TIP Budget and Policy Considerations

This week after touching base with the ESL Director of a private school and the principal of a rural elementary school in my local school district of Jinpu New Area, adjustments have been made to my plan to address specific struggles in ESL courses, while providing a viable system that can address the needs of teachers in other disciplines.

One of the goals of my TIP is to establish sustained, job-embedded coaching. ISTE (2020) emphasizes the positive benefits of personal development if it builds on existing networks and  can provide ongoing, on-demand support to educators. That is exactly what my plan intends to achieve by guiding local schools to develop in-house digital-mentorship that provides immediate and continuous support, rather than the one-off training modules that often are less effective. Akram et al. (2022) states teachers’ experiences and perceptions of technology greatly influence the integration in their teaching-learning practices. Having immediate and continuous support is critical for implementing sustainable and consistency in any new protocols.

ISTE (2022) and ESSA guidlines highlight that a TIP should be evidence based, representing stakeholder’s interests, aligning with school policy, and having solutions for addressing concerns. By investing in Core teachers’ training, stakeholders’ interests are accounted for, and builds internal expertise that leads to a lasting model of growth.

The Crossland et al. (2018) article reports about accessibility and universal design for learning allow every student to participate when technology is integrated successfully. My goal to establish a digital production station that is accessible by design is a proactive design supported by the article. By training teachers to focus on multimodal assignments from the start, student’s are subjected to a one-size-fits all model, but are more likely to engage in an inclusive learning environment.

 

Funding Options

I am still in the process of inquiring specific funding options for schools in my district. I currently am communicating with the principal of a public school and ESL director of a private school. The funding options will vary greatly for these schools. Following the ISTE (2020) guidance document to stay within 15% limit on device spending is a strategic guideline for my technology integration plan.

Thinking about sustainability and the goal of teacher-led professional development, the budget limits hardware costs at 15%, prioritizing the 85% investment in professional learning, following ISTE guidlelines that the majority of funds are allocated to developing educators.

Category	Allocation	Strategic Rationale
Professional Learning	85%	Sustained, job-embedded coaching for Core teachers
Hardware & Infrastructure	15%	Strategic placement of 30 laptops for the Station-Rotation modules
Maintenance Fund	(Included in PD/Ops)	Ensure 10% of the annual budget is reserved for repairs and software updates.

 

Exact funding and grant options will need to be reviewed by administration and school leadership. My current role in the phase of this plan is pending on ‘status’, as  foreign expat without an official working ‘Z’ visa, legally I am acting as a non-executive partner. The next phase of implementation for this plan to be achieved requires a change in my Visa status. Even without an official role, I am optimistic about the dialogue started with schools in the community and the possibility of integrating some of the ideas started here.

 

 

References:

Akram, H., Abdelrady, A. H., Al-Adwan, A. S., & Ramzan, M. (2022). Teachers' perceptions of technology integration in teaching-learning practices: A systematic review. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.920317

 

Crossland, A., Gray, T., and Reynold, J. (2018). ESSA and digital learning: Closing the digital accessibility gap. American Institute for Research. ED602482.pdf

 

ISTE. (2020). Using ESSA to fund Edtech: Getting the most out of the Title IV-A. [2020 UPDATES] USING ESSA TO FUND EDTECH.pdf