Grants aren’t all good, though. One of my own disappointments with many grants is the lack of sustainability. (This is really a concern with education as a whole, not just grant-funded projects.) Too many times, the program fizzles out toward the end of the grant, and the instructional benefits are completely gone by the next year.

Sometimes, though, programs are sustained beyond the grant and continue to benefit teachers and students alike.

So, what is the difference? Here are some readily identifiable characteristics that I’ve observed. As you read through these, think about projects you’ve done in the past and ones you’re contemplating for the future. What can you do to help drive your grant projects toward sustainability and success?

A grant that is not sustainable
(likely to fail)

• The program is planned by tech staff, not curriculum leaders and teachers.
• Instructional goals are not driving the project.
  (This focus is on tech skills and gadgets, rather than how to read, write, do math, etc.)
• Technology equipment is the focus.
  (Discussions begin with “We have 250 [tech gadget of your choice].” PD is focused on how to use [tech gadget of your choice], rather than how to improve reading, writing, math skills, etc.)
• There is little or no leadership buy-in.
  (The principal is not visible at project activities and may not even know about the program.)

A grant that is readily sustainable
(likely to succeed)

• The program is driven by academic goals that are already in place and that reflect goals teachers are already trying to meet.
• There is more discussion of learning goals in language arts, math, science, social studies, etc. than of technology.
  (This is easier if the focus of the program is on specific curriculum areas and grade levels and if PD addressed this. If you are addressing multiple areas, PD should be divided up accordingly.)
• There is strong leadership support.
  (District curriculum and instruction staff and principals know about and visibly support the program.)
• PD is ongoing and in the classroom.
  (In-classroom mentoring is much more effective than whole group traditional workshops.)
• There are mechanisms to develop internal support structures that can continue to provide support after the grant funding ends.
  (These can include encouraging interested teachers to become mentors or starting a program to have students act as tech support aids.)

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I hear this sort of question (or ones closely related….”I have a grant opportunity. What should I buy?” etc.), and I have to say they confound me. This kind of query is also arising in schools across America right now as floods of stimulus money are being unleashed.

This gets to the core of one of the things that is wrong with education — a lack of strategic focus.

As far as I know, every district in America has a technology plan. However, most districts prepare these only as a checkbox item to send to the state (to get more money) not as a true vision or guiding plan. For a district that has a guiding vision, an unexpected influx of funding is not a cause to think “wow…what can I do with this?” Rather, the funds naturally flow toward goals that have already been set.

Beyond this, technology should not exist for its own purposes. Nor should anything else in education. Instead everything should be focused on the main goal of the institution — presumably, student success.

So as you’re thinking about how to spend your ed tech funds, think about these questions:

• What is the main vision of our school?
• What are my own department’s goals and how do they support the main vision?
• Of these, what are the goals that are currently lacking resources or focus that could best help improve our overall organizational fulfillment of our main vision?

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These are complicated applications to write, but it’s worth the work. The funding level is significant, and we have had some very large (and successful) mobile technology programs funded through this source.

If you’d like more information, feel free to drop me an email. CTAP is also a good source for information. If you’re not in California, but are interested, check in with your state DOE for your EETT status and dates.

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