[Year 12 IT Apps] RE: Google docs issue

Mon Dec 8 23:58:22 EST 2008

(blush) .. goes back to hiding under a rock.

Regards Roland

2008/12/8 Ros Meadows <ros.meadows at gmail.com>

>  I am sorry if I started a bonfire!
> >From reading everyone's posts, there are obviously very varying opinions.
>
> Ultimately you only need to look at what Roland has achieved at Westall, in
> a school which is not rich (in monetary terms), and must deal with the same
> security issues as the rest of us. Yet given the opportunity to adopt a new
> idea, application or online website, Roland does not question with "Will
> this work? "What is the educational value of this?" "Will this compromise
> the security of my system?" or "will this be adopted by students and/or
> staff?"
>
> No, he thinks "that would be cool" and therefore dives headfirst into the
> latest and greatest "stuff" on offer, giving his students and staff choices
> in what operating system, software, search engine and online apps they use.
>
> I admire and envy you so much Roland - you create more educational
> opportunities for your students by giving them more options, than other
> schools who have so many more (financial) resources.
>
> Someone said to me at the conference 'Microsoft, the drug dealers of the
> software kingdom - "your first hit is on us kiddies"' - and so our kids
> pirate MS software so they can have it at home, because they think they need
> it, but can't afford it - not good! Show them there are legal and free
> alternatives such as Google docs or Open Office and they won't be guilty of
> software piracy!!
>
> Cheers
> Ros
>
> Timmer-Arends wrote:
>
> >However in schools this was not always the case - individual teachers and
> other staff seemed to believe that their individual views represented that
> of the entire school, and IT staff were pulled in all directions, often
> contradictory, After unblocking one website for one staff member, they'd get
> another complaining that their kids could now waste time on that same
> website. After installing some piece of software based on one request, theyd
> have someone else asking him why staff were being confused with multiple
> offerings. You can probably see his dilemma.
>
> >His view that he was paid by the school to meet the school's needs - but
> the school's needs were not always clearly defined
>
> >He commented that in some schools the IT support people ended up taking
> the lead because there seemed to be nobody else willing to manage a process
> that reached a school-level view on priority and strategy. He thought this
> was a dangerous situation.
>
> Ken, has your IT technical manager been speaking to our IT technical
> manager? One of the biggest frustrations our guy has is that he feels he is
> there to serve the needs of the school community, but that the said
> community doesn't seem to have a clue where it wants to go with all this IT
> staff. And that is a curriculum issue, not an IT issue.
>
> It sounds to me like Royce is taking a tough but perfectly understandable
> line on all this. Not wishing to put words into his mouth, but something
> like "show me the evidence that this will improve student learning, get the
> school to agree with you, and then come see me with your proposal"
>
> Regards
> Robert T-A
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> *From:* ken price <kenjprice at gmail.com>
> *To:* Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List<itapps at edulists.com.au>
> *Sent:* Monday, December 08, 2008 10:05 AM
> *Subject:* Re: [Year 12 IT Apps] RE: Google docs issue
>
>  I agree, the analysis of how IT meets organisational needs is valid as it
> is part of the course.
>
> I'll tell a short tale of  a very skilled IT technical manager at a school
> where I taught. He had spent several years working for large national
> organisations as IT manager. He was (and still is) very keen to make IT work
> for the school in the best possible way. He is a very valuable school IT
> manager.
>
> After a few months working at the school he made an interesting observation
> about schools vs his past employer which might be relevant here.
>
> He noticed that in the large organisations, there was strong governance
> over ICT decisions and investment. Decisions were made/endorsed by senior
> management based on needs and suggestions put forward by all staff
> (including IT support). It was thus very clear what the organisation wanted
> in terms of ICT. However in schools this was not always the case -
> individual teachers and other staff seemed to believe that their individual
> views represented that of the entire school, and IT staff were pulled in all
> directions, often contradictory, After unblocking one website for one staff
> member, they'd get another complaining that their kids could now waste time
> on that same website. After installing some piece of software based on one
> request, theyd have someone else asking him why staff were being confused
> with multiple offerings. You can probably see his dilemma.
>
> His view that he was paid by the school to meet the school's needs - but
> the school's needs were not always clearly defined. He felt that if staff in
> most large organisations directly approached their IT support unit demanding
> their own way, they'd be referred very quickly to the IT decision-making
> committee. If they did it more than once, things would get serious for them.
> Similarly, he saw that if his IT support staff ignored the priorities set by
> the organisation and did whatever they thought was a good idea or
> interesting, their job would be in jeopardy.
>
> He commented that in some schools the IT support people ended up taking the
> lead because there seemed to be nobody else willing to manage a process that
> reached a school-level view on priority and strategy. He thought this was a
> dangerous situation. It relates directly to Anne's quote from the Unit3
> syllabus.
>
> So perhaps there is another issue here - the nature of schools and how they
> reach decisions on how they want to use IT,innovate, etc, and how these
> decisions are informed by educational and technical issues?
>
> The IT manager was unsure if schools are inherently different to other
> large organisations, or if there is something else here. I haven't spoken to
> him for some time, so I'll get in touch and see what his views are now,
>
> Perhaps we can get some examples of how schools manage this school-level
> decision making and how it translates into the work that "techies" do?
> Perhaps they would be useful as case studies for students?
>
> Ken Price DoE Tasmania
> President, TASITE www.tasite.edu.au
>  On Mon, Dec 8, 2008 at 8:10 AM, <murch at tpg.com.au> wrote:
>
>> This discussion may have gone on long enough but I would like to argue
>> that it is not inappropriate to
>> this list or OT as it embraces the very nature of the ITA course. From the
>> summary of the VCAA course
>> design.
>> "Unit 3 focuses on how individuals or organisations use ICT to solve
>> information problems. This unit
>> focuses on how ICT is used by organisations to solve ongoing information
>> problems and in the
>> strategies to protect the integrity of data and security of information."
>> I think that this is a realistic problem that teachers and technicians on
>> the list are looking at and are
>> discussing. It is one that will be used for my students next year as they
>> will see the relevance of such a
>> problem as it pertains to their education. It has been interesting to hear
>> the opinions of the various
>> people involved in organisations - technicians, educationalists etc And
>> best of all, here is a virtual team
>> in action trying to solve the problem.
>> So thank you to everyone, and I in no way meant to be an egotistical
>> contributor, simply someone
>> seeking a solution.
>> Anne Mirtschin
>> Hawkesdale P12 College
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>>
>
>
>
> --
>
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>  http://www.vitta.org.au - VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers
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>
> --
> Roslyn Meadows
> TONS
> ros.meadows at gmail.com
> Bentleigh Secondary College
> Vivien Street, East Bentleigh, 3165
> Phone 9579 1044
> Mobile 0412 614 062
>  _______________________________________________
>  http://www.edulists.com.au - FAQ, resources, subscribe, unsubscribe
> IT Applications Mailing List kindly supported by
>  http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/vce/studies/infotech/infotechindex.html
> <http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/vce/studies/infotech/itapplications3-4.html> -
> Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority and
>  http://www.vitta.org.au - VITTA Victorian Information Technology Teachers
> Association Inc
>

-- 
Roland Gesthuizen - ICT Coordinator - Westall Secondary College
http://www.westallsc.vic.edu.au

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change
the world; indeed it is the only thing that ever has." --Margaret Mead
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