1:1 Application for the Teaching Professional

There are many aspects to a 1:1 rollout that need to be considered, as you've noticed, but let's relate some of the points to the everyday teaching professional.  According to this best practices article for 1:1 devices in schools, it is very important that you attend professional development that will give you a chance to explore and determine the best and most appropriate resources to use. "It allows teachers to assess the quality and applicability of the rich resources available online and how to share resources with others."  This is necessary if you want to be a teacher leader in your building, helping not only the students you directly teach but other teachers in your building.  Often times, school districts even offer summer workshops that you can attend.  Another important part of a 1:1 rollout to consider is student engagement.  According to the same article, many students in schools across the county (specifically high school students) do not feel as if they matter to their school community.  One of the things you can do to combat this is to continually look for  "ways to integrate technology to bolster student engagement by providing experiences that connect children to their peers, mentors, and the rest of the world and to ask them to do real-world tasks that involve, in part, the use of a variety of digital tools."  Build connections amongst other professionals, network with other teachers who are part of 1:1 classrooms, or educate yourself on some of the latest trends and digital success stories.  Although my school is not part of a 1:1 initiative yet, I have participated in the initial planning stages and an additional integral feature of a 1:1 rollout that you may consider is providing your students with the necessary troubleshooting tips and/or key features of the devices they are using.  An example may include an FAQ pamphlet or presentation that you can provide them for certain scenarios such as "What do I do if..." or "This is how you enable the flash player". 

This We Are Teachers article provides some interesting considerations as well.  I personally like #3, which suggests that you tune in to your students for tips.  Learning can occur anywhere, anytime.  Students can learn from teachers, teachers can learn from students, administrators can learn from students, and so on.  I have learned a lot from students in my experiences in the classroom and in my current role as a technology teacher.  Students suggest fantastic resources and you can gain a fantastic sense as to what is engaging to them as well.  Creating engaging products is important, but you have to have an organized structure to your rollout, along with a well managed approach.  Students should be well aware of the expectations for using their devices intelligently.  Ground rules should be laid out early on and students should be taught to respect the Common Sense Media principles that guide everyone's wise use of the internet.


https://www.weareteachers.com/41-tips-tricks-techniques-11-classroom/
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED572315.pdf

Experience in 1:1 Rollout

As Edwards stated in the book, digital transformation is more than just the devices.  It's all about a complete change in mindset.  This was also the case for the Salisbury Township School District.  Over the course of 8 years, they went from being a 1:1 county in middle and high school to a fully functional digital school district in 2014.  One thing that I thought was interesting, however, was that they started their work in 2006.  Completing something like this is definitely a process, and it takes time.  Randy Ziegenfuss and Lynn Fuini-Hetten, the authors of this specific article from Edutopia (https://www.edutopia.org/blog/pd-1to1-technology-to-district-randy-ziegenfuss-lynn-fuini-hetten), said they have worked on four main actions in order to maximize the PD aspect of the implementation.  To me, this is the most important part of the process because it creates a unified language, a unified culture, amongst the teachers and staff. 

The first key point they made was that it's important to align your PD goals with your 1:1 program goals when pushing the transformation forward.  They mention that "effective digital transformations have articulated goals that reflect the desired changes in teaching and learning."  I think this is crucial because everyone then has a clearly defined path to focus their efforts on in terms of improving in the area of creating an environment for student success in a digital era.  In this situation, they're defining their goals based on the SAMR framework and Webb's Depth of Knowledge.

The second key point they made was the importance of rethinking the use of human resources.  This is in fact the backbone of the process.  Determining this structure early on would be an effective strategy early on.  Knowing what and where your resources are going toward is vital.  I can see this happening in our county now (as we're currently under a major transformation) with job title roles, differing job title descriptions, and the formation of support groups. 

Personalizing PD efforts for teachers is also a big part of the process.  Teachers in a 1:1 landscape should be able to function with a variety of knowledge, skills, and backgrounds.  Giving staff members personalized options through which to learn at their own pace or liking, creating diversity, allows them to feel truly invested and dedicated to the efforts.  This specific county even created teacher learning cohorts along with a summer academy and multiple conferences and workshops.  Of course, this was not only for teachers, but for administrators as well.

The final element mentioned in the article dealt with meeting the needs of everyone by way of understanding relevancy.  This has been a huge aspect of what I've been reading about with 100% digital switchovers.  Workshops and programs are formally evaluated, constantly, through survey, reflections, and debriefing in order for the instructional strategies to stay current and meaningful to everyone.  I like the authors even mentioned that as part of one of their most recent PD initiatives, Innovate Salisbury, teams of teachers, building leaders, district leaders, and other experts helped to shape the overall vision moving forward.  I think it's very important to involve people at all levels.  You're more apt to form a more accurate (and more believable) vision if everyone is on board.