An excellent example of a successful learning initiative can be found in North Carolina’s Mooresville Graded School District. To transform teaching and learning, Mooresville Superintendent Mark Edwards enrolled his entire community and staff. While Dr. Edwards and his team worked hard to give students digital textbooks and other educational technologies, they simultaneously changed the culture of the school system. Parents and other stakeholders were engaged in the change process and educators were introduced to a rigorous professional development program supporting the effort. While the work was at times difficult, the results speak for themselves. Over a three-year period, student performance on state exams increased by 13 percent, while the school system continued having one of the lowest per pupil expenditures in the state.
Another example of a well-planned and well-executed learning initiative is in Florida’s Santa Rosa County Public Schools. There, Superintendent Tim Wyrosdick and his team decided to use digital learning environments to improve achievement and foster the higher-order thinking skills students need for the future. Thanks in part to this learning initiative, which included ongoing assessments, digital resources aligned to district pacing guides, and comprehensive professional development and community outreach efforts, Santa Rosa became one of the top performing school systems in Florida based on FCAT results.
While education technologies have indeed helped support student success in Mooresville, Santa Rosa and hundreds of other districts nationwide, it is important to remember technology played just one part of a larger effort. As educational leaders unpack the lessons learned at ISTE 2013, I’d encourage us all to remember that the most successful efforts to improve student achievement are not focused solely on embracing one technology or another. We know that the most successful learning initiatives are holistic efforts that provide students, teachers and community members with the tools, information and resources needed to participate in and support an education that prepares today’s generation for college, career and citizenship.
Bill Goodwyn is CEO of Discovery Education, which aims to transform teaching and learning with digital textbooks, multimedia content that supports the implementation of the Common Core, professional development, assessment tools, and a professional learning community.
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