Education Week - April 15, 2015 - Special Report - (Page S3)

Contents Dustin Franz for Education Week Instructional coaches Jennifer Harris, left, and Dan Hurtack watch from behind a two-way mirror as students work on division problems using blended learning software in the laboratory classroom at Ridge Middle School in the Mentor, Ohio, school district. PAGE 16 S4 KENT, WASH. District Establishes Wi-Fi In Local Community S4 GREEN BAY, WIS. K-12 System Loans Hotspots For Connectivity S5 CUMMING, GA. Businesses Sign Up To Give Students Online Access After School Hours S6 VAIL, ARIZ. On the Road: Wi-Fi Access on Wheels S8 About this report "B lended Learning: Breaking Down Barriers" examines some of the most intractable challenges schools face in trying to use technology to improve teaching and learning-and how K-12 systems are attempting to clear those hurdles. In simple terms, blended learning is a strategy to combine technology-based instruction with traditional, teacher-to-student lessons. And it exists everywhere in school districts these days. Yet many schools find there's a gap between what they aspire to accomplish with technology and what they can actually make happen. It's a disconnect fueled by myriad factors, including students' lack of Internet access away from school, teachers' lack of confidence in using digital tools, and a murky research base for blended learning. The stories in this report explore schools' efforts to find a way forward. The report profiles districts' attempts to extend Web access to students' homes and communities. It offers examples of schools helping teachers master technology through peer coaching, and efforts to change the roles of librarians to meet schools' digital needs. Other stories debate the merits of giving individual schools greater autonomy to make their own ed-tech purchasing decisions-or leaving that power in the hands of districts' central offices. The report examines a Chicago charter school designed from the ground up with blended learning in mind. And it dissects what the research says about blended learning-and the prevailing uncertainty about how to interpret the evidence that does exist. Education Week's hope is that these stories inform readers' understanding of the vision and reality of blended learning, and offer ideas on how to resolve the questions schools confront every day. -THE EDITORS S12 S16 S20 S24 Districts Weigh Control Over Software Buying S10 WASHINGTON, D.C. Centralized Purchasing Brings Rewards for D.C. S10 COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. District Allows Schools To Lead on Buying Research Uneven, Tough To Interpret MENTOR, OHIO Behind a Looking Glass: Teachers Help Peers Master Technology CHICAGO A Charter School Designed For Ed Tech VANCOUVER, WASH. Librarians Adopt New Role: Guiding Blended Learning, District Tech Efforts >> Online Exclusives VIDEO Watch students and a community official in the Kent, Wash., district talk about an effort to establish free Wi-Fi across the school system. www.edweek.org/go/ hotspots PRESIDENT & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Virginia B. Edwards EXECUTIVE EDITOR Gregory Chronister EXECUTIVE PROJECT EDITOR Sean Cavanagh STAFF WRITERS Benjamin Herold Sarah D. Sparks CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Carol Brzozowski Michelle R. Davis Robin L. Flanigan Bryan Toporek CREATIVE DIRECTOR Laura Baker ART DIRECTOR, PROJECT LEAD Gina Tomko Copyright © 2015 by Editorial Projects in Education Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this publication shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic or otherwise, without the written permission of the copyright holder. Readers may make up to five print copies of this publication at no cost for personal, noncommercial use, provided that each includes a full citation of the source. Visit www.edweek.org/go/copies for information about additional print photocopies. COVER PHOTO: Kim S. Burke, the principal at J.C. Nalle Elementary School in the District of Columbia, shows enthusiasm during an open house to explain blended learning software to teachers and leaders from other schools, as Kevin Wenzel, blended learning specialist for the school system, watches. Photo by Eric Kruszewski for Education Week DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Charles Borst ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Swikar Patel DIRECTOR OF PRODUCTION Jo Arnone MULTIMEDIA View a panoramic, interactive photo display of a Chicago school designed to support blended learning. www.edweek.org/go/ panorama DIGITAL EDITION Read the digital (PDF) edition of this report and forward copies to your colleagues. www.edweek.org/go/ barriers-download Coverage of trends in K-12 innovation and efforts to put these new ideas and approaches into practice in schools, districts, and classrooms is supported in part by a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York, at www.carnegie.org. Coverage of "deeper learning" that will prepare students with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in a rapidly changing world is supported in part by a grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, at www.hewlett.org. Education Week retains sole editorial control over the content of this coverage. ADVERTISING PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Kevin Kemp ASSOCIATE ADVERTISING PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Dana Gittings ADVERTISING: For information about print and online advertising in future special reports, please contact Associate Publisher Sean Herdman at sherdman@epe.org or (301) 280-3126. http://www.carnegie.org http://www.edweek.org/go/panorama http://www.edweek.org/go/panorama http://www.hewlett.org http://www.edweek.org/go/hotspots http://www.edweek.org/go/copies

Education Week - April 15, 2015 - Special Report

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Education Week - April 15, 2015 - Special Report