I'm reading Micheal Fullan's book Stratosphere: Integrating Technology, Pedagogy, and Change Knowledge.  I find that the last piece is often where schools fall short in implementing new and innovative methods or tools. Published by Pearson in 2013, this small (100 page) information packed book covers the essentials of what to consider, plan for, and include in rolling out new methods or tools for technology integration if we are to meet the demands of the 21st Century learner.

In the Chapter 1 introduction Fullan said, "I won't say that these three forces--technology, pedagogy, and change knowledge--intentionally seek one another out in the stratosphere, but I can say that it is inevitable that they connect.  This book is about making that connection more explicit and more beneficial for humankind" (Fullan, 2013, p. 1).  With all the changes in our district recently--new Superintendent, Asst. Supt., Directors, Supervisors--it's important to bring things back down to what's important.  The vision is a target, but change management is key to making that vision a reality.

Keeping great people and getting them to buy-in should be a primary goal when managing change. The attitude that some organizations have that people are interchangeable flies in the face of what we know about managing change within the organization.  Fullan says, "This vision is incomplete for our stratosphere agenda because it omits pedagogy--it omits the teacher!  The teacher as change agent is crucial, or we will get aimless multi-tasking" (Fullan, 2013, p. 67).

What has been your experience in recent years of moving forward with technology integration in your school or district?