STaR Chart

STaR Chart Self-Diagnostic Tool

Instructions: This is the working draft of a self-diagnostic questionnaire designed to help education leaders use the School Technology and Readiness Chart (STaR Chart) to assess the progress of schools and districts in integrating technology into the curriculum.

To rate your school, keep track of your answers by printing out this scoring chart and recording your answers on it.

For best results, answer these questions at the school level, and then aggregate your individual school scores if you are interested in finding out where your district falls in the STaR Chart. Please note that this questionnaire provides only general guidance - many schools are likely to have unique features that are beyond the scope of this broad assessment tool.

Demographic Data

We are collecting the demographic data for comparative (pre/post) purposes only. It will not be used in any other way.

Project: Position:

Campus Name: District Name:

County/District number:

A. Hardware

1. What is your current student-to-computer ratio?

	A. no computer in school
	B. greater than 25:1
	C. between 25:1 and 10:1
	D. between 9:1 and 5:1
	E. lower than 5:1

2. What is your current student-to-multi-media computer ratio?

	A. no multi-media computers in school
	B. greater than 50:1
	C. between 50:1 and 17:1
	D. between 16:1 and 7:1
	E. lower than 7:1

3. What is your current student-to-CD-ROM ratio?

	A. no CD-ROMs in the school
	B. greater than 200:1
	C. between 200:1 and 50:1
	D. lower than 50:1

4. What kind of printers are available in your school?

	A. no printers in the school
	B. dot-matrix printer in the classroom or inkjet laser printer in the computer lab
	C. most classrooms have an inkjet or laser printer

5. How does your school/district deal with the technical maintenance and/or technical support of hardware?

	A. no official maintenance plan in place; done piecemeal by teachers and students on their own time
	B. district level technical support staff services several schools
	C. full-time, in-school technical support

B. Connectivity

1. What percent of your classrooms are connected to the Internet?

	A. no Internet access in the school
	B. Internet access available in the library or computer lab
	C. less than 50% of classrooms are connected to the Internet
	D. more than 50% of classrooms are connected to the Internet

2. How are the majority of users gaining access to the Internet?

	A. not applicable / no Internet connection
	B. individual modem
	C. LAN (local area network)
	D. WAN (wide area network)

3. What type of Internet connection do the majority of your computers have?

	A. not applicable / no Internet connection
	B. dial-up access
	C. dedicated line
	D. high-speed dedicated line (e.g. ISDN, T1, T2, Cable)

4. What percent of your students have an e-mail address provided by the school?

	A. 0-30%
	B. 30-80%
	C. over 80%

5. What percent of your teachers have an e-mail address provided by the school?

	A. 0-30%
	B. 30-80%
	C. Over 80%

C. Content

1. Do most of your student use drill and practice programs (i.e. educational software that engages students in multiple choice, true and false, or "worksheet" type of questions) on a regular basis as part of the curriculum?

Yes
No

2. Do most of your students use basic authoring applications such as word processors, spreadsheets, and drawing programs (i.e. KidPix) on a regular basis as part of the curriculum?

Yes

3. Do most of your students use advanced authoring applications such as web publishing software, presentation software ( i.e. PowerPoint) and/or collaborative groupware on a regular basis as part of the curriculum?

Yes

4. Do most of your students use simulation software (i.e. SimCity, A.D.A.M., etc.) on a regular basis as part of the curriculum?

Yes

5. Do most of your students use CD-ROM research resources (i.e. CD ROM encyclopedias) on a regular basis as part of the curriculum?

Yes

6. Do most of your students use the World Wide Web on a regular basis as part of the curriculum?

Yes

7. Do most of your students make use of networked communications (i.e. e-mail bulletin boards, list serves, etc. to contact resources outside the classroom) on a regular basis as part of the curriculum?

Yes

D. Professional Development

1. How many technology-related professional development hours have the majority of teachers completed?

	0-30 hours
	31-50 hours
	51-70 hours
	over 70 hours

2. How long have the majority of teachers been frequent users of technology?

	0-3 months
	3 months - 2 years
	2 - 3 years
	over three years

3. Does your school provide teachers with regular out-of-class preparation time for learning and integrating technology into the curriculum?

Yes

4. Instructor Skill Levels:

a. Are the majority of your teachers at the "Entry and Adoption" skill stage of technology use? (i.e. Teachers are just beginning to learn how to use basic applications such as word processors and drill and practice software)

Yes

b. Are the majority of your teachers at the "Adaptation" skill stage of technology use? (i.e. Teachers are familiar with a variety of applications and often require students to use technology to complete assignments)

Yes

c. Are the majority of your teachers at the "Appropriation" skill stage of technology use? (i.e. Teachers regularly use technology for collaboration, communication, and research and integrate these processes into the curriculum)

Yes

d. Are the majority of your teachers at the "invention" skill stage of technology use? (i.e. Teachers leverage technology as a tool to craft new curriculum and new teaching and learning techniques)

Yes

5. What type of technology-related professional development do you provide to your teachers? (check all applicable)

	A. basic introduction to hardware / word processor applications
	B. multi-day courses run by public or private technology training organizations
	C. on-site visits to technology-using classrooms
	D. on-line distance learning professional development courses
	E. in-school one-on-one professional mentoring on a consistent or just-in-time basis
	F. collaborative team-teaching opportunities with technology proficient instructors

E. Integration And Use

1. What pattern of student technology use best describes the majority of classrooms in your school/district?

	A. irregular, individual use (i.e. computers are in labs and libraries)
	B. regular individual use for some students (i.e. as a reward for students who complete in-classroom work)
	C. irregular group use for short collaborative activities and/or regular individual use for most students (students use digital resources to supplement classroom work)
	D. regular individual and group use of technology as communication and research tools as needed (students leverage technology to engage in authentic project-based learning)

2. What percent of your students use a computer at school daily?

	A. 0-30%
	B. 30-80%
	C. over 80%

3. What percent of your teachers use a computer at school daily?

	0-30%
	30-80%
	over 80%

STaR Chart Scoring
Click on Calculate to see your score, then Submit your answers.

	Your total:	Low Tech	Mid Tech	High Tech	Target Tech
Hardware	Total:	0 - 5	6 - 11	12 - 16	17 - 20
Connectivity	Total:	0 - 2	3 - 7	8 - 12	13 - 15
Content	Total:	0 - 4	5 - 8	9 - 12	13 - 25
Professional Development	Total:	0 - 7	8 - 14	15 - 20	21 - 30
Integration and Use	Total:	0 - 3	4 - 6	7 - 8	9 - 10
OVERALL TOTAL:	Total:	0 - 21	22 - 46	47 - 68	69 - 100

Adapted from CEO Forum

Questions can be sent to Texas Center for Educational Technology tcet@unt.edu
or to
CEO Forum on Education and Technology.