By Sheila Berger 

Sumner Elementary Principal

At several of the Austin Public Schools, a technology integrationist is working with staff. This new coaching position was created for the teaching and support of technology needs of the staff. Tina Strauss, the Sumner Elementary School technology integrationist, works with the Sumner staff to help create meaningful and appropriate ways to enhance learning opportunities on a daily basis. This position became a necessary role as the amount of technology available to students and staff is ever increasing. It is critical that best practices of instruction include technology when it can be matched with instruction to increase academic achievement. We want to use technology where and when it makes sense.

A typical day for Ms. Strauss includes meeting one-on-one with staff members to create new ways to use technology in the classroom. This might mean helping a teacher create a more interactive lesson or creating an authentic assignment for students that uses technology. Ms. Strauss might model the use of technology for another staff member, showing an alternative way of presenting a lesson.

Ms. Strauss works with a team of technology integrationists across the district, meeting monthly to continue to explore the latest resources available to our staff. This helps the integrationists to hear other ways to use technology that has worked at other buildings. They may experiment with a new piece of technology so that they can demonstrate for staff at their buildings. They also seek out new forms of technology to meet the needs of teachers, staff, and students.

As we prepare students for their intermediate years at I.J. Holton, the assistance of a technology integrationist has helped us prepare our students for using a one-to-one device.