January 22, 2025 • 18 mins
Teachers face the ongoing challenge of staying current with new and emerging technologies in the classroom, which is crucial for fostering student engagement and success. This week’s Inside Scoop features Dr. Starla Townsend, the director of Instructional Technology, who discusses how her team supports educators in effectively integrating technology into their teaching practices. With a unique blend of teaching and technical expertise, the Instructional Technology team helps bridge the gap between available technology and its impactful use in the classroom. Dr. Townsend explains their approach to discerning between fads and sustainable innovations, emphasizing the importance of sustainability and collaboration with academic departments. The conversation highlights the excitement and engagement that technology can bring to students, ultimately preparing them for a future where proficiency in tools like AI will be essential in the workforce.
Guest: Dr. Starla Townsend, Director of Instructional Technology
Chapters:
- 00:00 - Emerging Technologies in Education
- 04:21 - Navigating Educational Technology: Addressing the Challenges
- 08:06 - Integrating Technology in Education
- 14:19 - The Role of Technology in Education
- 16:14 - The Importance of AI in Education
Useful links from the podcast:
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https://the-inside-scoop.captivate.fm/
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http://www.youtube.com/@TheRealCobbSchools
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Cobb Sports Podcast:
https://cobb-sports.captivate.fm/episodes
The Cobb County School District:
https://www.cobbk12.org
Takeaways:
- Teachers need to stay updated with emerging technologies to effectively engage their students.
- The Instructional Technology team plays a crucial role in integrating technology into classrooms.
- Sustainability is key when determining whether a technology is a passing fad or an innovation.
- AI is becoming essential in education, and students must learn to use it responsibly.
- Effective collaboration between academic departments and technology specialists enhances student learning experiences.
- The Learning Innovation Design Framework helps teachers integrate technology that excites and engages students.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
How teachers stay on top ofnew and emerging technologies in
the classroom is the topic onthis week's edition of the Inside
Scoop.
Hello and welcome back to theInside Scoop.
I'm David Owen.
We all want our students tolearn with the latest and greatest
technology in the classroom.
When I say technology, that'snot just computers and software,
(00:23):
that's smartphones and avariety of other things as well.
What about new technology onthe horizon?
Is it an industry changingdevelopment or just a fad?
To be competitive in theworkforce, our students need to learn
about it all.
How teachers stay up to speedon all the advancements to ensure
(00:44):
they serve our students wellis a real challenge.
Here to tell us about thefolks that help with all of this
is Dr.
Starla Townsend, our directorof Instructional Technology.
Starla, welcome to the podcast.
Thank you, David, for having me.
So tell us a little bit aboutyour department and what you guys
do.
You're kind of one of thosemystical titled departments, so give
(01:07):
us some insight on that.
Well, we are Instructionaltechnology and we are under Technology
Services.
However, our staff of TTIshave been in a classroom as teachers,
so that really helps us to bevery unique in bringing our tools
to a classroom.
Okay, I'm sorry to interruptyou, but you said TTIs.
(01:30):
What does TTIs stand for?
TTIs is a technology TrainingIntegration specialist.
Just rolls off the tongue.
Just rolls off the tongue.
But this group of people, wehave 27 in the district, which is
totally unusual because mostschool Systems may have one or two,
but we have a staff of 27 andwe serve all 112 of our schools.
(01:53):
We bring in not just theequipment, but we bring in the reasoning
behind using the equipment toengage students.
Oh, okay.
So it's like, forgive therough terminology here if you will,
but you guys are, it soundslike you are two double brained people.
(02:14):
You have the teacher brain andthen you've got the technical brain
and you put the best of bothworlds together and then you're able
to like essentially translatefor the tech jargon into academic.
Is that the gist of it?
That is the gist of it.
Okay.
Having that background inteaching actually gives us the experiences
(02:35):
and the knowledge to know whatour teachers are doing now and how
it's impacting learning.
So we, like I said, we justbring that technology that works
with that content and.
And help to engage students.
Okay, so when.
Let me just throw thisscenario at you.
(02:56):
Do you guys still use projectors?
You do?
No, it's all smart boards.
It's all smart boards.
See, ever since we did awaywith chalkboards, I'm at a loss.
Okay, don't be.
But if a teacher has a smartboard problem, do they pick up the
phone and call technicalservices or do they call you?
(03:19):
Well, technically, it is tech service.
It's the technical services.
We would advise teachers toput in a ticket with our help desk.
However, sometimes we are ableto help with the simple problems
or issues, things you've seen before.
Right.
So if we are in a classroomand we see a problem, or if a teacher
reaches out to us realquickly, we'll take about five minutes
(03:40):
or so to diagnose.
And if it's something we canfix, we will.
But usually we like to referthem to the help desk.
Okay, so that's kind of wherethe line is.
If it's supposed to be workingthis way, but it's not.
The help desk is who theywould reach out to then.
Exactly.
Okay, so this is a questionthat may be a curve ball for you.
(04:03):
We know the superintendentcame from the technical world.
I think he was not looking forbrownie points here.
I'm sure he came from.
He used to be the chieftechnical officer.
I believe when he becamesuperintendent, he made a.
I would say a declaration ofwe're not going to chase fads.
(04:26):
So how do you discern betweenwhat would be a fad versus what's
an innovation that's going tohang around for a while?
Good question.
Well, I think that the mainthing that we look for is sustainability.
We're going to, as a team,look at what's happening in the industry,
(04:49):
going to work with ourcorporate partners, our business
partners, to learn from themwhat they're actually using.
So when we look at technology,we're not looking for what's the
latest thing, and something'sgoing to come along a couple weeks
to replace it.
And when Mr.
Ragsdale brought in thisinnovation thought process, that's
(05:10):
exactly what we need in education.
We are moving away from beingstatic and being what we used to
be, what our lives were likewhen we were students.
And now we're meeting ourstudents where we are.
And I think it's great that herecognized that, because it has really
helped our team to really beable to go in schools and have that
(05:32):
credibility.
So the fact that our leadersin the district recognize the importance
of technology really helps usto go into schools.
Yeah, and you would think,being a former chief technology guy
officer, that he would be allabout bells and whistles, but it's
oddly not the case.
(05:53):
He's got a lot of Credibilityin that corner.
Absolutely.
And that's been very helpfulto what we do to know that he has
that mindset.
And, for example, we're allfamiliar with ctls, and that is a
tool that we are able to usein our schools, not just for the
(06:14):
teaching piece, but also thelearning piece.
Oh, yeah.
And we can go in and getwhatever data we need to support.
Support our students.
And that is unusual in alearning management system.
I mean, there are lots out there.
But this is custom designedfor Cobb and it's state of the art.
There's nowhere like this andnobody like this.
(06:35):
You know, I remember, Gosh,probably over 10 years ago, he had
the foresight.
And this isn't all about our superintendent.
This is.
But he does need to receivethe credit for having the foresight,
for example, to install afiber backbone into each of our school
buildings.
Right, Absolutely.
And realizing that we're goingto have to accommodate a lot of data,
(06:59):
and then all of a sudden weget to the pandemic, and lo and behold,
that's exactly what we needed.
So ctls.
I don't like using acronyms.
I think everybody knows whatit is.
But tell us what that acronymteaching and learning system.
And I think, like you said, Ithink everybody knows ctls.
But for those who are not,this is our learning management system,
(07:21):
specifically designed for cop.
Yeah.
And he's all about the data.
All about the data.
Now, not to drill into theCTLS system.
We do have a podcast on thatif you're interested.
You can find that out.
Go deeper on that.
But one of the beautifulthings is that it allows the teacher
to be able to focus onindividual students, where they are
(07:44):
and what they need to bemeeting the standard or even exceeding
the standard.
Right, exactly.
And that's where we come in.
That's where our team comes in.
The teachers work really hardwith the content and making sure
that their academic standardsare met by students.
What we actually do is come inwith the tool.
(08:06):
So we work with the teacher tosee, you know, what is the learning
about now?
What are you teaching students?
And then we look at ways thatwe can integrate technology to enhance
and engage students with that standard.
So we're not teaching the content.
We're actually using our toolsto help students learn the content
(08:28):
and hopefully learn somethings that they'll be able to use
once they left us, oncethey've graduated.
Yeah.
And the engagement part,that's huge, right?
Exactly.
So you're talking basicallyabout the technical side, what we
knew as the technical sidethroughout the pandemic but obviously,
(08:49):
the academics department is involved.
How do you guys relate toacademics overall?
That department of academics?
We have a very wonderfulrelationship with our academics team.
We work with them regularly,daily, pretty much to understand
what their focuses, howthey're helping students, teachers,
(09:14):
schools to meet their goalsand the standards for what they're
working on.
So we're able to get with ourcolleagues and academics and bring
to them ideas in a way that wecan support what they're doing.
For example, we have our STEM department.
We are working very diligentlywith them to bring some modules,
(09:36):
to bring some training forteachers to help them when they actually
go back to school to use theSTEM format with their students.
So it's really exciting to beable to work with the academic side
and then to integrate what wedo on the tech side.
Okay, so they're, like,determining what their goals are
(09:58):
to be able to meet standards.
Absolutely.
And then you guys, I wouldsay, come to the rescue with the
technology to help get there.
Is that a fair assessment?
We like to complement whatthey're doing.
Okay, fair enough.
Fair enough.
So I've heard the phraselearning innovation program.
(10:19):
What is that?
Our learning innovation designprogram, or framework.
I like to call it a framework,was specifically designed for our
county, and it allows us tohave a framework that we can operate
in and hopefully share withteachers and schools as they continue
(10:39):
to develop and integrate technology.
But what that programspecifically does is allow us to
collaborate with teachers,again, looking at what they're teaching
and how those standards are tobe engaged for students.
And then we give suggestionsor thoughts of how the technology
that is around us can be usedto help them in teaching as well
(11:03):
as to help the students learn.
What we found is everybodygets excited.
Teachers get excited, studentsget excited.
Schools, principals getexcited because they see a difference
in the students as they are learning.
Students don't even realizethat they're learning because they
actually have the tools thatthey're playing with, and they're
(11:23):
not playing with them in termsof, oh, let's sit down and play a
game.
They are using tools that helpthem to think critically and solve
problems.
So we love that piece.
The other side to that I thinkprincipals love is we don't actually
have to take a teacher out ofthe classroom to train or show them
how this works.
(11:44):
Once we have established thatrelationship with them and we understand
what they're teaching, ourteam actually comes in and we model
it.
We will model how to use thetechnology as it relates to the standards.
So you guys just rotatethrough the.
Various classes, we might havea team of three people in one day
(12:04):
that serves a school.
As we are working on aproject, sometimes it takes our whole
staff, but we are flexible andwe're able to do that the way we
set up.
So we may reach 10 classroomsin a day, we may reach two, maybe
one, but we walk away withexcitement and enthusiasm.
(12:25):
Students know who we are, andwhen we come in that classroom, they're
excited because they knowthey're about to learn something
new.
Something new and fresh, engaging.
Exactly how do you reach allof the classrooms with so few people?
Well, it is a challengesometimes, but it's a fun challenge.
And we work as a team.
(12:45):
We may have a partner of ttisthat serve a school one day, and
we might have three to go outthe next day.
We do divide up the districtinto different zones or regions like
we like to call them, and wehave TTIs in those different regions
to serve all those schools inthat region.
(13:05):
So we're looking at probablyeight or nine schools per TTIs that
they are point of context to,but they can reach out to any of
our team members to support them.
Okay.
And I would imagine if you'rebringing something helpful and engaging
to a teacher, they're probablygoing to share it with the other
teachers nearby and it's justgoing to spread like wildfire.
(13:25):
To some extent.
Right?
And it has.
We've actually had this happenwith our principals.
We've had several principalsto reach out to us to ask, hey, we
heard about this.
This is what we would love todo, come out and help us do it.
So we're even more excitedabout that because we love to engage
with our principal becausethat helps us to understand what
(13:49):
their goals are and then wecan align that way.
So we do have teachers thatreach out, but we have just as many.
Principals, and they also,they know their teachers and they
know which ones might, forexample, be struggling with engagement
side.
And so they could point you inthe direction of those classrooms.
So this is called the InsideScoop podcast.
(14:13):
Do you have any inside scoopson what technology might be on the
horizon?
Something exciting and engaging.
We all know that AI is on theforefront of everything that we do.
Actually, we saw this comingfor several years.
(14:34):
So in the background we'vebeen researching, we have team members
that are, we call experts inthis field because they love it.
So they have gone through ayear or two of doing nothing but
studying this.
So we are able to bring to ourteachers information about AI and
how to use it, not justProfessionally for their productivity,
(14:55):
but actually for students.
And what's really important tomy team about AI is not necessarily
the fascination, but the factthat students are going to be expected
to use AI when it comes to a job.
Absolutely.
(15:15):
No longer do we go into jobs,corporations, where we spend six
months training or a yeardoing the onboarding.
Now, the expectation is thatthese students come in with a basic
foundation of technology, andAI is a part of that.
Yeah.
So while we have to becareful, as this is still a new technology.
(15:38):
Yes.
We do want to use it when wecan, to help students learn how to
use it safely and for productivity.
Yeah.
And with credibility.
I know the term hallucinatingis real with AI, I've seen some results
that came back.
It's like, no, that's not real.
(16:00):
Exactly.
So trying to come up with thatdiscernment, or I guess build that
discernment into studentsalong the way is what's.
Really important for everybodyto understand.
And for us as a team, wereally pushed this is we don't want
to take away things like AIand technology.
(16:23):
We have to help studentsunderstand, like you said, the credibility,
how to research that, how touse it, and how to just think critically
and solve problems, which isone of the big things that AI is
really about right now.
So while some people like touse it for.
For fun and that's okay, too,there are things that we can do from
(16:47):
a professional standpoint.
That is going to be theexpectation probably in the next
year or two or three, youknow, in terms of other things that
will come along.
So AI, while we're stilllearning it, it's really important
that we get our studentsacclimated as well.
Absolutely.
If you're going to have acompetitive student in the workforce,
(17:08):
you got to make sure they cando that.
So it sounds like you and yourdepartment are doing some incredible
things, bridging that gapbetween the technology side and the
academic side and bringingsome, frankly, some excitement to
the classroom.
I bet the kids are alwaysloving to see you guys walk in the
door.
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
As a matter of fact, we've hadso much business that we've had to
(17:33):
really make some changes,challenging decisions as to which
direction we want to go.
But we want to serveeverybody, so we make it work.
And that's a good challenge tohave that.
You know, we got people thatare on a waiting list to have us
come in to do some of these.
High demand.
Yeah.
High demand for what you do.
Yeah.
I'm very proud of, like Isaid, the principals that we've worked
with the teachers.
(17:53):
Just really proud of howthey've collaborated with us because
that's the most exciting partfor us.
Absolutely.
Seeing the little faces smileand seeing our teachers with the
light bulbs going off.
And this is, this is at allthree levels too.
@ all three levels.
Okay.
Well Starla, thank you so muchfor coming in and educating me.
I've been in the district forquite a while.
(18:14):
I knew y'all did somethinglike that but I didn't know as much
about, you know, all thedetails that really bring it to fruition
I would say.
So thanks again for coming.
Well thank you for having us.
If you learned something fromthis podcast, make sure you give
us a like subscribe and shareit with a friend.
You can find more informationabout it all in the show notes and
(18:36):
the description.
Thank you for listening tothis edition of the Inside Scoop,
a podcast produced by the CobbCounty School.
How teachers stay on top ofnew and emerging technologies in
the classroom is the topic onthis week's edition of the Inside
Scoop.
Hello and welcome back to theInside Scoop.
I'm David Owen.
We all want our students tolearn with the latest and greatest
technology in the classroom.
When I say technology, that'snot just computers and software,
(00:23):
that's smartphones and avariety of other things as well.
What about new technology onthe horizon?
Is it an industry changingdevelopment or just a fad?
To be competitive in theworkforce, our students need to learn
about it all.
How teachers stay up to speedon all the advancements to ensure
(00:44):
they serve our students wellis a real challenge.
Here to tell us about thefolks that help with all of this
is Dr.
Starla Townsend, our directorof Instructional Technology.
Starla, welcome to the podcast.
Thank you, David, for having me.
So tell us a little bit aboutyour department and what you guys
do.
You're kind of one of thosemystical titled departments, so give
(01:07):
us some insight on that.
Well, we are Instructionaltechnology and we are under Technology
Services.
However, our staff of TTIshave been in a classroom as teachers,
so that really helps us to bevery unique in bringing our tools
to a classroom.
Okay, I'm sorry to interruptyou, but you said TTIs.
(01:30):
What does TTIs stand for?
TTIs is a technology TrainingIntegration specialist.
Just rolls off the tongue.
Just rolls off the tongue.
But this group of people, wehave 27 in the district, which is
totally unusual because mostschool Systems may have one or two,
but we have a staff of 27 andwe serve all 112 of our schools.
(01:53):
We bring in not just theequipment, but we bring in the reasoning
behind using the equipment toengage students.
Oh, okay.
So it's like, forgive therough terminology here if you will,
but you guys are, it soundslike you are two double brained people.
(02:14):
You have the teacher brain andthen you've got the technical brain
and you put the best of bothworlds together and then you're able
to like essentially translatefor the tech jargon into academic.
Is that the gist of it?
That is the gist of it.
Okay.
Having that background inteaching actually gives us the experiences
(02:35):
and the knowledge to know whatour teachers are doing now and how
it's impacting learning.
So we, like I said, we justbring that technology that works
with that content and.
And help to engage students.
Okay, so when.
Let me just throw thisscenario at you.
(02:56):
Do you guys still use projectors?
You do?
No, it's all smart boards.
It's all smart boards.
See, ever since we did awaywith chalkboards, I'm at a loss.
Okay, don't be.
But if a teacher has a smartboard problem, do they pick up the
phone and call technicalservices or do they call you?
(03:19):
Well, technically, it is tech service.
It's the technical services.
We would advise teachers toput in a ticket with our help desk.
However, sometimes we are ableto help with the simple problems
or issues, things you've seen before.
Right.
So if we are in a classroomand we see a problem, or if a teacher
reaches out to us realquickly, we'll take about five minutes
(03:40):
or so to diagnose.
And if it's something we canfix, we will.
But usually we like to referthem to the help desk.
Okay, so that's kind of wherethe line is.
If it's supposed to be workingthis way, but it's not.
The help desk is who theywould reach out to then.
Exactly.
Okay, so this is a questionthat may be a curve ball for you.
(04:03):
We know the superintendentcame from the technical world.
I think he was not looking forbrownie points here.
I'm sure he came from.
He used to be the chieftechnical officer.
I believe when he becamesuperintendent, he made a.
I would say a declaration ofwe're not going to chase fads.
(04:26):
So how do you discern betweenwhat would be a fad versus what's
an innovation that's going tohang around for a while?
Good question.
Well, I think that the mainthing that we look for is sustainability.
We're going to, as a team,look at what's happening in the industry,
(04:49):
going to work with ourcorporate partners, our business
partners, to learn from themwhat they're actually using.
So when we look at technology,we're not looking for what's the
latest thing, and something'sgoing to come along a couple weeks
to replace it.
And when Mr.
Ragsdale brought in thisinnovation thought process, that's
(05:10):
exactly what we need in education.
We are moving away from beingstatic and being what we used to
be, what our lives were likewhen we were students.
And now we're meeting ourstudents where we are.
And I think it's great that herecognized that, because it has really
helped our team to really beable to go in schools and have that
(05:32):
credibility.
So the fact that our leadersin the district recognize the importance
of technology really helps usto go into schools.
Yeah, and you would think,being a former chief technology guy
officer, that he would be allabout bells and whistles, but it's
oddly not the case.
(05:53):
He's got a lot of Credibilityin that corner.
Absolutely.
And that's been very helpfulto what we do to know that he has
that mindset.
And, for example, we're allfamiliar with ctls, and that is a
tool that we are able to usein our schools, not just for the
(06:14):
teaching piece, but also thelearning piece.
Oh, yeah.
And we can go in and getwhatever data we need to support.
Support our students.
And that is unusual in alearning management system.
I mean, there are lots out there.
But this is custom designedfor Cobb and it's state of the art.
There's nowhere like this andnobody like this.
(06:35):
You know, I remember, Gosh,probably over 10 years ago, he had
the foresight.
And this isn't all about our superintendent.
This is.
But he does need to receivethe credit for having the foresight,
for example, to install afiber backbone into each of our school
buildings.
Right, Absolutely.
And realizing that we're goingto have to accommodate a lot of data,
(06:59):
and then all of a sudden weget to the pandemic, and lo and behold,
that's exactly what we needed.
So ctls.
I don't like using acronyms.
I think everybody knows whatit is.
But tell us what that acronymteaching and learning system.
And I think, like you said, Ithink everybody knows ctls.
But for those who are not,this is our learning management system,
(07:21):
specifically designed for cop.
Yeah.
And he's all about the data.
All about the data.
Now, not to drill into theCTLS system.
We do have a podcast on thatif you're interested.
You can find that out.
Go deeper on that.
But one of the beautifulthings is that it allows the teacher
to be able to focus onindividual students, where they are
(07:44):
and what they need to bemeeting the standard or even exceeding
the standard.
Right, exactly.
And that's where we come in.
That's where our team comes in.
The teachers work really hardwith the content and making sure
that their academic standardsare met by students.
What we actually do is come inwith the tool.
(08:06):
So we work with the teacher tosee, you know, what is the learning
about now?
What are you teaching students?
And then we look at ways thatwe can integrate technology to enhance
and engage students with that standard.
So we're not teaching the content.
We're actually using our toolsto help students learn the content
(08:28):
and hopefully learn somethings that they'll be able to use
once they left us, oncethey've graduated.
Yeah.
And the engagement part,that's huge, right?
Exactly.
So you're talking basicallyabout the technical side, what we
knew as the technical sidethroughout the pandemic but obviously,
(08:49):
the academics department is involved.
How do you guys relate toacademics overall?
That department of academics?
We have a very wonderfulrelationship with our academics team.
We work with them regularly,daily, pretty much to understand
what their focuses, howthey're helping students, teachers,
(09:14):
schools to meet their goalsand the standards for what they're
working on.
So we're able to get with ourcolleagues and academics and bring
to them ideas in a way that wecan support what they're doing.
For example, we have our STEM department.
We are working very diligentlywith them to bring some modules,
(09:36):
to bring some training forteachers to help them when they actually
go back to school to use theSTEM format with their students.
So it's really exciting to beable to work with the academic side
and then to integrate what wedo on the tech side.
Okay, so they're, like,determining what their goals are
(09:58):
to be able to meet standards.
Absolutely.
And then you guys, I wouldsay, come to the rescue with the
technology to help get there.
Is that a fair assessment?
We like to complement whatthey're doing.
Okay, fair enough.
Fair enough.
So I've heard the phraselearning innovation program.
(10:19):
What is that?
Our learning innovation designprogram, or framework.
I like to call it a framework,was specifically designed for our
county, and it allows us tohave a framework that we can operate
in and hopefully share withteachers and schools as they continue
(10:39):
to develop and integrate technology.
But what that programspecifically does is allow us to
collaborate with teachers,again, looking at what they're teaching
and how those standards are tobe engaged for students.
And then we give suggestionsor thoughts of how the technology
that is around us can be usedto help them in teaching as well
(11:03):
as to help the students learn.
What we found is everybodygets excited.
Teachers get excited, studentsget excited.
Schools, principals getexcited because they see a difference
in the students as they are learning.
Students don't even realizethat they're learning because they
actually have the tools thatthey're playing with, and they're
(11:23):
not playing with them in termsof, oh, let's sit down and play a
game.
They are using tools that helpthem to think critically and solve
problems.
So we love that piece.
The other side to that I thinkprincipals love is we don't actually
have to take a teacher out ofthe classroom to train or show them
how this works.
(11:44):
Once we have established thatrelationship with them and we understand
what they're teaching, ourteam actually comes in and we model
it.
We will model how to use thetechnology as it relates to the standards.
So you guys just rotatethrough the.
Various classes, we might havea team of three people in one day
(12:04):
that serves a school.
As we are working on aproject, sometimes it takes our whole
staff, but we are flexible andwe're able to do that the way we
set up.
So we may reach 10 classroomsin a day, we may reach two, maybe
one, but we walk away withexcitement and enthusiasm.
(12:25):
Students know who we are, andwhen we come in that classroom, they're
excited because they knowthey're about to learn something
new.
Something new and fresh, engaging.
Exactly how do you reach allof the classrooms with so few people?
Well, it is a challengesometimes, but it's a fun challenge.
And we work as a team.
(12:45):
We may have a partner of ttisthat serve a school one day, and
we might have three to go outthe next day.
We do divide up the districtinto different zones or regions like
we like to call them, and wehave TTIs in those different regions
to serve all those schools inthat region.
(13:05):
So we're looking at probablyeight or nine schools per TTIs that
they are point of context to,but they can reach out to any of
our team members to support them.
Okay.
And I would imagine if you'rebringing something helpful and engaging
to a teacher, they're probablygoing to share it with the other
teachers nearby and it's justgoing to spread like wildfire.
(13:25):
To some extent.
Right?
And it has.
We've actually had this happenwith our principals.
We've had several principalsto reach out to us to ask, hey, we
heard about this.
This is what we would love todo, come out and help us do it.
So we're even more excitedabout that because we love to engage
with our principal becausethat helps us to understand what
(13:49):
their goals are and then wecan align that way.
So we do have teachers thatreach out, but we have just as many.
Principals, and they also,they know their teachers and they
know which ones might, forexample, be struggling with engagement
side.
And so they could point you inthe direction of those classrooms.
So this is called the InsideScoop podcast.
(14:13):
Do you have any inside scoopson what technology might be on the
horizon?
Something exciting and engaging.
We all know that AI is on theforefront of everything that we do.
Actually, we saw this comingfor several years.
(14:34):
So in the background we'vebeen researching, we have team members
that are, we call experts inthis field because they love it.
So they have gone through ayear or two of doing nothing but
studying this.
So we are able to bring to ourteachers information about AI and
how to use it, not justProfessionally for their productivity,
(14:55):
but actually for students.
And what's really important tomy team about AI is not necessarily
the fascination, but the factthat students are going to be expected
to use AI when it comes to a job.
Absolutely.
(15:15):
No longer do we go into jobs,corporations, where we spend six
months training or a yeardoing the onboarding.
Now, the expectation is thatthese students come in with a basic
foundation of technology, andAI is a part of that.
Yeah.
So while we have to becareful, as this is still a new technology.
(15:38):
Yes.
We do want to use it when wecan, to help students learn how to
use it safely and for productivity.
Yeah.
And with credibility.
I know the term hallucinatingis real with AI, I've seen some results
that came back.
It's like, no, that's not real.
(16:00):
Exactly.
So trying to come up with thatdiscernment, or I guess build that
discernment into studentsalong the way is what's.
Really important for everybodyto understand.
And for us as a team, wereally pushed this is we don't want
to take away things like AIand technology.
(16:23):
We have to help studentsunderstand, like you said, the credibility,
how to research that, how touse it, and how to just think critically
and solve problems, which isone of the big things that AI is
really about right now.
So while some people like touse it for.
For fun and that's okay, too,there are things that we can do from
(16:47):
a professional standpoint.
That is going to be theexpectation probably in the next
year or two or three, youknow, in terms of other things that
will come along.
So AI, while we're stilllearning it, it's really important
that we get our studentsacclimated as well.
Absolutely.
If you're going to have acompetitive student in the workforce,
(17:08):
you got to make sure they cando that.
So it sounds like you and yourdepartment are doing some incredible
things, bridging that gapbetween the technology side and the
academic side and bringingsome, frankly, some excitement to
the classroom.
I bet the kids are alwaysloving to see you guys walk in the
door.
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
As a matter of fact, we've hadso much business that we've had to
(17:33):
really make some changes,challenging decisions as to which
direction we want to go.
But we want to serveeverybody, so we make it work.
And that's a good challenge tohave that.
You know, we got people thatare on a waiting list to have us
come in to do some of these.
High demand.
Yeah.
High demand for what you do.
Yeah.
I'm very proud of, like Isaid, the principals that we've worked
with the teachers.
(17:53):
Just really proud of howthey've collaborated with us because
that's the most exciting partfor us.
Absolutely.
Seeing the little faces smileand seeing our teachers with the
light bulbs going off.
And this is, this is at allthree levels too.
@ all three levels.
Okay.
Well Starla, thank you so muchfor coming in and educating me.
I've been in the district forquite a while.
(18:14):
I knew y'all did somethinglike that but I didn't know as much
about, you know, all thedetails that really bring it to fruition
I would say.
So thanks again for coming.
Well thank you for having us.
If you learned something fromthis podcast, make sure you give
us a like subscribe and shareit with a friend.
You can find more informationabout it all in the show notes and
(18:36):
the description.
Thank you for listening tothis edition of the Inside Scoop,
a podcast produced by the CobbCounty School.
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