Alabama Educational
Technology Association
Established 2001
Bruce Ellard, CETL, Cullman County Schools, President of AETA
Susan Poling, CETL, Shelby County Schools, Region 5 Board Member
AETA Mission
To promote the
positive impact
of technology in
education.
Membership
300 Members




School System Technology Coordinators/Directors
K-12 EdTech Coaches and Resource Teachers
State Department Leaders
Higher Ed
Professional Development
Bruce Ellard, Cullman County Schools
Glen Granberry, Lee County Schools
Bryan Phillips, Hoover City Schools
Susan Poling, Shelby County Schools
Nathan White, Elmore County Schools
Tommy Whitten, Madison County Schools
Affiliations
Consortium of School
Networking
Advocacy
• Federal Policy
–
–
–
–
ESEA, No Child Left Behind reauthorization
Erate
Modernization of FERPA
Privacy
• Frameworks and Standards
– ISTE National Education Technology Standards
– CoSN
• Framework of Essential Skills for CTOs
• Smart Education Networking Standards
• Funding
State Technology Funding
$400
$2 million for digital
infrastructure
$350
$300
$250
$200
$150
$100
$50
$-
Per FTE 2006
2002
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
Technology Skills are Needed
• College
• Career
• Life
2014 Alabama
Survey Results
Parents
81% of parents said
that using technology
in classes is the best
way for their child to
develop the skills they
will need to be
successful in the
future.
60% of parents said they
would prefer their child be
in a classroom where
students can use mobile
devices.
2014 Alabama
Survey Results
Teachers
79% of teachers say
that the effective
implementation of
instructional
technology is
important to their
students' success.
76% of high school
students thought it was
important that students
be able to use a mobile
devices throughout the
day to support their
school work.
Technology Makes Learning
Personal
Collaborative
Dynamic
Connected
Applicable
Creative
Current
Technology Gives Students New
Ways to Communicate
• What they know
• What they need
• What they can
apply
There will never be enough
computer labs.
What about
online
assessments?
Students spend 90% of their
day in classrooms.
Shouldn’t that be where the
technology is?
SDE Transform 2020 Plan
Goal 3: All educators and students will have tools to access a
comprehensive viable infrastructure when and where they need it.
Objectives
• Ensure students, teachers, and administrators have excellent, viable
bandwidth and wireless connectivity in order to access the
Internet, digital learning resources, productivity tools, online assessments,
and data . .
• Establish viable access points in every classroom so that all
students, teachers, and administrators can access network and Internetbased resources . . .
• Develop and implement a financial support strategy for the overall
improvement of the EdTech program . . .
Mobility Impacts Network Needs
Alabama School Networks
450
400
350
No. of Schools
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
Elementary
Middle
WLAN
LAN
High
No Upgrades
Of the 1012 schools included in the data, only 111 do not need network upgrades.
Project Tomorrow Needs to be
Project Today
Funding at Last?
In 2012, Legislators
introduced a Bill for
mobile devices in
schools.
Senator Gerald Dial
The Bond was approved, but
implementation was delayed.
Representative Jim
McClendon
2013 & 2014 Legislative Sessions
Original Bill
• $100 million in one-time bond
funding for devices for
accessing digital textbooks
• Only high schools
• Administered through an
appointed committee
Major Revisions
• Network infrastructure may
also be purchased
• K-12, not just high school
Spring 2014
An AETA/SSA Initiative to secure legislation for Wi-Fi in public schools.
WIRED
[AETA]
WIRELESS INFRASTRUCTURE RENOVATION FOR EDUCATION
Expands upon the work of the SDE Alabama Ahead Act Advisory Committee by:
 Researching and developing
a cost model
 Establishing standards for
wireless networks
 Proposing accountability
through an application and
monitoring process
 Ensuring that the ultimate
goal is to improve teaching
and learning by connecting
the funding to the System
technology plans
WIRED Standards
30-40 devices per classroom
1/3 of the school enrollment in cafeterias
Additional technical specifications
WIRED Estimate
$50,000,000
• Design was developed and vetted by
technology coordinators
• Estimates per System were reviewed
by Tech Coordinators and
Superintendents
• Cost Model is in line with national
Wi-Fi designs
Digital Learning Environments
Supporters
AL State Board of Education
AETA WIRED Committee
Bruce Ellard, Cullman County Schools
Jana Hoggle, Satsuma City Schools
Susan Poling, Shelby County Schools
Sean Holmes, Guntersville City Schools
Tommy Whitten, Madison County Schools