School Evaluation Summary Location Information: The Everglades Academy is located in suburban Miami and is a fully accredited PreK3

- 12 institution. The school is about 8 years old and currently has approximately 470 students enrolled. A teaching staff of about 30 and administrative staff of around 10 serve the student population. The current facilities have been built in two phases, with the more recent building housing the majority of the school and being a little over three years old. The student population comes from mainly the middle-upper class and is over 70% Latino. Many students enroll each year with little-to-no English speaking experience. Plans are in the works to expand the current facilities to meet the needs of a growing High School.

Evaluation Information: Administrative Filter Policy:

Behavioral - EMERGENT Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //The policies involving technology are outdated and dont address current uses and modes of technology. Little attention has been given to this area in recent years and there is no drive to keep these policies up-to-date. Teachers may develop their own individual rules which may not reflect school-wide policies or best practices.// Planning: Behavioral - ISLANDS Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //Technology planning has become slightly more formalized in the past couple of years. A Director of Technology position has been created for this upcoming year and this responsibility has now fallen to this role. Previously, planning and spending only coincided with a short term perceived or immediate need and didnt reflect planning for integration or comprehensive use.// Budget: Behavioral - ISLANDS Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //Technology now has a simple planned budget, but confusion remains as to what amount of hardware, software, subscriptions, or other resources fall under the technology budget. Also the budget amount seems to drive the planning rather than the planning driving the budgeting.// Administrative Information: Behavioral - EMERGENT Resource/Infrastructure - EMERGENT //There are limited administrative tools available to and used by some staff members. The resources are not integrated and often overlap one another in scope.//

Curricular Filter Electronic Information:

Behavioral - ISLANDS Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //All staff depend upon some technology resources on a regular basis, but use apart from required access is limited. Student Information System access is used by all teachers for attendance and grade tracking. Many teachers, especially in the middle and high school make use of a learning management website to facilitate assignments and discussion among students. Other technology resources (such as interactive whiteboards) are underused.//

Assessment:

Behavioral - ISLANDS Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //The learning management website referenced above provides tools for student assignment submissions and teacher feedback as well as forum boards. Some teachers make use of these resources, but their use is limited in part because the grading features of this website do not integrate into the grading software website. Other technology based assessment resources are rarely used.// Curriculum Integration: Behavioral - EMERGENT Resource/Infrastructure - EMERGENT //Technology use in the curriculum is very limited, and rarely truly integrated. Much of the use is limited to the areas of science and math. Many teachers make use of projected slideshows, but not many other programs or tools.// Teacher Use: Behavioral - EMERGENT Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //Teacher use of available resources is sporadic and not monitored. The same resources are not available to all teachers/classrooms and not all technology is necessarily the best available for each age group.// Student Use: Behavioral - ISLANDS Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //Student use of technology in the classroom is limited. Party this is due to limitations of availability and partly due to the teachers comfort of integration.//

Support Filter Stakeholder Involvement:

Behavioral - EMERGENT Resource/Infrastructure - EMERGENT //Planning takes place without the knowledge or input of those whom it will affect. Most teachers dont know the availability of the tools and resources that could potentially be available (both free and paid) to integrate into their classes, and most also will not take the time to find them on their own.// Administrative Support: Behavioral - EMERGENT Resource/Infrastructure - EMERGENT //Administration involvement in planning is limited apart from budgetary approval. The main focus is on providing basic availability rather than articulating the desired outcomes for the curriculum and entrusting the technology planners to look for the tools and resources to fulfill those outcomes.// Training: Behavioral - EMERGENT

Resource/Infrastructure - EMERGENT //Very little formal training is offered, apart from basic information about the student information software. The biggest area where training is needed is how to properly and effectively integrate technology across the curriculum. Teachers also need information on where to find the proper tools to fit their needs.// Technical & Infrastructure Behavioral - EMERGENT Support: Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //Very little support is available to the staff and often needs are not addressed in a timely manner. Those who provide support do not have adequate technical training and often problems go unsolved.//

Connectivity Filter Local Area Networking:

Behavioral - ISLANDS Resource/Infrastructure - INTEGRATED //Network use by both staff and students is regular, but mainly limited to shared network resources and Internet access. Access is available throughout the majority of the facility.// District Area Networking: Behavioral - N/A Resource/Infrastructure - N/A //Our school is not part of a district, so this point is not applicable.// Internet Access: Behavioral - ISLANDS Resource/Infrastructure - INTELLIGENT //Internet access is available throughout the facility (mostly via wireless networking). Use by teachers and students is frequent, however, integration into the curriculum is limited.// Communication Systems: Behavioral - INTEGRATED Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //E-mail is used frequently by the staff, which increases effective communication. Students do not have e-mail availability.//

Innovation Filter New Technologies:

Behavioral - ISLANDS Resource/Infrastructure - INTEGRATED //New technologies are welcomed by the staff, but if left to implement on their own, it usually wont happen. If a plan of support is in place for implementation, the use rate would be much higher.// Comprehensive Behavioral - ISLANDS Technologies: Resource/Infrastructure - ISLANDS //Currently available technology is not comprehensive. The tools are mainly simplistic and there is very little integration among the tools and resources.//

Evaluation Summary: Overall, I would place Everglades Academy in the Islands stage. There is limited planning taking place and it is not comprehensive. The technology available is limited in its use and scope. Teacher implementation is sporadic and not the most effective for learning. There is certainly room for improvement, and to put it positively, a lot of potential. As our school grows and our staff continues to grow, hopefully we can put more emphasis on proper technology planning and use as well as providing the proper training necessary.