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January 26, 2011Ins and Outs of Calling via the NetBy DAVID POGUE, New York TimesCorrection AppendedThis week’s e-mail bag brought a note that echoes the sentiments of many others:“Hi David! Am I the only one getting really confused by all the free/cheap Internet calling options? Would you mind clearing the steadily occluding waters of Skype, Google Voice, Line2, FreePhone2Phone, and so on? Your fan,...

Administrators not engaging technology are not just in danger of becoming irrelevant, they are in danger of becoming living fossils. Engaging technology means exploring the potential of technology too, not just expecting it of teachers and students to do so. Recently, I stumbled across this video and it was a vivid reminder of just how fast our world is changing due to the Internet. Those who still...

Recently, I began reading Carl Sagan’s book The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark.  At the beginning he writes of his school experiences. When I began reading that part of the book, I expected a tribute to some teacher who inspired him to the great heights he reached in science achievement. Instead he writes:  “I wish I could tell you about inspirational teachers in science...

Learning to blog is an uphill process in which I engaged for the first time in the spring of 2008.  I honestly do not remember the name of the blog, but I established it without a purpose and without a focus. It was just to experiment with blogging. The kinds of posts I wrote on that blog were varied; they ranged from comments on books I was reading to opinions about education policy. I basically...

In reflecting on my one year anniversary with this blog, I was just wondering if there’s anything I can add to the argument that administrators should be blogging. Because of my sixteen years in the classroom as an English teacher I love blogging. I have always been a journal-keeper and closet writer, and I reluctantly admit I’ve always wanted to publish. Blogging has given me that outlet. Still,...

Earlier, I posted 4 of my own reasons why school administrators need to get connected to Twitter. Once they are connected, the next question is how to help them engage in its use? Sometimes, this is not an easy task because so many believe that once you have a Twitter account established, then the job is finished. This is simply not true. To foster the development of a Twitter PLN and connections...

In an age when there’s so much debate about merit pay, test scores, and accountability, I ask myself the question: What can I learn from Daniel Pink’s book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us that I can take directly back to my school and put into practice? I have reread Pink’s book with this lens, and here’s some of my thoughts. As a school leader if I rely on carrot-and-stick motivational...

I have repeatedly tried to sell Twitter to my fellow administrators, but it is an uphill battle. Mention the words “social media, blogging, or Twitter” and it seems they either want to race on to the next topic, or their eyes glaze over and I’m fairly sure they’re not hearing what I’m saying. I’ve been tweeting for almost three years now, and I am continually amazed by what it allows me to do. For...

Here's a list of "Top 100 School Administrator Blogs" compiled by OnlineDegree.org. These are the administrators and administrators' organizations that have engaged in the education conversation through blogging. I follow most of these daily. For an administrator looking for a starting point, you may want to begin with this li...

Earlier this fall, I posted 5 Considerations for Allowing Students to Use Personal Computing Devices on School Wireless Networks, which was a quick summary of considerations for administrators contemplating providing students with Wifi access in their buildings. Recently, I’ve received some comments and emails from various school systems who want to know more about how we are providing that access....

If your state is like mine, your district is facing massive budget cuts. Technology budgets are not likely to escape the knife either, but if we want to maintain being 21st century leaders in our schools, we need to find ways to get the most out of our technology dollars. Too often, administrators turn to cutting support staff and new technology purchases. If your district is like ours, the IT department...

Let’s face the truth. There’s no reason to spend another dime on purchasing licenses and software for Microsoft’s Office Suite of programs. School systems have too many much cheaper options (like free or almost free) rather than continuing to purchase the popular office suite that most often includes MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Excel, MS Access, MS Publisher, and MS Outlook. School systems can save...

I stumbled across an article entitled “Singapore Looks at Strengthening School System Further.” The country’s prime minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, states in the article that while his country performed reasonably well on the latest PISA assessments, they must keep up the efforts of continual educational improvement. Interestingly, he cited the reasons for this was because of stiff competition...