"the important (thing) is where we are going"

The School Committee took time to recognize students on Tuesday night. Sophia Addi was recognized for being selected to the All National Concert Band. Several high school students were recognized for their contribution to get the technology deployed and ready at the new FHS building. The STAR team spent many days/hours during the summer and as school opened.

Supt Sabolinski, Sophia Addi, School Committee Chairperson Paula Mullen, Kevin O'Malley (left to right)

The technology update revealed that the 1700 chromebooks are up and running to provide a 1:1 educational experience for the students. The network was built to handle not just today's capacity but for the future.

Additional chromebooks were purchased for the K-8 grades. While the wireless points were expanded in all the schools, not all the chromebooks have been deployed yet. The smart boards re-redeployed from the old high school building were set up in K-8 clasrooms that did not previously have them.

Technology training is being provided to the teachers at the high school. The training was budgeted as part of the new building project. Training for all the teachers on technology continues to be a challenge.

A new Digital Literacy Group has been formed within the schools to work on helping define and update policy regarding the use of technology in education. This group will also continue to address the educational needs of the teachers in using the technology appropriately in the classroom.

The facility update acknowledged that the parking situation at the high school may be resolved in the next couple of weeks. Paving the newer sections of the parking lot is underway. Paving the extension of Panther Way to the high school will also relieve traffic issues on Oak St.

The security separating the 'public' sections of the new high school is still being worked on. The bell system to alert all on changing classes is not yet working. They are using music to do so now. The music is prompting a discussion on involving the students in the selection of music to be played.

Such engagement is a good thing. The meeting had opened with teacher union president Chandler Creedon raising some issues from the teachers around the handling of the incident at the high school. Established procedures were not followed and teachers were being asked to do things that they should not have. As the investigation into the email is still underway with police and FBI activity, the full debrief is not yet scheduled but being planned for.

The complete set of notes taken during the School Committee meeting Tuesday can be found here

• Live reporting - Closing
• Live reporting - Action Items
• Live reporting - Facility Update
• Live reporting - Technology update
• Live reporting - STAR Team
• Live reporting: School Committee - Oct 7, 2014
• 
  

“Even if you want to stay focused, it is just so tempting"

As there are two sides to a coin, there are two sides to a story. To pair with the glowing technology update Tuesday night at the School Committee meeting, we can also share this timely student update on the new Chromebooks:

Use of the new chromebooks at Franklin High School causes students to be distracted in class due to what is visible on their peer’s screen. Although they create many educational benefits, at times they become problems in the classroom. 

A student will be in a class, and the student next to them will be playing a game or messaging their friends. Instead of focusing on what the teacher says, the student eyes will veer onto the computer screen of the person sitting next to them. 

Now they are distracted.

- See more at: http://pantherbook.org/student-life/2014/10/07/chromebooks-create-classroom-distractions/#sthash.WG6UKSW3.dpuf

Pantherbook reports on chromebook 'distractions'

My notes from the technology update can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2014/10/live-reporting-technology-update.html

Live reporting - Technology update

2. Guests/Presentations

c. Tech Update / Plan – Tim Rapoza, Joyce Edwards

1700 Chromebooks distributed over couple of days and nights
220 wireless access points, the telephones, all needed to be programmed and set up
today we had an all day training on the audio section
85-90% released and trained at this point, we're not done yet

you have seen the robot, we have 3-D printers
if you have any specific question, I'd be happy to answer them

Q -What are the outstanding issues?
A - large software deployments to the teachers are finishing up, doing the one-offs here and there
One software piece had the standard license instead of the premium

the robotics kits just arrived last week

new tablets are still not shipped from the factory yet, they are a proto-type for school and ruggardized for use; trying to get 2 demo units per science lab
once we get them, we'll be glad we waited

system wide we tweak the security on the public versus academic side
working with the vendor to configure it appropriately
we are close to getting it install the proper way
right now the Facilities Director doesn't have remote access to the devices in the high school

Joyce

some low level usage to high level usage
seeing references instantaneously to advance and reinforce the learning

students can do peer editing across the room with one another
students creating content and adding to a body of knowledge out there
specialized programs being used
lots of math and graphing being used

part of the 1-1 initiative extends the learning to anytime anywhere

step back about 3.5 years ago
the conference geared to using technology in instruction
that core group of 100 folks has continued to contribute to the body of knowledge within the staff

25 came voluntarily to debrief
Digital Learning Community formed preschool through 12
how do we help each other, harness and channel it to help our students
the focus is on instruction 
how can we harness learning in real time?
take a look at the 'acceptable use policies' and see of changes may be required
how can families access the technology appropriately
stay within the boundaries that are safe, what should students know how to do by grade

this plays into electronic testing with PARCC coming

need to continue to support the teachers and their digital learning
keep them with the curve; build capacity within the district

sometimes the value is with failure

teachers are using all kinds of applications
how do we have equity and access?

Sabolinski

the important is where we are going

Raposa

another 200 access points for K-8
another 1000 Chromebooks to be deployed to get ready for PARCC
now we are prepared to go 1:1 in every school

re-deployed interactive whiteboards in K-8 classrooms

other technology being stored in trailers (at an undisclosed location) until the staff is ready for deployment

wireless vendor visits on technology
Panasonic and Dell have requested case studies of the implementation
defacto Chromebook roll-outs are increasing so there are more visits coming

O'Malley

applaud both of you for the commitment that it takes to deploy such to all
applaud the teachers - it is not just a new skill, it is a major re-tooling
it is a big todo, it not a new series of text books

we need a set of expectation for our students grade by grade, what should they know when
When do we have PowerPoint when the teacher can count on the students knowing it?

Joyce

The committee does that have as a task
the State also has standards coming out so we are looking to see what they have in this area

Trahan

do you have a calculation for determining the wireless hot spots

Raposa

it is complicated and ha many factors including what the building is made of
we had started with other schools and practiced
you need to have coverage and capacity
we wanted 10,000 simultaneous connections
one access point per room and one every 50' of the corridor

Rohrbach

Do you have a structured plan for rolling the devices out to the teachers
incorporating the training needs

Joyce

using subs to backfill training spots 6-7 at a time
targeted professional development

teacher PDP piece in place for a long time now
have we hit saturation?no
do we need more time and money? yes
we also need to focus on preschool - 8

Raposa

we have a specialist on staff now doing before and after hour sessions
she is now camping in the teacher rooms to be their source of info and move from teacher room to another
trying to build that tiered level of support within the staff to meet the needs

Clement

have we had any casualties?

Raposa

yes, daily, there is a process with the insurance to cover this, return the units to the vendor to do repair, etc.
we have some buffer stations to use for swap outs
72 systems int he Library for check out like a book for the day (charge, etc.)
there is another inventory for the tech staff to handle the swaps
look in the system to see how many have books and to ensure none slip through the cracks

Mullen

what percent are using Chromebooksvs. personal systems

Raposa

95% using Chromebooks versus personal systems

Franklin is BioReady(R): Franklin now Platinum-rated community for biotech

The Town of Franklin has improved its zoning bylaws, building codes and other business and industry-related criteria to raise its BioReady® ranking from Gold to Platinum, signifying Franklin's readiness to work with biotechnology companies interested in locating there. 

"We are very excited to see Franklin reach the Platinum level of BioReadiness®," said Robert K. Coughlin, President and CEO of MassBio. "Franklin has proved its commitment to facilitating innovation and supporting industry growth in Massachusetts.""The Town of Franklin is honored to be a Platinum level BioReady® Community, and is very appreciative to the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council for the recognition," said Jeffery Nutting, Franklin's Town Administrator. "This award signifies the success of Franklin Town Council's continued efforts to promote a higher level of investment in the Town's industrial areas, increase employment options for the Town's residents, and increase the Town's commercial and industrial tax base." 

MassBio

MassBio and partner organizations across the state began the statewide BioReady® Communities Campaign in 2008 in order to provide background to municipal officials about the biotech industry and offer guidance on how to position municipalities as destinations for biotech laboratory and manufacturing facilities. To date, there are 77 BioReady® rated communities in the state. 

Communities are ranked on a scale of Bronze, Silver, Gold or Platinum, and the system helps Massachusetts cities and towns market themselves to biotechnology companies looking to expand or relocate. As part of the campaign, the MassBio Economic Development Advisory Group (EDAG) developed criteria to both guide communities in their pursuit of biotech facility opportunities and rate them for BioReadiness® in order to provide each with a tangible marketing tool. 

Other communities that have recently been awarded new or upgraded  BioReady® ratings include Leominster (Platinum), Malden (Gold), Millis (Silver), and Brookline (Bronze). 

To view full ratings criteria, visit MassBio's BioReady® Communities web page at http://www.massbio.org/economic_development/bioready_communities

About MassBio

www.massbio.org

MassBio, a not-for-profit organization that represents and provides services and support for the Massachusetts biotechnology industry, is the nation's oldest biotechnology trade association. Founded in 1985, MassBio is committed to advancing the development of critical new science, technology and medicines that benefit people worldwide. Representing over 620 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, research hospitals, and service organizations involved in life sciences and health care, MassBio works to advance policy and promote education, while providing member programs and events, industry information, and services.

Franklin Schools: Capital Budget planning

The school Committee is scheduled to discuss their capital budget submission to the town this evening. The budget is in two parts, one for facilities and one for technology.

Facilities




Technology




The full agenda for the meeting can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2014/01/franklin-ma-school-committee-agenda-jan_28.html

Parent Technology Training at the Franklin Library

A message from FRANKLIN PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT

Good Afternoon

Parents who need help with applications their children are using today – Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Ask.FM, Twitter - can go to the Franklin Public Library for help Thursday, April 25th anytime between 6:30PM and 7:30PM. 

Students (the experts) will be available to teach and answer questions about different applications. They also will help parents set up privacy settings, location settings, and passwords on different devices. BYOD (bring your own device) – Smart Phone, iPad laptop, iTouch. 

For more information please contact Lisa Keohane at: lkeohane5@gmail.com

******************************************************************************

Tour of Franklin High School - Wednesday, April 24, 2013 at 6:00 P.M.

This e-mail has been sent to you by FRANKLIN PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT. To maximize their communication with you, you may be receiving this e-mail in addition to a phone call with the same message. If you wish to discontinue this service, please inform FRANKLIN PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT IN PERSON, by US MAIL, or by TELEPHONE at (508) 613-1777.

Tech Day Camp: March 23

TECH DAY CAMP MARCH 23

United Regional Chamber of Commerce

The United Regional Chamber of Commerce is proud to sponsor an all-day Tech Day Camp on Sat., March 23 at Tri-County RVT High School, 147 Pond St. in Franklin. The Camp will feature more than 30 workshops to help people get started using today's technology or learn how to use it better. The event is especially geared towards small businesses and non-profit organizations and is organized by the Toolbox.

The early bird rate for the event is $99 if registration is completed by Feb. 28. Get more information and register online at www.techdaycamp.com.

Franklin Public Schools: Capital Plan FY 2014

Here are the documents outlining the proposed capital plan for FY 2014 for the Franklin Public School District. These items are scheduled for discussion at the School Committee meeting on Tuesday, Nov 27th and assuming they are approved will then be part of the capital planning process for the Town.

The proposed Facilities capital plan




The proposed Technology capital plan




The full agenda for the School Committee meeting can be found here
http://www.franklinmatters.org/2012/11/franklin-ma-school-committee-agenda-nov.html

Mendon-Upton school board members allowed to vote remotely

With the recent advances in technology this is a good logical step. Technology can be very useful to conduct meetings with participants not all in the same room. The meeting can be conducted as long as the technology works well.

 

 

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

 

 

Mendon-Upton school board members allowed to vote remotely

via The Milford Daily News News RSS by Morgan Rousseau/Daily News staff on 11/24/11

School board members in the Mendon-Upton Regional School District now have the option of participating in meetings while not being physically present.

 

 

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to The Milford Daily News News RSS using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

 

 

Live reporting - Technology

2. Guests/Presentations


b. Capital Plan


Technology
Tim Raposa

Requesting to purchase additional netbook systems for the high school and to expand to the Remington Middle School

Electronic whiteboard replaced in request with a newer projector at half the cost for the same functionality

Laptop carts - requesting three additional
providing mobile technology to classrooms

Remington-Jefferson lab upgrade
speed and productivity gains for labs

The document with the details of this budget section can be found here: Technology
http://www.scribd.com/full/41397723?access_key=key-2bt9xmfrik6410wd4fr


Rohrbach - which are the whiteboards in this request?
Raposa - these are the Epson Projector units are half the price. They are more light weight, they use a pen to touch instead of your finger. They made this targeted for schools so we can afford to buy them and afford to keep them.

The whiteboards we bought before are portable, they can be moved from room to room.

A really good deal.

We are trying to raise the percentage penetration across the district, most schools are about 35-40%. Some of the buildings with their own money have purchased additional units.

Sabolinski - we are working with the schools to make sure that the units are being equitably allocated across the district.

Raposa - every grade level can use this technology to improve the experience

Glynn - The Gmate software, does that include Professional Development?
Kingsland-Smith - no we have been trained on this already so we did not need that.

Sabolinski - we had a question on jumping into iPad technology, Tim has been looking into this
Raposa - it is an eight month old product, it is a great consumer device but how to do manage the devices for a school environment. Everything that needs to be loaded to an iPad is via the iTunes store. Apple is working on developing a process to use credits with the iTunes store to avoid having multiple accounts.

We are looking at a 'mobi' device, it will connect to the iPad and allow the teacher to project and control the iPad as she walks around the room. We may try this in a lab environment before we do a major rollout. We are watching two districts that are small and complete Apple environment before we do something.

Let's get the wireless in first and then either they can bring in a unit or eventually we can continue to expand the population of netbooks, etc.

Textbooks can be replaced with e-readers. But that is a developing story.

Nutting - I want to note what a terrific job Tim and his staff does. It has been a good benefit for the Town and Schools. It saves lots of money and covers both sides of the house.

Franklin, MA

Live reporting - Technology

Tim Raposa

Jeff Nutting provides an overview
most of his salary is in the School Budget, most of the Town side of the budget is license fees
It has been the same number for the past several years
consulting services for technical support outside of our expertise, primarily for internet security

Question
Where does the actual network cost sit?
Nutting
In the facilities budget, coming up next

Question
When does the savings from the phones come in?
Raposa
Sometime during the next fiscal year, we are looking for cooperation from the utilities vendors and if all goes well, it will be complete during 2010
Once the fiber network is in place we can start killing off the T1 lines to save the money

Raposa
We don't pay maintenance on computers or servers, we have the warranty only

Raposa
Contractor has done 14 fiber installs in the past year, they know their stuff, we are confident that they know their stuff

Roche
Meetings and conferences seems to fluctuate
Raposa
training and personal development, the previous DBA required some training but that training has been completed

Motion to approve, passed 9-0



Franklin, MA

"This is where we want to end up"

At a forum hosted by Sen. Karen Spilka, D-Ashland, and the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies, executives filled a training room at Franklin's EMC office yesterday morning to discuss the highlights and needs of the IT field.

"An educated work force is the lifeblood of these companies," said Joyce Plotkin, president emerita of the Mass Technology Leadership Council.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

Franklin, MA

Why an iPhone could actually be good for your 3-year-old

But here’s the tantalizing part: If done the right way, with the right limits, handing a preschooler a smart phone could be good not just for the parents’ sanity. It might even be good for the child’s development.

Read the full article here. I question his logic. He quotes from sources to show both sides of the story but makes the leap to say it is a good thing without having proved that it is.

I think the evidence shows that kids should spend more time away from technology and TVs as long as possible. The book "Last Child in the Woods" raises the issue of "nature-deficit disorder". Kids should spend more time in nature and less time with technology. For more on this topic, you can read what I wrote earlier this year.

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

Why an iPhone could actually be good for your 3-year-old

via Boston Globe -- Globe Magazine by Neil Swidey on 10/30/09

Parents who hand smart phones to their preschoolers as a distraction are shocked to see how quickly the kids become pros. They may worry about such early screen time. But for this generation of "mobile kids," portable, wireless technology promises to improve the way they learn.

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to Boston Globe -- Globe Magazine using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

Open Learning Initiative - Great Courses

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

Open Learning Initiative - Great Courses

via Free Technology for Teachers by noreply@blogger.com (Mr. Byrne) on 9/11/09

The Open Learning Initiative offers free high-quality courses created by Carnegie Mellon University. There are courses available in Statistics, Engineering, Science, Economics, French, and more. All of the courses are open to anyone that wants to give the courses a try. Users can create an account to track their progress or users can just jump into the course materials without creating an account.

In addition to offering open learning opportunities to students, the Open Learning Initiative provides instructors with course packages that they can use for free. To explore the free options offered to educators, request an OLI Instructor Account.

Applications for Education
The Open Learning Initiative provides high school students with the opportunity explore their interests and get a sense of what is required by collegiate level courses. If you're school allows you to create independent study opportunities, the OLI instructor resources could be starting place for creating those opportunities.



Here are some related items that may be of interest to you:
100 Awesome Open Courses
Lectures and Courses from Great Universities
Yale Open Courses Added to iTunes

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to Free Technology for Teachers using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

The Month in Review - July's Most Popular Items

Sent to you by Steve Sherlock via Google Reader:

The Month in Review - July's Most Popular Items

via Free Technology for Teachers by noreply@blogger.com (Mr. Byrne) on 7/31/09

As I do every month, I've compiled a list of the most popular items from the last month.

Here are the seven most popular items in the month of July, 2009
1. 10 Things Teachers Should Know Before 1:1
2. DL Hughley Reminds Us Why We Teach
3. When I Become a Teacher...
4. The World Images Kiosk - 75,000 Images
5. A Very Simple Way to Make Screen Captures
6. More Wordle in the Classroom Ideas
7. Using Blogs and Wikis are Core Skills

Things you can do from here:

• Subscribe to Free Technology for Teachers using Google Reader
• Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites

Live reporting - Finance Committee - 5/5/09

Attending:
Brett S. Feldman
Juan Rivera
Patricia Goldsmith
Phyllis Messere
Rebecca Cameron
Jack Caufield
Mark Cataldo
James Roche
Tina Powderly
Craig Maire
Robert Teixeira


Almost final budget hearing

Information Technology
Tim Raposa

Similar to last year's budget, bare bones

"School Dude" work order management system, being set up this year to be used
should be set up over the next couple of months
doing cafeteria point of sale systems now

Efficiency based, current work order system is paper based

Virtual townhall - they do the website hosting, all done off-site
Folks call them directly, training is done on their site

Complete salary budget for technology department is in the School Budget

Motion to approve budget - Passed 11-0

"the bigger cost is that we’re navigating blindly"

Dr Scott McLeod completes his week of posting on the state of education in Iowa. He raises some great questions about the data that is currently not collected by the state. A sample (only the first four questions) are as follows:

Here are some questions that we should be asking in Iowa:

• What percentage of Iowa schools and districts have a technology plan? For those that do, what do those plans cover?
• What percentage of Iowa schools and districts have technology teams that advise the organization on technology-related concerns? Who’s on those teams?
• What are schools purchasing with their hardware and software money? What proportion of expenditures goes to teacher-centric technologies versus student-centric technologies? What proportion goes to software that provides powerful learning opportunities for students versus software that simply focuses on drill-and-kill remediation?
• How new are the computers in Iowa schools? What percentage of Iowa hardware and software is more than 2 years old?

I would recommend substituting "Franklin, MA" for Iowa as you read through these questions and the full listing on his page here

Do we already collect this data for MA? I do not know as I sit here but will spend some time in the coming weeks to go looking. If you know in the meantime, please let me know.

I want to play with these blocks!

From TED, we get a glimpse of what computers and human interaction can really do. No, not the kind where some one sits in front of a screen and uses a keyboard or mouse.

Watch, this is delightfully exciting!




Now that is a good use of computer technology for educational purposes!

How would you use these Shiftables?

Thanks to the folks at Free Technology for Teachers for the pointer to this!

one laptop per student

Dr Scott McLeod is continuing his series on recommendations for the Iowa schools. In part 3, he writes:

In addition to funding, numerous other challenges exist as well. One of the biggest is the current predisposition of schools to invest in teacher-centric technologies like televisions, DVD/VCR players, projectors, electronic whiteboards, and document cameras. They’re important and useful but they’re also primarily used as yet another way for teachers to push out information to students. In contrast, laptops, netbooks, digital cameras, small high-definition camcorders, digital voice recorders, webcams, digital scientific probes or sensors, and other devices are primarily used by students to facilitate their own academic learning. If we want Iowa students to gain the technology skills they will need to be productive citizens and workers, schools should be making as many investments in these latter, student-centric devices as possible. There also are a number of free or low-cost online software and tools that students and teachers can use in creative and productive ways.

You can read the full article here. It is rich with links and additional media (pictures and video).

Industry: RokkSoft partners with VocalEZ

From the PR news wire today, we find out about RokkSoft.

Franklin, MA, February 11, 2009 --(PR.com)-- RokkSoft Solutions Corp has partnered with VocalEZ LLC to expand the distribution of the VocalEZ voice recognition medical dictation transcription service.

VocalEZ wraps an integrated work flow around voice-enabled software and web technologies to provide a simple, cost effective dictation transcription platform that is scalable from a single dictator to a large clinic or integrated hospital system, resulting in cost savings of 50 percent when compared to traditional transcription methods.

RokkSoft will offer the VocalEZ medical dictation transcription system in a “Software as a Service” (SaaS) model to physician practices and medical clinics. Medical practices of all sizes are confronted with escalating costs. Because VocalEZ is a pay-for-use service, administrators are now equipped with a solution that dramatically reduces monthly expenses, without requiring a major capital outlay.

VocalEZ fundamentally changes the way the transcription industry provides clinical documentation by creating significant enhancements and savings through the entire process. This HIPAA-compliant solution delivers more accurate, timely and integrated medical documentation.

VocalEZ has created a solution that allows every physician practice to enjoy the same benefits that had previously only been available to the largest groups and hospitals. By focusing on the needs of this largely overlooked segment of the healthcare market, the partnership with RokkSoft is an indication of the VocalEZ commitment to improved patient care while driving down costs.

###

About RokkSoft

RokkSoft Solutions Corp represents companies that provide medical practices and businesses with industry-changing technology applications to improve productivity and drive down operating costs. These applications are delivered in a “Software as a Service” (SaaS) model to minimize required startup resources and eliminate capital expenditures. This enables clients to quickly realize ongoing cost savings.

For more information, please visit http://www.rokksoft.com.


From PR.Com here