{"id":1747,"date":"2022-05-26T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-05-26T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/education\/blog\/2022\/05\/26\/how-one-school-created-greater-learner-equity-with-microsoft-tools\/"},"modified":"2024-05-31T19:21:54","modified_gmt":"2024-06-01T02:21:54","slug":"how-one-school-created-greater-learner-equity-with-microsoft-tools","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-us\/education\/blog\/2022\/05\/how-one-school-created-greater-learner-equity-with-microsoft-tools\/","title":{"rendered":"How one school created greater learner equity with Microsoft tools"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Millions of students in the U.S. and beyond lack access to the devices, tools, and reliable home internet that can support their learning, collaboration, and creativity to unlock their full potential. This can leave many in remote or hybrid settings without the individualized attention they need for their unique learning styles. And having these resources can help students build digital skills, including during in-person classes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One school district that overcame this challenge is Wichita Public Schools (WPS) in Wichita, Kansas, which is the largest district in the state serving roughly 11 percent of Kansas students\u2014more than 50,000 each school year. Its investment in Microsoft\u2019s educational technologies<\/a>, such as Microsoft Surface Pros for educators and Surface Go and other devices for students, is helping fulfill the district\u2019s mission of equipping every student with the 21st century skills and knowledge needed to succeed in an increasingly digital future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s how WPS is using technology to transform how learners learn and how teachers teach, while ensuring every student has equal opportunity to succeed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Solving for equity and access<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The issue of student access to technology pre-dated the pandemic but was exacerbated once it began, so WPS\u2019s IT professionals set out to help create an equitable solution. Their solution\u2014providing access to the internet and a device\u2014has not only been paramount to supporting each student\u2019s success during the pandemic, but will also be important long afterward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WPS works with local partners to provide hotspots for students so they can stay connected. \u201cProviding internet to students matters, especially for the children who might not know where they\u2019re going to sleep for that night,\u201d said Dyane Smokorowski, WPS\u2019s coordinator for digital literacy. \u201cTo me, this is a social justice act. Connectivity isn\u2019t just for the privileged; it\u2019s for everyone.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

WPS also pairs each student with their own computer, embracing Microsoft Surface devices and Teams as the district\u2019s hardware and software platforms of choice. With Microsoft Surface devices, such as the Surface Pro 7 for teachers and the Surface Go for students, WPS has increased the scope of what can be taught and learned remotely. Teachers can also approach lesson planning in new, technology-driven, and inclusive ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Incorporating tools for inclusivity and agency<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One reason these devices have been effective is because Microsoft builds inclusive solutions directly into its technologies instead of as an afterthought. This creates a one-stop shop, freeing schools from managing multiple vendors or searching for additional accessibility tools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WPS embraces a variety of Microsoft\u2019s inclusive technologies, including free reading tool Immersive Reader<\/a>. \u201cWhen our teachers \u2026 learn how it helps, they realize it helps not just students with reading troubles. It\u2019s excellent for all the students,\u201d said Amanda Young, a program manager of Education Imagine Academy, which is a full-time, tuition-free online public school offering from WPS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dyane agrees. \u201cIt’s about building that inclusivity in your classroom,\u201d she said. \u201cI can now design lessons better for all learners and personalize to them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inclusive technologies can also provide virtual access to experiences beyond the classroom and home, which is especially important for students with fewer resources. \u201cWe have students who have not left a five-mile radius of their school,\u201d Amanda said. \u201cWe have done live feeds from the historical museum.\u201d Students were also able to meet directors of the local minor league baseball team \u201cand walk around the stadium, even though they weren\u2019t physically in that space.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These experiences inspire students, said Dyane. \u201cThey can visit virtually and think, \u2018Maybe I could work in a zoo, or in a museum. I could be a scientist.\u2019 I think it can change the world of every student.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Creating a new pedagogy for success<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Educational technology can\u2019t successfully evolve in a bubble, and WPS leadership understands that to make the most of it, teaching methodology must also change. \u201cWhen it comes to technology, the teachers are all now functional; they get it,\u201d said Dyane. \u201cNow they’re starting to look at what their students are excited about, and then determining who they need to talk with to take that learning deeper.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both Amanda and Dyane cite Whiteboard<\/a>, digital inking<\/a>, and Flipgrid <\/a>as examples of digital tools that can foster student engagement with material, radically change how students interact and learn, and offer new ways of designing lessons. With Whiteboard, \u201cNow we can have a collaborative space for multiple students to share ideas, ideate, and mind map,\u201d said Dyane.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Technology also presents new ways to connect students with opportunities through events, such as a WPS-hosted virtual career day with more than 35 guest speakers from across the US. The virtual aspect gives all students the opportunity to listen to each speaker, not just the students who are in one specific classroom at a specific time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WPS\u2019s ability to expand access to technology at such a critical time was a feat that has helped educators and will encourage better student outcomes now and in the future. \u201cI will forever be a Microsoft fan because I\u2019ve been able to grow as an educator and help my teachers and my staff grow,\u201d said Amanda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dyane is likewise pleased. \u201cWhen you can take the impossible and make it a reality, that\u2019s the best use of technology,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more about WPS\u2019s success story<\/a> and explore Microsoft tools and devices<\/a> that can help students develop the digital skills they need to succeed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One school district\u2019s investment in Microsoft\u2019s educational technologies helped transform how learners learn and how teachers teach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":300,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_classifai_error":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[26,21,33],"tags":[],"audience":[150],"content-type":[153],"product":[],"topic":[165,168],"coauthors":[231],"class_list":["post-1747","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-accessibility","category-educators","category-remote-and-hybrid-learning","audience-educators","content-type-customer-stories","topic-accessibility","topic-immersive-reader"],"yoast_head":"\nHow one school created greater learner equity with Microsoft tools | Microsoft Education Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"One school district\u2019s investment in 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