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"About Our Motivation: Challenges and opportunities, created by our global society, invite teachers, administrators, and students to rethink the way they teach, lead, and learn. The rise of social networking, the ease with which information is shared, and the growth of our global economy are just a few factors that have made it obvious that the 21st century is a much different world than the 20th century. And yet, when we take a good, hard look at the culture within our schools, do we see that much has changed from yesterday to today? We may see more technology used in the classroom and maybe more discussions on the "content vs. skills" debate in the faculty rooms. But underneath it all, have things really changed? Have we successfully forged a culture where life-long learning, personal growth, and collaboration are valued and practiced among all members of the school community? In Richard DuFour's article "Why Look Elsewhere?: Improving Schools from Within," he states that "it is context-the beliefs, expectations, behaviors and norms that constitute the culture of a given school-that plays the largest role in deciding whether a professional development program will make a difference in that school." If a school's goal is to improve student achievement, and a school considers learning to be the crux of its community, then effective professional development-where teachers and administrators themselves become learners-is the bridge to achieving that goal."

"Welcome to Wikipedia for Schools! This selection of articles from Wikipedia matches the UK National Curriculum and can be used by school children around the world. 6000 articles, 26 million words and 50,000 images make Wikipedia for Schools bigger than Harry Potter, the Lord of the Rings and the Chronicles of Narnia put together! Wikipedia is great, but it wasn't designed with the National Curriculum in mind. And because anyone can edit it, articles sometimes get vandalised. That's why we've put together this special collection to make learning as easy and safe as it can be. Here at SOS Children, we've checked all the articles, tidied them up a bit, and put them together by school subject. SOS Children ( www.soschildrensvillages.org.uk) is a charity which works around the world to help children in need. As well as Wikipedia articles, we've collected pages from the SOS Children website, so you can learn more about the work we do in 125 countries around the world. We would like to say thank you to the Wikimedia Foundation, the people who made the Wikipedia site. We would also like to thank the many people who have come together over the years to make Wikipedia what it is today."

"Grant Wrangler® is a free grant listing service offered by Nimble Press™. We make it easier for educators, school libraries, and parents to find school funding. We list grants for teachers, school grants, and money for arts, history, mathematics, science, technology, literacy, and more. We also help education foundations, community foundations, corporate foundations, and other grant-giving organizations more effectively promote their grants and awards to teachers and schools. "

The Inclusive Schools Network (ISN) is a web-based resource for families, schools and communities that promotes inclusive educational practices. This resource has grown out of Inclusive Schools Week™, an internationally-recognized annual event sponsored by Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC). ISN's mission is "to encourage, embolden and empower people to design and implement effective inclusive schools, by sharing insights and best practices and by providing opportunities for connection." ISN provides year-round opportunities for families and educators around the world to network and build their knowledge of inclusive education.

"People to People International's School and Classroom Program is a free service that connects teachers and their students with classes in other countries for pen pal exchanges and projects that improve cultural understanding and encourage friendship. Classes are matched according to similar age and number of pupils to form partnerships. Students interact by exchanging traditional paper letters or email messages supervised by their teacher, who receives a program manual for guidance. Teachers may form partnerships with classes in multiple countries and work together for one or more school years. Primary, middle and secondary-school classes and youth groups (grades kindergarten-12) from all countries are welcome. To join, we ask teachers or adults, who supervise students, to register. Registration is open during July - October. Registrations submitted before or after this time will be held for the following semester or school year. We will contact you to discuss options."

" For the past three years, Digital Wish has been studying the process of implementing one-computer-per-child programs in 28 schools. Digital Wish is an educational non-profit on a mission to bring technology to American classrooms in order to prepare students to thrive in the global economy. The team just completed a $1.125M Federal ARRA stimulus grant, delivering computers, weekly educator trainings, a complete IT curriculum, and support to the 28 schools.  Their trainers modeled the entire process of technology adoption and progressively reduced the initiative planning time from 18 months to just 6 weeks, saving schools tremendous amounts of time and money. Both teachers and students are reporting a wide range of gains including increased engagement in learning, technological proficiency, and dramatic improvements in the understanding of internet safety issues.  The 2011-2012 data report is attached. "

Over ten years ago, while teaching middle school students and viewing the naïve behaviors that they exhibited in chat rooms on the internet, Chuck developed lesson plans to teach his students safe behaviors. As students spoke at home about what they were learning in school, parents began contacting Chuck to have him speak at PTO meetings and to local organizations. Since that time, both use of the internet and the dangers that students face while using the internet have grown. Along with that growth, requests for Chuck to speak on the topic of Internet Safety have increased to include presentations to large groups of students in grades 6 through 12, school staff members and parents. Presentations have been made in schools in several states across the US and at both State and National conventions.

"Is there a right and a wrong way to teach social media in schools? Some administrators think so. Many schools across the country have banned the use of social networking platforms, but others are transitioning to a more proactive approach. Many experts and school officials say that abandoning the more reactionary responses to social media is the first step toward implanting a more effective digital literacy education."

"The new school year is here for many teachers. For those who haven't started school yet, the new school year will be here soon. If you've set the goal of trying something new in your classroom this year (shouldn't that always be one of our goals), here are eleven techy things teachers should try this year."

"The most powerful and ample resource for change in education is teachers' own expertise. Yet, teachers are regularly overstepped when it comes to leading school improvement. In the United States, less than one-fourth of teachers feel that they have great influence over school decisions and policies in seven different areas, as noted in the National Center for Educational Statistics' Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) database for 2003-04 reported by the National Staff Development Council (NSDC) in Professional Learning in the Learning Profession: A Status Report on Teacher Development in the U.S. and Abroad."

Web 2.0: What does the future hold for schools? TCEA panel says Web 2.0 marks a complete shift from the old models of instruction ... and schools need to shift accordingly

Welcome to the Technology Support Index (TSI) presented by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The TSI is designed to provide school districts with models for an efficient and effective technology support system based upon best practices in nationally recognized school districts. With the TSI framework and self-assessment tool, school districts can appraise the quality and efficiency of their current technology support program and learn about possible improvements they can employ.

RCampus is a comprehensive Education Management System and a collaborative learning environment. Our suite of award-winning, innovative productivity tools connects students and educators with important information crucial to student success while allowing school administrators real-time access to data for better tracking of institutional effectiveness. Educators, students and school administrators can manage courses, build ePortfolios, create websites, join eCommunities, assess school work with rubrics and much more, from a single location. Everyone will find RCampus a familiar environment with tools that are easy and effortless to use.

DonorsChoose.org is an online charity that makes it easy for anyone to help students in need. Here's how it works: public school teachers from every corner of America post classroom project requests on DonorsChoose.org. Requests range from pencils for a poetry writing unit, to violins for a school recital, to microscope slides for a biology class. Then, you can browse project requests and give any amount to the one that makes your eye twinkle. Once a project reaches its funding goal, we deliver the materials to the school. You'll get photos of your project taking place, a thank-you letter from the teacher, and a cost report showing how each dollar was spent. If you give over $100, you'll also receive hand-written thank-you letters from the students. At DonorsChoose.org, you can give as little as $1 and get the same level of choice, transparency, and feedback that is traditionally reserved for someone who gives millions. We call it citizen philanthropy.

The Principles and Standards for School Mathematics outlines the essential components of a high-quality school mathematics program. It calls for and presents a common foundation of mathematics to be learned by all students. The Standards are a guide for focused, sustained efforts to improve students' school mathematics and were developed to do the following: * Set forth a comprehensive and coherent set of learning goals in mathematics for all students from pre‑K through grade 12 that will orient curricular, teaching, and assessment efforts during the next decades. * Serve as a resource for teachers, education leaders, and policymakers to use in improving mathematics instruction. * Guide the development of curriculum frameworks, assessments, and instructional materials. All Illuminations lessons and activities are designed in alignment with the Principles and Standards.

"On October 29, 2014 the Alliance for Excellent Education hosted a webinar in its Project 24 leadership series. Project 24 is a systemic planning framework around the effective use of technology and digital learning to achieve the goal of college and career readiness for all students. This webinar focused on the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1998 to protect the online privacy of children. More than fifteen years later, as digital learning constitutes a critical component of education both in and out of school, COPPA has become yet another hurdle between teachers and connecting students to digital learning opportunities. The webinar explored what educators need to know about this law, and how they and school administrators can successfully navigate COPPA to ensure that students are afforded the full benefits of online and blended learning opportunities.  It showed how teachers can provide consent for students to register for online websites.  It explored whether or not students who are under thirteen years old can even use Web 2.0 resources without running afoul of the law.  And it dealt with how school districts assume the duty of COPPA compliance. During the webinar, Mark Cheramie Walz gave educators straight-forward answers on how to comply with COPPA without sacrificing the potential that digital learning and online resources afford. Tom Murray from the Alliance moderated the discussion. Mr. Cheramie Walz and Mr. Murray also addressed questions submitted by webinar viewers from across the country."

The school year is off and running! Along with the preparation of bulletin boards, seating charts, classroom procedures and syllabi, it is also important for teachers to consider the go-to digital tools and resources they will rely upon throughout the school year. The five tools and resources outlined below can be utilized by teachers and students in many different classroom settings, grade levels and subject areas for creation, communication, collaboration and so much more.

Thanks to the Wizengamot, the British and American Ministry of Magics and a handful of tech-friendly professors from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry , a Hogwarts education has now become available online to all aspiring witches and wizards. You are now able to enroll at Hogwarts, collect your textbooks and begin taking our 9-week courses online. You can now progress through all seven years of schooling and be assigned a professor, homework assignments, quizzes and more.

The Reflection Tool presents questions that are designed to help you reflect on your skills in technology integration and to identify areas for growth. These questions are based on the Technology Standards for School Administrators developed by the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) and the Skills Framework developed by the Consortium for School Networking (COSN).

Welcome to School AUP 2.0 This is a dynamic document designed to support teachers, school media specialists, and education leaders in developing, maintaining, and enforcing policies designed to: 1. Promote the most effective, productive, and instructionally sound uses of digital, networked, and abundant information environments. 2. Provide safe digital environments for learners and to instill safe practices and habits among the learning community.