasingly growing subject. It will also help develop new
products in technology and other areas. There are so many products in technology waiting to be
invented and discovered. Not only will knowledge with technology benefit the information
technology field but it will help every other fields like medicine for example. Using technology
new medical discovers can happen. The possibilities are endless and theres so many possibilities
that our students can get involved in. This will benefit everyone in the long run.

What Should Happen

Benefits
Teaching computer science classes will help develop problem solvers and innovators. Computer
science teaches computational thinking by looking at logical data analysis and organization, the
ability to create concise problem statements, to identify and implement algorithm-based
solutions, and to generalize and extrapolate solutions that can be applied to other problems.
(Miller, 2014). Helping students develop these skills wont only benefit them with technology
but will also be a benefit to them in every subject in the classroom and beyond. The kind of
thinking that computer science requires will help students be able to figure out any problem. This
is a big benefit to them in other classes in different areas.
Computer science skills are a demand in the job market today in the 21st century. Almost every
industry is driven by functional computer science. In fields ranging from marketing, journalism,
and finance, to medicine and education, individuals with traditionally non-technical job
descriptions are increasingly called upon to use computer science skills to better understand their
field. This also helps make data-driven decisions (Miller, 2014). The technology industry is
currently one of the fastest growing, providing new opportunities to people with skills in
technology development. Computer science will help students excel and make them college-
ready while also equipping them with the skills they need to be productive in the job market once
they graduate. These are all great benefits to the students of Fayetteville-Manlius High School.

Who Will Benefit

The students will benefit the most from this opportunity. To have the chance to learn about and
develop technologies will change the students thinking and problem solving. It will open them
up to new opportunities that might not have been seen before this mandatory requirement. These
computer science classes will bring real world experiences to the classroom. It will also help
promote females into the field and get them to at least give them a try with it. Some girls may be
too scared or nervous about trying out a male dominated field. Making the classes required for
everyone might help get rid of this gender gap that is currently in the field. Increasing student
access to and interest in computer science makes everyone win. Skills developed in computer
science courses, even if a student does not go on to pursue or complete a computer science
degree will translate to the workplace and beyond no matter what field they go into. Computer
science can help make students stronger hires by giving them the critical thinking skills and
agility to follow job market trends when they graduate (Miller, 2014). This will help with future
global stability and our students success.

Solutions
The solution is to make it required that each student take one computer course within their four
years of high school. As mentioned, the school has four different computer science courses.
These courses teach different programming languages which is great but to make this
requirement there should also be some computer courses that arent as technically heavy. Two
courses that should be added are: Computer Concepts 1 and Computer Applications 1. The
existing computer science classes will still be available to take because those courses promote
more technological growth to the students who want it.
Computer Concepts 1 will study the language and concepts associated with computer systems
hardware and software. Topics include system hardware components, memory organization and
management, operating systems, and how to troubleshoot. Students will install, configure, test
and troubleshoot system software to apply the several concepts taught in the class.
Computer Applications 1 is a survey of equipment and programs used in common computer
systems. Topics include internal storage, input/output devices, operating systems, popular
applications packages. Current and future trends will be discussed in reference to networks,
mainframe and microcomputers. Students will take apart and put back together a desktop
computer and learn how to make their own ethernet cables.

Whats next?
What should you do next?
The next step is to implement these classes that I am proposing. To make this successful another
staff member needs to be hired. This person must have technical background and know or be
able to learn the software that is being implemented into these classes.

Breakdown of Costs
Below is a chart of the probable costs.
Class Item Cost Number of
Units
Computer Concepts 1 VMware Workstation 12.5 $6, 249.75 25

Computer Applications 1 SAM 365 & 2016 $3, 850.00 25

Assessment
All 16 TB of Server Storage $2, 114.00 1
Total --- $12, 315.75 ---
Figure 1.2: Breakdown of Costs

VMware Workstation 12.5: This is a reliable software where students can create their own
virtual machines on the server. This is where they will be able to download any .iso file of a
software and so they can deploy any machine and make changes on the virtual server. They can
learn how to make changes in a computer registry or active directory without messing up their
own computer. Making changes in the registry especially is not something that should be done
on the local machine unless the person really knows what they are doing. This software is good
to give the students the experience.
SAM 365 & 2016 Assessment: This program is a great guided program that will teach the
students everything about Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Access. It will give the
students step by step instructions on how to use each program. After going through the
instructions there will be a set of tasks that the student will have to complete on their own. This
software also comes with an online textbook which will be helpful in teaching internal storage,
input/output devices, operating systems, popular applications packages.
16 TB of Server Storage: With all computer classes happening and there being a larger number
of students enrolled in the classes the server storage space should be increased. When students
make their own virtual machines, it will take up a lot more of the server space as the virtual
machines will be stored on the server. The virtual machines will be removed after every school
year so 16 TB is enough to expand to for now.
Total Costs: The total cost of this proposal is $12, 315.75. There are a bunch of grants that go
towards supporting technology in the classrooms. For example, theres Corning Incorporated
Foundation or Digital Wish.

Conclusion
Making the students of Fayetteville-Manlius High School be required to take at least one
computer course within their four years of high school would be such a great benefit to the
students and community. So much could be learned and taken away from offering these courses.
It will get a lot more students involved and interested in the world of technology. The real beauty
of this is that it will benefit the students no matter what career path they choose to follow in their
futures.
Thank you for taking the time to read my proposal. I would love to help implement this proposal
if you plan to pursue it. Theres a bunch of possibilities out there waiting to happen and it starts
here.
 References
Amos, J. (2014, September 23). Technology Can Close Achievement Gaps and Improve
Learning Outcomes for At-Risk Students. Finds New Alliance Report.
Chiesa, L. (2017, April 18th). Phone.
Fiorito, A. (2017, April 17th). Phone.
Miller, A. (2014, November 14). Why We Must Have Computer Science In More Schools And
Classrooms. Forbes.
Quam, G., Smet, C., & Ivey, D. (2008). Technology education: A performance-based
approach. Tech Directions, 57(9), 24.