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Jim Murtagh

Transitioning to Google Drive at Red River Elementary School
The Red River Public School District (RRPS) is in the process of migrating student file storage from the
districts local area network to the Google cloud. Students currently use a network drive, referred to as
their H drive that is mapped to their login whenever they use a school computer. Students can only
access their files from within a RRPS building, using RRPS computers. The Google cloud provides
students with the freedom to access their school files anywhere that has Internet access and with any
Google supported device. Faculty, support staff, parents and students need to learn how to access a
Google drive and perform basic file management tasks (save, copy, edit, share, etc.) so that students can
use this resource independently in and outside of school. Red River Elementary school (K-4) was chosen
as the pilot school for this initiative.

1. Stakeholder(s): Who are the primary stakeholders? As in, who are the people most directly
impacted when the instruction is carried off?
There are five groups of stakeholders in this project. The student is the primary user of the Google
cloud, in particular the Google drive functionality, which is where files are stored and accessed. Students
need to use this resource with minimal to no support from teachers, support staff and parents. These
aforementioned groups are also stakeholders, as they are responsible for ensuring students reach the
required level of independence, but it is most likely that this group is also unfamiliar with the Google
drive functionality. Instruction needs to be provided for all four groups. Within the support staff group
are the district and building level technology support resources. School administrators are part of the
faculty group in the RRPS structure. The fifth stakeholder group is the District Technology Committee
who sanctioned this initiative.

2. Roles: Who would best serve as the Subject Matter Expert? Who will serve as the designer? Who
will evaluate the instructional product?
The subject matter experts are a subset of the support staff group, particularly the technology
departments staff. Three members of this group are assigned to this project: Director of Technology,
Technology Integration Specialist and building network technician. These assignments were made by the
Districts Technology Committee (DTC), which is comprised of the Superintendent, school principals,
Board of Education members, faculty members, students, parents, and several members of the
technology department. The three technology personnel are the project designers. The instructional
product will be evaluated in a small trial group consisting of the building principal, 2-3 Red River faculty
members, and a selection of students from various grades (K-4). The final material will be presented to
the Technology Committee for critique and approval since stakeholders from all groups are represented,
and then a full-scale trial will be unleashed to all Red River Elementary students (300 approx.).

3. Problem Definition: What problem is to be addressed by the instruction that gets created?
Students need to learn how to independently use Google drive to access their school related files as a
replacement for their H drive. They need to access these files on potentially multiple computing
platforms (Windows, MAC, IOS, Android devices) and from locations where they will not have the
immediate support of a RRPS employee. (i.e. at home, public libraries, etc.)

4. Data: What kind of data will you gather and how will you gather it?
The District Technology Committee needs to understand the rationale for making this change, such as
the financial impact, effect on district resources, added or lost functionality between the two
approaches, and any potential risks the district could entail. This information will be collected and
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summarized by the three selected technology personnel. The Director of Technology has access to this
data. A comparison chart listing the differences/similarities in functionality between the methods of
accessing files will need to be created.

The district does not know how many of the stakeholders are already familiar with Google drive and
surveying each group will be beneficial to gauge the amount of resources needed to conduct training,
and to create a proposed timeline for testing and implementation. The survey should capture both the
stakeholders skills and their attitude towards this change.

During the initial testing phases, direct observation of faculty, staff and students will take place and their
results measured on a skills checklist. A group of students will be asked to setup Google drive at home,
and a survey to their parents will provide valuable feedback. The survey will include the type and age of
equipment at home, as well as a gauge for the difficulty of the installation process, and feedback on the
RRPS provided support materials (website).

5. Constraints and Resources: Describe any constraints that might impact addressing the need, or
resources that can help meet it.
District owned resources are maintained by the district technology department, and any software (such
as Google drive) is installed by RRPS technicians. This initiative is designed so that students can access
their files outside of the school, and this will require Google drive to be installed on non-RRPS property.
Assisting students and parents install and troubleshoot the Google drive installation on their personal
equipment is a major constraint, as it will involve a wide range of users technical abilities, age of
computing resources and device platforms. Another constraint is the willingness that faculty, parents
and support staff bring to this initiative, as all three of these groups begin as a targeted learner, but then
hopefully transition into an educator role, assisting the students to build independence. In essence,
these groups begin as a potential constraint but if properly prepared become a significant resource.
Students may also experience a similar transformation, and proficient students may be able to help
struggling peers (both in school and outside of school). The districts major resource for supporting
parents is the support material created for this project posted on the school website. Students will be
supported by various groups of RRPS employees.


6. Goal(s): What are the specific goals to be met?
Faculty, staff and students need to become independent users of Google drive. This requires them to:
Login to Google drive
Access Google drive from school and home (home refers to any location outside of school)
Install Google drive on their personal devices (if necessary)
Save files to Google drive from within an application such as Word
Save files to Google drive via drag and drop functionality
Create, edit and delete files from Google drive
Share files on Google drive with faculty and other students (for grading and collaboration)
Log Out of Google drive

Faculty and staff must have the skills to not only perform the above skills, but also troubleshoot and
assist students experiencing difficulty with these tasks. Parents should be able to locate RRPS resources
to support their child if they experience difficulty with any of the learning objectives identified above.

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7. Approval: Who needs to be involved in vetting the results of your needs analysis and/or goal
development?
Needs analysis and goal development will be presented to the District Technology committee prior to
the first phase of testing. Interim milestones will be assessed by the Director of Technology. Final
approval lies with the District Technology Committee with the recommendations of the Red River
Elementary building administration.

8. Evaluation: In what ways will you (or others) know if the needs have been met?
The district will know if its goals are met by:
1. Direct observation of students demonstrating mastery of the learning objectives listed in
question 6.
2. Minimal disruption to teacher lesson plans and class time that require students to access their
school files.
3. Feedback from faculty, support staff and parents indicating if stakeholders (all groups) are
successfully making the transition to Google drive, or if they are experiencing
difficulties/frustrations with the process.
4. Feedback from the District Technology Committee.
5. A survey could be conducted to assess the satisfaction or concerns of stakeholders after the full-
scale pilot, but this could be seen as unnecessary by the DTC if all of the above goals were met
satisfactorily. If the results of the pilot do not go well, then some type of survey instrument will
be necessary.

Part 2: Learner Analysis


1. Clearly describe the data sources that are available (or could easily be created) that provide
information about the group of learners.

Interview or survey of target population members: An initial survey of faculty, support staff, parents
and students should be created to ascertain the stakeholders familiarity with Google drive, the type of
computer systems students will use to access Google at home, the approximate age and operating
system on these home computers, their understanding as to why the district is making the change, and
if they are supportive of this initiative. Survey Monkey will be used, as this is an established district tool.
This survey should take place before the limited trial (where process and training material will be
evaluated).

Observations of target population and learner results from pilot-test: During the small scale pilot,
faculty, support staff, students, and parents (if they are willing to attend), will be observed by experts in
Google drive (most likely technology staff, but could consist of other accomplished users) and their
results recorded on a skills checklist aligned with the requirements in question 6. A post-pilot survey will
be created to capture the experience of those participants involved in the trial. This survey needs to
determine the users level of independence with all the learning objectives identified in question 6. In
addition, this survey should also be used to assess the testers satisfaction or concerns with the Google
approach. As mentioned in question 8, bullet 5 a post full pilot survey could be a possibility.

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2. To the greatest extent possible, describe the group of learners who would participate in any instructional
intervention. Be sure to address: demographic data, physiological aspects, cognitive abilities, prior
knowledge, and motivation or other affective aspects.
Faculty Support Staff Students Parents
Demographic
Data
Adults, approx. 40
members, certified
teachers, mostly
female, middle to upper
income class, English
primary language
Adults, approx. 20
members, roles in school
vary, most college
educated, mostly female,
middle to upper income
class, English primary
language
Approximately 300
students in K-4 (5-9 yr.
old), evenly split
male/female. English
primary language with
approx. 10 exceptions
(Spanish)

Median age 42, median
income $87K, 2.8% below
poverty line. 54%
bachelors or more, less
than 10% non-white
Physiological
General good health
and mobility, limited
exceptions, most likely
representative of US
population, but verified
only through
observation.
General good health and
mobility, limited
exceptions, most likely
representative of US
population, but verified
only through
observation.
General good health
and mobility, limited
exceptions. Less than
5% with physical
disabilities, hearing or
vision impairments.
General good health and
mobility, limited
exceptions, most likely
representative of US
population, but verified
only through observation.
Cognitive
Undocumented but
most likely average to
above average
intelligence based on
requirements for
teaching certification
and employment.
Undocumented but most
likely average to above
average intelligence
based on requirements
for certification and
employment.
High performing school
district with above
average standardized
test scores in reading
and math. Estimated
10% of population with
special needs (students
with cognitive and
emotional issues).
Undocumented but most
likely average to above
average intelligence based
on CERC data of 90+%
high school graduates and
76% with some college
education.
Prior
Knowledge
Unknown but will be
determined through
survey. Anticipated that
at least 25% of the
population is currently
using Google drive in
some fashion.
Unknown but will be
determined through
survey. Anticipated that
at least 25% of the
population is currently
using Google drive in
some fashion.
Unknown but will be
determined through
survey. Anticipated that
at least 25% of the
population is currently
using Google drive in
some fashion.
Unknown but will be
determined through
survey. Anticipated that at
least 25% of the
population is currently
using Google drive in
some fashion.
Motivation /
Other
Student access to files
at home has been a
request of teachers for
several years. Faculty is
motivated as this
initiative will alleviate
some teacher problems.
Google has a positive
reputation within the
population.
When students can work
independently, the
support staff is able to
concentrate on other
tasks. This initiative
should reduce the
frequency that students
leave their assignments
at home since they will
now be accessible
through Google.
Students want access to
their files at home and
are familiar with the
Google name.
Motivation should be
high.
Access to student files at
home is a significant
advantage for parents as
this eliminates the issue of
forgetting assignments in
school. It is anticipated
that parents will be
motivated.
Resources:
School related data is my personal estimate and not sanctioned by the school district. The name of the school and the district
has been changed for confidentiality. Demographic data for students and parents obtained from:

Guilford, Connecticut cerc town profile 2012. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.cerc.com/TownProfiles/Customer-
Images/guilford.pdf