Implementing new technology into a school is a key decision that has an impact on your whole school community. Over the last 20 years we’ve helped hundreds of schools with technology adoption strategies across many challenging environments. Here are our top 10 tips for a successful implementation road map.
- Identify what problems or challenges you’re trying to resolve
- Gather information from students, parents, teachers, professors, administrators, donors, alumni and any other relevant groups; surveys, or focus groups can be great for this.
- Do your research and dig deep. Ask supplier/provider questions such as;
- Who are the people behind it?
- What does the road map look like?
- What new features have been added recently
- Will it scale with your school and their growing needs?
- Is it secure? Where is data stored?
- What does the support infrastructure look like?
- Does the system integrate with the LMS/SIS?
- How big is the learning curve?
- What does the reporting functionality look like?
- What is the maintenance cost?
- How does the technology fit into the communication strategy?
- How will you drive technology adoption, both internally and externally?
- Remove barriers, including lack of funding and tools, and excess workload
- Ensure a clear purpose is effectively communicated, get the community excited!
- Ensure adequate technical support is provided and staff are well trained and confident in product use, this can be done in the format of setting up an online training course with instruction videos and a professional development session
- Identify and educate teacher champions and early adapters and work to create a professional learning community.
- Reinforce teacher and student benefits from new technology
- Provide continuous technical support and foster a culture of continuous learning
- Seek feedback from both adopters and non-adopters on a regular basis
See Also: Multi-channel School Communication
