| Four Steps To A Better Technology Grant Proposal |  |
| Article that discusses four steps to write better grant proposals |  |
| Nine Excellent Reasons For Technology In Education | |
| An article listing nine important reasons to integrate technology into schools. | |
| Ten Big Ideas For Better Classrooms | |
| Ten ideas for improving public education are identified in this video, along with examples of each idea in action. The ten big ideas are: project-based learning, technology integration, integrated studies, cooperative learning, comprehensive assessment, emotional intelligence, teacher preparation, parent involvement, community partners, and maximize resources. | |
| Students Want The 21st Century Classroom But Schools Not Meeting Student Expectations | |
| Results from the 5th Annual Speak Up survey, the largest annual national survey of K-12 students, teachers, parents, and school administrators, about the use of technology and science resources. Speak Up 2007 revealed a growing "digital disconnect" between students and their teachers and parents about the role of technology for learning, and how well schools are doing to prepare students for the jobs of the future. | |
| A New Day For Learning | |
| In most areas of the contry, schools have not changed in many years, and the educational system looks the same as it always has. Some people are making efforts to change the educational system though. This video illustrates examples of reform efforts throughout the country, where schools are emphasizing things like community collaboration, real world learning, and distance learning. | |
| Dear Public: Can We Talk? | |
| This article identifies some key worries that many people are experiencing about public education. The authors then discuss "authentic engagement" - substantive give and take between those who have a vested interest in the decisions being made. Authentic engagement is an alternative to traditional approaches used for engagment in public education, which the authors believe is an expert-driven process. This article provides an approach to authentic engagement, as well as examples. | |
| Avenues To Success | |
| Several years ago a friend asked if I thought it was possible to maintain a thriving technology education program with all the changes that have been taking place over the last ten years. He said that, with outside forces such as NCLB, statemandated exit exams, and the push for students to enroll in more math and science, technology education was becoming an afterthought in some schools. | |
| Banning Student Containers | |
| An article about the missed oportunities and possible harm schools are doing by banning the very technologies that will prepare students for a global economy. | |
| How To Raise Big-Time Funds | |
| Almost every classroom in America needs more funding, but many educators are unsure about how to bring in revenue. The author offers strategies and techniques for attracting this funding. | |
| The Practical Principals | |
| Two principals, Melinda Miller, principal at Willard East Elementary just outside of Springfield, Missouri and Scott Elias, the 11th grade 11th grade assistant principal at Loveland High School in Loveland, Colorado are using podcasts and blogs to share their practice with other principals and to connect with the community and districts they serve. They have a shared podcast called Pratical Principals for sharing their insights with others and both have individual blogs. Miller has a school based podcast. These sites that serve as examples of some of the ways that technology can help support communication among staff and community. But they also raise issues about privacy and what is appropriate to share with the internet world about a school. | |
| Superintendents Use Blogs As Outreach Tool | |
| As school district leaders look to improve stakeholder relations across their districts, some superintendents are experimenting with a tool more commonly associated with tech-savvy students and teachers than administrators: the blog. | |
| Boost The Credibility Of Your Grant Proposal With A Solid Review Of Existing Research | |
| Ways to improve grant proposals with a solid review of existing research | |
| Civic Center: Part One (PDF) | |
| When there is representation and communication among all stakeholders in strategic planning for education, the community can reach across boundaries to find solutions that benefit students and support the broader community. As technology and software continue to evolve, schools and districts have taken steps to align technology with their teaching needs and to provide the technology students need. With a systemic approach to technology, needs can be prioritized and budget funding allocated where they are most needed. | |
| Exhibition Night 2006 | |
| This video shows students demonstrating their projects to the school community in the form of exhibitions. Exhibitions are a great way of moving learning out of the classroom and into the community as parents and community members benifit from the learning efforts of the students. | |
| Cowan Sunset High School | |
| Cowan Sunset High School in Las Vegas caters to about 500 students who would have otherwise dropped out of school . The school provides a day nursery for moms and dads, and the school day runs from 2-9pm in order to allow students to work in the mornings or evenings. Students report that the teachers are understanding at Cowan, and they enjoy the different environment that the school provides. | |
| District Office: Part One (PDF) | |
| The collection and use of data are critical for documenting successful programs that should be expanded and for identifying those programs for which alternative strategies are needed. Data allows district leaders to demonstrate effectiveness necessary to make programmatic and funding decisions. | |
| No Child Left Behind Issue Brief (PDF) | |
| A report on the impacts effects of NCLB, which focuses on how several exemplary districts are using data-driven decision making for improving school and student achievement. | |
| Making Sense Of Data Driven Decision Making In Education | |
| A white paper that synthesizes information from several large studies with the aim of clarifying the ways that data are being used in schools and districts for data-driven decision making | |
| Achieving With Data (PDF) | |
| A report from a study that looked at key strategies of four school systems that are leaders in using data for instructional decision making and improving student achievement. | |
| Developing A Budget For A Grant Proposal | |
| Article about creating a budget for a grant proposal | |
| Developing Minds | |
| The UrbanPlan curriculum is a three week project-based learning exercise that has been implemented in schools across the nation. Teams of high school juniors and seniors compete to win the redevelopment contract for a decaying neighborhood in the fictitious city of Yorktown. The curriculum combines government and economics classes and applies them to real-world situations. | |
| Dollars And Sense | |
| The Ariel Community Academy provides a K-8 curriculum that infuses financial literacy into every subject. The school was created from a public school/private buisness partenership, because the founder believed that by exposing African American children to the stock market, their math scores would improve. Each class receives $20,000 in the 6th grade to invest, and in the 8th grade, the class donates half of the profits to charity and splits the second half emong themselves. Each student also learns how to write a business plan, and students are exposed to successful community members and African American business executives on a regular basis. | |
| The Edible Schoolyard | |
| The Edible Schoolyard is a program for middle school students at Martin Luther King Middle School in Berkeley, CA. This program was founded by Alice Waters in 1994 as a way to improve school lunches, but it has grown into a project-based learning program. Each day, students spend the first period of the day working in their garden and cooking the food that they grow. Teachers apply concepts from social studies, math, and science to the activities, so that the gardening serves as a hands-on learning lab. The school also feels that the gardening project teaches students about nutrition and important life skills. | |
| Factors Influencing The Effective Use Of Technology For Teaching And Learning | |
| This report provides technical assistance and professional development around eight factors that are key to effective use of technology in schools. | |
| Critical Issue: Technology Leadership | |
| This Critical Issue focuses on leadership qualities responses to change, and effective uses of technology. The article examines important findings associated with leadership in general and considerations specific to education. Next, it provides summaries of major factors associated with change in general and their implications for education. Finally, it examines research findings and best practices as they impact technology leadership and educational productivity. | |
| Las Vegas: Environments | |
| In Clark County, NV, two schools have built unique learning labs with help from community members. One school built a 1 million dollar rainforest biosphere and a second built a replica of a silver mine. Students learn about concepts in history, earth science, geology, etc - all while having a fun, hands-on learning experience. Community members funded and built both labs, and they often volunteer as guides in the labs. | |
| Planning Guide For Maintaining School Facilities (PDF) | |
| Guide aims to help school facilities managers plan for efficient and effective operations. | |
| Finding Funding | |
| This article provides some helpful advice on how to find find funding for school technology and ends the articles with links to many different resources for finding and applying for grants. | |
| Funding Toolbox | |
| Article about funding and grant seeking | |
| How To: Get A Whole Community On Board For School Reform | |
| The author highlights a school district in Alaska which underwent significant reforms when a new superintendent was hired in 1994. He engaged the community and developed a standards-based system that has become a model for other school districts. | |
| Around The Clock Learning | |
| Spry Community School is a new school model in Chicago. This school combines pre-K through high school students into one space where K-8 starts at 9am, and High School runs from 11-7pm. The school aims for a 100% graduation rate, and its philosophy is that the greatest influence on students is family, and the greatest influence on family is community; therefore, they aim to be a resource for continuous community learning and involvement. Spry offers programs such as partnerships with hospitals where students serve as interns, a high school-elementary school tutoring program, and an afterschool program that teaches computer and life skills. | |
| Vegas Virtual | |
| Clark County, in Las Vegas, has a virtual school program which serves approximately 4,500 students. Online education allows students to have more control over their curriculum. Both teachers and students cite increased communication, access, and convenience as benefits of online learning; however, they acknowledge that in order to be successful, students must be self-motivated. | |
| Learning By Design | |
| The Build San Francisco Institute is a small school which was created through a partnership between the Architecture Foundation of San Francisco and the San Francisco Unified School District. This school targets students who haven't performed well in traditional schools. They come to the Institute three days per week and work on projects there that satisfiy core curricular objectives in math and the arts. They complete design challenges and apply math and art to real-world problems. Seniors also intern with design firms twice a week. The Institute's policy is to not accept second-rate work, because this is unacceptable in the real world. Students report that they have a more positive attitude after working at the Institute, and that they enjoy the collaborative atmosphere. | |
| Online Learning: School Goes High Tech | |
| The Florida Virtual School started in 2000 and is the first internet-based public school in the country. In Florida, some students are faced with a lack of qualified teachers or access to courses, and FLVS fills these gaps. The school serves grades 7-12 but does not offer a diploma. Teachers like FLVS because they feel that they can relate to their students more while online and get to know them better. Students enjoy the flexibility, increased support, and one-on-one attention that FLVS provides; however, they caution that procrastination is not acceptable in this environment. | |
| Online Learning: West Virginia Virtual School | |
| In West Virginia, 7th and 8th grade students are required to take a language. In rural school where there is a shortage of language teachers, the students can take online langugage courses through the West Virginia Virtual School. Teachers instruct large groups via speakerphone, and each student uses a Wimba to exchange individual voice messages and recordings with their teachers. A classroom facilitator monitors the students as they engage in online activities during the day. | |
| Virtual High School: Education On Demand | |
| The Virtual High School is a non-profit collaboration between 300 high schools in 26 states and 16 countries. VHS offers students over 150 courses. Each participating school lends a course to VHS and agrees to free up a teacher to instruct students online. The goal is to build a community of learners and engage students online. Students learn 21st century skills, and kids at all levels are able to accelerate their learning. Teachers also learn a new way of teaching and interacting with students. | |
| Schools As Hubs Of The Community | |
| The West Des Moines school district in Iowa believes that their schools should serve as magnet for community activies, cultural enrichment, and social services for both students and community members. All 15 schools are open day and night, 7 days per week, for use by everyone in the community. The Community Education Program coordinates over 400 classes and social services at the school. The belief in West Des Moines is that education and technology creates equal opportunity, and they hope to instill a culture of learning throughout their entire community. | |
| Board, Superintendent Relations | |
| This article discusses how school board members in one district modeled leadership and technology use by going paperless. | |
| Grants And Funding Alert | |
| Newsletter about grant writing | |
| Home: Part One (PDF) | |
| Online courses can enable schools to expand student learning opportunities. Schools can offer subjects on which no local expertise is available, that only a few students are interested in, or that are unavailable because of traditional scheduling. This is particularly true for languages, advanced course topics, and college preparatory courses, but online courses can also be invaluable in helping students who are struggling or who have dropped out and wish to recover the credits necessary to graduate. | |
| High School: Part Three (PDF) | |
| By using such tools as e-mail and Web 2.0 information-sharing tools enhanced with video, students can connect with native-language-speaking teachers, mentors, and peers from around the world to share cultural information as well as conversational practice. These interactions offer opportunities for language learning, for increasing global awareness, and for modeling international collaboration. | |
| High School Classroom: Part Four (PDF) | |
| Technology can allow schools to connect with outside experts in real time. Whether it is a local businessperson or a university expert, technologies such as videoconferencing can link professionals and schools over long distances. By linking experts where they work with students in schools, opportunities for collaboration are expanded as no one has to travel and the expert can resume to work as soon as the session is over. By reducing the amount of time it takes to participate, more frequent collaborations may be possible. | |
| Of Hubs, Bridges, And Networks | |
| This article suggest that leaders seeking change should abandon the idea that human organizations function as hierarchies -- and work at understanding the way social networks shape learning in schools. It provides a number of suggestions of ideas that can be used to provide for continuous professional development around the introduction of new technology. | |
| Hula To High Tech | |
| Nuuanu Elementary School in HI integrates technology and hands-on learning into lessons at every grade-level. From producing a newscast to following sea turtles to studying streams, every student is exposed to technology at an early age to become comfortable with the tools, and to connect them to the world. The community is involved with the school, and they can view the many videos that students post on their website. | |