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Dennis is a former English teacher and administrator in urban and suburban schools for many years. Dennis has always gravitated toward K12 leadership, learning and technology topics. He has graduate degrees from Middlebury College's Bread Loaf School of English and Harvard University's School of Education. In addition to blogging about K12 learning, leading and web 2.0 tools/pedagogies at innovation3.edublogs.org, he is president of the Massachusetts affiliate of ASCD, a member of the Leadership Council for ASCD; a member of the Massachusetts Working Group for Educator Quality; Co-Facilitator of the Massachusetts High School Redesign Task Force; and a member of Massachusetts STEM Summit V Planning Committee. The web 2.0 conversation is not about technology tools; it is about student learning. Dennis subscribes to the definition of Professional Learning Communities that Rick and Becky DuFour and many other leaders of education have espoused. In simple terms, * learning (for us and for students) is our purpose, * we can improve student learning if we learn together collaboratively, and * monitoring student learning is the only way to know: 1. what students are learning, 2. how we are teaching and 3. how we get better at it. A former English teacher and administrator in urban and suburban schools for many years, he has always gravitated toward K12 leadership, learning and technology topics. He has graduate degrees from Middlebury College's Bread Loaf School of English and Harvard University's School of Education. He is married with three children and four grandchildren. Among other things, he loves running, cycling, kayaking, contemporary poetry, photography and the outdoors. In the summer of 2007 his professional life changed when he attended the Building Learning Communities Conference 2007 and in three days experienced, for the first time, the power of Web 2.0 tools and their potential for transforming schools and learning. That experience

Eaton-Johnson Middle School is located in North Carolina, approximately 45 minutes north of Raleigh. The school is considered by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction as a rural school, however, this is also inner city. Eaton-Johnson Middle School is located in a district with a high unemployment rate, high crime rate, and a high gang rate. When the school first implemented Synergy, the school was also suffering from low teacher morale, an unclear mission, and very little parent involvement. We had to do something, because EJMS was also considered a priority school which meant that the state was looking very closely at our instructional programs, teachers, school community, and the administration.

As a school administrator, mentor teacher, school board member or educational leader you are responsible for providing a safe and secure environment within which students and faculty will work. In the past this has involved building details in the physical world; the brick and mortar. In schools today this now includes the online world. You must have, at least, a basic level of understanding in the areas of

Partanen, Anu. (2011). What Americans Keep Ignoring About Finland's School Success. The Atlantic. Retrieved January 9, 2012, from http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/12/what-americans-keep-ignoring-about-finlands-school-success/250564/

Kelly Hines said... I would like to recommend http://georgetown.edublogs.org/ to administrators everywhere. This blog is maintained by the principal of Georgetown Elementary School, Teresa Reagan. Her school blog is an excellent example of leading by example. She engages her staff, students and community though her own passion for learning and sharing, which is contagious. Her dedication to leading her school into new frontiers of collaborative learning should be a model for other leaders/administrators who are hoping to see the same from their own staffs. When you lead with such passion, your staff will have no choice but to follow.

Education Recovery and Reinvestment Center The new search tools on our Education Recovery and Reinvestment Center help you find the resources you need or take you directly to the pages that meet your needs. * Fund Finder: Identifies total distribution of funds to your state. * State Resources page contains state-specific information. * The LPA Resource page contains specially developed tools and resources. * The calendar of events is updated regularly. District and School Administrators * The School Reform and Improvement Database contains research on school finance models, optimal resource allocation for school improvement, whole district reform, and teacher retention strategies.

Education Recovery and Reinvestment Center The new search tools on our Education Recovery and Reinvestment Center help you find the resources you need or take you directly to the pages that meet your needs. Here is a sample of what you will find:

YouTube for schools is where students can access educational videos in a safe and controlled environment. Make an administrator account for your class or school today. http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/Video%2C+animation%2C+film+%26+Webcams

"Creating a Facebook page for your school or college isn't as simple as it is when you're just creating a personal page. There are several pitfalls that I came across when doing so that Facebook simply hasn't addressed, and the administration process involved in adding schools on Facebook is more complex than a normal profile."

"As school districts explore the use of social computing throughout the school day and as an approach to extend instruction; many educators are making the decision to create a wiki, publish video online, or to participate in blogging, social networking or virtual worlds. Social media guidelines encourage educators to participate in social computing and strive to create an atmosphere of trust and individual accountability. Teachers who must hide their online activity because of nonexistent social media guidelines risk losing their jobs and reputations. A better approach is to collaboratively develop a policy that is acceptable to administrators, school board members, teachers and parents allowing for involvement in the global conversation in which many are contributing."

This is a collaborative project to generate Social Media Guidelines for school districts. The goal of this guideline is to provide instructional employees, staff, students, administrators, parents and the school district community direction when using social media applications both inside and outside the classroom.

Learn the art of management under the expert guidance and world class Course structure at Jagran Lakecity University, Bhopal

designed to support the international school communities (teachers, support staff, administrators, students and families) in 17 countries in South East Asia ... although it seems that lots of schools worldwide are now finding Shambles a useful resource .. which is brilliant.

Per David Warlick blog - "A recent report (Ready to Innovate/pdf) from The Conference Board and Americans for the Arts, in partnership with the American Association of School Administrators (AASA), reminds us that creativity, and integral part of innovation, is among the top five skills that will become more important over the next five years. Yet, according to their survey, school superintendents and American business executives differ in some significant ways in what this means."

School districts are leveraging the power of the Web to make a difference in student learning, teacher professional development, administrator data management, parental information, and district security. The use of broadband technology and wireless communications are key factors in delivering these opportunities. This ebook provides information on effective and cost effective solutions to providing the high-speed wireless access and applications required to enable anywhere, anytime access to the latest tools to improve student learning, provide access to data, and ensure safety and security - today and well into the 21st century.

Earn MBA and EMBA program degree, Find Online MBA b school and university for accelerated MBA from Harvard, stanford, WSU and Wharton business school

Dear admin New Australian Reports on Collaboration and Site blocking by schools make recommendations for enabling web 2.0 for learning...

This is a superb site for GoAnimate and is specially designed to be used in schools. Make amazing animations in minutes. The teacher account allows you to administrate your class accounts and access their work. http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/Video,+animation,+film+&+Webcams

The GLOBE Program (http://www.globe.gov) is taking this opportunity to salute teachers everywhere----for all of the things you do----for inspiring your students and cultivating the love of learning. Teachers are the backbone of our educational system. They encourage, inspire and challenge us to reach new heights and dream without boundaries. The GLOBE Program Office in Boulder, Colorado produced this video for teachers everywhere. We encourage you to watch it, send it to your fellow (or favorite) teachers, school administrators, friends and family members. Encourage them to share it with their network as well so that everyone may pause for a moment and truly appreciate the teachers who made a difference in their lives.

Salute to Teachers Video