The 21st Century Principal

Structuring Classrooms for Exploration, Risk-Taking and Engineering

2013-05-21T13:41:00.002-04:00

“But engineering isn’t about perfect solutions; it’s about doing the best you can with limited resources.” Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture

As Randy Pausch suggests, engineering isn't about "looking for the one right answer or perfect solution." Engineering is about looking for solutions that work. While our policymakers and politicians talk incessantly about the need for more engineers and scientists, they advocate for a system of education of standardization and accountability that is in some ways direct contradiction to the kinds of tasks and thinking engineers and scientists do.

According to Sylvia Martinez and Gary Stager, authors of the book Invent to Learn: Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom,

“The past few decades have been a dark time in many schools. Emphasis on high stakes testing, teaching to the test, de-professionalizing teachers, and depending on data rather than teacher expertise has created classrooms that are increasingly devoid of play, rich materials, and time to do projects.”

With classrooms that are bleak and where test scores dictate every move, it is no wonder our schools are rapidly becoming places where no one wants to be. Why can't we reduce a drop out rate that seems to stubbornly persist no matter what we do? Why do our students stare at us with blank expressions from their uniform rows of desks? Why are our so many of our students so disengaged from school and see it the last place they want to be? It is because our schools have become prisons of standardization where creativity and inventiveness are sacrificed for conformity. It is because of an emphasis on comparing student test scores for the purpose of determining school effectiveness and teacher/principal effectiveness which fosters more test-prep and teaching to the test. These reforms dictated through NCLB and Race to the Top have made our schools “places devoid of play, rich materials and time to do projects” as Martinez and Stager describe it. That's why no one wants to be there.

What is our alternative? How can we create classrooms and schools where learning is the focus again, not just test scores? How can we make our schools into places where our kids want to be and want to learn? How can we have schools that encourage the kinds of tasks and thinking engineers and scientists do? The answer lies in turning our schools into places where students can “make, tinker, engineer” to use the terms of Martinez and Stager.

I am just now beginning my reading of Martinez and Stager’s book Invent to Learn: Making, Tinkering, and Engineering in the Classroom, and I am intrigued by what they propose. Martinez and Stager point to all the “amazing tools, materials, and skills that turn us all into makers.” We are all "makers" and "tinkerers" at heart they say, which means we can do as these authors suggest and use "technology to make, repair, or customize the things we need" and "bring engineering, design, and computer science to the masses.” Furthermore, we can create the kinds of learning places where “Children should engage in tinkering and making because they are powerful ways to learn.”

But what would a classroom that emphasizes “making, tinkering, and engineering” look like? Martinez and Stager will no doubt answer that question in their book, but I suspect that some of the characteristics of such a classroom would be like the following.

Structured for exploration: The physical space would not be structured with a teacher’s desk or podium-presentation equipment at the center. Instead, space would be structured for collaboration, for individual learning, and for student-centered learning activity. A variety of high-tech and low-tech materials and equipment would be available for making, tinkering and inventing.
Structured for risk-taking: The classroom is purposely designed to allow students to take risks in learning and in trying new ideas. Mistakes are allowed and actually encouraged. Experimentation is the rule, not conformity.
Structured for inquiry: Students asking their own questions rather than answering predetermined questions provided by a teacher is the norm for classrooms structured for inquiry. Students pose the questions and their learning comes from the exploration and search for answers to those questions.
Structured for students: The classroom would be structured for students, not teachers, not principals, not policymakers and not politicians. Too much of what we currently do in the classroom is done to satisfy politicians with agendas and leaders with egos. Classrooms structured for students exist for student learning and places them at the center.

One can perhaps argue whether our schools are going through “dark times” as Martinez and Stager suggest. It probably depends on your perspective of standardization and testing. But, it is difficult to deny that some aspects of our standardization-accountability movement are turning schools into places where creativity and invention are devalued in favor of conformity and test-prep, and those who continue to push for more testing and more standardized curriculum need to be aware of what they may be trading in to obtain those things.

Which Model of Project-Based Learning Is Needed in 21st Century Schools?

2013-05-20T12:20:00.000-04:00

“PBL has been practiced in various ways in education and has become increasingly common with the advent of of digital technologies in recent years.” Yong Zhao, World Class Learners: Educating Creative and Entrepreneurial Students

Project-Based Learning (PBL) is being touted as the 21st century answer to how we should be educating students and the perfect delivery-system for the Common Core State Standards. While those reasons for implementing PBL are legitimate, there are other reasons for implementing PBL as well. First of all, it has the potential to be a more engaging learning and teaching strategy. Secondly, it may more accurately mirror the world of work by engaging students in problem-solving. Thirdly, it can engage students in using technology to create and innovate. While these are additional reasons to implement PBL, we also need to be clearer regarding what we mean by PBL. There are multiple versions of PBL and those versions are not all equally effective in addressing these same reasons.

In his book World Class Learners: Educating Creative and Entrepreneurial Students, Yong Zhao describes three different iterations of PBL, each with its own features and desired outcomes. He specifically advocates for the third model, Entrepreneurial Model of PBL, in order to educate students to effectively tackle the problems we face in the 21st century, but his PBL model framework is an interesting way to help us think about what we mean by PBL and what we want to accomplish with its implementation. Here’s Zhao’s three models:

Academic Model of PBL	Goal or intention is to teach prescribed content and skills. This prescribed content and these skills drive the project. The resulting products are byproducts of learning and not considered as important as the content/skills learned. Products are not really meant for authentic consumption. Effectiveness of this model of PBL is assessed by how well students master the content and prescribed skills as identified on achievement tests. Teacher controls the content, what is taught, how projects are created and how projects are evaluated.
Mixed Model of PBL	This model values the artifacts---the products students create, but also values prescribed content. End products created by students are expected to be of high quality, and are sometimes created for consumers outside the school. Mandated content and standards aren't ignored, but they are not the starting points for projects.Content and skills are not allowed to define, constrain, or guide the projects. To ensure content and skills are taught, teachers are in control of the process: teachers may ask for input but they decide how the project is carried out. Students have varying degrees of freedom within the prescribed project. Students may engage in peer review or evaluation of projects, but evaluation is largely at teacher activity. Focus is less on transmitting knowledge and more about learning real-world skills.
Entrepreneurial Model of PBL	Aim is cultivate entrepreneurial spirit and skills. Places more emphasis on artifacts, the products, than either of the other two models. Products must be of high-quality and must appeal to external consumers. Products must meet an authentic need of a customer. Students are in more control of their products. They propose and initiate the product proposal process. They must sell the product to the teacher and get the teacher to approve the product. Students develop a business plan: documentation and analysis of target audience, feasibility studies, and marketing plan. Teacher takes on the role of “venture capitalist,” consultant, motivator, and facilitator. Projects can be individual or collaborative. Time for students to work is divided into large chunks. Traditional schedule and calendar may not suffice. Focus is on the product, not the process or skills necessarily. Product-oriented learning.

It's clear by looking at Zhao’s three models of PBL, that the first two models are about teaching the prescribed curriculum, but only using PBL as the conduit for that teaching. The last model, the Entrepreneurial Model, is designed to foster an entrepreneurial mindset and skill set which is what Zhao’s book advocates and states is needed in the 21st century.

Whether you see Zhao’s “Entrepreneurial Model of PBL” or product-oriented learning as being feasible or not, it does offer some interesting ideas to ponder. As Zhao points out, “Entrepreneurship is about inventing a solution to an existing problem or creating a product or service to meet a need.” And if what we really need are creative and inventive solutions to the problems staring us in the face as 21st century citizens, then there’s certainly a great deal merit in this Entrepreneurial model of PBL.

5 Abilities of Successful School Leaders in a Sea of Change...Mindful Leadership

2013-05-19T14:16:00.001-04:00

“The new reality requires all leaders to have unprecedented presence of mind as a starting point from which to lead.” Maria Gonzalez, Mindful Leadership: The 9 Ways to Self-Awareness, Transforming Yourself, and Inspiring Others

Having presence of mind in the midst of crisis and trouble is vital to leaders whether inside or outside education. To understand how vital, we only need look backward to great leaders who demonstrated great presence of mind in the midst of calamity and trial. From George Washington to Winston Churchill to Mahatma Gandhi, we have countless examples of individuals who demonstrated this powerful presence of mind necessary for successful leadership.

Maria Gonzales, author of Mindful Leadership: The 9 Ways of Self-Awareness, Transforming Yourself, and Inspiring Others, offers leaders A List of "Abilities of Mind" important for successful leadership development. Taking her list and applying specifically to educational leadership, can bring both authenticity and presence to our school and district leadership positions and with it the success we desire for ourselves and our organizations. These abilities include the following.
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1. The ability to calm yourself in the face of stress or difficult decisions. If you have been in educational leadership very long, you know difficult decisions are common-place. The situations requiring these kinds of decisions come at multiple times of day, and being able to project presence of mind to those around us is vital to success. We must have the ability to self-calm in the face of adversity and often emotionally charged situations. If we project anger in a tense situation with a parent or student, escalation of conflict will naturally result. If we act from panic, those around us panic. Effective school leadership demands that we are able to calm ourselves and then act with deliberateness and decisiveness. Acting from intense emotion or stress is interpreted by others as weakness, and educational leaders with the ability to calm themselves are seen as strong and worthy of followership.

2. The ability to understand what’s going on within yourself and how you perceive reality and the business reality. Being in touch with our "inner selves" is not some gimmicky, faddish suggestion only found in books on the self-help aisle at your local bookstore. It is truly an ability needed for successful leadership. Leaders who know what's going on inside themselves also understand that what's inside affects what is outside. They know it is impossible to entirely separate oneself inside from actions taken outside. Also, with this understanding educational leaders know that compartmentalization of our lives into within and without is impossible. In addition to understanding themselves inside, it is equally important for school leaders to be aware of their own perceptions of reality. Not only that, they understand that their perception of reality may be skewed and inaccurate. In addition, understanding that others have their perceptions too means being able to consider other perspectives for better decision-making. Skillful leadership begins by understanding yourself fully on the inside and understanding others too.

3. The ability to be present in the moment and clearly understand what you’re hearing or reading instead of being caught up in regretting or reliving the past of fearing and catastrophizing the future. School leadership requires being present in the moment because that is where everything is happening. While that sounds simplistic and most would consider it a given, in practice, many times school leaders are caught up in living in a past of regrets and glories rather than being in the moment. To be in the moment means reading and seeing what's happening now without judgment. It means letting go of the past. Being present means we are dealing with issues now, not fighting ghosts of the past. It also means engaging in leadership that focuses on now, not daydreaming of the future or dwelling on mistakes of the past. Leaders who demonstrate the ability to be fully present communicate to others that they are on the job and taking care of things.

4. The ability to imagine a life that is positive and fulfilling and to set in motion positive outcomes in your life and business. The ability to imagine life that is positive and fulfilling means being able to develop a vision for both our personal future and the future of our school or district. This ability means being able to imagine a successful personal life, and also imagine a school where all kids learn and all staff are compassionate and perform at a high level. It is from the perspective of vision and imagination that we set in motion action that makes positive outcomes happen. Imagining the positive future is a vital school leadership ability in an age where constant negativity about schools surrounds us.

5. The ability to know that all things pass and nothing is forever, whether it’s good or bad. The ability to know that all things are impermanent is a vital school leadership skill too. Impermanence means lots of things to leaders. It means our mistakes are OK. It means we don't have to keep replaying in our minds the bad decisions we've made in the past. It means we can take risks which is the currency of innovation. Knowing that all things pass means we can be assertive school leaders who can act creatively and innovatively in our positions.

Our new reality in our schools and school districts requires a presence of mind more than any other in the history of public education. Forces surround us, some benevolent, who want to see public education blossom and grow, some malevolent, who want to see public education dismantled and cast aside. In the midst of these forces, along with the rapid changes in society, policy and global connectivity, school leaders need “presence of mind” more than ever. Gonzalez’s List of Abilities of Mind can bring that presence and make us successful school leaders in a sea of change.

7 Principles to Guide Amazingly Simple School Improvement Plans and Planning

2013-05-18T10:27:00.001-04:00

“The simple way isn’t always the easiest. Often it requires more time, more money, and more energy. It might require you to step on a few toes. But more times than not, it will lead to measurably better results.” Ken Segall, Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple’s Success

Tis the season, or almost the season, for schools to begin that process of “examining data, pondering goals, and discussing improvement” all in the service of our now established ritual of “School Improvement Planning.” It has become a religious ritual, with school leaders serving as the high priest, or priestess of improvement, hammering out details of plans on how to improve their school or district.

But in all this improvement planning, we sometimes forget important things we know are inherent about planning in general and school improvement planning specifically. In our efforts to be thorough and “good little administrators” we make school improvement planning much more complex than it should be, and we lose sight of what is important. Now, I am certainly not advocating the idea of proverbially flying by the seats of our pants when it comes to leading schools or districts. We know plans are important. But as we move into this Season of SIP, let’s keep some important principles of school improvement and common sense in mind.

1. Keep it simple. Sometimes in our zeal to plan for improvement, we make the school improvement planning process too complicated. For example, if it takes a masters degree to figure out how to complete your school improvement template, then that’s a problem. We should take a lesson from Apple with our school improvement plans. According to Ken Segall, “Everyone of Apple’s revolutions was born of the company’s devotion to Simplicity. Each new device created a new category or turned an existing category on its head---all because, as an old iMac ad put it, the technology was “simply amazing, and amazingly simple.” We can have school improvement plans and planning processes that are simple too. When anyone, educator or non-educator, looks at our plans, they should be “simply amazing, and amazingly simple” not some document no one reads because it is too complicated and needs interpretation.

2. You don’t have to wait to include it in your school improvement plan to improve it. I have actually been in schools and districts that refused to take on new initiatives simply because “it was not in their plan.” How’s that for being majorly short-sighted? Sometimes the best improvement ideas and improvements are those that come to us in the middle of the night, and if we wait until we can get it “into the school improvement plan” opportunities disappear. School improvement must be nimble and responsive, but when our school improvement processes become ponderous and rigid, how can we expect to be able to engage in any lasting and significant improvement? We need to be willing to sometimes “Make it so” to use the words of one of my Star Trek heroes.

3. Improvement can begin with the smallest things first. Schools become dysfunctional often due to a large number of small things that build up over time. Cultures get sick because of the small things that get neglected. If you really want to engage in school or district improvement, look to the small things first. While it might seem insignificant to you, I can bet the coffee you buy means something to someone. The lack of a pleasant greeting impacts someone when they walk into the building. We are sometimes blinded in our thinking by seeing improvement as the “big things,” when very often, changing all the little things make the big things better.

4. Focus on making things better for kids, not raising test scores, attendance rates, graduation rates or lowering drop out rates, suspensions etc. When you focus on numbers you can lose sight that everyone of those data-points represents kids. Data is important of course, but we should not be data-centric. We should be kid-centric. This means when planning improvement, there might be things that would improve test scores or lower drop out rates, but still not be good for kids. When your leadership focuses on numbers instead of kids, well, you get people who play games with numbers. Hence, you get Georgia testing scandals, DC testing scandals. Behind every non-proficient score you have a kid, not an object that we can “add-value” to.

5. Improvement should be continuous, and it is not always relegated to what you have on paper. Those who have an “improvement mindset” know that improvement is not something done every two or four years. It is something engaged in every single moment of every day. If you want to improve your school, you can begin in your classroom, office, or hallway, and keep improving things everyday.

6. Improvement is much easier if your school community strongly believes in what you are doing. This is a no-brainer. All that talk and effort about “stakeholder buy-in” is unnecessary if your school community culture is powered by common belief and support for what you are trying to do. You get your school community to believe in what you are doing by attending to their desires, needs, etc. When that is not possible, you work extra hard to get them to understand why, and while they may not agree, they can accept what you’re doing.

7. If you have to work too hard to convince your school community to buy into your plans, then maybe there’s something wrong with your plans. One of the grandest obstacles to school improvement are egos. School leaders with enormous egos sometimes come into school communities with grandiose plans that are more about them than the people they serve. Perhaps if that plan you have requires an extensive PR campaign, it isn't what your school or district needs. Just maybe it's what you need more than your schools need. Knowing when to back off with your plans, especially when its more about your ego than school improvement, is a key leadership trait.

As you and your school district move into this season of school improvement planning, taking Ken Segall’s advice when it comes to simplicity is important for those plans. He reminds us:

“By embracing the values of Simplicity, you will be the one to promote change, keep colleagues on course, and prove your value to the company (school, district) day by day.”

If your school improvement planning and plans are made ponderous and difficult they do not have to be. These seven principles can guide your school or district to simplify and make your school improvement "simply amazing and amazingly simple."

5 Steps for Dealing with the Emotionally Charged Situation in Your Classrooms, Schools or Offices

2013-05-17T08:51:00.000-04:00

Name one person who always “triggers” strong emotion and anger in your life. If you are a district level leader, that person might be a board member or local politician. Or if you are a principal, it might be a parent, student, or even a teacher. If you’re a teacher, it might be one particular student or a colleague. In each of these cases, this individual usually knows and is highly skilled in knowing how to push your buttons and make you lose your cool. If relationships are truly important to us, we must learn how to effectively cope in these situations. Learning how to deal with these triggers is a powerful exercise in emotional intelligence, a test of character, and in being an effective educator.

Google engineer, Chade-Meng Tan, offers a simple technique, based Buddhist mindfulness meditation principles, that provides a way to effectively respond to these “triggers” rather than react to them. In his book, Search Inside Yourself: The Unexpected Path to Achieving Success, Happiness (And World Peace), Meng offers a practice he calls the “Siberian North Railroad.” This practice, according to Meng, “is useful for dealing with triggers, but also for other situations in which we need to deal with negative or distressing emotions.” The practice has five steps:

1. Stop
2. Breathe
3. Notice
4. Reflect
5. Respond

Notice that the title “Siberian North Railroad” is a mnemonic device to remember the first letter of the words in each of the five steps (SBNRR). Here's how each of these 5 steps work:

Stop: According to Meng, when you “feel triggered” you just stop. You pause without doing anything. This is the most important step because it allows you to engage in the other steps. As Meng points out, in Buddhism, this is called the “sacred pause."

Breathe: In this step, focus the mind on the breath for a few minutes. Take several deep, conscious breaths, calming yourself. When your mind tries to slip back to the anger or strong emotion, redirect it back toward your breath.

Notice: After focusing on the breath, then “notice” by closely examining the emotion. Look at what it feels like in your whole body. Notice how the emotion is affecting all parts of your body. The goal is to experience the emotion physiologically and not as something separate from your body. For example, as Meng suggests, your observation is not “I am angry” but “I experience anger in my body.” This is where you try to experience what the emotion is doing to you inside and out.

Reflect: In this step, Meng says to ask the question, “Where is this emotion coming from?” Is it due something in my personal history? Is it due to some perceived personal inadequacy? This step is all about gaining a perspective of the emotion objectively from the outside. You put yourself in the other person’s shoes. You also remind yourself that all people just want to be happy and that this person is only acting this way because they perceive it will make them happy. This is important: bring perspective to your emotion without judging it right or wrong.

Respond: In this step, you finally respond. As Meng points out, you first bring to mind ways in which you could respond that bring about a positive outcome in the situation. Imagine what a positive response would look like. You may or may not actually have to carry out that response. Just remember, the goal here is to defuse the trigger before you make a bad situation worse.

SBNRR is a strategy, if practiced over time, breaks down our learned pattern of reacting to those strong emotional triggers, and installs a new, more effective way of responding. As we repeat this practice even with those strong emotional events that have occurred in the past, we begin to see that we can relearn how we respond to others in the most trying situations.

What I personally like about the Siberian North Railroad Strategy is that it actually provides a specific way to respond in those situations when someone has triggered strong emotions. It is a powerful exercise in emotional intelligence that can give schools leaders, teachers, and even students a tool to use in the sometimes highly-charged emotional environment we call school. Leadership is very much about being able to deal with our own emotional triggers effectively, and this strategy gives us the means to do just that.

Note: Chade-Meng Tan's book Search Inside Yourself: The Unexpected Path to Achieving Success, Happiness (And World Peace) is based on a course in emotional intelligence taught at Google. You will find countless other strategies in this book for dealing with interpersonal and intrapersonal issues. Meng's straightforward, humorous style makes the book a pleasant read too.

School Leadership and 3 Acts of Integrity to Practice Today

2013-05-16T08:57:00.001-04:00

“Integrity is acting for what is right. When we do this, we feel whole and uniquely powerful.” Gus Lee & Diane Elliott-Lee, Courage: The Backbone of Leadership

How many of you have had the rare opportunity to work with a leader that you would follow no matter where they led? I’m not referring to blind-followership. I am referring to following out of devotion because of who that leader is and what they are made of. Though I am sure many of us have had that pleasure, I can't help but ask myself now that I am in a leadership position, “What did that leader/manager possess that fostered this willingness to follow, not due to their super-ordinate position, but due to who they were?” I suspect one answer to that question is "Integrity."

What is integrity? According to Lee and Lee, integrity is "acting for what is right." It is adhering to inner principles. It is simply "doing the right thing because it's the right thing to do." It is leading from the "moral center within."

Lee and Lee, in their book Courage: The Backbone of Leadership, offer three acts of integrity.

1. Discerning right from wrong. Discerning right from wrong involves doing many things.

It involves consulting others for advice or counsel, especially those who have demonstrated a level of wisdom greater than our own. These individuals can be experienced mentors; other experienced teachers, principals, superintendents, all offer us an opportunity to reflect with us about what is right and what is wrong. We all must have individuals to whom we can look for wise counsel.
In our discerning right from wrong, we must also honor our conscience. Taking actions that conflict with our internal compasses are a clear sign that those actions are the wrong actions. By honoring our conscience, we also stay true to ourselves as well. Being able to look at yourself in the mirror each morning is important for us as school leaders.
In addition to honoring our conscience, we also need to be mindful so that our own personal needs and biases are not the sole basis for our actions and decisions. Lee and Lee call this “putting ourselves on the stand.” We must scrutinize our own motives because acting out of pure selfishness can lead us to wrong actions. Those motives might be in congruence with the right decision, but should not be our basis for action. Being mindful of our own "agenda" means not choosing it over what's in the best interest of others.

2. Acting for what is right regardless of risk to self. This is especially difficult in a politically charged environment like school districts and school systems. How many times have we witnessed decisions made in schools that were clearly not in the best interest of kids, but more in the interest of the adults in the school or district? Like the business environment, personal agendas become the drivers of decisions made, often at the expense of “rightness” and standing up for what is right is not the most advantageous, politically correct thing to do.

If we are truly leaders of integrity, we are going to let others know what we think the right decision should be. Even more so, we as leaders are never going to demand others make decisions that conflict with their sense of right and wrong. Leaders of integrity foster integrity in others. They allow those they lead to express their reservations and problems with decisions being made. They are also open to being convinced that they can make wrong decisions too.
We are also going to do what is right, not what will get us the next promotion. True leaders expect nothing less of those they lead as well. If we want an environment that prizes integrity, then we must admire that in those that follow us.

3. Teaching others from that act of integrity. By our demonstrations of integrity, we communicate to those who follow us that integrity is important. Doing the right thing is the right thing to do and we expect it out of all those we lead.

Lessons of integrity-failure abound in recent history. Enron, the financial meltdown that led to the Great Recession, and recent decisions made by our political leaders today are all examples of leadership decisions made without deference to integrity. In the end, to be a school leader of integrity means to courageously stand for what you believe to be right, and having the humility and courage to admit when you have been wrong, and expect no less from those we lead.

Computer-to-Student Ratio Stats Are Not Measures of School Effectiveness

2013-05-15T11:45:00.000-04:00

The field of education “focuses on initiatives targeting computer-to-student ratios and administration process automation, not learning processes or outcomes,” according to Alan Bain and Mark Weston, authors of The Learning Edge: What Technology Can Do to Educate All Children.

Though we claim to focus on student achievement with our technology initiatives, that focus is more often on the “stuff” rather than on what we have students and teachers do or achieve with that “stuff.” It’s clear that one of the most useless statistics we keep is computer-to-student ratio. It’s deceptive to ourselves and the public and we know it. We know that just because every student has access to a computer does not mean students are accessing them to engage in meaningful learning, and we also know having 1:1 access does not necessarily mean the teacher is using the technology to engage in meaningful teaching. And, as far as administration automation software, just because our state’s fancily automated student data systems provides the slickest and most numerous data reports does not mean our students are learning any more than they normally would nor can we say teaching is better, or will get better.

If we don’t focus on the quantity of computer our schools have and the elaborate software systems, what do we do need to focus on in order to capitalize on the true potential of technology for teaching and learning?

Instead of focusing on computer-to-student ratios, let’s revolutionize teaching and learning. We should not be purchasing technology to help us do what we've always done in our schools and classrooms. Let’s employ technology to completely reinvent instruction. We know what we are currently doing in our classrooms does not work for all students, and to try to use technology to simply automate and facilitate current educational practice is inadequate. Technology’s true potential lies in how it can create new ways of teaching and learning. We need to capitalize on that potential.
Instead of focusing on fancy administrative data systems, let’s keep them simple. When states try to create elaborate data systems, they often keep adding feature after feature. Underlying many of these systems is the whole idea that “You can’t have too much data” as an educator. But the opposite is actually true: it is possible to have too much data. Keeping these administrative data systems simple should be a priority. It’s a real problem when a teacher or administrator can’t run a simple student tardy report because the program is too complex. To keep this from happening, I would suggest that systems designers consult with practicing principals and teachers. Practicing educators can tell them what data they need, and what they need these systems to do.
Repeat the mantra: “The quality of a school is never measured by the number of computers in the building.” It is not a badge of honor for a school to have 10 computers per student, especially if those computers sit in carts untouched or on desktops gathering dust. In the end, a boast that our schools have 1:1 means very little if business is as usual in the classrooms.

The time has come for school leaders to stop talking about computer-to-student ratios and focus instead on what is much more important: teaching and learning.

Transforming Our Schools by Changing Mindsets Not by Buying More Technology

2013-05-14T06:20:00.001-04:00

“Teacher mind frames are the most important enhancer and barrier to students’ learning.” Alan Bain and Mark Weston, The Learning Edge: What Technology Can Do to Educate All Children

Our relentless pursuit for some magical formula that will suddenly transform our schools is a fruitless quest. There are no magical formulas or tools, and there are no heroes who will ride into our schools and school districts and suddenly save the day and turn our schools into magical places of learning and engagement. If transformation is to happen, we need to stop pursuing 1:1 initiatives, new standards, new tests, next generation tests, longer school days, and the other latest and greatest educational gimmicks and get down to the real reasons why we can’t change our schools. Authors Bain and Weston offer some good advice: look to the mindsets of the educators in our schools and districts. That's where the real obstacles lie.

According to Bain and Weston, “Technology will not force its way into classrooms; for decades, teachers and schools have shown remarkable kickback,” and if you walk into any district that has spent thousands or millions on technological toys, you will see what they are talking about. We look at all out technological toys and we ask ourselves:

“Why are our teachers not using these interactive boards?”
“Why are those iPads sitting idle in the corner of the room?”
“Why is it when I visit the classrooms in our school district I see little engagement with technology by the students, and mostly the kinds of teaching and learning that has been going on for the last 100 years or so?”

I think the answers to these questions are rather simple: we put all this technology in our classrooms and schools, but we forget that many of our teachers simply look for ways to use the technology to help them teach as they always have, rather than look for new ways of teaching with the technology. Their mindset is the obstacle. (Administrators have that mindset too.)

If you really want to know why all that technology sits idle, it's probably because it does not fit the way your teachers teach and the way they have been teaching for the past 100 years or so. Too much of that teaching is still teachers talking, students sitting and listening. In these classrooms, some teachers determine that if the technology won't help them do school like they have been doing it, then they don’t need it. They don’t see the need to change how they are teaching, even though half their class stares up at them in glazed-eye stupor.

If we really want to transform teaching and learning in our schools and classrooms, perhaps we need to pause from all the technology buying, installing, and training and focus on the “mindsets” that our teachers and administrators have. We need to stop “automating the 20th century ways of teaching and learning” and pursue whole new ways of teaching and learning.

Teaching Active Reputation Management: 5 Steps for Sanitizing Facebook Accounts

2013-05-01T09:04:00.001-04:00

“Collectively, all of the digital content you create, and that others create about you, becomes your online reputation. And today, that’s the reputation that matters the most.” Matt Ivester, lol…OMG! What Every Student Needs to Know about Online Reputation Management, Digital Citizenship and Cyberbullying

In his book, lol...OMG! What Every Student Needs to Know about Online Reputation Management, Digital Citizenship and Cyberbullying, Matt Ivester repeatedly cautions high school students that “What we do in the digital world often lasts forever,” and that they need to take whatever actions necessary to engage in “Active Reputation Management.” That "Active Reputation Management" includes both proactive measures students can use to keep from sharing content harmful to their reputations, and it also includes measures that students can use to "sanitize" or clean-up damaging content already posted.

While it is true that once something is shared online, it is probably permanent, that does not mean students can't make an effort to sanitize their shared content that could give college admissions officers and future employers the wrong impression. In doing that, Ivester offers students some sound advice. That advice is: Begin today cleaning up all the online accounts and services where you have shared and created content, starting with your Facebook account.

Facebook Sanitation Process
(Can be used for other content sharing sites too.)

1. Review your profile information. Remove anything that might reflect on you in a negative way with future employers and college admission officers. View the information from the perspective of a potential employer or college admissions officer. Or, as Ivester suggests, have a trusted teacher or another adult review the content. Information shared in a social media profile can create an impression of you that you don't want others to have just as much as the content you have shared.

2. Examine all the pages that you have liked, and disassociate yourself from those that might reflect on you personally in a negative manner. For example, if you have "liked" a page that reflects values or beliefs that are discriminatory, someone looking at that might view you as having that same inclination. The pages we "like" on Facebook communicate a message about us as much as the content we share.

3. Examine all other pages associated with your account and remove those associations or pages that reflect on you negatively or have the potential to give improper perceptions. Careful examination of any additional pages you have created in Facebook is a must. Make sure that none of those reflect values that give visitors to your page the wrong impression about you as a person.

4. Review all your photos and videos. Purge those that might be misunderstood or reflect on you in a negative manner. For example, many young people post pictures of themselves having fun at a party or at the beach. If in one of the photos or videos they are acting foolishly or holding an alcohol product, a potential employer or college admissions officer might get the wrong impression.

5. Go back and review your timeline from the start. Remove any posts that can be misunderstood or reflects on you in a negative manner. This is important. Everyone should go back and review their Facebook timeline from time to time, and do so with a critical eye. While we like to think what we share there is only seen by our "friends," we know that once posted, it can be shared with others we don't know. In that manner, a comment we made 3 years ago might come back to haunt us with a future employer or college admissions officer.

As Ivester suggests, active reputation management involves reviewing the content created and viewing that content from the perspective of others. As 21st century educators we can and should teach students how to manage their online reputations. With these five steps, students can begin the process by sanitizing their Facebook accounts, and in turn begin the process of repairing their online reputations. Then, these same five steps can be repeated for all personal content sharing sites too. This is one way to ensure that their youthful indiscretions do not negatively impact their futures.

On a side note, Matt Ivester's book is an excellent resource for high school students. Using real examples, he takes students through all the ways sharing content can cause consequences they would rather avoid. Then, he gives them strategies they can use to both proactively and actively manage their online reputations and lives. This book might make an excellent graduation gift.

MindMapper for iOS: (Currently) Free and Easy to Use Mindmapping App

2013-04-30T07:20:00.001-04:00

If you are looking for a mindmapping app for your iPad or iPhone, currently SimTech Systems has their MindMapper app for iOS available for free in the Appstore. With MindMapper, you have all the usual capabilities of mindmapping software, and you can save an image file of your maps to your Dropbox account. While you do not have access to editing maps on your desktop like you do with the Inspiration app I reviewed earlier ("Inspiration Maps: Excellent Mapping Solution for iPad"), this app is a fully functional alternative for the iPad. (Besides, the Inspiration app is not free.) The desktop app is available for purchase at Academic pricing from www.mindmapper.com. Though it isn’t clear what that price is.

MindMapper app for the iOS is an excellent fully functional mindmapping application. The fact that it is currently Free makes it even better.

MindMapper iOS App

For more information about MindMapper, check it out in iTunes. (MindMapper in iTunes) Also, check out the SimTech Mindmapper web site for information about their desktop application.

Strategies for Teaching Students to Critically Validate Online Information

2013-04-28T15:06:00.000-04:00

“With all these online searching aids at our disposal, we should be committing to teaching our children accurate and creative searching techniques that are applicable across every discipline.” Alan November, Who Owns the Learning: Preparing Students for Success in the Digital Age

Our students hold within the palms of their hands and with their laptops, access to all of the world’s information, updated continuously and free, yet like Alan November indicates, I am not sure we consistently teach our students “accurate and creative searching techniques” that they can use in all content areas and in multiple contexts, to validate information. As educators, we still too often leave students to their own devices when sorting through online search results. Also, we only critique their sources when we evaluate their end products, instead of helping them in-process. But in our 21st century classrooms we desperately need to employ specific activities and teaching strategies designed to foster our students' abilities to critically validate online information.

In his book, Who Owns the Learning: Preparing Students for Success in the Digital Age, Alan November advocates for turning students into researchers as a means to having them take ownership of their learning. For students to effectively take ownership of that learning though, we can ill-afford to turn them loose with Google and expect them to dazzle us with what they find out. Though many students use the Internet daily, they are still most often “web-illiterate” in that they do not know how to validate the information they find on the web. As educators, we owe it to them to teach how to examine the validity of what they find during their research activities.

If we want to begin today teaching our students to critically validate what they find on the web, what can we do immediately in our schools and classrooms to make this happen? Using Alan November's suggestions, here's some starting points.

“Train students to understand when, why, and how to use online content.” This means teaching students to know when turning to online sources will yield the information they want, and when going offline for information is more effective. For example, students might find a considerable amount of current information about the Boston Bombings on the Internet. However, if they want to find out what their local municipality is doing to address these kinds of dangers, there might not be much information available on the web. Instead, they might set up an interview with the town police chief or mayor to get information specific to their town or city. The reasons for using online content in the first place is to obtain the most current information available on a topic because the web’s information is quickly updated. Also, the web offers access to sources not readily available elsewhere.
Teach students as November suggests to “Assess Online Information Sources.” This involves three things:

Teach them to examine the purpose of the online information. The hidden message behind online content is not always apparent. Teaching our students to look for those hidden messages is important. Once they are able to critically examine why the content exists, they are also in a position to validate it. For example, too often content is provided by business, industry, and ideologically oriented sites to shore up their agendas. That does not make the information wrong or invalid, but it should caution students to further check facts. Why information exists on the web is an important consideration when trying to validate it.
Teach students to examine the author. Being able to search the web and elsewhere for other work published by the author is a key literacy skill for our students. Because anyone can publish anything checking out the author is important. The web makes it easy for students to verify the credentials of content creators. Once again though, they will need to verify in multiple ways those stated credentials and that other stated publications are valid too. Knowing the author of web content is a key way to determine web content's validity and our students need to know ways to do just that.
Teach students to examine the context of the online information. As Alan November points out, there are indicators of web content’s reliability by where that content is placed. For example, content on a personal web site is often not as reliable as content on a major university’s site, or the site of a well-known, highly regarded publication. Still, students need to always be cautious. Even the most reliable web places can be wrong. Remaining skeptical until information can be verified in multiple ways with multiple sources is an attitude we should foster in all our students.

As we move toward getting our students to do more and more authentic, 21st century learning activities, it is vital that we focus more on the process of validating web information in our teaching. As November indicates, our students might use the web and Google every single day, but they do not often know how to validate all the information coming at them. As 21st century educators, we must teach students how to critically validate all the online information they encounter.

Great Resource for Helping Students Manage Their Online Reputations

2013-04-24T09:58:00.000-04:00

According to Matt Ivester in his book lol…OMG: What Every Student Needs to Know about Online Reputation Management, Digital Citizenship and Cyberbullying, “Many of today’s students are finding themselves with a very real permanent record---one that reflects every poor decision of their youth, and is stored online forever.”

Most of us remember those moments of major embarrassment in high school, and fortunately we are often the only ones who remember those incidents. That’s because the only record of those events are our memories.

Today however, our students engage in online behaviors that are recorded permanently. Their indiscretions and behaviors are recorded for posterity and the world to see. But how can we as educators help students engage in online activities without permanently damaging their lives and reputations with youthful mistakes? Ivester's lol...OMG is a book guaranteed to get the discussion about responsible online behavior started.

Ivester's book is a excellent resource for educating students in areas such as:

Understanding How Creating and Posting Online Content Is Both Global and Permanent
Understanding How What They Post Can Haunt Them for A Long Time
How to Avoid Engaging in Careless Content Creation
How They Are Creating Their Online Reputations
How to Become a "Conscious Creator of Content"
How to Engage in "Active Reputation Management"
Issues with Cyberbullying and Why It's a Problem
Becoming Responsible Digital Citizens

High schools are guilty of leaving students to their own devices when it comes to managing their online reputations, so should we be surprised when they end up as news stories in the national media?

The time has arrived for schools to teach students how to effectively manage their online reputations, be responsible digital citizens, and effectively deal with cyberbullying. To assist with that instruction, Schools will find Ivester’s book, lol…OMG an excellent resource for engaging students in conversations about their online behaviors. In a writing style that high school students should find easy-to-read, this book doesn't try to convince students avoid online activity because it is too "dangerous." Instead, it assumes students are going to be online citizens and gives them no-nonsense advice on how to survive online without permanently damaging their reputation.

Matt Ivester’s lol…OMG: What Every Student Needs to Know about Online Reputation Management, Digital Citizenship and Cyberbullying makes an excellent addition to your school’s reading list, or a great gift for any high school student heavily engaged in online activities.

Empowering and Educating Students About Cell Phones: Ending the Bans

2013-04-23T07:02:00.001-04:00

School’s continuing to ban cell phones and smartphones are fighting a losing battle. In spite of administrative efforts to keep cell phones out of our schools, our students are becoming “cell-only” internet users according to a recent report, entitled “Teens and Technology 2013,” released by the Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life Project. The report continues:

“One in four teens are “cell-mostly” internet users, who say they mostly go online using their phone and not using some other device such as a desktop or laptop computer,”

Smartphone adoption among American teens has increased substantially and our students have “pervasive mobile access to the Internet.” Because our students now have this “pervasive mobile access” the time has come to pull the plug on cell phone bans entirely. Instead of keeping cell phones out, we need to get our students engaged in using them constructively. Where else are they going to learn about the potential for good or ill of mobile technologies?

Other interesting points from the report include:

78% of teens now have a cell phone. Almost half of those are smartphones (47%).
37% of all teens have smartphones, up from 23% in 2011.
1 in 4 teens have tablet computers.
3 in 4 teens (74%) say they can access the Internet on cell phones, tablets or other mobile devices at least occasionally.

In addition to getting rid of cell phone bans, we also need to reconsider our efforts to filter access as well. If our students are going to have unfiltered Internet access anyway through their mobile devices, would our energies not be better directed toward teaching them responsible access?

Cell phones, smartphones, and tablets are becoming the Internet access devices of choice among our students, yet we still engage in policies that try to limit or filter that access. Instead of ban and filter, let’s empower and educate students to use that access for good.

21st Century Perspective on Creating Innovative School Schedules

2013-04-17T07:49:00.002-04:00

“If time is not fixed, there are lots of possibilities to make schooling more responsive to the individual needs of students and teachers and more economical to operate.” Frank Kelly, Ted McCain, and Ian Jukes, Teaching the Digital Generation: No More Cookie-Cuter High Schools

Why do high schools keep the same master schedule from one year to the next? One of the most difficult lessons I have learned as principal of an innovative high school is that there is no law or policy that prescribes what the school’s master schedule should look like from year-to-year. In fact, innovative high schools see schedule-flexibility as a must in order to fit the schedule to student needs, rather than fit students to a schedule. This is my fourth year in my current position, and the master schedule has changed every year, and it looks like it will change again this year. Our master schedule is truly responsive to the individual needs of our students and our staff and that is how it should be.

Most high schools define themselves by their schedules. For example, a four-by-four high school defines itself by consistently having 4 periods of instruction a day in classes that last for one semester. In contrast, a traditional schedule high school defines itself as having 6 or 7, possibly 8, discrete periods of instruction a day that last for a calendar year. Then there’s blended models that incorporate aspects of both, as well as schedules that include some even shorter blocks of time for enrichment periods or advisory periods. The bottom line though is that most high schools do define themselves by their schedules, and that schedule is a fixed entity. They see their schedule as something that cannot be changed from year to year. But what if that schedule were seen as a flexible component that could be adapted to fit the needs of students from year to year? I submit that 21st century high school leaders view master schedules, not as a fixed entities to which students are fitted, but instead view schedules as just another tool to meet the needs of students.

For example, one of our commitments as a high school is to try to keep our class sizes down. In an age when individuals like Bill Gates argue that “Class size doesn't matter” my staff and I believe wholeheartedly it does matter. While it might not matter if your only yardsticks are test scores, we know from our personal experience the size of a class does matter when it comes to teachers being able to form significant relationships with the students they teach. These relationships are more than just about making our students get higher scores on the latest standardized tests. Smaller classes are about relationships and making our school a humane place to learn, instead of a factory that churns out “high-test scores” each year. And, to keep those class sizes down in the past several years, we have changed our schedule so that we do not have 35 students sitting in classrooms.

The bottom line about scheduling should be simple. School leaders need to change their perspective on schedules and master scheduling, and be flexible. Twenty-first century learning demands it. Instead of viewing the schedule as a fixed element that is not subject to change from year to year, why not view it as simply another tool in the tool chest to better meet the needs of your students? That’s being a 21st century leader in innovation.

Just to give you an idea on what we’re doing. Here’s our proposed schedule this year. I have to thank my guidance counselor for coming up with this one.

Period	Times
1st Period (Semester-Long Class?	7:40-9:10
2nd Period (Year-Long Class)	9:12-10:02
3rd Period (Year-Long Class)	10:04-10:54
4th Period (Year-Long Class)	10:56-11:46
Enrichment Period (Also advisory Period)	11:48-12:33
Lunch	12:33-1:05
5th Period (Semester-Long Class)	1:10-2:40

4 Principles for Designing 21st Century Learning Spaces

2013-04-15T08:45:00.002-04:00

“School buildings must change because instruction must change. We need creative new designs that will support 21st century learning.” Frank S. Kelly, Ted McCain, and Ian Jukes, Teaching the Digital Generation: No More Cookie-Cutter High Schools

A great deal of the reform talk that we engage in focuses on changing how teaching and learning should change to better fit the needs of 21st century learners, but how much of that talk focuses on how we can better redesign our schools so that they better facilitate 21st century learning? Kelly, McCain, and Jukes point out one really sad fact about school construction in the 21st century:

“We are currently spending millions of dollars building new high schools that will last 40 years or more that are designed on ideas that date back to the early 1900s.”

In other words, the high schools we currently build are monuments to obsolescence, and instead of asking ourselves the critical questions about what should a high school in the 21st century should look like, we just keep building them the same way we always have. Then, we shake our heads with wonder when we can’t reform the kinds of teaching and learning that occurs in those schools. As Kelly, McCain, and Jukes so aptly point out, “We are victims of TTWWADI, or That’s the way we’ve always done it.”

What are some principles to guide us in designing 21st century learning spaces? Borrowing from Kelly, McCain, and Jukes, here’s some to consider.

Instruction should drive construction. Instead of automatically assuming we need classrooms separated into subject-area departments, perhaps we need to ask what kinds of instruction and learning will be happening in those spaces. Too often, the people designing our schools are totally disconnected from those designing 21st century instructional and learning models. We need to design learning spaces that facilitate 21st century learning, not try to fit 21st century learning into 20th century Industrial Age learning spaces.
Question everything. No preconceived notions about instruction and learning spaces are sacred. For example, do we have to have classrooms that place teachers front and center? Does learning have to even take place in classrooms? Do these learning places have to have the capacity to hold 25-30 students? Can they be larger or smaller, or do we need both? Does learning have to fall within a 9-month school calendar and during a 4-period, block-scheduled school day? In designing true 21st century learning spaces, we must question all of our preconceived notions about what these spaces should look like and how they are organized.
Design learning spaces that capitalize on technology. Instead of fitting technology into existing classroom and school designs, how can we design classrooms and schools that capitalize on technology’s strengths? In other words, let's fit our schools to the technologies. For example, how does the potential for global connections and collaboration fit into high school design? Maybe we need a conference room with global video-conferencing capabilities. Designing learning spaces that fit the technologies means rethinking those spaces to capitalize on technology.
Think about designing a school to fit the needs of 21st century learners rather than fitting 21st century learners into existing school designs. We know a great deal about how this digital generation learns and wants to learn, so why not incorporate those into our school designs? Don’t build lecture halls or classrooms with row after row of desks. Instead, build both places where students can engage in collaborative projects and places where they can explore and learn individually. Learning spaces should be designed to fit the needs of today's digital learners.

As Kelly, McCain and Jukes, point out, “What is currently lacking from the school design process is a way to set aside old assumptions about teaching and learning in order to allow people to develop new visions of the future.” School leaders are still designing and building schools not fundamentally different from schools designed and built in the Industrial Age; yet, we expect students to engage in Information Age activities. If we truly want instruction to change, we need schools and learning places designed for 21st century learning.

Blueprint for Moving to 21st Century Student-Centered Schools and Classrooms

2013-04-14T12:38:00.000-04:00

“Too many organizations---not just companies, but governments and nonprofits as well---still operate from assumptions about human potential and individual performance that are outdated, unexamined, and rooted more in folklore than in science.” Daniel Pink, Drive: The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us

It’s not just businesses that are still caught in outdated assumptions about performance and motivation. Schools are caught in that same time warp too. Much of how our classrooms and schools are structured and operate are designed to take advantage of extrinsic motivation, and we are finding that in the 21st century, this structure and way of operating no longer works.

But the question is, how can we transform our schools so that they no longer operate under these outdated assumptions about student potential, student performance, and student motivation? If one were to make a list of how our schools still operate and what these faulty and obsolete assumptions about education and schooling are, that list would look somewhat like this.

Students are motivated by grades.
Students are incapable of directing their own learning.
Classrooms (and schools) must operate under strict control with specific rules and consequences governing student behavior.
Teachers are the primary dispensers of learning in the classroom.
Education is something “done to students” rather than something in which they engage.

If these basic assumptions about classroom operations and education are faulty, what would would 21st century assumptions about how classrooms and school operations look like? In other words, what would a classroom or school operating under the principles described in Daniel Pink’s book, Drive: The Surprising Truth about What Motivates Us look like? Perhaps educator Mark Barnes provides with some answers to that question in his new book ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom.

In ROLE Reversal, Barnes describes what he terms a Results Only Learning Environment or ROLE. As the name implies, in a ROLE the focus is entirely on results, or student work. Also, in this environment, the principles of fostering intrinsic motivation described by Pink are implemented fully. According to Barnes, a ROLE basically upends many of the traditional assumptions about education and learning. Here’s some of ways these traditional assumptions are upended.

In a ROLE, or Results Only Learning Environment:

Grades and grading systems are replaced with a “narrative feedback system” that focuses specifically on student work and improving that work. In Barnes’ result-only classroom, teachers do not use numerical grades to provide feedback because numerical feedback systems fail to provide feedback students need to improve their performance. Instead, students are given extensive, comprehensive, and ongoing narrative feedback on their work. This feedback is specific and can be used by the student for work improvement. In ROLE Reversal, Barnes shows teachers how to provide this kind of feedback.
Instead of teacher-directed learning activities, students are given broad, long-term projects to complete, and they make the daily decisions on how to complete those projects. The intrinsic motivation model described by Pink demands that autonomy be employed to engage people in the tasks at hand. Under Barnes’ results-only classroom model, students engage in six-week long projects that provide a great deal of choice, or autonomy, on how and what is learned and when. Autonomy is a built-in component of his results-only classroom practice.
Classroom rules and consequences are jettisoned and the use of opportunities to engage in meaningful work, collaborating with peers, and trust/respect are used instead to manage classroom behavior. Too often, classrooms become more about focusing on the enforcement of rules rather than the learning students are being asked to do. In Barnes’ results-only classroom, behavior is managed through well-designed, engaging, and collaborative learning projects that leave students little time to engage in problem behaviors. Also, the results-only classroom described by Barnes fosters a high-level of respect and trust that makes having rules and consequences less necessary.
Teachers are no longer the “dispensers of information/learning.” According to Barnes, in a ROLE, teachers become coaches and facilitators of student learning. In the results-only classroom, teachers step away from the front of the classroom and spend more time facilitating student learning and coaching students on their work. Teacher-centered activities like worksheets, quizzes, and homework are jettisoned. Instead, students engage in long-term, meaningful activities that challenge them.
Education and learning moves from being something done to students to something in which students actively engage in on a daily basis. The 20th century traditional model of education is very much still with us. The heart of that educational philosophy and model sees education as a process by which we subject students to, in order to add value determined by test scores. Under Barnes’ result-only model, education and learning is something students actively engage in every day. They are active participants in their learning.

Mark Barnes, Role Reversal

For the teacher and school leader looking for a model of learning that truly captures Daniel Pink’s principles of intrinsic motivation---autonomy, mastery, and purpose---Barnes’ book ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom offers just such a model. Best of all, Barnes results-only classroom offers the kind of classroom in which students achieve at higher levels. I highly recommend Mark Barnes’new book, ROLE Reversal: Achieving Uncommonly Excellent Results in the Student-Centered Classroom published by ASCD. This book would make an excellent book study to foster discussions in schools about how we can move toward the student-centered schools and classrooms we so desperately need in the 21st century.

7 Must-Read Resources on Social Media for School Leaders

2013-04-09T08:51:00.000-04:00

There are obviously quite a few social media resources available to school leaders on the Web, but finding high-quality information can be difficult. Here are some books that I consider vital for school leaders seeking to learn as much as they can about its potential to enhance leadership and education. Each of these books are excellent sources of information for the school leader trying to learn about social media and potential in educational leadership.

Why Social Media Matters: School Communication in the Digital Age by Kitty Porterfield and Meg Carnes
Porterfield and Carnes' book is one of my personal favorites. As the title suggests, it focuses on providing school leaders with the "know-how" of using social media as a communications tool. School leaders, however, are not encouraged to use Facebook, Twitter and other social media tools as a 21st century announcement system. Porterfield and Carnes encourage school leaders to use social media's most powerful feature, the ability to engage stakeholders in a multi-way conversation. This book equips school leaders with the tools necessary to communicate effectively using social media in the 21st century.

The School Leader's Guide to Social Media by Ron Williamson and J. Howard Johnston
Williamson and Johnston's book offers school leaders a complete panoramic view of social media. They give one of the most comprehensive views of both the potentials and the pitfalls of engaging in social media use. Williamson and Johnston provide such timely information as: Concerns and Benefits of Social Media Use, Encouraging Responsible Use of Social Media, Creating Acceptable Use Policies Governing Social Media Use, Overview of the Social Media Tools, and Social Media Skills to Be Taught. The School Leader's Guide to Social Media is one of the most comprehensive resources available on social media.

The Connected Educator: Learning and Leading in the Digital Age by Sheryl Nussbaum-Beach and Lani Ritter Hall
This book provides school leaders with a complete review of what it means to engage in the use of social media as a "connected learner." Nussbaum-Beach and Hall take readers through the whole idea of engaging in social media as a means to learn 21st century style. Using the tools of social media allows school leaders to expand their connections to a world beyond the classroom. This book provides a complete model to make global learning and connecting happen.

What School Leaders Need to Know about Digital Technologies and Social Media edited by Scott McLeod and Chris Lehmann
In this collection of essays, edited by educational technology experts Scott McLeod and Chris Lehmann, school leaders get one of the most complete descriptions of the tools of the social media toolbox. This book takes readers through a complete survey of all the tools---from blogs to social bookmarking to even gaming. Readers will find this comprehensive overview of social media tools extremely useful and they plan and development social media strategy.

Personal Learning Networks: Using the Power of Connections to Transform Education by Will Richardson and Rob Mancabelli
Richardson and Mancabelli’s book is one of the most comprehensive and engaging reads yet on the potential of “Personal Learning Networks” as a transformative force in education. This book focuses less on the social media tools and more on the strategies educators can use to foster, not only the development of their own personal learning networks, but also the personal learning networks of the students they teach. As a part of the school leader’s library, this book is an excellent strategy guide for engaging in social media as a means to foster personal learning.

Radically Transparent: Monitoring and Managing Reputations Online by Andy Beal and Judy Strauss
While this is the only book on the list not written specifically for educators, Radically Transparent: Monitoring and Managing Reputations Online is the best guide for school leaders who want to move beyond just using social media as personal learning network tool or as a communication tool. This book provides strategy on how to proactively engage in social media use to foster a positive online reputation. In the 21st century, school leaders can ill-afford to ignore their school or school district’s online reputation. This book provides school leaders with the tools in which to engage social media as public-relations tool and become completely transparent, which is an expectation for 21st century organizations.

Social Media for School Leaders by Brian Dixon
Dixon’s book is another excellent resource on social media for the 21st century school leader. This book gives another comprehensive overview of the social media tools, including some not found in the other books. It also provides readers with a comprehensive framework for understanding how to use social media effectively. Dixon’s books is excellent combination of introduction of the social media tools and the strategies to use to engage in their use effectively.

These seven resources provide school leaders with the most comprehensive view of social media possible. By reading these and referring back to them often, as well as engaging in the use of the tools and the strategies, school leaders can effectively become social media leaders in their schools or districts.

Blogging Applications for Beginning Bloggers

2013-04-08T14:22:00.001-04:00

For those school leaders just now venturing into blogging, you can easily use the web application offered by services such as Blogger, Edublogs, or WordPress. These apps will get your posts done, but if you are just starting to blog and want an application that might make the act of posting a blog a bit more painless, Microsoft's Live Writer and ScribeFire are two options to consider. Livewriter, which is available as a free download, and the App/Exyension Scribefire both give bloggers, and I would add first-time bloggers the tools to get started. I have used both of these apps and found them a practically "glitch-free" approach to blog posting. Both are availble for free as well.
Microsoft Livewriter

Includes a blog post editor that allows you to see exactly what your post will look like on the web site.
Works with multiple blog platforms. (I use it with Blogger.)
Interface is quite familiar to current Microsoft product users.
Save blog posts locally. (On Your Hard Drive)
Extensive formatting control of text

Windows Liver Writer Interface

To get more information and download Windows Livewriter, check out the web site.
Windows Live Writer Web Site

ScribefFire
ScribeFire is a blog post composing app for use within FireFox, Google Chrome, Opera and Safari Browsers. While not as "featureful" as Live Writer, it is still fully functional, and for the novice blogger, it will do everything you need to do.

Fully featured in sense that it will do just about everything you would want to do in a blog post: insert photos, insert YouTube videos, insert tables, etc.
Interface has a simple layout that works right within your favorite browser.
Font Choices and sizes along with basic text formatting

For more information on ScribeFire, check out their web site.
ScribeFire Informational Web Site

Both of these blogging apps are good, solid choices for the school leader just venturing into blogging.

North Carolina's Massive Increase in High Stakes Testing: Fair? Not Hardly!

2013-04-03T08:07:00.000-04:00

“Without these common exams, we have no objective way to measure the value teachers give their students, and this is an important part of North Carolina’s teacher evaluation model.” Rebecca Garland, Chief Academic Officer, NC Department of Public Instruction

In a recent post to the Charlotte Observer entitled “Newly Required Tests Aren’t as Numerous as You Think”), North Carolina Public Schools Section Chief, Rebecca Garland, defended that state’s massive increase in the number of high-stakes testing. The main gist of her argument is students were going to be taking teacher-made exams anyway, which would be true if these Common Exams or MSLs (missiles as we like to call them) were on the same level as teacher made exams, but they are not.

North Carolina is elevating the importance of these tests to “high-stakes level” because teacher performance will be judged based on them. In the end, North Carolina has massively increased the number of “high stakes tests” it is administering under its “Common Exam Project.” So Garland's remarks are misleading at best.

Garland defends these tests as well by using the common “buzzwords” used by politicians and other policymakers. Judging from her statements in the above post, in one fail swoop she declares these tests:

Objective:
Fair
Accurate
Reasonable

Are these Common Exams “objective?” Too often, policymakers and politicians view “objective” as meaning “multiple-choice” or otherwise limited to answers that can’t be verified or constructed. I submit that these common exams are not objective, nor could they ever be. Because these tests were developed by teachers far-removed from the classrooms in which they will be administered, they are not objective. In developing these tests, teachers and state-level test developers make SUBJECTIVE judgments about what would be included on these tests and what would be discarded. This process, by default, is a subjective value judgment on what exactly is worthy of being tested and what is not. The tests might be “objective” in the sense that there may be no room for variability in student answers and do not require the judgment of teachers in determining right and wrong, but the way the tests were developed is a subjective process.

Are these Common Exams fair? Throughout North Carolina’s development of these Common Exams, state level policymakers have used this word repeatedly, as if by declaring these exams "fair" makes them so. There are so many question marks regarding the “fairness” of these tests and how the state has chosen to use them that whether they are “fair” has never been established. For example, take the whole idea of using “value-added” measures. North Carolina has chosen to use this way of evaluating teachers in spite of the fact that statisticians and test designers have cautioned against using such models. In addition, Garland and the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction make the argument that they are only using it for a fraction of the evaluation. But if using value-added measures have flaws at all, should they be used in decisions that determine the individual livelihood and futures of educators? Another question of fairness has to do with the tests themselves. Normal final exams are teacher-designed for a reason. That teacher knows the content that was covered and the students to which that content was taught. That means that teacher is able to design tests that measure what they taught and to tailor those tests to the needs of their students. Using the common exams, teachers are forced to give tests developed by others far removed from their classrooms, making them hardly true measures of what was taught.

Are these Common Exams accurate measures of how good a job teachers are doing? We've been trying to judge school performance based on test scores for years. After No Child Left Behind flopped, it was a natural progression for North Carolina to move to the next flop---using test scores to judge educator effectiveness. North Carolina has not done any studies correlating the use of test scores to determine whether teaching improves. But then again, they define "effective teaching" as having "high test scores." Never mind whether those tests have any validity or quality.

In the end, in spite of what Garland and NC DPI assert, North Carolina’s “Common Exams” is a massive increase in the number of “high stakes” exams our students will be subjected to and to simply say they are like the final exams students usually take is misleading. These tests which have been hurriedly assembled, kept in secret, and developed to appease the United States Department of Education are not the salvation of our North Carolina education system. There is a real problem when our own state department of education turns into a propaganda machine, incessantly trying to sell a testing program that no one wants, rather than assisting and serving the educators and students in this state. In the end, our students are the ones that suffer.

Tips for Google Reader Users Moving to Feedly

2013-03-21T07:07:00.001-04:00

For those users who, like myself, who are migrating to using Feedly due to Google Reader's demise, here's an excellent blog post from Feedly to help you with that migration process. "Tips for Google Readers Migrating to Feedly" The tips provided even help you customize your RSS reading experience to be more like you are accustom to in Google Reader. The folks at Feedly seem to be glad to have all of us Google Reader users.

I would also suggest you check out Feedly's iPad app as well. "Feedly for iPad or iOS"

9 Characteristics of 21st Century Mindful School Leadership

2013-03-20T08:41:00.003-04:00

“Mindfulness is simply noticing the way things are. By being mindful you can transform your life, your organization, and even your community. The first step is to transform yourself.” Maria Gonzalez, Mindful Leadership: The 9 Ways to Self-Awareness, Transforming Yourself, and Inspiring Others

“During difficult times,” writes Maria Gonzales, “anyone in a leadership position is scrutinized more closely. And it seems as if the demands of this new world order are beyond the experience of many who occupy leadership positions.” And, as Michael Carroll adds in Awake at Work, “Work with all its pressures and success and confusion, unfolds on its terms not ours, and we can be awake as if unfolds or we can resist---a choice we can make moment by moment for the rest of our lives.”

The pressures and challenges of leadership in 21st century schools and school districts is greater than it has ever been. Juggling dwindling financial resources, a myriad of new educational initiatives both state and federal, major curriculum restructuring, and the invasiveness of technology all make being a school leader today one of the most difficult jobs around. In midst of this confusion, the choice is simple: we can choose to be present, or as Gonzales points, “We can choose to be mindful." We can fight, resist, and ignore, and then find ourselves divorced from the reality that exists in our schools and school districts. Or, we can choose to practice being mindful, which brings us in tune with our reality. The answer for 21st century school leaders is cultivating what Gonzales calls “mindful leadership.”

But what does a mindful leader look like? Maria Gonzales’ “9 Ways of Being” provide an excellent portrait of “mindful leadership." Keep in mind though, it is through "mindfulness practices" that these characteristics are developed and fostered, which she also describes.

1. Mindful school leaders are present. Simply put, it means they exist in the now, in the present. They do not engage in undue worry about the past or the future. Their energies are directed toward the current moment. That does not mean school leaders do not plan. It means they do not obsess with those plans, and they are not so attached to those plans that nothing else matters.

2. Mindful school leaders are aware. They are aware of their own inner life. In other words, they are skillful in the art and science of emotional intelligence. They know themselves. They never feel themselves overtaken and blindsided by their own emotions. Mindful school leaders know who they are, inside and out, and are not deluded into thinking more of themselves than they should.

3. Mindful school leaders are calm. They don’t panic. They face trying circumstances with control. Mindful school leaders act with centeredness and authenticity at all times. Their calmness is a natural part of who they are.

4. Mindful school leaders are focused. They “channel resources to accomplish priorities.” They concentrate on what’s important. Mindful school leaders know what's important and they zero in on that.

5. Mindful school leaders are clear. It is this clarity of mind that makes it possible to make the best decisions. They understand their own motivations and why they do what they do. They, as Gonazales aptly points out, “know what is important.” Mindful school leaders exhibit a clarity of mind that fosters quality decision-making.

6. Mindful school leaders are equanimous. This is the ability to accept things as they are, not in the spirit of resignation, but simply to be at peace with reality. They do not spend time fighting fruitless battles. They do not engage in unrealistic expectations. Mindful school leaders are at peace with their reality.

7. Mindful school leaders are positive. They are a “positive force” in their schools or school districts. They understand leadership means serving others. Because of their positivity and service to others, they inspire those around them. Mindful school leaders act and live in affirmation and are an inspiration to those they serve.

8. Mindful school leaders are compassionate. They deeply care those around them. They know and understand and engage in self-compassion too, because taking care of self is important too. Mindful school leaders act with compassion, not in self-service and self-promotion.

9. Mindful school leaders are impeccable. As Gonzales points out, they aren't perfect, but mindful leaders act with integrity, honesty, and courage. They accept responsibility for what they do and do not blame others for honest mistakes. Mindful school leaders always act with integrity, honesty and courage when leading their schools or districts.

In the education tumult of the 21st century, School leaders, more than anyone, need to be mindful. The challenges we face are only increasing, not lessening. As Maria Gonzales states, “Mindfulness can help leaders remain focused on what really matters to them and to their companies and stakeholders.” I submit that mindfulness helps school leaders remain focused on what it really important: our students.

Note: To learn more about fostering "mindful leadership" I suggest Maria Gonzales' straightforward, non-religious treatment of the topic in her book, Mindful Leadership: The 9 Ways to Self-Awareness, Transforming Yourself, and Inspiring Others.

Feedly: An RSS Reader Replacement for Google Reader

2013-03-19T09:12:00.001-04:00

With the impending demise of Google Reader, I have been in search for an RSS Reader replacement. As soon as the announcement was made, I was one of "500,000 Users Who Turned to Feedly as an Alternative." I also tried other alternatives suggested on Twitter, such as Newsblur and some desktop software readers such as Feedreader. In the end, I think Feedly is the best choice as a replacement to Google Reader.

Feedly Web Interface

1. Simple web interface. Other alternatives, such as Newsblur and Feedreader were much more compluicated. I liked Google Reader because of it's simplicity. Feedly's layout of feed subscriptions is easy and accessible, making it a good choice.

2. Users can scan through RSS feeds rather quickly, and marking them read is as easy as clicking on a link. For me this was an important part of Google Reader. I consume RSS news quickly, not always reading entire articles. Feedly's interface does facilitate that kind of reading.

3. Page layout options are available. Users can customize, to some degree, their RSS reading experience in Feedly, in many ways, much more than they could in Google Reader.

4. Feedly has an iPad app. This gives users tablet and smartphone access to their RSS reading. The app is much easier to use than the the web app, and sharing your reading through social media is also an option, another important feature of my RSS reading experience.

5.Users can choose color themes for their web Feedly interface. I prefer the darker colors on my laptop, so this is an option I like even more, since it was not available in Google Reader.

6. Advanced settings allow users to change other features of their RSS reader. The advanced settings allow users to change other features such as default view, mini-toolbar enabling. Overall, because of this, Feedly makes RSS reading even more personal.

Feedly iPad App Interface

Feedly's Magazine-Like iPad Interface

With the demise of Google Reader, Feedly makes sense as an RSS Reader replacement app.

3 Steps to Leveraging the Power of Technology to Disrupt Your School or District

2013-03-15T12:45:00.001-04:00

“When people adopt technology, they do old things in new ways. When people internalize technology, they find new things to do.” James McQuivey, Digital Disruption: Unleashing the Next Wave of Innovation

James McQuivey’s book, Digital Disruption: Unleashing the Next Wave of Innovation, makes very clear the difference between businesses who adopt technology versus those who internalize it. He states, “When companies adopt new technology, they do old things in new ways. When companies internalize technology, they find entirely new---disruptive---things to do.” In other words, adopting technology means using technology to do the same old things we've always done. Internalizing it means using technology to do the new and novel. It means disrupting how we currently do things.

Reflecting on McQuivey’s distinctions between technology adoption and technology internalization, I could think of countless examples of technology-adopting in our schools.

A teacher using presentation software to illustrate a class lesson or lecture.
A student using word-processing software to type a paper rather than hand-write it.
A teacher having students use the web to research the definitions for important terms in a unit of study.
A student using a tablet to read a novel using e-reader software.
A teacher using a interactive board to illustrate the main points in a lesson.
A teacher showing students a YouTube video to illustrate a main point in content.
A principal using Twitter or Facebook to make announcements.
A teacher recording a podcast or vodcast of a lecture, and posting it on the web and assigning it to students to review as homework.

Each of these activities are considered technology adoption because the students and educators are engaged in a behavior or activity that is not fundamentally changed by the use of technology. The technology simply helps them do what they have always done.

These examples of technology adoption are certainly acceptable if all we want to do maintain the same kinds of learning and teaching we've always had, but we are not leveraging the power of technology in these cases to totally “disrupt the teaching and learning” in our schools, and if we want to move to 21st century models of teaching and learning, we must do just that.

Then the next question is, what steps can we take to leverage the disruptive power of technology in our schools? McQuivey’s offers some suggestions for businesses that can be modified to guide us in developing steps focused on the needs of schools,so we can leverage technology's disruptive power.

Change the mindset about technology and education. As McQuivey points out, “We need to adopt a ‘digital disruptor’ mindset.” What that means in practical terms is we fundamentally change how we view opportunity and technology. Instead of viewing technology as means to help us do teaching and learning as we have done, we ask the question: How can technology help us engage in new kinds of teaching and learning? The answer to that question will lead us to new ways of doing school.
Behave like a digital disruptor. As McQuivey points out, you start this process by “innovating the adjacent possible” not by totally reinventing the whole. To innovate the adjacent possible in education we can begin by identifying what our students needs are. Then, we generate and choose the one or two things we can do using the technologies and resources we have or can obtain to meet those needs. To modify a phrase McQuivey uses: “We need to innovate in the direction of our students’ needs.” Innovation for innovation sake is never a good idea. We need to innovate by always looking to the needs of our students.
Disrupt your school or district now. Begin by revising policies and practices that inhibit disruption, hence innovation. For example, if requesting and obtaining technologies and resources are hampered by cumbersome requisition processes, simplify. If school district practices prevents teachers from experimentation and risk-taking, change them. If there are barriers that keep people isolated and unable to share practice and ideas, tear them down. Begin disruption by establishing a team of disruptors who are willing to push to the edges of innovation. All of these measures will go a long way in disrupting your school or district.

If technology has had little or no impact on teaching and learning in your school or district, then perhaps the issue is your school or district has only adopted technology not internalized it. We need to leverage the power of technology to disrupt what happens in our schools’ classrooms. We, as 21st century school leaders, need to become leaders of digital disruption to fundamentally change how we do school.

Note: While James McQuivey's book offers a fascinating look at practice things business can do leverage the power of technology and the disruptor mindset, it has a lot to say that is directly applicable to our schools too. His examples of disruption in business and the steps he provides can inform our efforts to make technology internalization happen.

Response to NC State Super's Justifying Massive Increase in High Stakes Tests

2013-03-09T10:13:00.001-05:00

“While it has been many years since I was in high school, there is a tradition that has continued since I was a student at Staunton River High---tests are given at the end of each course.” June Atkinson, Superintendent, North Carolina Public Schools

In a recent blog post entitled “How Many Tests Do North Carolina Students Have to Take?” North Carolina State Superintendent Dr. June Atkinson justifies North Carolina’s massive increase in the number of high stakes tests by pointing back to her own days in high school. Her reasoning is that “It is a tradition to take tests at the end of the course” so what’s the big fuss about all these tests North Carolina is asking students to take?

Here’s what she does not mention in her post that was not in existence when she was in high school.

Tests did not determine by policy whether students failed courses or grade levels. In Dr. Atkinson’s day, there was an understanding and common sense that all students do not have the same abilities and skills so their effectiveness could not be judged by a single test score. Teachers in Dr. Atkinson’s high school did not have to condemn students to “not being proficient” by a single test score. Instead, they were able to make holistic decisions about student performance that was based on teacher knowledge of that student.
Tests scores were not used to judged the effectiveness of teachers and administrators because educators understood that was not what the tests were designed to do. The tests designed by Dr. Atkinson’s teachers were designed to see if students learned what that teacher taught, not judge teacher performance. And, teacher tests were designed by the teacher who taught the students not by teachers in the far-off state capital who have never met the students being tested. Fundamentally, Dr. Atkinson’s teachers tested what they taught and what they thought students should know. Not today, North Carolina teachers are forced teach what 800 teachers who met in Raleigh decided should be on the test.
While students may only spend 10 hours testing, though I question this number, teachers are forced to spend days in test-prep mode, after all these tests are used to determine their effectiveness. Teachers in Dr. Atkinson’s day prepared students for life, not the next test because their job performance was not judged by an exam score. They judged their success as a teacher by how well their students did in life. The reality of testing that state leaders and politicians ignore is that what’s on the test is what gets taught, period, hence, that’s why North Carolina schools have become massive test-prep centers.

Dr. Atkinson’s post seeks to justify North Carolina's massive increase in the number of tests using that age-old argument, “It’s a tradition.” But her arguments ignore much of what was not tradition. Her argument that North Carolina teachers “now have access to standard, quality exams that they do not have to develop on their own” doesn't make these new high stakes exams more palatable either. There "quality" is yet to be determined. In the end, what has changed about Education in North Carolina? Nothing that’s good if you look at our state testing program.

5 Guidelines for Rational School Leader Response to Social Media Issues

2013-03-09T07:55:00.000-05:00

What should be a school leader’s response when a student uses social media in an inappropriate manner? This Winston-Salem Journal Editorial “More Education, Guidelines Needed for Officials, Students on Social Media and School Security,” makes the usual call for more rules and education about improper use of social media. But was this event a “social media problem” or was it “a behavioral or crime problem?” I think the answer to that question is at the heart of how a school leader should respond to a student’s misuse of social media.

The scenario described in the Winston-Salem Journal, states that a 16-year old student used another student’s Facebook page to pose a threat to students and staff at her high school. She was arrested for making a false report and communicating threats, and as the editorial indicates, she faces some serious prison time for her actions which is as it should be. It should be clear though, Facebook does not in any way make this crime any different than using a handwritten note or some other media to make that threat. The crime was not the use of social media. The crime was the action of making threats which is illegal. Making this distinction is at the heart of how a school leader should respond to these kinds of incidents.

If social isn't the issue, what kind of guidance is there for school leaders in situations where students use social media in inappropriate ways? Here’s some suggestions.

Deal with the criminal or inappropriate action, not the media. The issue was not whether the threat was communicated through Facebook or not. The issue was that a student made threats to students and staff and under North Carolina law that is illegal. It is important that school leaders focus on the illegal behavior or the problem behavior, not Facebook. Bullying is wrong. Improper communications between a teacher and student is wrong. Whether it occurred on Facebook or the phone is irrelevant except as simple facts in the case. School leaders need to keep their eyes on the behavior and not delude themselves into thinking that if Facebook would go away, then the problem would not have happened.
Follow the same procedures you would follow after finding a threatening note pasted to a restroom wall. Again, the focus is on the criminal activity, not the media. If procedure demands that parents be contacted when a threat to students and staff is made, as soon as the threat is discovered, make that contact. It is important that guidelines focus on the threat, no matter how that threat was communicated. Equally important is that our response always focus on the behavior at issue.
Take the lead and educate students so that they understand that criminal behavior (and inappropriate behavior) on social media has the same consequences as it would have anywhere else. Also, educate students on appropriate and inappropriate uses of social media. Students need to understand that their values and morals do apply in online spaces. They need leadership from school administrators in the form of a clear understanding that behavior online that is illegal or improper is still illegal or improper. Don’t make the issue murky by focusing entirely on social media.
Be cautious of the usual “knee-jerk” reaction of blaming Facebook and other social media. Social media has undoubtedly complicated our jobs as administrators because of its powerful opportunities to connect our students and staff. But school leaders should not argue for bans because of these complications. Our responsibility is not to make our own jobs easier at the expense of trying restrict the freedom of others. Instead, we need to be reluctant to infringe on students’ and staff’s right to engage in free speech in online spaces. School leaders need to stop looking for “social media boogeymen” and deal with the behavior at issue.
Educate yourself about social media. School leaders who deal with social media issues need to make sure they themselves know as much as possible about the media. Knowing how it works and how students and others use it is a key to making sure that responses to problems involving social media are rational.

School leaders do need some guidance on how to respond to inappropriate and criminal activity on social media, but that guidance needs to be based in reason. A rational school leader response to incidents like the one described in the Winston-Salem Journal needs to focus on what the real problems are. The real problems are the illegal and improper behaviors, not the media.