SUMMER SERIES EP 6 — Audit Your Programs

We answer a listener question about three new school platforms and the chaos that comes with stacked online programs. We share a practical way to audit edtech tools so decisions are based on purpose, impact, and time instead of gut feeling. 
• resisting snap decisions based on personal bias 
• defining the purpose for each online program 
• co-creating an audit checklist with the team 
• evaluating impact on student learning and teacher workload 
• tracking time costs and duplication across tools 
• giving new platforms a realistic runway before judging them 
Now go and enjoy the rest of your break. 

Transcript

Summer Series Welcome

SPEAKER_01 0:09

Hey there, and welcome back to the Minimalist Educator Podcast. The podcast that fits perfectly into your summer break. Over the next few weeks, the Minimalist Educator Podcast is keeping it short and sweet. Just quick answers to the questions you've been wondering about. Perfect for however much summer break you've got left today. A coffee break, a pool lounge, or those first few minutes before you remember you don't have to lesson plan. So relax, you've earned it. Quick questions, quick answers, all summer long. Let's dive in to today's question.

The Question About Online Programs

SPEAKER_01 0:48

Hello and welcome back for our sixth summer series QA session. What is our question for today, Tummy?

SPEAKER_00 0:57

Today we have a question about online programs. So we had a listener hear the episode with Naomi and Sarah talking about Ed Tech Tools being purposeful, efficient, and research based. And so this person's school just rolled out three new platforms this year and it feels like chaos, or I should say the coming year, or maybe it was last year, not quite sure. But they're asking is there a simple checklist you can use to audit whether a tool is earning its place, or do you just cut based on gut feeling?

Don’t Cut Tools On Vibes

SPEAKER_00 1:34

Ooh, good question. It is a good question.

SPEAKER_01 1:38

I would suggest not cutting based on gut feelings.

SPEAKER_00 1:43

Right, as much as we might want to. Maybe not.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

I think you might need to gather a little bit more data, a bit more evidence before just cutting based on gut feelings because we all bring with us our own points of view and maybe even biases about different technological tools. And so if we're just going based on our feelings alone, I don't think we're going to be making the most informed decisions. We really have to try it out, have a look, think about what you're bringing it in for, and then seeing if it is actually having an impact on what you want it to be having an impact on, whatever that may be, before you decide to cut things.

Build A Shared Audit Checklist

SPEAKER_01 2:31

What about an auditing tool? We do love an auditing tool, Tammy, but do you have one specifically for this?

SPEAKER_00 2:38

I don't think we do, but I think it would be an interesting idea to approach his team with or leadership about co-creating a checklist, maybe. So things that they're definitely looking for in the tools. And maybe it's not across all three tools, because I think it just depends on what the tools are, but they can create their own checklist and then give themselves a bit of time to gather, you know, to look through the programs, look through the tools, get a sense of them. And maybe they they highlight what we often talk about like, is this meeting our purpose? Is this having the impact we want it to have on our students' learning? Is it purposeful? Sorry, I kind of already said that. Is how much time is it taking out of our schedule? So those are kinds of things that we want to be mindful of too. And so I think having that co-created checklist might reduce the feeling of the gut saying, yeah, I don't really like this or I don't think this is gonna work. You do have to give something a chance because the school has invested some of the budget into it. So we talk about, you know, reinvestment in time, tools, energy into things. And so this might be one of those things where you're reinvesting a little bit of your maybe planning time to co co-create this tool and then block out, you know, a couple of months where you're gathering the data on the tool use, and then you meet back together with your team and say, this is what I found. So that might be something that's that's useful.

Realistic Timelines For Adoption

SPEAKER_00 4:19

Because I know this is a common thing. You know, a lot of schools are taking on multiple technology tools or new curriculum at the same time. And so it's a lot for teachers to have to learn to navigate.

SPEAKER_01 4:32

It is, isn't it? I I know thinking back to some of the new ones that we've had rolled out at our school. And really, it it does take like a whole year of familiarizing, getting comfortable, sharing ticks and tips and tricks with each other and and how best to use things. So it yeah, three at once. Yeah, we feel you. That is that is a lot that can definitely feel chaotic.

Quick Wrap And Summer Sendoff

SPEAKER_01 5:05

And that's today's question answered. Thanks for spending a few minutes of your summer with us. Remember, quick questions, quick answers, all summer long. We'll see you next time on the Minimalist Educator Podcast. Now go and enjoy the rest of your break.