So, you’ve signed the Future Ready Pledge—or perhaps you are just considering it. What do you do next?
The Future Ready District Pledge is a commitment and a roadmap for superintendents and district leaders to move towards personalized learning. As part of taking the Future Ready Pledge you gain access to the Future Ready Framework which helps you assess your readiness to move towards personalized learning. The framework is broken down into seven sections, or “gears” to consider as you become Future Ready.
In this guide, we’ll dive into each gear from the Future Ready Framework and provide real world stories of how schools are approaching these gears head-on. We hope it inspires you to explore the creative possibilities and frank realities of planning and implementing personalized learning.
Each section in this guide is designed to help you think through the possibilities and learn from other Future Ready leaders. Topics include:
- Curriculum & Instruction
- Use of Time
- Technology, Networks & Hardware
- Data & Privacy
- Community Partnerships
- Professional Learning
- Budget & Resources
Curriculum and Instruction
Becoming a "Future-Ready School" does not mean replacing existing curriculum and instructional practices with technology. Instead, it is an opportunity to rethink 1) how students learn best and 2) how you can implement curriculum and instructional technology to help drive better student outcomes. In this section, you will find ideas to inspire you to rethink approaches in curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
Use of Time
EdSurge has a collection of resources and templates to help schools and districts increase their success in assessing the needs they should fill. It's called the Edtech Selection Playbook, and you can download it below!
Online and digital learning resources open up new potential for how the school day is structured and where learning takes place. By rethinking how you deliver instruction, you can create additional opportunities for personalized learning, projects, and collaboration. Here, you will find four stories about how different schools used technology to reimagine the use of time.
Technology, Networks and Hardware
It is not uncommon for schools and districts to roll out technology initiatives only to find out that the infrastructure is not ready to handle the roll-out. In this section, you will learn tips and tricks on how other districts have navigated infrastructure issues.
Data and Privacy
Protecting data and student privacy is very important in schools and it is not something you should just leave up to the edtech companies. Knowing the risks and taking the right precautions is part of being a Future Ready leader. In this section, we focus on the many important data and privacy issues you will face as a Future Ready District and provide solutions from the field.
Community Partnerships
Community partnerships can come in many shapes and sizes, based on your needs. In this section, you will learn from administrators who built partnerships with higher education institutions, in addition to partnerships with other school around the globe.
Professional Learning
Can you rethink professional development by creating a shared ownership of professional growth? Future Ready highlights self-directed online PD and social media as potential approaches, but, what does that look like in practice? In this section, you will learn from four administrators who upgraded the professional development offerings in their schools, district and state.
Budget and Resources
Funding your Future Ready initiative should not be done haphazardly. Finding the funds and making good procurement choices can mean the difference between a successful or failed implementation. In this section, consider the various ways that policies and funding strategies are helping district leaders re-think their approach to technology procurement.
Take the Pledge
If you are interested in learning more about the Future Ready program or taking the Future Ready Pledge, you can learn more here.
