Right Mrs Ros Lee – Head of IT
Head of IT Ros Lee joined the Ōtūmoetai College ICT team in 2009 in a part- time capacity. Previously a software application developer, she had decided that there was more to life than looking at a computer screen all day writing lines of code, with minimal person to person contact. Before starting a family in the 1990’s, Ros had worked at Nayland College in Nelson, and so she knew what a stimulating and satisfying workplace a school could be, and set her sights on getting back into that kind of environment once her two children had flown the nest. In the 11 years that Ros has been at the college, she has witnessed the huge challenges that schools have had to face in adopting digital technologies, both in the
administration of the school and in the classroom. The processing power of computers has exploded exponentially, meaning that the rate at which they become more capable is increasing at break- neck speed. The demand for devices and the cost of resourcing that demand is barely sustainable, and the challenges of working with systems that can’t talk to each other are ongoing. Not to mention the steep learning curve that everyone at the school has had to face, getting to grips with how best to use digital devices to enhance teaching and learning. Staff are mindful that technology needs to be used purposefully, as an educational tool to support educational outcomes, and not used just because it’s there, a shiny object. In other words, the
technology must be the servant in the classroom, not the master. Since becoming Head of ICT Services in 2012, Ros has made it a priority to develop a team who see themselves as enablers of teaching and learning, and who aim to provide to staff and students the best digital equipment and support services that they can with the resources available to them. Not always an easy task! The school will see a lot of positive change in the next few years with the new building programme that is in its design phase. Part of that change is the development of a new website and associated social media channels, which Ros is overseeing. The website will not only make more visible to the wider community the rich variety of activities that go
on at the school and beyond but will also to be a useful information resource for the currently-attending students and their parents caregivers and whanau. Ros considers herself fortunate to be working with highly committed colleagues in an inspiring workplace at a very exciting time in education, when so many conversations are being held about what the future of work will be and how best to prepare young people for succeeding in an ever-changing world.
Our New Website We are in the design stage of developing a new website .… so watch this space ……
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