CoSN: The Consortium for School Networking

CoSN Compendium


	CoSN Compendium 2007 Edition 2006 Edition 2005 Edition 2004 Edition 2003 Edition Sample Monograph: Cutting the Cord: Wireless Computing Comes of Age (PDF)

The 2004 CoSN Compendium

The 2004 CoSN Compendium looks at eight issues of vital importance to education technology leaders today. A key question that runs throughout -- from the opening article on the essential skills of a K-12 CTO through the final monograph on building bridges between the special education and technology worlds -- is "What do we, as technology leaders, need to know and do in order to support our schools and districts in today's changing world?" The compendium articles offer answers to these and other questions with help from case studies, interviews with experts, and an in-depth review of the latest legislation, policy and research findings.

The eight monographs, which can be ordered individually or as part of the total 2004 edition, are:

What it Takes: Essential Skills of the K-12 CTO by the CoSN K-12 CTO Council: The job of overseeing a school district's technology program has grown exponentially in recent years as computers, the Internet and other technology applications have become essential to the daily operation of schools. What does today's district-level technology leader need to know in order to keep up with the challenge of ever-changing technologies and ever-shrinking budgets?

[View an excerpt (PDF)]
The Great Race: Collaborating Around Data to Improve Student Achievement by Karen R. Greenwood: For school administrators today, few tasks are as important as those involving the collection, management and analysis of data. Using the Western States Benchmarking Consortium as an example, a relatively new phenomenon in the area of data-driven decision making is examined: the formation of consortia to share benchmarks and collaborate to measure progress in key areas of education.

[View an excerpt (PDF)]
Rational Spending: Taking a Closer Look at Total Cost of Ownership by Sara Fitzgerald and Rich Kaestner: A growing number of school leaders are approaching annual budget challenges with help from a detailed analysis of the total cost of ownership for their districts' technology programs. A new tool for assessing operating costs - as well as broader awareness of the issues involved in planning and budgeting for technology - is helping schools get smart about spending.

[View an excerpt (PDF)]
Cyber Security: Protecting Your District's Mission and Assets by Steven E. Miller: The most important mission of a school is to facilitate learning. But making learning possible requires paying attention to other things as well - one of which is security. An appropriate approach to security combines technology, policy and people-oriented activity aimed at creating a "community of trust."

[View an excerpt (PDF)]
Virtual Learning: Classrooms and Schools in Cyberspace by Adam Newman, Matt Stein and Emily Trask: Excerpted and modified from a report by Eduventures, Inc., successful approaches to teaching and learning online for those schools considering building or tapping into virtual classes are explored. Six districts have already adopted virtual learning to meet needs ranging from reaching geographically remote students to providing individualized instruction for participants at varying levels.
Contemporary Literacy: Redefining the Basics by Ferdi Serim: Keeping up with the information explosion that is having such a profound impact on our lives can only be accomplished through the development of a new set of skills. Many organizations have set out in recent years to define an array of "literacies" for the digital age to prepare today's students for life beyond the classroom.

[View an excerpt (PDF)]
Highly Qualified: Professional Development in the No Child Left Behind Era by Sheryl Abshire and Monica Beglau: With No Child Left Behind mandating that, by the end of the 2005-2006 school year, all public school students should be taught by "highly qualified" teachers and that all federally-funded professional development should comply with specific content and delivery requirements, educators are faced with many questions. What is "highly qualified?" What does high-quality professional development look like? How does all this relate to planning for and supporting school technology programs?
Building Bridges: Assistive and Universal Technology for ALL Students by Jessica M. Brodey: In a surprising number of K-12 settings, communication between administrators in charge of special education and those overseeing the district's technology program is extremely limited. Yet working together is essential in order to harness the power of technology to meet the needs of students with disabilities, and of every other student who can benefit from the flexibility provided by universal design.

[View an excerpt (PDF)]