Budgeting for Technology - A Standards Approach
Using a standards-based modeling approach can help schools and districts create benchmarks for their technology budgets. The process can also engage educators and support personnel in discussions to deepen the understanding of the opportunities, big picture thinking, and improve the operational results. It considers equity, and avoids a “hothouse” environment where the resources are not evenly distributed or used.
The process involves cross-functional teams of key educators and tech personnel, who review needs by functional units in order of increasing scope: the students, classrooms, teams/departments, school, and district. It focuses on the technology tools first; that information can be used later to drive both IT infrastructure and IT staffing needs. The overarching question is “What does this functional unit need to meet the educational mission.”
For example, ask “What does every student in grade K-2 need? What are they using it for? How much time do they need it? What is the best device(s) to meet those educational needs for the student?” The discussion should focus on determining a standard for this group. We set a standard for K-2 that every student would have access to an iPad in a 1 - 4 ratio and a Chromebook in a 1 - 4 ratio. By collaborating with another teacher, students had devices available for 50% of the each school day, which at the time was deemed sufficient.
What about equity? Some students may need additional access to bridge the equity gap (e.g., special needs or EL students). Set an additional standard for them. For example, all EL students across the district who are scoring from 1-3 on the WIDA may need an iPad at a greater rate, depending on your EL support model. We used a standard of 1 iPad for every 5 EL students, under the supervision of the EL teacher. A similar standard was set for Special Ed students. .
Repeat this process for other student grade levels (3-5, 6-8, etc.), and then proceed to larger functional units in group size sequence (classroom standards, school-wide standards for common areas such as library, gym, and auditorium, and district standards such as bandwidth, licensing, and infrastructure). For example, we set a classroom standard of a desktop and projection capabilities. Each of these may vary and should build on the resources provided in your core student group and equity standards.
What about the teachers? This is an important discussion for schools, as the teacher time is a large part of the overall operational costs of school budgets, and what they use has a bearing on how they prepare for student work. For us, PD and support costs led to the conclusion to provide each teacher with the same tool their students were using. In a K-2 classroom, the teacher had access to an iPad and their own Chromebook. For grades 3-12, the teachers had a Chromebook. These were in addition to the classroom standard resources, which was a desktop. For us, the additional cost of the desktop ($5-6 per student per year) was a small price for the additional access and the peace of mind if something went wrong with the teacher device, if there were a sub, or if a charge cord was left at home.
Once the standards are set, the planning team can consider peripheral questions, such as repair/damage/loss percentages, storage costs, and other non-personnel needs. Tools such as TCO, ROI, and VOI assessments can help determine which specific program decisions to make, and data collection and continuous improvement practices can help ensure that results are heading towards desired long-term goals.
If after the first iteration, the budget is not sufficient to meet the needs as defined, don’t toss the standards….if they are well-developed they should be set as targets. Go through a series of what-if scenarios to determine what choices might be made to meet the current budget allocation, and extend the model over time to develop a plan for meeting the standards over several years. Finally, continue the conversations with the district/school to consider best practices and work to engage the school community to help provide the resources necessary.