Module 15

• Provide an example of a successful (or unsuccessful) implementation due to strong (or weak) executive and stakeholder involvement. What occurred?

I do not believe that I have enough experience to provide an example of an unsuccessful implementation however I can explain my thoughts on what I believe to be successful implementation of a Learning Management System. I was able to have joined the Health Sciences High and Middle College team four years ago. At that time, they were just being introduced to Haiku, a new LMS that was said to help staff stay connected to each other, their students, organize, assess, and much more. I consider Haiku to be a success story even if we end up going in another direction later on. I feel that the stakeholders were all of us. To start from the top on what made this successful, our leaders had met with out technology coordinator prior to meeting with the rest of the staff. After feeling that this could be a good fit for the school, they opened the discussion up to all staff members. I remember hearing them be very clear on the fact that this was not something we were stuck with so we need to be clear and honest on how we feel about this system. Teachers were very open to bring questions to the table regarding possible pros and cons. Connecting the leaders, technology coordinator and staff, there were continuous opportunities for professional development regarding use of this new tool. What was also found to be a contributing factor to the success was the fact that this was not just used by the classroom teachers but was a tool for support staff as well. Starting as a Reading Specialist, I was able to upload resources for all the students whom I worked with and any others as an additional tool for the English department. Continuing down the line, we come to student voice. Having this connection with the students not only offers this tool as a means of blending the online classroom with the brick and mortar but allows for collaboration, communication, and could not have been so without student feedback as well.