Do Educators Get What They Pay For?

On May 27, AEP hosted the free webinar, “Do Educators Get What They Pay For?” sponsored by Follett Digital Resources. A prelude to the discussion for AEP’s 2009 Summit “Publishing in the World of Free,” the webinar examined the new role of instructional materials publishers from the educator’s perspective and discussed how our industry can stay relevant in the digital age.

The event, moderated by Deb deVries and Bridget Foster, featured Sheryl Abshire, Ph. D., Chief Technology Officer, Calcasieu Parish Public Schools (LA), and John A. Vaille, Ed.D., Chief Technology Officer, Lake Washington School District (WA). Here are highlights from their discussion.

Current Usage of Digital Materials

Both agreed that 100% of their teachers are using some sort of digital material in their classroom, especially because of the vast number of resources available on the web. And they only see the amount of time teachers use the digital material in the classroom increasing.

Abshire: Innovation and creation are coming into play in the classroom as teachers are freed up to use various resources to make sure students meet their learning goals. The district may select the textbooks, but at the end of the day, the teacher has a lot more control over what she uses every day.

Vaille: While some of the resources used are the digital component that accompany the textbook, the majority are free programs found on the Internet. They often have to dig deep in a traditional publishing company to find resources that an enterprise-school system like his can use.

Barriers

Abshire and Vaille each commented on how the adoption mentality is fading and that teachers are not concerned about the adoption cycle. They are focused on the individual needs of their students and helping them meet the district and state learning goals. Consequently, they are always looking for materials to fill the gap between the adopted texts and their teaching objectives.

Abshire: Publishers need to deliver materials to teachers in the most flexible way possible—the lack of dynamic content will be a problem for publishers. The static resource that is not differentiated is going by the wayside.

Vaille: Many of the current interactive products on the market focus on a single skill and are not comprehensive. Publishers need to provide truly interactive materials that can be pushed to students from a single data center but that have the ability to be adapted to the different classrooms’ and students’ needs. There is a burgeoning understanding that the resources we call supplementary may now be core resources.

Expectations

Adoption committees, districts, and schools are now turning away from any material that does not have a digital piece. The teachers are being pushed hard by the digital learners who expect to be fully engaged in the classroom.

Abshire: Teachers will not be bound by static content because of the nature of their students and themselves. The Digital Divide is less of a conversation today because almost every child has digital access—even if it’s at a local community center or library. And it’s not enough to just be electronic: If the digital content is not interactive, is not diverse, and won’t allow for customization, then it won’t work for today’s learners.

Vaille: Teachers are looking for the right content to be delivered to a laptop or other learning device at the right time for the right student.

Cost & Funding

CTOs are being held highly accountable for diminishing resources. Despite the stimulus package from the current administration, there is no big windfall for education funding. Publishers need to find ways to deliver the material more cost-effectively to schools.

Abshire: If they are looking at a print piece, but it can be bought online or in another digital for less money but more efficiency and flexibility, then that is the recommendation they will make. Price is a huge issue—publishers need to provide different modules that serve the educational needs but that can be produced at a lower cost, and then they need to pass those cost-savings on to the schools. Only the edgy, innovative, and creative publishers will survive.

Vaille: While districts are using the stimulus money to cushion the impact of budget cuts, the financial state now is their new normal. Do not expect instructional materials budgets to go back to where they were. Educators do want to have good authority behind the materials they use—there is value in a trusted publisher. However, unless publishers can meet their budgetary and educational needs, districts will look elsewhere.

Classroom

Irrespective of district size and location, teachers are picking and choosing elements from standard texts and reaching out for digital resources to fill the gap. Teachers are being challenged by the digital natives in their classroom and need materials to keep them engaged.

Abshire: We are rapidly moving towards a personalized learning environment, and the students are demanding that the classroom be as interactive as possible.

Vaille: The new environment is fast-paced and highly-concentrated. Teachers need materials that are not only highly-differentiated, but the materials need to systematically yield data to help teachers understand where the student is at that moment. Assessment needs to be personalized, in a digital format, and needs to occur continuously.

Final Thoughts

Abshire: The difference between districts regarding technology is not budget but leadership. Districts paying attention to technology see it as a core component and have developed a plan to integrate it into the classroom and their learning goals. The cost of hardware is not a huge issue anymore since the price-point of many web-enabled devices has considerably dropped. Supplemental publishers will not be left out of this equation if they are financially and intellectually agile enough to understand and adjust for the new market.

Vaille: Content with embedded pedagogy is no longer enough—it’s responsiveness to the learner that makes a resource successful. If districts can’t get materials from publishers to fit the new world, then they will go somewhere else.

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Dr. Sheryl Abshire is the Chief Technology Officer in the Calcasieu Parish School System in Lake Charles, Louisiana. As a leader in technology integration, she has served as the catalyst to initiate the integration of technology into all curriculum areas throughout her school district, the state, and internationally. Sheryl has a B.S. in Early Childhood Education, a M.Ed. in Elementary Education, an Educational Specialist in School Administration and Supervision and a Ph.D. from the University of New Orleans in Educational Leadership and Administration. She is an accomplished grant writer and regularly conducts institutes to fund innovative technology programs throughout the nation. A thirty-six year veteran educator, she has worked as a school principal, K-5 teacher, a library/media specialist, a classroom teacher, and as an adjunct professor at McNeese State University, Louisiana Tech University and Lamar University (2010).

Dr. John A. Vaille has a more than a quarter century of experience in just about every aspect of education—from the classroom and administration in K-12 to the leadership of an international professional society. John has taught kindergarten and the elementary grades, prepared teachers to use technology with their students and taught graduate students at MIT, Stanford, and Pepperdine Universities. He currently holds a guest faculty appointment the University of Oregon, College of Education. After three years as superintendent for a Central California school district, Dr. Vaille joined Lake Washington as its Chief Technology Officer in 2007. In December 1998, Vaille completed his doctorate in Educational Technology at Pepperdine University.

Find out more about the 2009 AEP Summit, “Publishing in the World of Free.”