by Sophia Mendoza, Director
A Message from the Director:
The Instructional Technology Initiative (ITI) was launched in 2015 at a time when leveraging technology for teaching and learning in a 1:1 learning environment was occurring in less than 150 schools in L.A. Unified. Since then, several strategic efforts have disrupted how technology is leveraged across the District. However, our mission has remained the same: to support educators in leading with instruction when integrating technology. With this mission, we have been able to support many educators in rediscovering how our pedagogy can be extended and enhanced through technology. A focus on District-wide professional learning led to the creation of various models of professional learning opportunities that are both rigorous and robust in three key areas: the ISTE Standards, digital citizenship practices, and equity-led computer science integration. The models of support are strategically designed along a continuum to meet learners where they are, which is why every professional learning session is designed and developed on the ADKAR Prosci Change Management Model.
Over the past five years, 15,000 educators have participated in face-to-face ITI professional learning sessions. As virtual classrooms are opening up across the District due to Covid-19, the ITI team is working tirelessly behind the scenes to bring our L.A. Unified educators high quality online learning both asynchronous and synchronous professional learning. Most recently, 6,000 educators participated in synchronous professional learning sessions on how to reach beyond the classroom with the ISTE Student Standard of Global Collaborator. In the upcoming weeks, ITI will be offering courses on digital citizenship practices, tips on setting up your virtual classroom, and bite-size videos led by our educators on how to support the needs of all learners in an online setting.
On behalf of the entire ITI Team, we thank you for your interest, commitment and action in bringing culturally relevant and rigorous 21st-century instructional practices to your learners. Together, we will cultivate instructional practices that leverage technology in purposeful, personalized ways grounded in the ISTE Standards. We will get through this temporary school closure together, and we will be stronger.
Sincerely,
Sophia Mendoza
Instructional Technology Initiative, Director
#BetterTogether #LearningFirst #EmpoweredByITI
