Introducing Connected Education

Source: http://nickapedia.com/2010/09/30/vision-of-a-creator-the-silent-revolution-in-technology/

Recently I had my first Back to School Night as an administrator and I was excited about a few minor changes that were taking place. (Click here to read about this in a previous post.)   One of the changes I was most excited about having our first ever Student Ambassadors be a part of our back to school night.  The students were to introduce teachers and discuss how they overcame difficulties during a class or talk about a challenging and exciting project students should be looking out for.  When these students were selected they were extremely excited.  They were filled with pride and smiled ear to ear as they entered my office and I handed them a permission slip that needed to be signed by their parents.  At the bottom of the permission slip I made it a requirement for the students to reflect on their experience.  I did this for three reasons, to reflect, connect, and inspire.

Student Reflection:
Most of the time we ask students to reflect after they have done something wrong, we rarely ask them to stop and take a few minutes to reflect after being successful.  All of our students were extremely successful, they shared favorite moments from last year in school, they provided parents with helpful hints on how to navigate a new grade level successfully, and even provided a laugh with an inside story about a teacher.  Many of the students wrote down what they would say and practiced several times at home in front of parents or even in front of a mirror and I wanted them to see how this hard-work and preparation lead to success.  I was hopeful they would come to realize that even if they were nervous they are capable of controlling their fear and overcome it.

Student Connection:
My school is a place where students and teachers are passionate about learning and growing.  It is a place where you will see teachers go out of their way to help students on both a personal and academic level.  It is a place where once new ideas are shared teachers and students are both eager to try something new.  I realize how lucky I am to be in a school that values new ideas, and I want to help both the staff and students see beyond the walls of the classroom.  A first step in accomplishing this goal was to post Student Ambassador reflections below.  I am asking readers to please leave comments for these tremendous students to show them how powerful it can be to connect with educators and students outside of their school.  They have not had much experience connecting with 'outsiders' and I would be grateful for them to have this experience.

Student Inspiration:
Once students realize they have an audience outside of the school that is interested in his/her Student Ambassador experience, I am hoping a few students become inspired to share something they are personally passionate about online.  Connecting about a school assignment the Assistant-Principal assigned is one thing, but connecting with others about your passion is quite another.  I am hopeful students are inspired to share their passion with others in a positive way online.  If they are able to do so it will change the way they learn and grow exponentially, I know it did for me.

Skyler's Reflection

Mikey's Reflection

Grace's Reflection

An's Reflection

Jack's Reflection

Dayton's Reflection

3 Changes to Back to School Night

I recently helped to organize my first Back to School Night as a Vice-Principal.  As my principal, Fran Schlenoff (an amazing leader), and I began to plan for the night we looked at what was done previously and didn't want to change things that worked in years past, but there were changes we wanted to make.

In the past all the parents met in the school auditorium where the principal greeted and welcomed them.  Once everyone was seated the principal spoke, the PTA president said a few words, and then our Education Association president made some remarks before.  Parents were then dismissed to meet with the teachers of their student as a grade level team.

Highlight the Teachers
Our principal thought it was important to recognize our staff with all the parents present.   To do this we arranged seats for them in the auditorium facing the other parents.  When their name was called they quietly stood so all parents could see them.  I know this might seem like a small step however, I think it sends a powerful message. These teachers are here to be recognized for their efforts in the school, and they deserve to be a part of this large group gathering.  It was important to face the audience so when they do stand all the parents can see who it is.  I had never thought of this before but most of the time when a teacher is introduced so many parents just see the back of the teacher's head.

Student Highlight Reel
I wanted to provide parents with a window into our school so they could see the students in the halls with friends, working in small groups on science experiments, and actively engaged in learning in every subject area.  I emailed the teachers and told them I was putting together a highlight-film to show the parents at back to school night, if they had something they wanted me to see please email me and I would do my best to make it into their room.  Being a new administrator I was afraid many of the teachers would be reluctant to invite me into the classroom, but I was wrong.  Many of the teachers wanted a chance to share what they were doing, and were excited to have an administrator take note of their great work.

I went into the classrooms armed with my iPhone and took pictures and short video clips from every grade level and many different subject areas.  I clipped the images and videos together using iMovie and had "Home" by Phillip Phillips as the background music.  At our Back to School Night we played the video and received a round of applause from the parents who were there.  I learned whenever possible highlight the students in action because it is the students everyone wants to see.

Student Ambassadors
The next change we made involving students was our Student Ambassadors.  Each grade level in our school addresses parents after meeting in the auditorium.  We asked each grade to choose about three students from the previous year's class to introduce teachers, share memorable experiences, and provide advice for parents on how to help.  These Student Ambassadors were a huge hit, they came dressed professionally to our Back to School Night, and were able to explain things through the eyes of a student.  It is one thing for a teacher to say, "This year will be challenging, but your son/daughter will grow a lot this year."  It is quite another to hear a student say, "I had a really difficult time learning how to be a good writer at the beginning of 5th grade, but with the help of my teachers, I can now say I am a great writer."  Both parents and teachers provided us with positive feedback about the student ambassadors, and it is something that will be part of our Back to School Night routine next year.

By recognizing our teachers and placing students at the center of our Back to School Night I believe we made some significant improvements, however there is still more work to be done.  For example, next year I want to provide child-care for parents, I do not want the lack of childcare to be an obstacle for parents to have to overcome.  I'm sure there are many other ways to make our Back to School Night experience a better one.  I would love to hear other suggestions educators, parents or administrators have that has made your Back to School Night a success.