20 Questions About Computers 20 Years Later Heads of School Conference, Friday 1/27/06 ISACS, Chicago Click here to go to the ISACS Web page Click here for the main Summercore page

In the early 1980s, I worked with an NAIS committee to develop 20 questions about computers intended to get key leaders thinking about the issues of the times. In this talk, I will present 20 questions to help push and provoke us in our Independent Schools to think about balancing the priorities of hardware and software in the world of 2006 with the issues of humanware, Internet safety, gender equity, empowerment, globalization and honesty. Reference material for pre-reading and post-reading will be posted on the Web site of http://www.summercore.com/isacs for participants.

• Click on the four numbers for the four pages of the 1983 document: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4
  (12/17/05 ... "Permission granted! Patrick F. Bassett" President, National Association of Independent Schools)
• Click here to read the 1984 talk given to NAIS administrators
• Click here to read the 2002 update on technology issues and "thinking out of the box"

Steve Bergen (bergen@chapin.edu) CIO, The Chapin School (100 East End Avenue, New York, NY 10028)
co-director of The Summercore Teaching Company (PO Box E, Lexington MA 02420)
Click here for the "Don't Be Afraid of Change" picture that hangs on the fourth floor of The Chapin School
Click here for a November 2005 photo taken after losing a bet to the Class 6 Supervisor and after failing to avoid saying "Plan B" for 30 days when talking with the Class 6 Chapin girls (most of whom are Yankee fans)

• A = Access issues re wireless/wired computing and laptops ... CQ: Are classroom teachers provided with the necessary hardware and software as professionals to do their jobs and use technology productively? Does your school make sure that all students over a certain age have computer and Web access (and possibly faculty when at home)?
• B = Budget percentage issues ... CQ: Is your school spending on technology as if it is still 1985? What is the percentage of the overall budget being spent on technology? LINK
• C = Curriculum integration ... CQ: Whether by curriculum mapping or by some other internal constructs, does your school ensure that it is a high priority for teachers to create meaningful curriculum projects that integrate technology into a panoply of classroom projects? LINK
• D = Distributing info to parents via Web and e-Blasts ... CQ: Are you using e-mail in an effective way to communicate with your parents? LINK.
• E = Equity ... male/female tech issues at both student and staffing levels ... CQ: Does your technology program proactively reflect the importance of addressing "the pink collar ghetto" issues and providing all girls with a solid core of 21st century computer proficiency skills? Is there a gender balance in the people who are the techies or in the tech dept? Do the advanced computer programming courses reflect a one-sided male signup? LINK
• F = Faculty training ... this may well be the most important single step in moving a school forward ... CQ: Has your school embraced any of these "out of the box" ideas: faculty incentives, faculty support, faculty pioneers, a dedicated computer faculty trainer?
• G = Good to Great ... implications for our tech departments ... CQ: Has your tech department "evolved with the times" to reflect the Jim Collins perspective that you need the "right people on the bus in the right seats" in order to become the best you can be? LINK
• H = Honesty, MP3 issues, software piracy ... CQ: Does your school address issues of MP3 files, software honesty and acceptable use issues at both the student and faculty level? LINK
• I = Internet safety (e.g. myspace.com), Blogs and Online behavior/Etiquette at both student and faculty levels ... CQ: Has your school embarked on a proactive, public program to begin to address the complicated yet critical issue of our students posting personal and frequently inappropriate info on Web sites such as friendster.com and myspace.com? LINK
• J = Just-in time vs. just in case vs. just because ... CQ: What is the most common method by which teachers get help and make progress with technology needs and questions? JIT or JIC or JBC? Do you have a HELP desk and an easy, efficient procedure for faculty getting help? LINK
• K = KIS ... CQ: Yes, this is an oversimplification, but the KIS ("Keep it Simple") paradigm for transforming a school involves four principles: budget, curriculum shared leadership and prioritizing faculty as the priorities ... CQ: Do the students graduate from your school as normal students (e-mail usage, Web usage, marginal skills with word processing, PowerPoint etc.) or do they uniformly graduate with the computer proficiency skills that will allow them to be tech-savvy citizens of the 21st century, i.e. typing at solid speeds, being able to manipulate spreadsheets skillfully and work with graphics in WP documents, being able to make Web pages and understanding "big picture issues" regarding honesty, Internet Safety and media literacy. LINK to a silly Summercore song ;-)
• L = Leadership paradigm about tech coordinator/key administrator ... CQ: Does a key technology leader meet regularly with a key administrator in framing tech initiatives? I have theorized that this may well be the most important factor in moving forward and may well be the barometer that correlates with technology success and progress in our Independent Schools. When done well, this fits the Lexus and the Olive Tree metaphor by Thomas Friedman, where the key administrator helps ensure that each tech initiative has its "olive tree roots" in the context of the culture and history of the school.
• M = Media literacy ... CQ: Have you embarked on this interdisciplinary curriculum that perhaps has the potential to "give us a handle" on the Internet Safety conundrum that we find ourselves in? LINK
• N = Network Infrastructure ... CQ: Is your school being run "like a bank" in terms of security, passwords, desktop sign-in procedures to the point that teachers complain that the barrier is not worth the price of usage? LINK
• O = Outsourcing (what to do in-house, when to bring in outsiders) ... CQ: With all the demands that come with technology growth in a school, one useful paradigm involves deciding which technology services can be done more effectively by an outsider. Is your school happy with the balance?
• P = Plateau ... CQ: Have you heard about the Tim Fish paradigm of "moving beyond the plateau" and do you have structures and systems in place at your school to move your faculty towards Tim Fish Level 3 and Tim Fish Level 4? LINK
• Q = Quality Classrooms (projectors, speakers, SMART boards) ... CQ: To what extent are teachers at your schools using these new 21st century tools that have matured considerably in the last 10 years? What percentage of your classrooms have the basic "bronze" ability of allowing a classroom teacher to use a projector and put a Web site on a large screen? LINK
• R = Rights (3 train wrecks from John Palfrey from Harvard Law School/Berkman Center for Internet & Society) ... CQ: Since the third track wreck involves textbooks that will be on line, has your school evolved in terms of Web policies to deal with copyright issues of text/audio on line? Has your school evolved in terms of Web policies for faculty regarding content and attribution? Does your school allow the posting of student names and pictures on your Web site? LINK
• S = Synchronization ... CQ: do the various data systems in different offices talk to each other? Admissions? Business Office? Registrar? Development?
• T = Thomas Friedman and issues of globalization (SKYPE, podcasting, and the flattening of the Independent School World) ... CQ: In speaking about Thomas Friedman, Alan November has challenged educators at start taking advantage of the flat world to help your students connect with others around the world. LINK