Summer School for Teachers

Creating technology workshops is easier than you expect

By Mary Alice Anderson -- School Library Journal, 2/1/2004

Media specialists who are actively involved in staff development are in a unique position to present summer technology workshops to their schools and district staff. But before you launch a tech workshop, make sure everyone recognizes the need for one. The Winona School District has high expectations about how its staff should use technology. When a group from our district technology committee decided it was time to provide effective, inexpensive tech training to all district employees, we created a proposal for the workshop and submitted it to the Curriculum and Staff Development office.

Listed below are the key ingredients you need to create a successful summer tech program. We used them to develop our own tech staff development workshop.

• Rationale for staff development lessons. Tech training is essential for teachers and district employees to gain an upper hand as educators. In the end, student achievement will rise.
• Key needs and target audience. Our district targets K–12 teachers. Some courses appeal to the entire staff, while others are designed for a specific curricular area or grade level. Often there are courses just for the administrative staff or those who use the district's management software. Other courses are generic, which appeal to educators throughout the region.
• Timing. The exact date and duration of your summer staff development program is entirely up to you. Some districts offer training throughout the summer, while others offer it for only one week.
  We typically offer classes in June and August but prefer to hold them in August, closer to the beginning of the school year. Afternoon classes tend to have poor attendance, so we held morning classes and a combination of morning and afternoon classes.
  We've found that two-hour sessions work best, any longer than that and an attendee's mind begins to wander. Mid-week classes are preferred to those held at the beginning and the end of the week, and our sessions last two or three days.
• Facilities. Since our district lacks a technology staff development center, we make good use of the tech labs in our schools. We like to limit the number of the locations to promote a sense of camaraderie among attendees and make life easier for the chair and tech support staff. It's best to decide on a venue after enrollment has been determined. For example, if most attendees are high school teachers, we try to offer the sessions at a senior high school.
• Budget. Our $4,000 annual budget comes out of the district staff development funds. Classes are free to those employed by the district, and those from outside the district pay $20 per class. These fees are paid for by a nearby technical college.
• Choosing classes. Subjects are based on staff questions and suggestions. We also bounce ideas around at our monthly district technology committee meeting and plan classes that focus on new district initiatives. For example, in 2003, we offered classes on the newly adopted K–5 reading assessment software that teachers are required to use and the K–3 software that is required for students.
• Course names that target your audience. Class titles and descriptions should be specific yet concise and should identify the target audience. 'Introducing the State Provided Online Databases' is boring, but 'Cool Tools and Resources' is appealing. 'Primary Sources on the Web' sounds too academic, but 'Local History on the Web' works much better. 'Excel Isn't Just for Accountants' grabs the attention of teachers who think Excel isn't for them, and 'Things I Forgot over the Summer' is catchier than 'Server and Web Mail Review.'
• Web site. Learn how to add items such as a calendar, syllabus, worksheets, flash cards, and downloadable files to the district Web site. Bring electronic content to the class and make sure to post it on the Web, so when the class ends, participants can refer back to it as a resource.
• Assistive technology for kids with special needs. Consultants with a local education consortium provided us with information on technology for kids with special needs.
• Promoting the program. Brochures or Web sites are essential marketing tools. We use 11' x 17' paper, folded, stapled, and printed by our district's print shop. Provide as much detail as you can: class titles, instructor, time, date, location, and Web URLs. Make sure to obtain outside proofreaders before you send it to the printer. The Web site should contain identical information but can be updated as classes are filled or are cancelled.
• Marketing and public relations. You can reach potential attendees in many ways. Here are some examples:
  January: Announce the date of your staff development sessions in the district newsletter and district Web site and during all meetings with administrators, facilities coordinators, and others who will need to know.
  April: Distribute posters with basic information and class titles to all district buildings and area schools.
  May: Send letters to principals, media specialists, technology coordinators, and superintendents in area schools. Plan face-to-face meetings with area administrators if possible.
  Mid-May: Place all information on the district Web site.
  Late May : Distribute brochures to all district buildings and previous out-of-town attendees. Send packages of brochures to area schools.
  July–August: Publicize the classes in local newspapers, and on radio and TV. Remind teachers via bulk e-mail that it's time to register.
  Finally, in August: Publicize the event on school marquees and in-house announcement systems. One summer, a community member was so impressed to see the academy announcement on the school marquee that she wrote a letter to the editor of the local paper to point out that teachers were attending classes over the summer.
  Most course instructors are library media specialists, teachers, or staff in Winona Area Public Schools and the nearby technical college. Relying on local staff helps keep our costs low and assures that there are people who can provide follow-up instruction. Occasionally, vendors are willing to assist or act as core instructors at no charge.
  Communicate with the instructor frequently in writing. Be sure to include an official thank-you note for agreeing to participate in the program, a follow-up letter accompanied with a brochure explaining the clear expectations of instructors, a mid-summer update including tentative class locations, preliminary registration numbers, and a reminder about their responsibilities. Send another letter a few days before classes begin with the final registration count and updates.
• Information packets. Include final class lists, continuing education certificates, a voucher, a complete schedule, and a note about snacks. Also make sure to reserve, order, and check on workshop needs well in advance. Check that the buildings include computer labs and a sitting area to have refreshments.
• Peripherals. Don't forget video projectors and digital cameras. Decorations such as balloons or flowers add a touch of festiveness, and insulated travel mugs can make nice gifts for instructors.
• Tech support staff. Insist they be there. Don't assume they realize they're needed.
• Summer cleaning crew. Make sure you contact the summer cleaning staff. We've had people arrive for classes only to find the hallway blocked for summer cleaning or the restrooms not ready for use.
• Registration and confirmations using online registration and a powerful database. We maintain a registration database and create confirmation letters and mailing labels using File Maker Pro. People expect a written confirmation, which includes class locations, schedules, and other relevant information.
• Detailed directions to the buildings and a map for those attending from out of town. Send out confirmations 8 to 10 days in advance. If you send them too early people will lose them, and if they're mailed too late registrants might have forgotten about the course and made other plans. Use the registration database to keep statistics about attendance.
• Last-minute details. We schedule at least one day prior to the workshop to take care of important details, such as checking the equipment, posting signs with the class locations, answering questions, and preparing instructor packets and handouts. Be prepared for a rush of last-minute registrations, cancellations, or requests to change courses.
• Supplies. Be sure you have a variety of tools to be used for presentations as well as adequate communications support: power cords and network cables, cellphones and pagers, white boards and easels with markers, equipment carts, paper, tape, scissors, glue, paper, pens, highlighters, and aspirin.
• Emergencies/catastrophes. If an instructor doesn't prepare until the last minute, his problem becomes yours. This past summer we had to shift a class from one building to another because of a network problem, and we had to notify all registrants by phone. We also had to end a block of classes early due to a citywide power outage.

There will always be participants who show up at the wrong time or in the wrong building clutching their unread confirmation notices. But take heed, we've managed to carry out nine consecutive successful sessions, so start planning. It's fun and rewarding, and your staff development leadership will not go unnoticed.