Tomorrow is the next step in the move towards helping my Administrators to become tech leaders in their school. Many of my administrators are not overly comfortable with technology so they are living the angst that some of their teachers are going to experience as we insist on moving them to create 21st century classrooms. The literature is very clear, if you are going to be a tech leader in your school then you have to be able to model the use of technology for your teachers.
I have created a tech committee within the instructional leaders in my superintendency. Some are administrators and some are resource staff who are excited about integrating technology as an instructional tool. Once we are ready to move into the schools and into our classrooms, our resource instructional leaders will assist the school administrators in supporting reluctant staff to make the leap. The tech committee brings together instructional leaders at all levels to create a collaborative team with a common vision and a common purpose.
Tomorrow they will ensure that all members of our superintendency are on twitter, they will show them the power of google docs and they will brainstorm the positives of including technology in the classroom and in a school.
Last week I was at the ICP conference. 2,200 educators, all administrators and system leaders, from 40 different countries. Over and over again the power of technology as an instructional tool and as a way to assist us in communicating with each other and making our world smaller was discussed. One Ontario Principal has set-up a partnership with a Principal in Uganda and they are exploring ways of connecting their students through the internet and the use of Face to Face. By connecting with each other students can learn from one another, get a better understanding of the issues facing our world and work together to create solutions. Talk about real life experiences that students can hang their learning onto.
What became clear in all of the sessions that I attended is that the Principal is key to the successful implementation of technology as a forceful tool in their school. Principals are key to successful implementations and they need to balance pressure and support when moving their school in a new direction. The creation of a digital school is no different than any other implementation. There are staff who will embrace the change and assist the Principal in moving forward. There will also be other reluctant staff who will need support but all of the schools presenting made one thing very clear; getting there is not an option.
One of the key pieces of data that has been missing when discussing the use of technology in schools is definitive proof that it makes a difference in student achievement. There is lots of data to demonstrate an increase in student engagement but no clear proof of improved student achievement. Australia however, is tracking student achievement as part of their digital project in New South Wales. They claim to have data which demonstrates a significant improvement in student achievement. I say "claims" only because I have not seen the data myself and it was not presented as part of the workshop.
I have no doubt that the use of technology will eventually significantly improve student achievement. To create an ideal environment for learning, students need to be engaged and excited about what is going on in their classroom. If the use of technology is capturing the attention of students and making them more excited about learning, then it is our job as teachers to capitalize on that engagement and translate it into results. For that reason, if for no other, we need to become proficient in the use of technology and masters at yielding its power. We need to grapple with the new role of the teacher in a 21st century classroom and begin to reinvent ourselves. It is an exciting journey with incredible possibilities and tomorrow is the next step in the journey for my administrators.
In October I am sending 3 of my administrators to West Vancouver to see what digital education looks like in their schools and to learn from their journey. Through the use of technology we can make the world smaller for our students but through the use of technology we can make the world smaller for ourselves too. We can teach each other so much, the question is whether or not we are ready to try. Collaboration country wide, continent wide, world wide. An amazing concept.
Wednesday 24 August 2011
Tuesday 2 August 2011
Summer as a Superintendent
This has been my first summer as a Superintendent and I can honestly say it has been different. Summer is usually the time that I put my life back in order, take some time to hang out with my family and basically just decompress. When you are a Superintendent though I can honestly say that your work life just doesn't stop. I am in the middle of what was to be a four week holiday and I am investigating a major staff issue, I have been to several meetings and I have some paperwork that I am trying to catch up on.
On my four week break though I have been spending some time with my oldest daughter and her new son. He is going to be 7 months on August 10th and it is just so fun to watch him grow and change. He makes me even more aware of the need to look at our educational practices and think about how we are best meeting the needs of our students, particularly the young men sitting in our classrooms, because the data would say that we are not meeting their needs well.
I have been interested to read the messages from our American colleagues as they try to make their views on standardized testing heard. They are challenging what the real goals of education are and they are challenging the fact that to be poor and from a minority group pretty well ensures that you will not be successful in school. It is a fact that just makes me crazy because there is no way that we don't have the knowledge and ability to change that statistic so why aren't we?
I came into education because I wanted to make a difference and now in the last years of my career I continue to be as much of a "Polly Anna" as ever. Educators have incredible power and we have the ability to change so much but we seem to chose to change so little.
So, for my little guy, for your little guy, for all of the little guys in the world, for all of those children coming from poverty, for those who have the double challenge of poverty and race I commit to you that I will continue to work to make education the great equalizer and opportunity maker that it should be. I commit to pushing our schools to become the innovative and inspirational places that they can be and I commit to making 21st century classrooms a reality during my watch.
It is funny how one little child can inspire you to work even harder than you already have been but baby Max has done that for me. I care about my legacy and I hope that every educator who reads this cares about their legacy too.
Summer as a Superintendent has been different but one thing has remained the same as every other summer I have spent as an educator; it has given me time to reflect, renew, re-energize and recommit to doing the best job I can for the children that I serve.
On my four week break though I have been spending some time with my oldest daughter and her new son. He is going to be 7 months on August 10th and it is just so fun to watch him grow and change. He makes me even more aware of the need to look at our educational practices and think about how we are best meeting the needs of our students, particularly the young men sitting in our classrooms, because the data would say that we are not meeting their needs well.
I have been interested to read the messages from our American colleagues as they try to make their views on standardized testing heard. They are challenging what the real goals of education are and they are challenging the fact that to be poor and from a minority group pretty well ensures that you will not be successful in school. It is a fact that just makes me crazy because there is no way that we don't have the knowledge and ability to change that statistic so why aren't we?
I came into education because I wanted to make a difference and now in the last years of my career I continue to be as much of a "Polly Anna" as ever. Educators have incredible power and we have the ability to change so much but we seem to chose to change so little.
So, for my little guy, for your little guy, for all of the little guys in the world, for all of those children coming from poverty, for those who have the double challenge of poverty and race I commit to you that I will continue to work to make education the great equalizer and opportunity maker that it should be. I commit to pushing our schools to become the innovative and inspirational places that they can be and I commit to making 21st century classrooms a reality during my watch.
It is funny how one little child can inspire you to work even harder than you already have been but baby Max has done that for me. I care about my legacy and I hope that every educator who reads this cares about their legacy too.
Summer as a Superintendent has been different but one thing has remained the same as every other summer I have spent as an educator; it has given me time to reflect, renew, re-energize and recommit to doing the best job I can for the children that I serve.
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