Tips and Tools for Data Driven Decision Making - Presented by Helen Soule
Data-driven decision making isn't only about test scores and bubble sheets. It's a bigger picture that entails school culture, professional learning communities, a technology rich learning environment, and decisions that are truly data-informed. This session will focus on putting this big picture together, and provide strategies for ensuring a solid, data-driven school setting.
New Media in the Classroom - Presented by Doug Levin
How can teachers make use of the evolved media available to them? How does one incorporate television, the web, and other forms of media into a 21st century classroom? How can administrators ensure that these tools are used to their fullest extent across the building(s) they lead?
It's Not One Size Fits All: Planning and Implementing Professional Development -Presented by Dr. Judi Harris
Conferences like VSTE showcase many examples of successful educational technology professional development (ETPD). How can we decide which types to offer, about what how, and to whom? In this "minds-on" workshop, Judi will share the range of possible ETPD goals, types, and evaluation strategies, explaining how to use these elements to customize ETPD designs according to teachers' learning needs and preferences.
Leadership 2.0: Transforming Schooling in the 21st Century -Presented by Dr. Jonathan Becker
A 2003 Department of Commerce study ranked 55 industries with respect to information technology (IT) intensity; education ranked dead last. This finding potentially renders our public schools irrelevant to the digital natives we serve. Remedying this problem is very much a leadership challenge. That is, decades of research point to the centrality of leadership to school change/reform/improvement. Yet, increasing empirical evidence suggests that leadership in and for technology in education is diffuse and ill-defined. This presentation is designed as an opportunity to explore how school leaders can position themselves to lead the change towards 21st Century teaching and learning.
Putting Your Entire School "On the Grid" - Presented by Tim Tyson.
While not solely for administrators, this presentation is a must-see for principals and superintendents. Dr. Tyson will guide educators through the design and implementation of MabryOnline.org, a collection of about 100 staff members blogs (from the cafeteria, media center, guidance counselors, nurse, teachers, etc.), and the school's sole web presence from 2005 through June, 2007. He discusses the impact the site has had on the local school's learning community as well as the education profession on an international level. Dr. Tyson discusses the impact of web transparency and the sense of invitation this type of web presence affords. If you are not satisfied with your school's or district's web presence, you need to learn more about the impact of school-wide blogging as an infrastructure for the participatory school.
Getting Beyond the Tools: Encouraging and Evaluating Technology Use in the Classroom - Presented by Karen Richardson
We know that just putting technology in classrooms does not guarantee that it will be used. How do we encourage teachers to use technology in effective ways to support teaching and learning? This session will discuss the challenges and successes of truly integrating technology in the classroom and provide practical suggestions for professional development that will encourage technology use and ideas for how to evaluate technology.
Telling Our Story: Advocating for Educational Technology -Presented by Hilary Goldman
Educational technology requires funding support at the local, state and federal level. How can we convince the "powers that be" that educational technology is worth it? What can we do to effectively tell our story? This session will provide tips and techniques for being effective ed tech advocates.
The Tech-Savvy Administrator - Presented by Beth Teigen
Principals wear many hats and juggle many jobs, including being the key instructional leader in the building. Highly effective instructional leaders "keep up" with technology by modeling, and leading the charge for its effective use in learning environments. What are those things that are most appropriate, and how does one lead technology while managing the other tasks that are needed to effectively move schools forward? This session will discuss the "tech savvy administrator" and what skills and strategies one can enlist to "keep up."
Web 2.0 for Administrators - Presented by Chris O'Neal
Are you still figuring out what to do with Web 1.0? Not sure exactly what how Web 2.0 can be used safely and effectively in schools? This session will provide definitions and examples of using the new collaborative Web in your school.
Balancing Safety and Access: Moving Beyond the Acceptable Use Policy - Presented by William Johnsen
With Internet safety a priority in Virginia schools, many divisions are revisiting their acceptable use policies and experimenting with new filters. New web-based tools such as blogs, wikis, and social networking sites provide a challenge to traditional policy making in schools. In addition, many schools are simply choosing to filter these websites, making it difficult for teachers and students to access them for use in the classroom. How can we develop policies to support 21st century teaching and learning?