Cross-posted on the Burlington High School Principal’s Blog There’s no doubt that the release of the documentary Bully will lead to some deeper discussion on bullying and what we can do to reduce the number of incidences of bullying in our schools and communities. Discovery News posted a great article on the topic last week titled Why...
Blog Archives
To My Fellow Administrators Who Deny Access: There is Much More To Be Afraid Of!
For all of the school administrators and/or school policy makers who are hell bent on making sure that resources that can assist in learning remain off the table in their schools, you may need to add to the ever-expanding list of things to which you deny learners access if Google’s latest innovation (see video...
Embrace Choices For Learners
This article by Mia Szalavits caught my attention recently – “Do E-Books Make It Harder To Remember What You Just Read? While I am not an expert on reading or psychology, this article from Time.com certainly leaves me with more questions than answers as this is clearly an area that there is no long-range...
Risk Free Month of Teaching
The post below was posted by my friend Daniel Richards who is a first-year Principal at Melrose High School in MA. I loved this idea of encouraging risk taking with staff members and think it is the exact mindset we want to instill in our students. Memo to the MHS Faculty and Staff...
Are We Teaching To The Modern Definition of Literacy?
Cross posted on Burlington High School Principal’s Blog Please take the 5:31 to watch the short clip above from a Will Richardson talk at Proctor Academy. I think it is imperative that all school communities spend some significant time reflecting upon their purpose and whether or not the things they are doing in their classrooms...
My Problem(s) With Educon
As I reflect on my third Educon experience, I feel the need to get a few things off my chest in regards to the conference put on by Mr. Lehmann and his crew at Science Leadership Academy. The sessions – What’s up with so many great conversations in each time slot? I am used...
Thanks for Making Us All Smarter!
The Connected Principals Blog got its start back in the summer of 2010 thanks to the forward-thinking of George Couros. It is amazing to see all of the sharing that has gone on here and on Twitter under the #cpchat hashtag in such a short time. Thanks to the bloggers, readers, and tweeters who...
No Homework During School Vacations…Seems Like A No-Brainer?
I received this video embedded in an e-mail from Vicki Abeles and the folks at Race to Nowhere which talks about schools that have decided that there will be a no homework rule during school vacations. After watching the short clip and listening to the rationale, it seems like a no-brainer to me. Why...
Online Learning – Another Misguided Mandate
Idaho recently became the fourth state to add an online learning requirement for students to graduate from high school. As is typical with these types of bureaucratic decisions, this initiative makes for great headlines but its impact on student learning remains questionable. There’s a big rush to add online learning opportunities for students without...
What Did You Learn At School Today? (From Your Students)
I spend a great deal of time thinking about the shift that we need to see in our schools in order to best prepare our students for their future. Lately I’ve been thinking about the question that many parents ask their children when they get off of the school bus or when they sit...
Have Patience…We All Arrive At Different Times
Admittedly, patience is something that does not always come easy to me. I have written and spoken more times than I would like to admit about my lack of understanding for colleagues who fail to embrace tools that allow us to connect, collaborate, and learn regardless of time and place. As is the case...
#ReformNCLB – We Know It Stinks, What Are We Waiting For?
There is growing frustration among educators regarding the direction, or lack thereof, in regards to a serious reform effort for the public education system in the United States. In fact, some would suggest that we, the educators, are the problem. When you think about it, can you argue against the fact...
Hope To See You At The #140edu Conference in New York
Thanks to the efforts of Jeff Pulver and Chris Lehmann, the first-ever #140edu Conference will take place in New York City on August 2 and 3. There is a fantastic slate of speakers lined up including: Connected Principal’s own Eric Sheninger, #edchat founders Shell Terrell, Tom Whitby, and Steve Anderson, and many other amazing...
Learned Helplessness: We Need To Stop Modeling This!
As we continue to move forward with technology integration in our schools, or any iniative for that matter, it is imperative that we consider the message that our actions send to others. For me, I am constantly worried about the message that is trickling down to our students. We need to be wary of...
ISTE Panel QOTD 3 – How Do We Engage Parents In Tech Discussion?
This is part of a series of posts following up on the great questions that were asked in the backchannel #cpchatq during our panel “What Does It Mean To Be A Tech-Savvy Principal” at ISTE 2011 in Philadelphia last week. Question 3 in our series following up on the great questions that were submitted...
ISTE Panel Question of the Day 1- Isn’t Being Tech Savvy Just Part Of Our Job?
The Conected Principals Panel at ISTE - via http://www.flickr.com/photos/tonybaldasaro/ Reflecting on our great panel discussion at ISTE 2011, I am overwhelmed by the number of great questions that were asked on #cpchatq during the panel. Because of the phenomenal list of questions, we have decided to do a series of posts highlighting these questions. Our first...
I am excited to be on a panel with some of the most tech-savvy Principals I know today at the ISTE 2011 Conference in Philadelphia. The title of the panel discussion is “What does it mean to be a tech-savvy Principal?” It will be a great opportunity to learn from the other panel members George Couros,...
The Importance of “Connected Principals” Gains Another Supporter – NASSP
One of the frustrating things about being a “Connected Principal” is the fact that there are still many of our colleagues who are hesitant to use some of the mobile learning and social media tools that are available to improve communication, collaboration and learning in there schools. The good news on this front...
Steven Pressfield’s Do The Work – A Must Read For Those Interested In Improving Education
“In this unfolding conundrum of life and history, there is such a thing as being too late. Procrastination is still the thief of time.” Martin Luther King Jr. As a proponent of beginning with the end in mind, I will start with the above quote from the final paragraph of Steven Pressfield’s new book...
A Vacation Reflection – Handing Over Control To The Kids
One of the highlights of my trip to San Diego last week was a day at the San Diego Zoo. The place is amazing, encompassing over 100 acres with over 4,000 rare and endangered animals. However, my post is less about what I saw and more about how I saw it. You...
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