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Baltimore City Information Technology Plan, 2008-2011 **Critiqued by:** Andrea, Chrissy, Stephanie, Kristin

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**Number of years plan has been and will be in effect:** The current plan is in effect from 2008-2011. It has been in effect for three years and will be in effect for a little over one more year. (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 4) || This plan is divided into the following sections: Executive Summary Introduction and Needs Assessment Vision Goals, Strategies, Rationale, Key Efforts, and Initiatives Progress To Date Evaulation and Assessments Budget Ensure Adequate Funding Appendices Each Goal is broken down into specific objectives. Each objective is linked back to the portions of the State Plan, National Plan, and No Child Left Behind Act. (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 3). || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">The Baltimore City Public School System Master Plan II Objectives are to: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">1. Increase student achievement, pre-kindergarten through grade 12. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">2. Provide students with qualified and competent staff. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">3. Comply fully with federal and state laws governing the education of students with disabilities. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">4. Design and implement effective and cost efficient management systems and practices to improve the <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">support to instruction. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">5. Increase the level of parent, family, community, and business support and involvement. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">6. Provide secure, civil, clean, and orderly learning environments. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">(Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 11-12)
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Plan reviewed**: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Baltimore City Public School System's Updated Technology Plan.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Stakeholder groups involved in developing the plan**: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS), community, information technology advisory committee, department staff, technology users. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Process used to develop this plan:** <span style="color: purple; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">**﻿** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This portion is not listed in the Baltimore City Technology Plan. Please see the chart below for further details. It is clear that the plan has it's roots and is grounded in the No Child Left Behind Act, the National Technology Plan, and the State Technology Plan. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Format for this plan**: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">PDF ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Sections** (e.g. curricular areas, professional development) included in this plan:
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Goals and sample indicators included in this plan**:

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">**Strategy 1.** Integrate the use of technology tools and digital content to engage students in daily instruction (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 17). **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Strategy 2 **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">. Ensure that staff is highly skilled and capable of effectively using technology tools and digital content. (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 20). **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Strategy 3: **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> Improve the readiness and service levels of existing infrastructures, including all networks, mission critical application systems, and technical support systems in order to sustain and enhance school administrative functions and system-wide operations processes (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 31). <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">**Strategy 5:** Improve the instructional use of technology through research and evaluation (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 64). || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">A Technology Inventory of the City School System Report was conducted in 2005. Results are based upon MSDE data gathering survey for 2004-2005. These results are reflected in MSDE 2007 report. ( [|HTTP://MD.ONTARGETUS.COM/DISTSUM.ASP?OTID=30&ACCDESC=BALTIMORE+CITY] ) ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Strategy 4: **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Provide universal access to high performance technology (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 56).
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Required supporting documentation (e.g. research data, inventories):
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Evaluation requirements for this plan: **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">The Baltimore City Public School System “needs to measure success both in reaching the Technology Plan targets and, ultimately, in achieving the vision of the plan for learners to be competent and creative thinkers as well as effective communicators and problem-solvers” (Baltimore City Technology Plan, p. 70).

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">There is an outline on page 70 of this plan that discusses an official evaluation committee that is to be formed. They are to implement an evaluation model with the assistance of stakeholders, and the plan suggests several items the committee should address.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Each strategy has target goals, recommended activities to perform in order to meet those goals, a responsible party, and a column entitled "milestones". Within the "Milestones" Column exists the reporting objective or the measurement tool or the plan of how BCPSS plans to determine whether or not the strategy employed was succesful. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Each strategy has target goals, recommended activities to perform in order to meet those goals, a responsible party, and a column entitled "milestones". Within the "Milestones" Column exists the reporting objective or the measurement tool or the plan of how BCPSS plans to determine whether or not the strategy employed was successful. ||
 * **<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Reporting requirements for this plan: **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Revision cycle for this plan:** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This portion is not listed in the Baltimore City Technology Plan. Please see the chart below for further details. ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">**Funding sources to support this plan:** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Innovative restructuring and reallocation of existing budgets, federal funding (programs such as "No Child Left Behind" and "Enhancing Education through Technology"), applying for grants available through the state and federal levels, seeking out partnerships with businesses and higher education (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 73). ||

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">(Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 67-69).
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Strengths || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Weaknesses || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Recommendations ||
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">The Baltimore City Technology Plan includes a lot of data about the students they serve including drop out rates, national percentile ranks, and student vs students with disabilities comparisions. They use these data charts to prove that technology is needed in order to reach the needs of all students.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">The plans includes goals, strategies, and key efforts for addressing how the BCPSS technology plan will align with the National Technology Plan and the Maryland Plan for Technology in Education.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Each strategy discussed has an accompanying <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">"SMART plan" template developed, which makes it easy to see, at a glance, that "drilling down" has been done and what steps have been determined necessary in order to accomplish the goal.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">There is a Needs Assessment for the plan. This shows us that the district took into consideration what they believe their students need, based on data and assessments (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 5).

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">There is a Acceptable Use Policy that clearly outlines usage guidelines for students and teachers (Baltimore City Technology Plan, 2008, p. 75).

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Plan involves parties from a variety of groups within the school community, including: the IT department, school based resources, Office of Library Media Services, and parent groups. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">An inventory was conducted in 2005 as part of a greater State initiative, but has not been done since then.

Evaluation Committee does not have any expected deadlines for reporting, nor does the report whom the evaluation committee is accountable to?

Lack of a clear plan of action for updating the plan.

Process used to develop this plan is not listed in this document clearly.

Revision plans beyond 2011 are not listed in this document. || <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">Technology inventory should be conducted, at the very least, annually. Compiling the data from each school will assist the city system in addressing issues such as shrinkage, ensure that funds allocated for hardware are being spent on hardware, and allow for repair budgets to be estimated. Additionally, if an excess inventory exists in one school and a deficit inventory exists in another, schools could arrange for swaps (and thusly debits and credits to their GL's) rather than new purchases. This will save the system money, allow for quicker delivery, and provide the and potential for schools to fulfill each other's emergency equipment needs.

It would be helpful to understand the process and reasoning behind why this plan was developed as we see it today. ||

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">References

While there are several direct in-text citations, there is no Reference Page at the end of the Baltimore City Schools Technology Plan. It is possible that this document is elsewhere on the internet, but was not part of the document we used in creating this wiki.