The Kyrene Elementary School District is a high-performing suburban district comprised of 25 schools, six of which receive Title I support. Kyrene enrolls 18,500 students in kindergarten through eighth grade in its 19 elementary and six middle schools. Kyrene, AZ is located in the Phoenix Metropolitan area, serving parts of Tempe, Guadalupe, Phoenix and Chandler, and the Gila River Indian Reservation.

The Kyrene School District is not consumed with state-of-the-art technology, but rather with the effect that technology can have on the state-of-the-art education of its students.Technology is rarely the focus of instruction as it plays a supporting rather than a starring role in classrooms, sustaining the District tenet that it’s not the stuff that counts—it’s what you do with it that matters!

The Kyrene Teaches with Technology Project (KTTP), the district’s major technology initiative, is transforming teaching and learning in classrooms. KTTP is a strategic partnership between grade-level teams of teachers, school administrators, and district educational technology mentors to improve student achievement through integrated instruction. KTTP has been evolving for four years; it started with one grade level team at each of 12 elementary schools and currently includes approximately 90% of Kyrene’s classrooms in all schools. KTTP is not a technology project, but rather a curriculum project where technology is a catalyst for systemic change.

While all Kyrene schools have computer labs, the District has a strong belief that the teachable moment is not limited to a computer lab schedule. Thus KTTP enriches each classroom with powerful, flexible technology tools, including two desktop computers, five to eight wireless laptops, a projector, and a document camera. Walk into a Kyrene classroom and you will see students working in centers, small groups, individually, and as an entire class utilizing technology to support the teachable moment wherever and whenever it occurs.

The power of KTTP is in the grade level Learning Teams. The monthly Learning Team discussions, focused on curriculum and assessment and best-practice use of technology, have been the vehicle for transforming classrooms and increasing student achievement. A strong aspect of Kyrene’s Technology Plan is the realization that all technology, including information technology systems, (i.e., student information, library management, human resource/finance, bus monitoring video, etc.) impact student achievement. Kyrene’s 100Mbit enterprise wired network and evolving integrated wireless network create a highly productive work environment and outstanding educational opportunities for students and staff. Each staff member and K-8 student has both personal and shared network storage space and a unique log-on and password. This facilitates the use of the District’s productivity-based software toolkit and online curriculum-based learning platforms such as Microsoft Class Server and Blackboard.

Kyrene’s comprehensive data solution includes a traditional data warehouse with query and analysis tools, as well as a system that uses the Kyrene Curriculum Standards as its backbone. This system provides teachers with the ability to access and analyze national, state, and district student assessment data. Additionally, it provides school and district administrators with significant instruments to analyze this student achievement data in relationship to demographic and longitudinal information.

During your visit, you will experience KTTP in action in every classroom you visit – students and teachers doing amazing things with technology in every grade level. You will be able to shape your visit to focus on elementary schools, middle schools, or both, as well as learn more about Kyrene’s wireless network, information systems, data warehouse systems, and more. Whether you are a teacher, principal, curriculum specialist, technology specialist, or school board member, you will find something to satisfy your curiosity.

Wednesday, February 20

5:00 - 7:00 pm
Registration and Reception
Fiesta Inn – Tempe, Arizona

Thursday, February 21

6:30 - 7:30 am
Registration and Breakfast at the Fiesta Inn

7:45 am
Buses depart for Kyrene District Office

8:00 - 9:00 am
Opening General Session – Evolution not Revolution

9:00 am
Buses depart for School Tours A & B

9:15 - 11:30 am
School Tours – (all participants will visit both sites)

Tour A: Kyrene de las Brisas Elementary School

Tour B: Kyrene Aprende Middle School

11:45 am
Lunch, Kyrene District Office

12:45 pm
Buses depart for School Tours C, D, & E

1:15 - 3:30 pm
School Tours (select one)

Since Learning Teams are such an important part of KTTP, each of these school tours will culminate with a focus group discussion with a KTTP Learning Team.

Tour C: Centennial Middle School (8th grade)

  • Technology-supported flexible grouping in math, language arts, science, and social studies classrooms
  • Student-led and technology-infused problem solving discussions in mathematics
  • Supporting all learners with Read and Write Gold

Tour D: Kyrene de los Niños Elementary School

  • Integrating the Kyrene toolkit in literacy work stations in primary classrooms
  • Utilizing electronic portfolios to support student- involved assessment
  • Using technology tools and resources to support second language learners
  • Student-directed research and learning using Encarta Kids and WebQuests

Tour E: Kyrene del Milenio Elementary School

  • Creating and utilizing electronic portfolios to support student self-assessment
  • Standards-based integration with ASSET and unitedstreaming
  • Online learning tools: Microsoft Class Server, Blackboard
  • Supporting the Six-Trait Writing Model with technology tools and resources

3:30 pm
Buses depart for Fiesta Inn

4:45 pm
Buses depart for Desert Botanical Garden
Bring a sweater and camera – full lunar eclipse tonight!

5:00 – 8:30 pm
Reception and Dinner at Desert Botanical Garden
Nestled amid the red buttes of Papago Park, the Desert Botanical Garden hosts one of the world’s finest collections of desert plants. Sunset reception on the outdoor Boppart Courtyard, and dinner in Dorrance Hall.

8:30 pm
Buses depart for Fiesta Inn

Friday, February 22

6:30 - 7:45 am
Breakfast and Checkout at Fiesta Inn

8:00 am
Buses depart for School Tours

8:30 am - 12:15 pm
School Tours and District Session (Select One)

Tour F: West Side Tour:

Altadeña Middle School/Kyrene de los
Cerritos Elementary School/ Kyrene de la Sierra Elementary School

Tour G: East Side Tour:

Kyrene Middle School/Kyrene de la Mirada Elementary School/Kyrene de las Lomas Elementary School

Participants in Tours F and G will visit classrooms and see students learning with technology in a variety of situations, such as:

  • Digital video production – morning announcements
  • SmartMusic in band/orchestra/chorus
  • Integrating media content using unitedstreaming
    videos
  • Using Adobe Creative Suite 3 in the middle school
    multimedia lab
  • Student-led conferences with digital portfolios
  • Using technology to build literacy skills in kindergarten
  • Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI) with digital video
  • Self-assessing reading fluency using Audacity
  • Technology in elementary special areas: music, art, PE
  • Integrating technology in literacy work stations in
    primary classrooms
  • Technology-infused learning centers in science and
    social studies
  • Math activities using the AVerMedia visual presenter
  • Integrating technology tools with Writers’ Workshop
  • Students analyzing and presenting scientific data using
    InspireData

Tour H: Solutions Briefing at District Office

  • Supporting teaching and learning with data – from
    district analysis to teacher data chats
  • Integrian school bus monitoring video system
  • Genesis student information system – online
    attendance and parent portal
  • Integrating systems – nightly updates for the data
    warehouse as well as Destiny, Microsoft Class Server,
    and Blackboard.
  • Teacher e-portfolios in the supervision and
    evaluation process
  • Network solutions – scaleable solutions with Qwest
    Metro Optical Ethernet
  • Kyrene’s wireless network evolution
  • Implementing Visions Human Resource and Finance
    System – managing the change
  • WinOcular Applicant Tracking System

12:15 pm
Buses depart for District Office

12:45 - 2:30 pm
Lunch and Closing Session

2:30 pm
Buses depart for Airport
Buses depart for Fiesta Inn

Cable in the Classroom