EDLD+5362+Information+Systems

Week 1 Discussion:
The quote in the virtual guidance counselor section of Pew Internet and American Life Project caught my attention because my daughter used the internet to choose her undergraduate college. “Students also look to the Internet as an important source for advice on career and postsecondary options.” (Lenhart and Arafeh, 2002) In 1999, my daughter graduated from high school, she researched colleges that might meet her needs and offered her the course of studies that she wanted to pursue. After she applied to several colleges online, she was offered a scholarship to Radford University in Virginia. These institutions attract out of state people because they have information available on the Internet. The Internet has provided opportunities for students anywhere in the world to apply. As a parent, I can say that the internet played an important role in my daughter’s decision to attend Radford University. According to Pew Internet and American Life survey in January showed that “11 million Americans who chose a school or college for themselves or a child in the past two years say their use of the Internet played a crucial or important role in that decision.” (Levin and Arafeh, 2002)

Lenhart, A., Simon, M., & Graziano, M. (2001). //The internet and education: Findings of the pew internet & American life project//. Retrieved from Pew Internet & American Life project website: http://pewinternet.org/~/media/Files/Reports/2001/PIP_Schools_Report.pdf.pdf

Week 2 Discussion: This week I tested my second graders on the Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI) and entered the results into DMAC Solutions. The school district uses the data to determine the ARI and AMI students in grades K-2. The data is collected on the administration of the TPRI test from three settings during the school year to determine the progress of the students. According to Computers and Education, “Data can provide meaningful guidelines on how teaching practices can and should be altered, and provide a sound basis for data-driven decision-making and maximizing planning.” (Tolley and Shulruf, 2009), (Farnsworth, 2002).

Monday, I attended the District Improvement Team meeting. The team analyzed data to help determine the goals for 2011-2012 school year. “When systematically collected, appropriately analysed, and effectively communicated and utilized, data systems have been shown to accurately identify problem areas or strengths in school programme, as well as the strengths and weaknesses in students’ knowledge and skills.” (Tolley and Shulruf, 2009) Each group had to determine the trends from analyzing the TAKS results data. School districts are data-driven because of the accountability systems. Data proposes a clear and accurate picture of the school, students and their performance, and reveals summative information about the institutions, other schools and the community. No school is an isolated from other institutions because they are linked to the local, state and national institutions through data.

Tolley, H., & Shulruf, B. (2009). From data to knowledge: The interaction between data management systems in educational institutions and the delivery of quality education. //Computer & Education//, //53//(4), 1199-1206.

Educators today feel as though they are “drowning in data” because they are required to access, analyze, and report students progress regularly.(Golden, 2005)I teach second grade and we spend about six weeks assessing our students from Rigby, Texas Primary Reading Inventory (TPRI), Primary Mathematics Inventory (PMI), and district benchmark.The results must be entered into DMAC. My principal reminds the staff that everything we do should be the results of data.She states that our campus is a data-driven campus.The budget, campus improvement plan, and objectives should reflect the data. “The assessment and reporting provision of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), coupled with the law’s accountability provisions, have expanded the need for data collection, analysis, and reporting.” (Golden, 2005)This year our district purchased a new data program for attendance, grades, and students’ information, substitute teachers, employees’ data and finances. This new program allows all employees to have their employment record accessible 24/7. Parents can review their child’s grades regularly.
 * Week 3 Discussion:**

Golden, M. (2005, July 1).Making strides with educational data.The Journal. Retrieved on April 20, 2011, http://thejournal.com/Articles/2005/07/01/Making-Strides-with-Educational-Data/aspx?Page=1

This year my classroom was provided with a set of 32 student response system “clickers” to pilot for our school. I noticed the days my students use the clickers the level of participation is higher, and the students are excited about the activity. According to research from the University of Minnesota (n.d.), “The use of a student response system can add a higher level of interaction and participation in class and allow comprehension to be assessed in real-time.”My students’ grades have increased because they get immediate feedback on assessments and skills learned.I thought my students would not like the use of the clickers; however, the opposite effect has happened in my classroom the students have requested to use the student response system weekly for assessments and learning.I have used the clickers for “both instructional and assessment purposes” this year. “Student response systems are a mature, scaleable technology that has the potential to improve classroom participation and student achievement (Boscardin, Crawford, DeBarger, Masyn, Penuel, & Urdan, nd) (Roschell, Penuel, & Abrahamson, 2004).The clickers have provided the students and teacher with immediate feedback, less paperwork, instant progress and save time.
 * Week 4 Discussion:**

Boscardin, C., Crawford, V., DeBarger, A., Masyn, K., Penuel, W., & Urdan, T. (nd). Teaching with student response system technology: A survey of k-12 teacher.The National Science Foundation. Retrieved on April 29, 2011, from:

University of Minnesota. (nd). Student response systems. The University of Minnesota Office of Information Technology. Retrieved on April 29, 2011, from www.classroom.umn.edu/support/support-srs/html

Schools are required by laws to provide safe access to Web 2.0 resources for their students and staff; therefore, the schools must use Web filters to help meet these requirements.“A Web filter is something that filters all outgoing traffic related to the Web” (Careless, 2007).A district must ensure that students are protected from inappropriate, obscene, or untrustworthy websites. “With web filters, schools can block websites, stop students from downloading malicious code, and protect from inappropriate information” (Ullman, 2009).I understand web filters are necessary but they deter teachers from presenting useful information to students.
 * Week 5 Discussion:**

The two web filters I compared are Websense Security and ContentProtect Professional.My district uses Websense security solutions to help address the requirements of e-rate and the laws. Websense security addresses the challenges enabling productive use of the Web; protects against inbound threats like spam, malware, and blended threats; and helps to ensure compliance.It monitors and prevents data stealing attacks across the Web(Websense,n.d.).Websense block social network sites like MySpace, Yahoo mail, and Google email.It helps to keep the students from accessing porn, gaming, adware, and phishing.Some students have caused challenges with overriding the filter to gain access to porn websites.The district uses Websense Security for the entire network.The district has 8,271 students and the cost is $34.00 per user.

On the other, Content Protect Professional allows the district flexibility to override individual sites from blocks.It provides different levels of filtering based on the user and offer an educational discount.ContentProtect was the only filter that could control individual computers instead of the network. (Ullman, 2009) Tuscarora Blended Learning Charter School has 300 students and offer online classes. The cost is $39.99.

Careless, J. (2007, April 20). The filtering challenge. Tech and Learning. Retrieved on May 9, 2011, from http://www.techlearning.com/article/the-filtering-challenge/44259

Ullman, E. (2009, July 23). Web filtering that works. Tech and Learning. Retrieved on May 9, 2011, from http://www.techlearning.com/article/safety-net-web-filtering-that-works/46219

Websense Essential Information Protection. Retrieved on May 11, 2011 from http://www.websense.com/content/home.aspx