This document provides an overview of the key considerations for principals regarding technology vision and network infrastructure. It discusses the importance of having a long-term technology vision focused on creating 21st century learning environments. It also outlines essential network components and best practices for infrastructure, including servers, switches, firewalls/routers, wireless access, client devices, operating systems, bandwidth, backups, and inventory systems. Effective IT support is emphasized as critical to realizing the technology vision.

1. What Every
Principal
Needs to Know
about your Technology VISION and
Network INFRASTRUCTURE
to move your school FORWARD

2. Compunet-Consulting
mike@compunet-consulting.com
Laurie
YinglingLumen Christ
St Robert
Archdiocese of Milwaukee
laurieyingling1@me.com
laurieyingling1@me.com

3. A VISION for
the Archdiocese of
Milwaukee
Schools...
Archdiocese of
Milwaukee
Schools...

4. is to create
21st Century
Learning
Environments
21st Century
Learning
Environments

5. Our world has
CHANGED and we
need to prepare
students TODAY
for THEIR
TOMORROW

6. Career-ready
skills:
Communication
Collaboration
Critical Thinking
Creativity

7. limit our
students’
opportunities with
technology to what
we know how to do
as adults.”
- Scott McLeod @mcleod

8. We must impose a
PARADIGM SHIFT
in our schools; we
need to update how
we ‘DO’ school
in our schools; we
need to update how
we ‘DO’ school

9. Watch:
Sir Ken Robinson:
“Do Schools Kill
Creativity?’’ and
“Changing Paradigms
in Education”
on the convention webpage
on the convention webpage
on the convention webpage

10. There is no textbook to
teach ingenuity; no
textbook to teach
problem solving;
no textbook to teach
divergent
thinking

11. Our children
learn by doing
learn by doing
Creativity Counts

12. Will Richardson at ISTE
2012
(teacher, technology integrator, leader)
(teacher, technology integrator, leader)
QuickTime™ and a
decompressor
are needed to see this picture.

13. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
1. Vision
Administrators need to formulate a
long-range plan for creating 21st
century learning environments in
their schools

14. Principals need to model the
change they want to see in their
schools
Do you have expectations for your classrooms to be
21st century learning environments?
Do you collaborate with faculty and colleagues using
Google Apps?
Are you replacing the paper filing cabinet in your
office with a Google Apps domain or online mobile
Dropbox account?
Does your technology budget exceed your textbook
budget?

15. Principals need to model the
change they want to see in their
schools
Do you have a personal blog to share all the
great stuff you are reading, seeing, finding,
hearing, thinking?
Do you have a school website, blog, Facebook
and Twitter account?
Are you discussing how to use ‘Bloom’s
Taxonomy’ to create higher-order thinking
projects?

16. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
2. Network and Infrastructure
Your vision can not be realized until
your ‘systems’ are in place

17. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
3. Move Away from the
Textbook

18. “Nothing in
education puts a
bigger ceiling on
learning than
limiting kids to
what is in the
textbook...

19. ...We live in an age
of iPads, Google and
Skype. To the
learner that wants
to know more, do
more, and explore
more, the
opportunities are
there....

20. ...we just have
to think OUTSIDE
of the Book.
- Dangerously Irrelevant Blog (
http://dangerouslyirrelevant.org/2012/08/think-outside-the-book.html
) Krissy Venosdale via http://venspired.com/?p=3225

21. Invest in your
teachers...they
can write their
own textbooks!

22. Invest in your
students...let
them create!

23. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
4. Create Student-Centered
Learning Environments
“Sit down in front”
mentality
Are you in the way of learning?

24. Characteristics of a
student-centered
classroom
All are learners - all are teachers
Students are prepared for THEIR future
Project-based learning is embedded
HOT Authentic Assessments replaces LOT
Multiple Choice and True and False Tests
Students are CREATORS of content - not
CONSUMERS
Less memorization - If I can ‘Google it’ do I have to
memorize it?
We know longer have to learn from 8am to 3pm.
We can write about ...

25. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
5. Create and Publish
Create vs Consume
Publish vs Print

26. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
6. Go Digital and Mobile! This
is the future of education
Move away from your network
Collaborate online
Eliminate printing
Got Google Apps for Education?

27. held mobile devices
Will you allow a BYOD program?
Will your staff be prepared to
use iPads or other tablets?

28. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
•7. Create PLNs (Personal Learning
Networks) for yourself and your staff
•Social Media
•Personal Learning Networks
•ArchMiledu

29. ArchMiledu
facebook.com/archmiledu
facebook.com/archmiledu

30. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
8. Information Literacy
•Are you preparing your students to
be information literate?
•Is your school library stuck in the
past?
See the ‘Library Media Resources’ page on
Arch convention site

31. Top Ten Topics for
Administrators
9. How We ‘Do’ School
•Is your Library the ‘center’ of your school?
•Do you have someone in your Library teaching
students how to be information literate?
•Have you shifted the role of the ‘computer lab teacher’
to one that supports all the needs of classroom staff?
•Do you still have a computer lab?
•Are your classroom teachers integrating technology?

32. This generation
thinks in pictures,
words, still images,
and video and is
comfortable mixing
them all in the same
space.
- Scott McLeod
Scott McLeod

33. Top Ten Topics for
10. Online Learning
Administrators
Webinars
Moodle
Online courses
Online conferences
Skype an author
Blogs

34. Resources
Convention Website
ACT 21 Website
Archdiocese of Milwaukee Facebook page:
(facebook.com/archmiledu) and
Twitter (@ArchMILedu)

35. IT Infrastructure for
Educational
Environments

36. Network
Components
Servers DNS System
Switches Wireless Network
Firewalls / Routers Client Devices
Email System Operating Systems
Antivirus/Spyware Inventory
System Bandwidth
Backup System Inventory
Directory Database IT Support

37. Servers
Multiple servers for redundancy
•multiple power supplies
•multiple hard drives
•RAID system
Adequate memory

38. Switches
1000/mb speed
Managed
Reduce the number of switches to
least possible
Do not put switches in classroom

39. Firewalls /
Routers
Content Filtering
Sizing based on network
Security, first line of defense
Appliance based vs software based

40. Email System
Exchange
Google Docs for Education

41. Antivirus /
Spyware / Malware
System
Server based administration
Client based software

42. Backup System
Onsite
Tape
Hard Drive
Offsite
Subscription Service

43. Directory
Database
Active Directory
Open Directory
One database maintained by multiple
servers at different locations

44. DNS System
Everything ‘talks’ better when
DNS is set up correctly
login issues
printing issues
mapping issues
Internal domain vs public domain
Redundancy

45. Wireless Network
Stand-alone access points
Managed wireless network
Security
WPA Key
WEP Key
Radius

46. Client Devices
Computers - PCs & Macs
iPads, Smart Phones
Mobile Device Management
Apple iOS
Apple configurator
Manual USB sync
MDM Server
Wireless sync

47. Operating Systems
Try to get everyone on the same level
Support packs, updates
Important to stay current
browser support
software support

48. Internet
Bandwidth
Wideband Technology
Web 2.0 apps and internet technologies
are pushing the limits of bandwidth
“Publishing” student work online
philosophy is putting more importance
on upload speeds
E-rate funding

49. Inventory
You need one!
Software and hardware
Makes IT management
easier
Saves time

50. IT Support
Contractual partners vs an hourly break / fix
agreement
Take ownership of network
Regular monitoring
Advisory role
Partner with companies that understand school
environments
Budgets
Educational Pricing
Participate in technology committees