eFace Today

Tweet it Forward

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 19:59:00 +0000

For the past 6 months, I've been using Twitter for communicating to teachers and parents, as a shared professional development tool and as a professional learning network (PLN) builder. OK I check the Philly sports conversation and local and international newswires as well. Educationally speaking, I've followed and become inspired by the likes of principals Eric Sheninger, Chris Lehman, Lyn Hilt as well as Illinois Teacher of the Year Josh Stumpenhorst, who embrace their vocation in working for kids at school and at home. I've found and participated in some amazing weekly educational chats thanks to following Jerry Blumengarten. Those who regularly follow this blog know that parents and teachers come together on Wednesday nights in a collaborative and transparent conversation about important topics during #PTchat.

Image Credit: ecommercewall.com

I write this blog because it helps me reflect on two of my greatest passions, technology and family engagement. It wasn't until I found Twitter that I realized I needed a blog to truly reflect on my practice with transparency, a necessity for today's leaders. Twitter has become a game changer for me. When I'm away from it, I think about the tweets I'm missing--although my wife is happy to have my complete attention. I know for a fact that I have become a better learner and leader because of this powerful tool. Best of all, Twitter provide educators and parents the opportunity to role model digital citizenship when using social media on a daily basis.

Together, we need to Tweet It Forward. Help other educators and parents discover this tool. The more excitement we bring to the field regarding it's use, the more likely district policies will no longer be created to prevent it's use, but to harness the opportunity for professional sharing. What busy parent wouldn't want to experience a magazine-like layout of school tweets in realtime? The more people we teach about Twitter, the greater, more influential and well-rounded our shared PLN becomes.

A colleague and I are scheduled to teach a Twitter 101 to ten other district principals in April - a session I feel will help take our district to the next level in terms of professional development, reflection and collaboration. How will we plan for it? We will ask our Twitter PLN to share resources that worked for them.

The field of education is a better place when teachers, principals, parents and superintendents are tweeting.

Please consider passing this post along (via email or hardcopy) to those who haven't yet signed up for Twitter. I encourage you to share in the comments below how it has changed your practice, your reflection and your collaboration whether you've been on Twitter for a few years or a few weeks.

New to Twitter? Check out these resourceful tweeps

Transparent Perspectives to Maximize PTCs

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 14:46:00 +0000

On Wednesday nights (9PM EST/6PM PST) parents, teachers and administrators around the world come together for one hour to discuss important topics around family engagement. It’s called #PTchat (Parent-Teacher Chat), and is one of a slew of weekly educational chats (or FREE professional development for educators and parents) that occur each week on Twitter. It’s very exciting that social media has allowed for this transparent perspective sharing to discuss and take a stand on how to best support kids!

Image Credit: http://www. technorati.com

Last week, #PTchat topic centered on Parent Teacher Conferences (PTCs). Below, you will find the actual “tweets” sent from multiple perspectives that cover the goals, latest research and innovative tools used by teachers and parents to maximize Parent-Teacher Conferences. After all, these meetings are usually very short so in the best interests of the student, parents and teachers must partner together to make the most of these face to face opportunities.

Once the meeting is on the calendar, it's important to go into it with the right shared purpose in mind.

For parents reading along- What is your perspective? Why do you have that perspective? What perspective is best for your child?

The following 40 tweets have been pulled from the most recent #PTchat. Feel free to read the entire conversation here.

Tweets from the Parent’s Perspective

1) “As a parent, I think it is critical to have opportunities to engage in a F2F (face to face) dialogue about my child's progress.”

2) “As a parent, I see how my kids can improve on what they're already doing.”

3) “Luv when kids are w/me @ meetings”

4) (When planning conferences) “Ask the parents what would work best for them?

5) “Both sides go in w/open minds”

6) Schools should set a goal for teachers to make at least 5 positive contacts a week with the parents of struggling students”

7) “For me, I want to know what the challenges are and have specific ideas/tools on how I can support the learning at home”

Conscientious teachers have a child’s best interests in mind before, during and after the PTC. The goal is to maximize this brief meeting and have as much two-way dialogue occur as possible. If both parties are comfortable having the student at the conference, it shows the child that his/her parent-teacher team is working hard to help them be successful in school and all are on the same page!

Parents wondering what’s inside the head of the teacher preparing for the PTC should be comfortable asking? Teachers can build relational trust by sharing the purpose of the meeting for the day of the conference and everyday moving forward. The answer a teacher gives and the walk that backs up the talk will help develop the ideal parent-teacher relationship necessary for the best teaching and learning to occur.

Tweets from the Educator’s Perspective

8) “No one knows our students better than parents. They are our best resource!”

9) “Build relations and open lines of communication”

10) “My best PT meetings were held at racetracks and pubs”

11) “Remember, it's about trust and perception of value. U will have to rebuild that which has been torn down b4 u”

12) “It also is a time for the first f2f meeting and sets the stage for follow up conversations”

13) “SocialMedia is a game-changer and something which should allow us to change when/how these types of meetings occur”

14) “PT conference went well when P looks @ u & genuinely says, ‘You truly know my child’ Trust/Respect gained 4 both P & T”

15) “For some parents it is the only contact they have with schools”

16) “They are not long enough for the students that need the most help”

17) “Beauty of the Student-led is the level of accountability on the student. Makes them take some more responsibility for their learning”

18) “Build conferences to include information that parents desire”

19) “For some of your parents, conference day might be the only day you see them all year. Make it count”

20) “I love to make a call on the first day of school...blows them away!!!”

21) “Careful not to have too many teachers in room so parent feels overmatched -only necessary teammates to help prov resources/support”

22) “I believe Ps want to know u r helping their "gifts" become lifelong learners & citizens while they are away all day. And having fun!”

23) "The needs/wants vary so greatly from parent to parent"

There have never been so many web tools to schedule conferences, organize feedback, set goals, structure student-led conferences as well as sift through easily accessible research to nail down the importance of all your hard work around conferences. Tweets 24-40 give you all the resources you need to get planning on those final "official" conferences of the school year.

Resources, Research & Tools To Use/Pass Along

24) "Jerry Blumengarten’s “Parent-Teacher Conference Pages” tinyurl.com/4rvh22y"

25) "Larry Ferlazzo’s "The Best Resources On Parent/Teacher Conferences" bit.ly/rWL11T"

26) "I use student completed form showing me and parents where they believe they are performing at and strengths/weaknesses. Great tool!"

27) “My student led conferences have a set script to assure all topics covered. Includes samples of work”

28) “Research suggests that parent engagement in conferences diminishes over time due to lack of meaningful and relevant info”

29) “Initial Research on Student Led Conferencing tinyurl.com/7pzp6b6”

30) “My Student led form bit.ly/AcBUbx”

31) “Sign Up Genius works well for events - easy to use! Link here---bit.ly/5XGYZ9”

32) “@Volunteerspot has a tool for PT conf signup http://www.volunteerspot.com”

33) “Building relationships improves attendance and content of conference”

34) “Sample Google appointments for your Parent-Teacher Conferences bit.ly/zQZIVh”

35) “Another example of a Google Doc used for Parent-Teacher Conferences here ----> bit.ly/z8UcGT”

36) “Wondering if we could tap into parent's strength and invite them back as a guest, volunteer, etc”

37) “Parents want to know that you care about their child and that they are going to be happy learning in your class!”

38) “Leave the conference with a ‘next step plan’ that will provide opportunity for further contact between parents and teacher”

39) “The entire #PTchat on Maximizing Parent-Teacher Conferences - archived here"

40) “Interested in further P-T perspectives? All #PTchats have been chronologically archived here"

Investigate what perspectives might be at play in your setting.

What perspective do you bring as a teacher and/or parent?
What perspective do your students hope you bring?

If you missed our chat, please share it below. Please consider joining #PTchat on Wednesday nights at 9PM EST/6PM PST to add your important perspective.

Latest #PTchat - Building Partnerships During Parent-Teacher Conferences

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 22:56:00 +0000

ARCHIVED CHAT LINK

For many of us, parent-teacher conferences are coming up soon. For some, you may have just had them in your school or district. On Wednesday, February 29th at 9PM EST, teachers and parents came together during our weekly #PTchat to discuss ways to maximize these crucial face to face communication opportunities.

Image Credit: http://www.blog.babble.com

How can teachers increase conference attendance and make the most of this time with families? Depending on where you are, these conferences can range from 10 to 15 to 30 minutes long. It's up to both the teacher and the parent to make the most of this time together. For some parents, work arrangements have been made to take off a portion of the day to accommodate a limited schedule.

For teachers, this might be one of the only times you're able to connect face to face with a parent depending on the circumstances. What if the parent does not speak the necessary English when you go to articulate your thoughts on the child? What are the benefits of including students in these meetings? How do you plan for, facilitate, reflect and respond following these conferences? Innovative approaches including any teachers offering Parent-Teacher Skype Conferences and more were discussed during our one-hour chat.

It's the partnership we build together that matters. Face to face opportunities are sacred in today's busy world, and we need to make the most of these opportunities in the best interest of our students, big and small.

If you missed this #PTchat, please check out the ARCHIVED CHAT LINK.

"You Know, I Didn't Like You At First"

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 01:53:00 +0000

Yes, these were the words that a parent at my school said to me today. I didn't expect to hear them, but there they were and it was my job to probe further and find out exactly what she meant by them.

She went on to say that "you followed a principal who was a people person. He treated everyone, from the first he met them, as if he knew them for years. I didn't feel you were physically present as much. Not meaning you weren't around at all."

Image Credit: http://marriottschool.byu.edu

These words really made me think deeply about my transition over the past four and a half years as principal of my current school. I thought about the challenges along the way and what I had learned from the input of my students, parents, staff and administrative colleagues and superiors. I came into the position as a very young and inexperienced leader with only a couple years under my belt as an assistant principal. I wasn't very comfortable engaging with everyone at first, and I definitely wasn't as socially competent as the long-time principal I followed.

So what could I gain from this interaction? First of all, the fact that she felt at ease in telling me these things meant a great deal to me. It showed that she felt comfortable in not just sharing good news as she does quite frequently regarding our school, but could be honest with me. As leaders, how can we improve our schools if we only hear what things are going well in our schools? Second, it allowed me to confirm the commitment of more face to face interactions with all stakeholders at our school was indeed the key ingredient to our partnership goals.

Earlier this year, I took a excerpt out of Chris Wejr's blogpost and began doing the Friday 5, or calling 5 random parents on a Friday afternoon just to see how school was going for them and their children. I ask questions like what are the best and most challenging things about the school year? Have you attended a Web Home & School Meeting? Are you feeling a solid partnership between home and school? What is something we could do better? Have you been following our school's Twitterfeed?

Technology is increasingly more popular in terms of communicating in today's world, but as I am learning and as my parent hammered home to me, the impact of face to face 2-way communications has never been more important for principals as we work toward build relationships and partners in learning.

In reflection, I can say without a doubt that if we truly treat parents as our partners, we are already actively listening to them, seeking out conversations, interacting personally during most if not all events and following through on the questions and concerns that will inevitably come up.

My parent was right on with her initial perception of me. I wasn't as invested in home-school partnerships as I should or could of been when I began as a "green" principal. It's the experiences we encounter, the relationships we build, the listening we commit to, the professional development we expose ourselves to and finally the risks we take that help us feel confident that we are serving our students and their families the best we can.

It is up to us to set the tone for the partnership we aspire to have between home and school. As always, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on this blog post as a new or experienced principal or parent.

The Case for eFACE

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 22:55:00 +0000

Also posted at Parent Involvement Matters

Just as teachers differentiate for a variety of learning styles in the classroom, schools must also differentiate communication efforts for true home-school partnerships. We must keep in mind that, like our students, today’s parents are also evolving in the tools they use each day as Moms and Dads. Technology, and social media specifically, has arrived.

Social Media Statistics

Per Twitter, 3.7 million Super Bowl related tweets were sent on Superbowl Sunday. With 460,000 new sign-ups happening each day, Twitter is the fastest growing social media in the world. Facebook is still the social media of choice, but Twitter is gaining ground on it quickly. Youtube, LinkedIn, blogs and wikis are also very popular social media being used by today for personal and professional reasons. The most telling statistic: The most popular age group of today’s Twitter users is 18-35; the age of most parents I currently and will be working with to build home-school partnerships at my elementary school.

Identifying Roadblocks

The number of schools truly harnessing social media to connect families is relatively low, but growing. Some school examples to check out are Eric Sheninger’s New Milford High School, Patrick Larkin’s Burlington High School and Lyn Hilt’s Brecknock Elementary to name a few. For the rest of us who are moving at a slower pace for one reason or another, here are some questions to think about that relate to your own organization:

Questions to ponder

• What policies and beliefs stand in the way of schools truly harnessing this power? Are these policies written to prevent problems or encourage innovation?

• What factors influence the level of “access” for your school and your families?

• Shouldn’t schools be the ones to set the digital responsibility bar for students, parents and other educators to follow?

• Instead of being fearful SM use, how about being confident that we as educators are role modeling effective and appropriate use.

Adding the “e” to FACE

Simply put, "eFACE" or electronic Family And Community Engagement is using technology tools to bridge home and school while creating and maintaining partnerships. For true partnerships, this communication needs to have plenty of two-way options, not just one-way sharing.

Use technology to support your comprehensive plan and open doors providing access to conversations already happening in virtual spaces. Technology should not be the answer to home-school partnership challenges. In an increasing digital age, it’s even more important to take the extra time necessary to maintain face to face communication with eye contact, respect, tone and empathy as the ideal relationship-builder whenever possible.

Questions to ponder

• Do you have a comprehensive family engagement plan in your school or district. *If your answer is no, adding technology tools will not improve your practice in this area.

• What ways does your setting currently use technology to share information with parents?

• How often does your setting employ electronic tools that act as two-way communication tools?

Moving forward

The research is clear. Family engagement is good for kids. Technology should not cause change in what family engagement researchers like Joyce Epstein have taught us. Face to face two-way communications should continue to be at the root of our efforts. Growing and fine-tuning these efforts along the way is vital. Whether the feedback comes while using technology or not shouldn’t be the focus, but not offering that as a mode of communication limits those parents who are most comfortable

Schools can no longer afford to exclude eFACE components including social media tools in their family partnership goals.

The questions are raised throughout this blog because true home-school partnerships are about responding to your own learning community, digging deeper from within, not simply replicating what has worked well in other places. I encourage you to answer the questions posed after each section according to your own setting to empower your own reflection.

Upcoming #PTchat - Schools & Families: Strategies for Showing Appreciation

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 18:28:00 +0000

The school year moves at a breakneck pace. We sometimes don't think about the simple "thank yous" that help keep those home-school relationships strong from year to year with everything else going on. Join us this Wednesday, 2/22 at 9PM EST / 6PST as we share simple and interactive ways BOTH schools and families can appreciate the many efforts that take place throughout the school year.

Image Credit: http://positivepsychologynews.com

All-school efforts and individual classroom efforts will be shared for parents, teachers and school leaders. Bring your best ideas and those that maybe you haven't tried yet but have heard about. As we continue to build relationships between home and school, let's be sure to recognize our successes along the way!

#PTchat - Wednesday, 2/22/12 at 9PM EST. For a list of past #PTchat, check out our archive.

Edutopia: Why We Desperately Need to Invest in Home-School Partnerships

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 03:53:00 +0000

Earlier this week I was a guest blogger for Edutopia and covered John Halligan's parent presentation on youth depression, cyber-bullying and teen suicide- Ryan's Story. Throughout his heartfelt presentation I tweeted out takeaways as they have all been Storified here.

Article from Edutopia.org - February 16, 2012

John Halligan provides us a much-needed sense of urgency to developing home-school partnerships: Saving lives.

In 2003, he lost his 12-year-old son Ryan to suicide after he was bullied and cyber-bullied by his peers over a period of time. Since then, his courageous father has visited over 650 schools to speak to students, teachers, parents, lawmakers, administrators and community members. He speaks not only about the horrific events that took place on October 7, 2003, but how he and his wife tried to help Ryan along the way. Mr. Halligan speaks from the heart with hindsight on explicit details directed toward parents and school officials on what to do and what not to do during a bullying situation. Continue reading...

Me, John Halligan & MS Guidance Counselor Chris Joy

Next #PTchat - Partnering with ESL/ELL Families w/ Special Guest Larry Ferlazzo

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 22:35:00 +0000

FULL ARCHIVED CHAT LINK

On Wednesday, February 15th at 9PM EST, California high school English & Social Studies teacher, author and collaborative tweeter Larry Ferlazzo will join us for #PTchat.

We will be discussing strategies schools can employ to partner with ESL/ELL families.

Mr. Ferlazzo and his fabulous resources can be found all over the Internet including on Twitter (where I found him!) @LarryFerlazzo, on his Websites of the Day Website or even his Engaging Parents in School Blog. He has also published multiple books read by educators around the world as a resource in meeting the diverse needs of students and families. Mr. Ferlazzo has won multiple awards, including the Leadership For A Changing World Award from the Ford Foundation for his tireless dedication to our field of education.

Like an increasing number of schools across the country, my suburban Philadelphia school provides an education to many families that do not speak English at home. Our teachers educate students who speak 20 different first languages at home. The ESL staff and classroom teachers work to meet each child and parent where they are and provide appropriate instruction, while introducing many of them to our local and national cultures. Understanding and responding to the culture of the child is something the staff works very hard at- as every one is different but so important. This team of teachers also keeps our staff up to date on upcoming holidays and other cultural knowledge that helps us meet these diverse needs.

ESL families don't always feel comfortable coming into schools for a variety of reasons including but not limited to culture and lack of English speaking confidence and/or skills. Our job as educators is to help them feel comfortable with our schools, but empowering them to do whatever they can to support academics in the home.

During our one-hour chat, we will share ideas on how to respond to these challenges like these and partner with our ESL/ELL families. Valuable resources will be provided to take your family engagement program to the next level while focusing on those parents and students who do not speak English as their first language.

Parents & Teachers- Please join us on 2/15 at 9PM EST for #PTchat with Larry Ferlazzo!

[PIC] What Does "Partnership" Mean To You? via #PTchat

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 01:47:00 +0000

Last night's #PTchat discussed how teachers are using today's most innovative approaches to build home-school partnerships.

Below is the Wordle that participants created at the end of the chat to describe our goal in family engagement - "Partnerships" Please add your own descriptors in the comment section below.

Click to Enlarge

Questions from our #ptchat centered around how classroom teachers are using creativity and outside the box thinking to meet Joyce Epstein's 6 Types of Involvement (2011):

Parenting - How teachers are helping families establish home environments to support children as students

Communicating - How teachers are designing effective forms of school-to-home and home-to-school communications about school programs and children's progress

Volunteering - How classroom teachers are recruiting and organizing parent help and support

Learning at Home - How classroom teachers are providing information and ideas to families about how to help students at home with homework and other curriculum-related activities, decisions, and planning

Decision Making - How classroom teachers are including parents in school decisions, developing parent leaders and representatives

Collaborating with Community - How classroom teachers are identifying and integrating resources and services from the community to strengthen school programs, family practices, and student learning and development

Please join us to share and learn from Mr. Larry Ferlazzo, next week's #PTchat special guest as we discuss partnering with ESL/ELL families. Past #ptchat archives available here.

John Halligan Speaks to Parents on Bullying, Cyber-bullying and Youth Depression

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:29:00 +0000

International anti-bullying speaker John Halligan will hold three presentations of “Bullying, Cyberbullying and Youth Depression” for students, families and community members of my school district on Monday, February 13^th.

Halligan’s 13-year-old son died by suicide in 2003 after being bullied by classmates at school and online. Halligan’s presentation will cover the lessons learned too late for his family regarding how to deal with bullying, cyberbulling and teen depression.

Two presentations will take place during the day for the middle school student body, with one evening presentation that will take place from 7-8:30PM EST open to all school families and community members. I will be tweeting out quotes from Mr. Halligan during the course of the evening presentation to parents and teachers using the #PTchat hashtag. I've heard John speak before to students and parents. His message is powerful and his suggestions to all of us must be taken seriously if we are to eliminate bullying from schools. His resourceful website can be found here. Join #PTchat on Monday night 2/13 at 7PM EST.

John Halligan’s visit is made possible thanks to a grant from our school district's educational foundation.

When Parents & Teachers Disagree - #PTchat's 10 Tips

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:25:00 +0000

Last night parents and educators from across the US and Canada weighed in on our weekly #PTchat Twitter discussion. We discussed an important topic: When Parents & Teachers Disagree. The full Storify archive provides the entire hour-long chat conversation, but below are 10 quotes that captured my reflection.

Image Credit: http://highschoolmediator.com/

"I think disagreements between p/t can be avoided if learning is more visible and accessible - provide windows rather than walls"

"Parents are often asked to support and reinforce the schools rules regardless of if parents agree or have had any input"

"Listening is crucial to partnerships-demonstrates engaging in mutually respectful communication. Difficult to achieve if not f2f"

"For teachers it is very important that you keep very accurate records & work to back up what you state"

"Be honest. Try to see through each other's lens. It's not always easy and it takes extra time"

"Sometimes we forget that the parent knows the child even better than we do, preempt problems- ask parent to tell you about child"

"I hold firm that conflict (student or parent) does not exist if they are engaged - my philosophy in classroom as much as w/ parents"

"Parents can be over emotional & as can teachers re their teaching/class; discussions need to focused on what's best for the child"

"For teachers- admitting we're not perfect. For parents - admitting our child is not perfect. Honesty helps the child"

"Teachers must be proactive in communication-weekly emails, update websites, twitter, phone calls, progress reports. Invest upfront"

Please comment below and share your own thoughts. Please state which lens you are commenting from.

eFACE it. Parents are using technology.

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 02:01:00 +0000

Why eFACE? My doctoral studies have allowed me to hone in on best practices around the world when it comes to building and maintaining home-school partnerships. With each piece of research I read, everyday technology tools (many shared on Twitter) come to mind to allow options for home-school "differentiated-communication."

I had no idea how many people were actually online using social media until I drafted my literature review and found the latest data on the topic. The numbers are astounding. For those school districts NOT taking this into account, how many of those 460,000 new Twitter sign-ups (per day) are parents of your school district?

So where to begin? There are so many social networking tools out there. The big ones you've heard of - Facebook, Youtube, Google+, LinkedIn & Twitter. How about learning what your parent population is already using and "meeting them where they are?" Keep in mind it's not the tool you use, but how you use it. What result are you looking for in using these tools? What are your family engagement goals?

To begin using technology to partner with parents, we must "talk" with and include them in dialogue - without technology. Home & School Meetings, informal discussion, during events, Back to School Nights and anywhere you can listen and learn from what they are already doing. Do you know what population of your parents are on Facebook? On Twitter?

"eFACE" or electronic Family And Community Engagement is using technology tools to bridge home and school. It is when parents and teachers partner together to connect home and school. What ways does your school use technology to share information with parents? For true partnerships, this communication needs to have plenty of two-way options. Does your school employ any electronic tools that act as two-way communicators?

I currently have the privilege of working with Dr. Joyce Epstein on my dissertation topic: "Measuring the Impact of Social Media on Home-School Partnerships." Dr. Epstein has done a great deal of research over the years in parent involvement, and has identified 6 Types of Involvement that, for me, encompass most areas I can think of in terms of connecting home and school. Does your school employ technology tools that coincide with each of the 6 Types identified? If you're like me, I find more tools used with Type 2 - Communication.

Where to start? Make sure you identify who your home Internet users are and who they are not. Provide hard copies for any families who do not have access to what you are sending home electronically. Interpret where necessary. Develop a system for new families. Get them on your list. Add a "Add to Parent E-Mail List" tab on your website. The email distribution list will provide your school the communication foundation to lead your parents to other worthwhile places on the Internet and on your wiki, blog or website.

"Ongoing Face to Face Two-Way Planning" is always at the root of our efforts. Responding to and fine-tuning efforts along the way is our goal. Sometimes this feedback comes during use of a tool, and other times it occurs later. At our school, we began with the email distribution list and have "branched out" over time.

Challenges to our efforts are part of the process to "getting it right." Access, Going Green, District Policies and lack of support are areas to keep in mind as you plan and organize your efforts. Our plan has worked well for us, but the plan was designed with "our" families in mind. How can you use technology tools as a "hook" to engage more families and raise the level of parent involvement in your school?

Next entry - Home & School 2.0 (EduCon Presentation)

I'd be interested in your feedback and how your own efforts are progressing in your school.

Next #ptchat: Parent Leadership Opportunities w/ Karren Dunkley

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:27:00 +0000

UPDATE: #PTchat Archive 1-25-12

This week's #ptchat brings a special guest from the School District of Philadelphia, Karren Dunkley. Karren will be answering your questions during the one hour chat on parent engagement around the topic of Parent Leadership and how schools can develop "Demand Parents" as partners. Back in November, I had the privilege of hearing Karren speak on the Harvard Family Research Project Webinar and blogged about important points made. Join us for #ptchat on Wednesday, January 25, 2012 at 9PM EST. If you are new to Twitter chats, here's a good resource on how to become involved.

More on Karren...

Ms. Dunkley is a researcher practitioner in the field of parent engagement. Currently, she serves as a Deputy Chief in the School District of Philadelphia. Her portfolio includes Parent, Family, Community Engagement and Faith Based Partnerships. This department provides district and school-based services/supports to improve the quality of family and community engagement to accelerate student achievement. Under her leadership, the department successfully initiated many nationally recognized programs to strengthen family and community engagement in the District schools. Notable highlights include: the District’s Nationally Recognized Parent University of Philadelphia, the Multilingual Family Support Office, targeted School Advisory Councils, eight geographically based Parent Family Resource Centers, and a Translation and Interpretation Center. Karren also focused on connecting parents to schools and schools to parents through the strategic implementation of a School Improvement Support Liaison in chronically low performing schools.

Karren has enjoyed a successful career in education as a classroom teacher, school team leader, professional development coach, and now Deputy Chief. In 2007, she received the New York Assembly Teacher of the Year Award.

Karren also served as adjunct instructor teaching Political Science courses at City University and St. John’s University, both in Queens, New York. She currently serves as an Adjunct Instructor at Teachers College, Columbia University.

Highlights of her accomplishments as Deputy Chief include a Time Magazine feature in 2009, CNN 2011, participant at a Congressional Briefing in April 2011, and the “Most Influential under 40 Philadelphia of 2009” award by the Philadelphia Tribune.

Ms. Dunkley received her bachelor and master degrees in Government and Politics from St. John’s University, Queens, New York. She earned a second Masters in Education at Teachers College, Columbia University, where she is currently a doctoral student. The title of her dissertation is “The Role of Parent Engagement in Reforming Urban Schools: Intersections of Intercultural Competence and Social Capital.”

Easily Create Your School's Mobile App

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 01:14:00 +0000

Last week our school held it's annual family math night. Kids run around the gym from table to table getting stamps for completion of each station. At the end, they trade in their completed and stamped paper for prizes, homework passes and refreshments. While looking around the gym, I couldn't help but notice how many parents were on their cellphones, most likely texting family and friends, checking email or confirming a calendar date.

What if those same parents had access to a school app? They could stay up to date with Home & School events, report school bullying, see recent photos and more. Meeting parents where they are, schools can easily create a free family engagement app for parents and guardians.

There are several choices out there, but I used Webmobi to create our school's app- The Knapp App. In a matter of minutes, I created a mobile web app while choosing from a variety of themes and layouts. I had the option to add video, polls, Twitter, forms, photos and more. Version 1.0 of our school app only uses a portion of the features -all available at no charge.

These screenshots provide visuals on the features our families can now take advantage of. You can customize each page according to the needs of your families. Direct phone numbers to the office, guidance counselor, nurse and principal allow parents to share and receive information in seconds. We've embedded our Google calendar that include all dates and times. Future updates will include opportunities for parents to volunteer at these events. The Twitterfeed allows parents (with or without a Twitter acct) to stay up to date with the day's happenings and see pictures taken from the classrooms around the school. Finally, version 1.0 includes the week's student-led television show archive as well as other district-related updates.

Below is a video highlighting the steps you'll need to take to make your own Webmobi school app. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. The folks over at Webmobi were also very helpful during the process of designing our app.

Upcoming Speaking Engagement: Classroom Live 2.0

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 20:07:00 +0000

WEBINAR ARCHIVE
Next Saturday 1/20/12, I'll be speaking with Peggy George, Lorna Constantini and Kim Caise from Classroom Live 2.0 at 12:00PM EST. Each week, these dedicated folks host conversations about a variety of important topics around education. You can check out their comprehensive archive here.

During the one hour webinar, I'll be sharing several tech tools our elementary school uses to meet parents where they are. Our new mobile family engagement app, Web Home Web Home & School Meetings, electronic feedback solicitation and eVolunteer efforts will be the focus of our conversation. I hope you an join us for a lively hands-on discussion using these eFACE tools.

To learn more and bookmark actual webinar link, visit the Classroom Live 2.0 website.

Next #ptchat: Bus Bullying Solutions w/ Jim Dillon

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 20:08:00 +0000

Image: peacefulbusprogram.com

Thanks to everyone who joined us for Dr. Michele Borba's #ptchat earlier this week. An archive of her informative one-hour Twitter chat on What Parents &Teachers Can Do To End Bullying has been placed on our #ptchat archive page above.

In continuing with the important topic of student safety, Jim Dillon, author of the Peaceful Bus Program, school principal and certified trainer in the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program will join us for an hour long Twitter chat. (Jim's Full Bio Here)

Image: peacefulschoolbus.blogspot.com/

Jim will entertain questions around the topic of school bus safety and share proven strategies for schools and parents on making the bus stop and bus ride a safer one for all students. Please join us on Wednesday, January 11th at 9PM EST at #ptchat.

I firmly believe kids need their parents and teachers to be on the same page when it comes to any bully prevention efforts. The bus is one part of the school day that often gets overlooked in terms of proactive efforts to prevent bullying. At our elementary school, our staff has implemented the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program as well as the Peaceful Bus Program (Article 1 / Article 2) at our school. During the #ptchat, I will share it's impact as well as the implementation steps our school team took from the day our guidance counselor brought the Peaceful Bus Program to our attention. Below is a brief video overview of the program. Looking forward to chatting with you on January 11th! For more information please email me.

Dr. Michele Borba joins us for first 2012 #ptchat

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 03:20:00 +0000

Image: micheleborba.com

Dr. Michele Borba will be joining us this Wednesday night at 9pm EST for our first #ptchat of 2012! Dr. Borba (@micheleborba) is an internationally recognized author, speaker and educator on parenting, character education and bullying prevention. Her work aims to help strengthen children’s character and resilience, reduce peer cruelty and create compassionate, just learning cultures. Her bullying resource page is a valuable resource for parents and teachers alike.

For one hour on Wednesday night, we will be discussing what parents & teachers can do to put an end to bullying. I hope you'll join us, provide your best ideas and strategies as well as learn from fellow educators and parents committed to ending bullying for good.

If you have specific questions for Dr. Borba, please send me an email ahead of time and we will try to get as many in as possible during the chat.

How to Participate in a Hashtag Chat

5 Family Engagement Goals for the New Year

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 21:48:00 +0000

If you have read my recent posts, you know that my school consists of students hailing from all over the world and speak twenty different languages when they go home each night. Almost 40% of those students receive free or reduced lunches each day, ensuring that our staff is constantly looking at the most cost-effective strategies & opportunities to engage our families.

I preface this post by sharing that I am now in my fifth year working in the school as the principal, and some of these goals may have been unrealistic over the first few years due to a variety of reasons. I strongly believe family engagement is something you have to build over time with your stakeholders.

Here are 5 goals I’m setting to strengthen our school's FACE program.

Share out the results of the recent Family Engagement Survey solicited by our Family and Community Engagement (FACE) team. Be sure all of our families see the collective results and allow time at the next Web Home & School Meeting to discuss the data collected. If we are a true partnership committed to growing, an open and honest conversation is a necessary for checkpoint for us. (We used Surveymonkey)
Using the data collected and discussed, I will plan the upcoming Principal’s Reports (at the Web Home & School Meetings) around those areas identified where our parents require further efforts. I’ll be working closely with our FACE team while drafting these mini-chats.
I'm always concerned about "access." Korean and Bengali make-up 23% of our students’ spoken languages at home. I plan to return to the Mosque (where we held a private Back to School Night) two years ago, sit down with leadership and propose hosting a Web Home & School Meeting from the mosque ensuring that “access” to the meeting is not an issue since they do have an Internet connection. As for the Korean population, since we haven’t done anything formal in the past, I have an early January calendar appointment to sit down with several Korean parents with the goal of learning more about what their needs are and how we at the school can support them. We already use an interpreting service called Language Line, but this does not help us very much in understanding and responding to diverse cultures.
Release a mobile version of our Family Engagement Wiki. With 5 billion texts being sent a day and cellphones closing in on 1 per each citizen of our country (.87), our parents are using cellphones to communicate, gather and share information all day long. I’d like to ensure they can access the school throughout the day as necessary again, meeting them where they are. Check out this cool infographic on global cellphone use and more cellphone statistics. Here’s the current draft form of my app I have made free using webmobi. There's more to do but I'm hoping to get this first version out to my families in the next two weeks.
The Friday 5 - I have read about other principals (like my Twitter PLN buddy Mr. Wejr) doing this. They randomly call 5 parents each Friday afternoon to inquire about how school is going for they and their children. They ask questions like “How is Johnny doing in school?” “What can we do to help him?” “Do you have all of the resources you need to support his learning at home?” “What is something you wished we did more of?” “What other input do you have for me or my staff?” If we are committed to growing as a parent-teacher team, we can’t be afraid of what we might hear when soliciting feedback. I am working to be more transparent in my own leadership while building that vital trust amongst our parents and school team.

Image: http://www.betwixtstudio.com/

Things to keep in mind as you draft your own goals...

Know your population and meet them where they are.
It takes time and buy-in from your stakeholders to build your FACE program.
How have your eFACE strategies grown as of late? Email distribution lists, websites, wikis, blogs, polleverywhere, home & school web meetings, sharing of photos/videos from school, etc. Have you provided appropriate time and training to staff and parents on how to utilize these tools?

Principals' 20-Point Winter Break Inspection

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 02:59:00 +0000

1. Get away from the office. Enjoy some quiet reflective solitude on the way home from the final day before winter break begins. You've earned it. How has the year started? Are you feeling like your ship is headed in the right direction? Hit some rough patches? What could you have done differently over the first four months of school?

2. Take your spouse out to dinner and enjoy some quality time without your mobile device. If you're a connected principal, you're probably used to checking your phone for work emails, phone calls or Tweets even at home. It's time to take a little break. He/she will appreciate it.

3. Read an unrelated magazine article, book, or anything that takes you away from "job-thoughts." Watch a movie or go holiday shopping.

Image: http://www.asap.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/winter-breaks.jpg

4. Go into the office at least one day over break on your own time. Put a time limit on it and be focused on your goals for the day...

5. Clear the desk. File as necessary. Look to limit paper or go green altogether. Consider Evernote or Dropbox.

6. Clean out your old voicemails. Make sure there's a good reason to save them.

7. Synchronize your personal calendar and your school calendar and make note of any recurring upcoming events. Check your notes from last winter/spring on what went well and what could be fine-tuned. Don't forget to check in with the spouse on those upcoming night events.

8. Clean up your to do list- Divide into long range and short range. Cross off the ones you have accomplished and create new ones.

9. Clean out your emails- Keep only the ones that need attention. Look to delete or archive the rest.

10. Clear the computer's desktop. Yes, I know it looks daunting but try start by adding a couple desktop folders and begin organizing.

11. Update your school's website including photo gallery pictures of the first trimester of the school year. Send a link out to direct parents and staff.

12. Update your own leadership goals for the year. What have you accomplished? What is your next move? What resources do you need to get there?

13. Pull out your staff roster. Go top to bottom. Who have you worked the most with this year. The least? Make some goals for the next trimester of the school year on how you can support your staff members, assistants, cafeteria workers.

14. Arrange a meeting with your office staff. How has the year started? Set goals for the new year. Talk to them about "PARTNER" and how you want to take your building to the next step in developing a family-friendly school. Ask them to consider the following mnemonic when helping a parent who has come to the office:

P- Put a smile on your face

A- Attitude-LESS

R- Recognize ESL or other needs (engage Language Line/interpreter)

T- Talk to them. Engage in conversation that shows them you care about them as people, they're more than guests.

N- Never be satisfied that you have addressed the needs they walked in with. We can always do more.

E- Engage building resources (principal/guidance/teacher etc) each time the need arises.

R- Revisit reasons for visit and verbally confirm needs were met.

11. Arrange a meeting with your head custodian. Reflect on the opening of the year. Share any feedback from staff and your own personal input. When was the last time you provided the staff type opportunity to complete a quick school cleanliness survey using surveymonkey.com?

12. Take a walk around the exterior of the building. How does it look? Check for safety risks while making notes to continue building an inviting campus for your families.

13. Pull out any walkthrough data and observations you've done on staff so far. Go down your staff roster once again. Have you missed anyone? Equity matters. Make a plan for the next trimester. Send an email to 5 teachers you observed referring to an observation and include a link to a related resource. Consider moving to a free online walkthrough form like lanbito.com. Here's a sample I made earlier this year that sends an email when you hit submit and also keeps a database of completed forms.

14. Sign up for Twitter if you haven't already. Search #edchat, #cpchat #ptchat #elemchat. Find new resources and give yourself some new things to try in 2012. If you are already on Twitter, it's now your job to help another principal find this amazing global resource and build their "PLN." Consider using the great resources of Kathy Schrock or Steven Anderson.

15. Reflect upon the praise you have provided your staff. Teaching can be a thankless job at times. Have you recognized the people in the trenches each day…the ones who lay it on the line with students and parents and make your school what it is? Send a text or write a note to them with authentic thanks and praise. Begin planning the a thoughtful Teacher Appreciation Week.

16. When was the last time you sat with the Home & School, PTO or PTA Board to revisit your family engagement philosophy? There are two prime times for this conversation: a new school year and a new calendar year. Set up a private principal and parent board meeting 30 minutes prior to your next monthly meeting. Show them you are serious about building partnerships with your families and meeting them where they are. Use research and some proven strategies.

17. Does your school truly integrate technology each day in classrooms and overall? Search #edtech and get some ideas together to compliment your curriculum. What traditional components of your school can go digital?

Newsletter--> Blog.

Loudspeaker announcements -->Ustream webshow

Photo gallery-->Picasa/Flickr/Twitter

Website-->Family Engagement Wiki

Hard copies to all families-->Gmail distribution lists

Write to pen pals?-->Skype across the country

Traditional phone chain--> Remind101.com

18. Add more student leadership opportunities at your school. You can never have enough opportunities for students to take ownership of their school. Student council members, student bloggers, photographers, environmental club members, academic tutors, guest readers.

19. Pick up the phone and cold call 20 parents. Solicit feedback on how the year is going. Thinking bigger? Develop a family engagement survey to help provide information on where your parents feel connected and where you need to differentiate further for them.

20. Take pride in the fact that you are meeting the expectations of one of the most challenging jobs in the world. You are a reflective leader working to bring your school into a 21st Century innovative learning community. You’re committed to improving your leadership and your school from one day to the next. You care about your staff and acknowledge the hard work they put in. You seek out new resources, make building relationships a priority and are working to be the transparent liaison between home and school.

In a job with so many responsibilities, you know there are more than 20 points to write about. Principals: please share your own winter break strategies below in the comment section.

Inside the #ptchat - Top 10 websites schools would bookmark on students' home computers

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 02:02:00 +0000

On December 7th at 9EST, #ptchat (Parent-Teacher) returned to the schedule of much anticipated weekly education chats. Teachers, principals, parents, directors and others around the Twitterverse came together to discuss websites or mobile applications parents can offer at home to support classroom instruction. Questions were posed to teachers in elementary and secondary settings such as...If you had to bookmark 10 websites on your student’s home computer, which ten would you choose and why?

A great deal of resources were shared during the hour long chat to lend a helping hand to parents looking to maximize online time for their children. Aparna Vashisht (@Parentella) and I moderated the chat, and we plan to gauge the feedback of all who contributed during #ptchat with a poll to identify a topic for next week’s chat.

Opportunities to engage families and communities using technology (eFACE) are growing on a daily basis as educators around the world share what works in their respective settings. With more and more families gaining access to today’s technologies, the percentage of families in schools without access to technologies continues to decline. Using social media and other technologies are just another way schools are using to “differentiate for their families” in order to partner with as many as possible.

The takeaways from the actual #ptchat were many. The full conversation has been archived here, but below I highlight any links shared and some thought-provoking discussions raised.

The Question: If you could post the top 10 academic bookmarks/tabs on your students' home computers, what would they be? Some resources you may have experience with- some may be new to you. (In no particular order)

Apps shared for parents supporting instruction at home

In a little under an hour, we were able to dialogue on issues such as home access, gamification and badges, intrinsic vs. extrinsic reward and gaming and our quest to provide students opportunities online to serve as “producers” in their own learning.

More on gamification at Gabe Zichermann’s blog

If you’re new to #ptchat, go ahead and check out the full conversation so you can jump right in on Wednesday night. We encourage you to become a weekly member and look forward to your ideas. Visit and bookmark the #ptchat page here. You will also find a #finnedchat that we completed a couple weeks ago on how schools in Finland schools are engaging families.

There are no magic bullets, but it is up to each of us to identify and implement those available and cost-effective web resources that support classroom instruction. Kids will be on computers and mobile devices. Let's provide them the best opportunities out there while role-modeling a high level of digital citizenship.

Looking forward to more dialogue on Wednesday night at 9EST for #ptchat!

Other websites or apps worked for your setting? Describe them below and be sure to include the link.

Principals need to be the bridge for parents-teachers.

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 04:07:00 +0000

School principals have been around for a long time. Among other things, you might hear the leader of a school referred to as headmaster, lead teacher, head of school or even dean of students. I’m sure there are plenty more depending on where you live, but those are the ones I hear most often.

Teachers, students, parents, and the community would each describe the role of a principal in variety of different ways. Most would say that the position is a formal one, and that he or she is responsible for or “in charge” of leading the school.

Since schools are now being held more accountable for the academic performance of all students, principals are in the spotlight more than ever. In the United States, this accountability is based on whether schools and districts are making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) toward the goal of bringing 100% of their students to academic proficiency by the end of the 2013-2014 school year. If a building fails to meet the AYP a consequence may be that principals may lose their job- and if that were to hold true you can bank on 1000's of principal vacancies around the country in 2014 because all of us know that the 100% AYP checkpoint isn’t realistic at all for most schools.

The sheer depth of today’s school principal job description however, is very realistic. Historically, our role has been mainly that of a manager which involves setting clear goals, allocating resources for instruction, managing the curriculum, monitoring lesson plans, and evaluating teachers. Today, the job description of a building level administrator is evolving to also emphasize instructional leadership. More than ever principals, need to become involved in the "core technology" of teaching and learning. The building level administrator’s job now carries a more sophisticated focus on teaching and learning, developing leadership capacity in teachers, creating conditions for professional learning, emphasizing the use of data to inform instructional program decisions (King, 2002).

Lost in all of that formal language, is that the principal serves as the main relationship-builder and/or partnership architect in terms of connecting the school and those families that attend the school.

Call it what you will. Liason. Buffer. Bridge. The principal is the glue that keeps the school and the families together through good times and the most challenging of times. You have to understand both roles inside and out, the current climate, the history, the culture as well as strengths and weaknesses each bring to the table. You spend a great deal of time to ensure each equally-important piece is supporting each other, in the best interests of the students. You make suggestions on how to go about certain situations including when or how to communicate about behaviors, events or academic concerns. Sometimes it’s the teacher who needs advice. Sometimes it’s the parents who need someone to listen to in order to arrive at a child-based decision. Your job is to ensure "the child" is always at the center of the table of conversation.

It’s very hard to serve this role well without building relationships on a daily basis and “meeting parents where they are,” as Chris Wejr described in his thoughtful post earlier this week. Parents need to fully believe that their building leader is working to provide them and their child consistency, safety, high standards, a helping hand, a valuable resource, a dependable ally and a comprehensive social and emotional offering while at school. Feeling supported outside of school via online/phone help, professional development for parents or events is also important in a well-rounded approach.

Bottom line: Besides steering the school’s ship in the best direction, today’s parents need principals to possess the skills necessary to bridge home and school. These skills allow you to be successful in creating the partnership dynamics that are best for your respective school situation.

Below is an initial list of behaviors that I hope will grow in the comment section as school leaders share their most successful approaches to building partnerships with parents and community members. I refer to them as unprincipal-like, because they were not the strategies taught in “principal school.” They are simply a handful of outside the box efforts proven valuable with experience.

Make a home visit. Find out what “home factors” are impacting your student.
Walk the pick-up/drop-off to greet parents.
Stand outside the school to welcome each visitor.
Cold call 5 parents per week to ask how the school year is going.
Connect with technology. Offer Skype virtual office hours.
Go out to the school lobby and sit down. Drum up conversation with the parents that are waiting.
Constantly update teachers on the conversations you have with parents. They are the ones who spend all day with the child and can make home-->school and school-->home the most seamless possible for them.
Attend school and community functions. Bring your family.
Invite your Family Engagement School team to peruse the most recent online edition of Promising Practices on Joyce Epstein's website. There are tons of innovative ideas that schools across the country are putting into action to engage families.
Ask parents about the parent-teacher conferences. Show them you care and can provide further resources on meeting the needs of their child.
Recommend a book or website to a parent. Send home or email it to them.
Email all participants from your new family orientation night afterwards thanking them for coming, and providing links, information on their new school and how they can reach you.
Be transparent with your office staff. Be sure they know as much as they need to about your families to enhance and build upon the partnership.

Of course, you cannot engage all of these at one time, but as principals, we need to differentiate our approach and employ a variety of strategies while providing a most stable bridge between home and school. Like one of my favorite tweeters, Steven Anderson, says each morning, “Be Awesome Today!” The little things you do as the building leader truly matter in building these most important partnerships.

King, D. (2002). The changing shape of leadership. Educational Leadership, 59(8), 61- 63.

My Edublog Award Nominations

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 02:26:00 +0000

The following are my nominations for this year's Edublog Awards. These people along with countless others inspire me to reach further each day while working for children.

Best individual Blog A Principal’s Reflections by @NMHS_Principal. Eric Sheninger has inspired me to use social media in so many ways, starting with communicating to parents on a school twitterfeed.

Best individual Tweeter @shelterrell
Shelly Terrell shares great resources and always gives me something to think about and RT out to my own followers.

Best Resource Sharing Blog @larryferlazzo Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day. Does this guy ever sleep!? He is working 24/7 to complete yet another resourceful list for me to refer to and pass along.

Best School Administrator Blog The Wejr Board by Kent Elementary School’s @mrwejr Just found Chris Wejr's blog recently, but he shares a wealth of information for principals and leaders to think about, reflect upon and tease out. He is thought-provoking and values parent engagement and relationships in general.

Best Free Web Tool - Coveritlive.com & Ustream.com. These two services allow schools to broadcast home and school meetings and other events home without anything more than a camera, laptop and Internet service.

Best educational use of a Social Networking Service Burlington High School Principal's Blog by @bhsprincipal. Patrick Larkin provides continuous reflection and professional development opportunities to his staff and of course, his PLN, which I am humbled to be a part of.

Leveling the language playing field for parents. Isn't it about time?

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 18:58:00 +0000

Earlier this year, David Andrade blogged about the a PLC for Parents and the importance of a comprehensive school website- one that was constantly updated with links, resources, news, information, and contacts for teachers and staff. He stressed that information should be easy to find and read and also include built-in translation abilities or instructions for using something like Google Translate; a feature very important in engaging limited or non-English speaking parents.

So here we are about to enter 2012. Google Translate has been around since 2006 and capable of automatic translating texts found on websites. Arabic was the first language translated, but now there are 58 languages, covering 99 percent of the languages read by today’s Internet users. I’m discouraged to see hundreds of school district, school and PTO/PTA/Home & School websites without these opportunities embedded on the page. With the short amount of time it takes to install a translating website add-on, why aren’t we going the extra mile for our families and for our children?

Below is a video on how Google Translate works.

Many of you work in schools like I do, where English is one of many languages spoken in the homes of your students. With schools cutting paper costs and districts encouraging more use of “green” communications, the Internet has become an important tool to help us meet these challenges.

We can’t however, forget about “access” when talking going green with our communications. What about those families who do not own a computer or cannot afford the Internet even if they own a word processor? How about those who do not speak the language of the newsletter you are sending home?

The following three ideas are meant to help school leaders think more about providing access opportunities to level the playing field for your parent populations. Of course, every school dynamic is different so take the time to study your own situation and engage dialogue amongst your stakeholders on how you can take your efforts to the next level.

Find out which parents/guardians utilize an email address and which do not. Identify a list of students who should receive hard copy communications of everything you hit “submit” on your email communications. If they do not return the form or your phone call, consider them an HCF (hard copy family). Survey your families from time to time to find out which technologies they are “accessing.” Provide professional development opportunities on how to use various technology tools. Post archives on your site to refer new parents to later.
Put Google Translate or another text-translating opportunity on your website at the very top of the page. If they have to scroll to the bottom of the page to find it, will your second language parents really take the time if they can’t read what is on the page in the first place? Remember, literal translation services like Google Translate will not interpret exactly what you are trying to communicate all of the time, but in speaking to parents who currently use these services, they can usually get a good idea of what the message provides. Make sure you “advertise” to your second language families that you have put this on your website. The fact that you are “making an effort” speaks volumes to your families and helps them be more comfortable within the “partnership” you are trying to build.
Last, but certainly not least, TALK to your families to find out their access needs. Although technology is fantastic and is changing the world daily, there is not a better way of identifying ways you can level the playing field other than engaging in a meaningful dialogue. Invite parents to your family engagement team meetings to get more information. Show them you care by making changes that provide them equitable access to your learning community. Use an interpreter or a language service like the Language Line to help get the most colorful message you can from the parents you serve.

If you have any questions or need any support, feel free to reach out at @joe_mazza or at pennedtech@gmail.com.

Key to Teaching Twitter - Lean On Your PLN

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Thu, 24 Nov 2011 01:51:00 +0000

At 7PM on Monday night, a district technology director and I hosted our first Twitter Townhall for Parents. We began by showing a couple videos shared by Kathy Schrock, who graciously shared with me her comprehensive site of edtech resources. (Yes she shared it on Twitter).

After a few clips were shown, a list of basic Twitter terms or Twitterology 101 was reviewed. The basic commands (Tweet, Retweet, Mention, @, DM, etc) were explained, and modeled on the big screen for all to see. I cannot articulate enough how difficult it was to explain the intricacies of this social media tool to those who had never used it. Much dialogue and modeled examples were required during the first hour of “explaining” the whats and hows of Twitter. Still, I wasn't feeling the parents were clear on how this thing really worked. (Were any of us really sure after the first hour!?)

The second hour was designed to provide more of an authentic hands-on opportunity to use their new Twitter accounts. Once all participants chose a username and signed on, we immediately began the act of “tweeting.” At this point you could really start to see them catching on, especially when one of Twitter’s best features played out...Each participant was asked to use the “hashtag” #knappchat at the end of every question and answer composed. They began seeing people they didn’t know respond back to their questions, which helped them understand the true global scope of Twitter.

With all of these "unknown" participants tuning into our chat, the dialogue continued around how parents in the world were using this tool. Parents and educators all over the United States and Canada participated (Link to #KnappChat to see our conversation). I told them this piece was what personally drew me into using Twitter- that ability to find someone else out there working through the same challenges as I, and offer suggestions and examples on how to work through it. Lorna Constantini, who some of you know and watched her recent show “Parents as Partners,” also engaged members of her PLN to add to the conversation. I have never met Lorna in person, but she has been a huge resource, colleague and friend to me over the last month as I’ve started using Twitter more and more for professional development and research.

As we approached the end of the evening, parents were able to reflect a bit and begin choosing others to follow. One parent even tweeted when she got home thanking those who participated during the chat. The next day she "mentioned" our school (@KnappElementary), and attached a link to pictures she had taken of Grandparents' Day the week before! This is the kind of sharing possible if we can get more of our parents on board with social media tools like Twitter.

Everyone is different. Everyone has a different use for Twitter. Everyone is at a different stage of Twitter (See the 46 Stages of Twitter). For some parents, Twitter will not be something that they implement into their daily life- regardless of how engaging your presentation is. For others, they will want to harness it’s power right away. For the children, it’s important parents have a good handle on what exactly Twitter can do to educate the world +/-, how kids can stay safe while online and how they can connect to their school while using it or viewing a Twitterfeed posted on your school website

The short video clip is intended to give an idea of the presentation set-up and use of Twitterfall to show the scrolling #knappchat. Also, here is a link to the flyer we used to invite the parents.

Good luck! Spread the word. Build your PLN! If you have any questions or need any support, feel free to reach out at @joe_mazza or at pennedtech@gmail.com.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Create free SMS alerts for your school

noreply@blogger.com (pennedtech@gmail.com) — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 18:02:00 +0000

Do you receive any text alerts that come into your cell phone from time to time? Currently, I receive them from a local TV station telling me when my school is closed, and also from ESPN when my favorite sports teams have won or lost. As more people become comfortable with cell phone use, SMS text subscriptions could be a valuable tool for schools as another way of communicating out to families. Also, why not bag that lengthy Emergency Phone Chain and get your teachers on a text alert?

I was looking around online this morning and found a good amount of text alerts set up exclusively for schools, most ranging from $20-$250 per month depending on the usage. Those I found right away included Mobilizeus, School’s Out and School Messenger. Broadtexter.com is a free service, but was designed mainly for bands trying to get the word out on their next gig.

Remind101 offers a FREE SMS service where you can connect with those who have subscribed to your text alerts. Here is a short video on the features it provides.

With their free service, you can:

Create a Remind101 page for your organization, school PTA group, or class.
Allow those in your community to subscribe to your group. They even provide you with clear printable instructions to hand out.
Schedule text alerts in advance
Send alerts from a computer or mobile device
See a full list of who have subscribed to your texts.
Create multiple text audiences for various needs.

It's interesting to think about how this tool could compliment the communication strategies employed at your organization. Bringing important news and updates to families and staff via cellphone might now be an option in these unprecedented economic times when choosing what will be cut from your school budget.

As we continue to look for ways to differentiate our family engagement efforts, I'd be interested in hearing if/how your school or organization uses mobile alerts. Please share in the comments below or via email or Twitter at @Joe_Mazza.