Future Vision of Educationat Francis Walsh Intermediate School

EDU505: Future of Education

Francis Walsh Intermediate SchoolBranford, CT

• Public middle school housing grades 5 through 8• Built in 1972 using the open school concept, characterized by classrooms with no walls and

opening gathering spaces• School Demographics

o Serves approximately 1,050 studentso Some racial/ethnic diversity

• 87.5% of student population identifies as White/Caucasian• 3.5% of student population identifies as Asian American• 1.6% of student population identifies as Black/African American• 5.6% of student population identifies as Hispanic

o Average median household income in Branford, CT is $70,376; the No Child Left Behind 2010-2011 Report Card indicates that neither Francis Walsh Intermediate School nor the Two of Branford fall within the high or low quartiles used to determine economic ranking

o 12 students currently attend the school through the Open Choice Programo Approximately 15% of students are identified as Students with Disabilities and 3% of students are

identified as English Language Learners• Mission Statement: “Francis Walsh Intermediate School believes that everyone has the potential

to learn and be successful. We should support each other’s efforts to do well as we celebrate the diverse and unique qualities of all individuals. Tolerance, kindness, and community service are the cornerstones of the Walsh community.”

Current State of Francis Walsh Intermediate School

Student Academics & Support : -Wide range of academic classes including World Language studies and Advanced Placement Math courses -Applied Arts classes including Media Technology

-AWAKE program used to promote a strong sense of community through team & character building activities

Faculty Support : -Monthly “Learning Walks” to promote a sharing of

new ideas amongst teachers & allow continuous feedback on teacher performance - Teacher evaluation program focused on continuous reflection of current teaching practices

including technology use & Student Learning Outcomes

Current Practices in Technology: -All 8th grade students & teachers receive an iPad tablet with data plan -Lessons are designed to incorporate tablet learning to improve student media literacy skills & use of technology in academia while using student-familiar technology with the expectation of increased student performance

-Participating in UCONNs ORCA Project to help support future state & national assessments for media

literacy

Futuring What is it? Why use it? How does it impact education?

The What…Futuring is the systematic planning process that enables organizations to proactively prepare

for what lies ahead, thus turning worries and reservations about lies ahead into opportunities for growth, and bringing the future into better focus.

The WhyFuturing identifies several possibilities, or scenarios, by looking at the organization’s

environment (consumers, competitors, & community) and anticipating how changes in these may impact its future practices. This better prepares the organization to adapt to change

and continue to grow.

The Impact Engaging in futuring exercises will help educational leaders/organizations develop curriculum that maximizes instruction on skill sets that will be important to future jobs

thereby better preparing our students for life beyond the classroom.

The Role of Environmental Scanning in Futuring

Environmental scanning is a method used to assess an organization’s environment (i.e. its consumers, competition and community) and help the

organization develop scenarios and the strategies necessary to reach the organization’s identified vision.

External Environment:• Consumers (students)• Competition (charter or

private vs. public school)

• Community (tax payers, stakeholders, etc.)

Internal Environment:• School mission &

vision• Strengths• Weaknesses

Environmental Scanning to

collect data on performance,

trends, etc.Organization’s use of futuring

& development of scenarios Strategic

plans to prepare for scenarios

Educational Technology The trend Distance learning, or online learning, via mass open online courses using learning management systemsCurrent Impact Approximate enrollment rates of students, enrolled in full-time online education, is 250,000 with rates constantly growingPotential Future Impact Special education students will participate in distance learning programs that allow for supported instruction in an inclusion model that allows them to learn along side their peers

-Provides increased opportunity through choice, tutoring & supplemental services -Held to the same federal & state laws regarding support options for students with disabilities –Can be especially beneficial for students with social & behavior problems that many be triggered by a school setting – Allows for a more personalized approach for students with autism

-Potential accessibility problems for students with certain disabilities (i.e. vision impairment, hearing impairment, gross/fine motor impairments) –Monitoring & accountability concerns - Reason for placement (i.e. easiest option to provide vs. most appropriate option for individual student’s needs – Lack of social & emotional opportunities/supports

Economics, Demographics & Public Policy

Current State -The American Taxpayer Relief Act of

2012 will cut Special Education grants by $591 million (NEA, 2013) -The cut will affect apprx. 296,000 identified special education students in the US by eliminating funding for apprx. 7,800 Special Education jobs (NEA, 2013) -National cost of providing Special Education has risen 14% since 2008 (NEA,

2013) -Average cost for one out-of-district placement in 2012 was $42, 108, a roughly $10k increase from 2011(Kittle & Gill, 2012) -Special Education population is steadily increasing; from 4 million students in 1980

to 6.5 million in 2010 -American students are at least 2x more likely to be referred to special education services than in any other country

in the world (Powell, 2004)

Future State - School districts will begin

looking for viable solutions that allow them to continue to offer

their identified Special Education students the modified instruction they are guaranteed via IDEA 2004

for less money -Virtual classrooms are

typically less expensive than traditional brick & mortar schools

due to lower staffing requirements, minimal to no maintenance of a

physical site, and no need to serve hot meals or other social goods

2013 2018

Francis Walsh Intermediate School 2018The Scenario:

Francis Walsh Intermediate School will have a steadily developing distance learning program that incorporates the use of tablet learning, the Blackboard Learn learning management system and academic analytics to provide academic instruction and

assessment. The distance learning program’s targeted population will be those students whose disabilities impact their ability to access the curriculum in a traditional brick and

mortar school building.The Rationale:

As the population of Special Education students continues to steadily grow it will require increased spending to support it. This increased population will not only increase the

number of special education students in the school’s classrooms, but also has the possibility of increasing the number of outplaced students in the school. The cost of

providing Special Education services will continue to rise at a rapid pace. At the same time, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 has drastically decreased funding to Special

Education nationwide. These two opposing forces will collide, forcing school districts to find cost effective alternatives to out of district placements for Special Education students

who cannot participate in a traditional brick and mortar school building.

Preparation for the 2018 Francis Walsh Intermediate School- 5 Steps

Equip all students in the school with their own learning tablet device

Purchase a Blackboard Learn license for the school

Prepare the school’s IT framework to handle large

amounts of students accessing both local and

remote servers at one time

Provide teacher professional development on the use of

Blackboard Learn

Identify ways to accommodate and modify

distance learning program for individual student learning

needs and begin making adjustments to student IEPs

Call to Action- 3 Immediate Steps

• Secure private stakeholders to provide financial support in the purchase of tablets for all students within the school

#1

• Francis Walsh Intermediate School IT Department must identify the limits of current IT operating systems and develop a plan to improve as needed

#2

• Francis Walsh Intermediate School administrators must develop an initial budget for the necessary resources to support the plan, including future purchase of Blackboard Learn, teacher professional development designing and implementing a virtual classroom and IT operating system upgrades

#3

References

• Impact of sequestration on federal education programs. (2013, February 05).

Retrieved from

http://www.nea.org/assets/docs/Impact_of_Sequestration_on_Federal_Educati

on_Programs_02-05-13.pdf

• Powell, J.W. (2004). Special Education and the Risk of Becoming Less Educated in

Germany and the United States. CES Germany & Europe Working Papers, no. 05.

1.

• Kittle, C., & Gill, M. (2012, February 19). Costs drop 5 percent for Nashua’s

special education out-of-district placements. The Telegraph. Retrieved from

http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/news/950639-196/costs-drop-5-percent-for-n

ashuas-special.html