There was a variety of selection criteria that was implemented by Technology Facilitators and School Administrators when selecting students for the program. Most schools used an application process, although some schools also included an interview in the process. Below are some of the components that were used by Core Schools for selecting Student Tech Team members:

1. Academic review
2. Application
3. Interview
4. Technology skills assessment
5. Technology interest level survey
6. Written essay (e.g., "Why I want to be a STT member…")

The training method varied with each school. In the past, students were primarily trained on technical features of various software and hardware applications based upon the imminent needs of the Core School. However, C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi staff members realized that there is a need for a more direct approach to provide specific topical training that progressed through units. Since most technology needs of schools have common threads, an organized and comprehensive curriculum was created by staff members. This curriculum was founded on the project-based learning approach. Each unit in the C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi Tech Team Curriculum offered a "Field Applications" component in which students used skills learned in the unit to provide instructional and/or technical support within the school.

The training times for Student Tech Teams varied with each school. The variations were dictated by the scheduling differences among the schools, i.e. block schedules, seven-period days, and self-contained classes. Some of the variations were:

1. One 50-minute class a day for five days a week (This is the ideal situation.)
2. One 50-minute class one day a week
3. Two blocks (1½ hours) per week
4. Two or more 50-minute classes per week

Regardless of the variations of training times, all the schools strived to maintain a balance between classroom training and in-the-field service. Ideally training time was split equally between the two training methods.

If the C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi STT curriculum was implemented in the training cycle, the training time necessary before technical and instructional support provided to teachers was reduced dramatically. For example, one of the first lessons focused on the teacher-student introductory process. Students learned and demonstrated proper/appropriate behavior and attitudes and proper respect for teachers and the teachers' classroom. Students quickly moved into providing services to the teachers as well as technical assistance and instructional support. In addition, the STT students became leaders and "peer mentors" in their individual classes.

Students had to demonstrate readiness in the STT classroom for the STT teacher as well as with their peers. Part of the curriculum involved projects/activities in which students demonstrated readiness. Some curriculum units provided quizzes, but for the most part readiness involved a hands-on demonstration of skills.

Once a student was selected as a STT student, he/she had the option to continue in the program as long as the student attended that school and as long as grades and behavior were maintained at an acceptable level. During the second and third years, these students were considered "veteran" STT students, and they received more advanced training that called for more responsibility and accountability.

C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi recommended and strongly encouraged schools to require accountability. This accountability came in many forms:

1. Being a team player
2. Following the rules
3. Being honest
4. Respecting teachers and their privacy
5. Respecting other students
6. Maintaining satisfactory attendance for class and "in-the-field" training sessions
7. Completing all responsibilities required as a STT student

During the six years of Student Tech Team implementation in C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi's Core Schools there was a very low attrition rate among these teams. Typically each year one or two students were dismissed from a team due to behavior problems, poor grades, or moving to another school. Behavior problems usually occured outside the STT classes. Most dismissals due to poor grades involved a probationary period after which the student could resume participation on the team if his/her grades improved.

Curriculum units were designed around the perceived needs of students and teachers based on observation and experience over a three-year period. Units were ordered progressively as much as possible to facilitate an efficient, scaffolded learning process. For example, the first unit covered character fitness and appropriate behaviors and attitudes required of a STT student. Within each unit, lessons progressed from simple to complex. Each school adapted the curriculum units based on the time that the STT students were allowed to meet for training.

Many of the C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi schools were small enough that the Technology Facilitator and teachers knew each other personally. Therefore, there was immediate/ready interaction. The curriculum process followed this path.

The timing of the student-teacher interaction varied with schools. The following are some examples of this interaction.

1. Team members worked with teachers during STT class.
2. Team members worked with teachers during the team members' study halls or before/after school.
3. Team members provided assistance during their regular classes.

These support times varied based upon the daily schedules, grade levels, and administrative support levels of the schools.

The methods of requesting assistance used by teachers varied with each school. Sometimes requests were on-the-spot as the need occurs. At other times a teacher might send a written or electronic message to the TF/STT teacher for help. If a student was available at the time the request was made, he/she could be sent to the teacher's classroom. Students might occasionally be released from other classes, but this was discouraged so that no issues developed between teachers and team members. STT students created a log for recordkeeping as well as a work form/request that was supplied to each teacher. A STT student's release from a class for support purposes ultimately depended upon the STT student's grades, completion of class assignments, and teacher permission.

Initially students accompanied the TF/STT teacher to the teachers' rooms, observing and discussing the technical problems with the TF or STT teacher. The TF made sure the student received adequate training prior to going out alone in order to facilitate successful support for the teachers.

There were many types of support that were provided by STT members for each of the schools in which they were implemented. These types of support ranged from technical assistance to instructional classroom support. Examples of support provided by STT members in the past were:

1. Cleaning and routine maintenance of equipment and work areas
2. Fixing computers that have become locked up
3. Dealing with computer power issues
4. Creating classroom documents for teachers (forms, puzzles, presentations, and so forth)
5. Removing paper jams in printers
6. Solving printer functionality issues
7. Providing technical training for teachers
8. Removing spyware and viruses
9. Updating Windows/Office/Virus protection software

Teachers provided verbal and formal feedback using a form that STT students took to and left with the teacher. Using this form, the teacher evaluated the STT student's skills, attitude, and professionalism. The teacher returned the completed form to the TF/STT teacher. Highly rated STT students were often requested over and over by specific teachers.

The STT students kept individual logs of their activities as well as a classroom log in which information regarding all problems was reported including:

1. Who worked the problem?
2. What was done?
3. Was the problem solved?

If the problem was not solved, the student working the problem, another student, or the TF/STT teacher knew where to begin working on the next visit.

The Technology Facilitator recruited, trained, and supervised the Tech Team members in their duties. On a daily or weekly basis the TF instructed the Tech Team using materials provided in the C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi Tech Team Curriculum. The TF also oversaw the students as they provided technical and instructional support to teachers in the school.

Students might be assigned to specific teachers for on-going duties, such as routine maintenance and cleaning or equipment and updating software. However, other tasks might be assigned on a case-by-case basis. The nature of the teacher's request and the student's level of expertise in a particular type of skill were taken into account when assigning a student to provide support for a teacher.

Early in the school year, the C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi Tech Team Curriculum covered professional behavior and proper procedures for providing support for teachers in the school. The students quickly leared to provide such support without the direct assistance of the TF. However, the TF might choose to accompany the students for the first few support calls to ensure that each student fully understood the appropriate way to enter a teacher's classroom and complete an assigned task.

Only two major problems surfaced during the years that C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi worked with Student Tech Teams. The first difficulty encountered by most TFs in working with the Tech Team was scheduling. Of necessity the school day was packed with instructional activities, leaving little "free" time to be utilized by the Tech Team. TFs learned to work with the school administrator to carve out time to overcome problems with tight scheduling situations. This was accomplished in a variety of ways in C·R·E·A·T·E for Mississippi schools. One of the most effective ways was to create an elective class that met daily and fit within the normal school day. Other approaches were to schedule the Tech Team as a before- or after-school program or to meet with Tech Team members throughout the day in small groups as their schedules allowed. In the latter situation, students came during study halls, activity periods, or during selected special subject periods such as physical education, library, music, and so forth on a schedule agreed upon by the students' parents and all affected teachers. Under such an arrangement, it was important to rotate, so the students had adequate exposure to each of the special subjects. Administrative support was crucial to success in the area of scheduling for the Tech Team.

Another problem occasionally encountered was removal of a student from the Tech Team for academic or behavioral reasons. Maintaining acceptable academic performance took priority over Tech Team membership. The TF reviewed student grades at the end of each grading period to ensure that participation in the Tech Team did not interfere with student academic performance. Rarely was a student involved in inappropriate behavior that necessitated removal from the team. In most cases, probation or short-term removal from the team was sufficient incentive to encourage the student to correct the problem. After demonstrating his or her readiness to return to the team by improving grades or behavior, the student usually returned to the team with success. Generally the Tech Team students were or became model students and leaders among their peers and with their teachers.