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How you set up and lead one-to-one is based on your vision for one-to-one. So, what's your vision? Why 1:1? How will students use the tech? For what? The purpose of one-to-one is to give the students ubiquitous access to learning. The device itself is not the purpose of one-to-one -- augmenting students' learning is. Therefore, it's essential to know what change you want to see in your district/school that one-to-one can support. What learning do you want to see, and how will technology make that possible? What does that look like?  How will the students use the technology to accomplish those goals? For me, it's simple, I want to see students using their critical thinking to create, collaborate, communicate, and contribute as digital citizens. How does 1:1 connect to and support other district or site initiatives? One-to-one is a learning initiative, and not a technology program. It should not be treated as something separate or as an add-on . ...

One of the things that I love about AJUSD is how technology integration and 21st century learning is part of every layer of our district, from the students, to the teachers, to the site administrators, to the District Office, through a supportive School Board. Furthermore, one of the pieces that make us successful is the ongoing professional learning with the Superintendent, Principals, and the Education Services Team. Technology integration, PBL, and 21st Century Learning is not an afterthought, but rather it's planned into our conversations . Dr. Wilson makes sure we have discussions about how all the pieces and initiatives connect. Connecting PBL, the Common Core, and Teacher Evaluation Tool Below is a presentation from one of the Leadership Meetings earlier in the year. In a nutshell, here's what that training looked like: Think through a series of questions about what 21st century learning skills look like in the context of PBL, and as described in the Common Core ...

Professional development manifests itself in many ways online and in person. It takes place through conversations, classes, Twitter chats , workshops, blogging, book studies, challenges, team meetings, etc. Leadership Day 2013 Image by Scott McLeod Model what you want to see Sometimes the best professional development comes informally through the behaviors of others, influencing how I think and what I think about. I learn so much from my children. We have fabulous conversations about life, they share new perspectives and creative solutions with me. They also teach me how to be a better person through their inquiries and their behaviors. I do my best to be a good model for them, but some of their behaviors are ones I'd like to see change, but no matter how much we talk about it, they continue with the same behaviors. That's when it dawns on me, they are behaving the way we the parents are behaving. So, if I want their behaviors to change, it means my behaviors have t...

What had the most impact on me this past week, and what memories will be most prominent from this week? What new goals will I set as a result of this week? Here they are, not in any particular order. Linda Yollis & Kathleen Morris 1. Educational Blogging: Flattening Classroom Walls by Linda Yollis and Kathleen Morris I am always inspired and in awe of these two women. They have made such an impact on me, so to see them present together live was absolutely incredible, especially since this week was the first time they had met face to face! Their stellar session was filled with powerful tips, incredible resources , while providing powerful examples of what can evolve out of blogging. To highlight a few tips: Linda , Kath , Sue Wyatt , Sue Waters , me , Ronnie , Julie , Anne , John Start small. Blogging is a journey. Use your content objectives to focus your posts. This way blogging doesn't become an add-on to try to fit in, but rather part of your literacy bloc...

As we wrap up our second year of Collaboration Coaching , we celebrate the success we've had with collaboration, learning with colleagues, and creating 21st century, student-centered classrooms. What is a Collaboration Coach? Our Collaboration Coaching is based on the Microsoft Peer Coach Training developed the Peer-Ed Team. We've adapted it to fit our district's needs. The Collaboration Coach training presents an opportunity for Apache Junction Unified School District teachers to explore coaching as an effective model for providing ongoing professional learning with classroom teachers focused on 21st century learning, Common Core, technology integration, and best teaching practices. Coaches receive training and support that includes methods of coaching, fostering collaboration, and action planning for successful coaching. Project emphasis infuses technology to create and promote: differentiated instruction through a variety of strategies based on student ne...

I've been involved in several discussions about leading change , which started with  vision and urgency. Everyone needed to be on the same page about the vision (the what), have a sense of urgency (the why), and know how we'd measure progress towards our goal. Having the vision relevant, tangible with benchmarks, and feedback reminded me of successful classroom practices. In the classroom, I made sure my students knew what we were learning, how it was relevant to them, how we'd measure progress towards our goal (the what, why, and how), and involved them in the process. I realized leading change had some of the same foundations, such as starting with the vision. Vision In order to be purposeful about change, the vision for what is wanted must be clear by everyone. If I asked, "What does it mean to be a 21st century, student-centered school district?" the answer must be clear in the minds of everyone. It must be clear to the administration , the teachers, ...

Conflict can either break people and teams apart, or it can bring productivity and innovative solutions to move forward. The types of conflict that break people and teams apart are the interpersonal conflicts that occur. However, cognitive conflict is the disagreement about approaches and ideas. If the team recognizes and understands the types of conflict, it can be a resource to nurture productivity. Building teams and building trust The most constructive ways to deal with conflict is to use great communication skills, and connect with others to build trust and stronger relationships . By paraphrasing and asking questions, the issues stay separated from the person. Communication skills Shelee King George & me 2010 I once heard Shelee King George explain communication skills in an analogy of a phone call and call waiting: When we are listeners, we have three inhibitors that get in the way, so we need to put them on call waiting : 1) Autobiographical Lis...

Building capacity in the school district means improving and strengthening the learning in our students, employees, teachers, administrators, school board, and community. Coaching is a great way to build capacity, and leaders naturally build capacity. Finding leaders to assume leadership roles is an important part of the process. Please be aware that I don't believe a title makes someone a leader, it's just who they are. Leadership skills sets I've recently been involved in several conversations about building capacity. One of the conversations was about skills sets to look for when identifying leaders, specifically coaches.  I believe the following qualities are found in good coaches and leaders: People person : gels well with others and builds relationships Character: has integrity and is trustworthy Attitude: is positive even in negative circumstances Skills and productivity : able to get things done 21st century thinker : adapts, problem solves, is creativ...

One of the lessons I've learned is a strong leader is someone who can start the momentum and will continue to carry it through. You see, just having the vision and getting it rolling is a step in the right direction, but to continue to nurture it and finish what you've started is what counts. Professional Development and Project Based Learning Project based learning  (PBL) and professional development (PD) require some effort to complete. I'm realizing that implementing successful PD is very much like facilitating PBL. Background courtesy of DragonArtz Designs , gears created on Clker , text created in Pages Each of the gears is a step in the process, and they rely on each other to be successful and complete. If you miss one of the gears, you are missing one of the essential elements in implementing PBL or PD. Furthermore, you're never really "done" with the cycle because it keeps going and keeps evolving into something better. When the gears get j...

Teching it Up K-12 -- Success Stories, Part 2 In Part 1 of "Teching it Up K-12 -- Success Stories," originally presented at the Arizona CIO/CTO Forum 2011 , we focused on the importance of a learning-centric vision. Our focus for Part 2 was developing a learning culture through peer coaching . Serving others through Peer Coaching With all the professional development needed to sustain one-to-one, PBL, 21st century learning, and individualized instruction, we turned to the Microsoft Peer Coaching model developed by the Peer-Ed team. The beauty of Peer-Ed's training modules was the adaptability to our district's vision. To highlight the "collaboration" role of peer coaches, we called them "collaboration coaches." Collaboration Coaching, Catalyst for Culture Shift We tapped into full time teachers as our collaboration coaches. They focused on creating a 21st century learning environment in their own classrooms, while also working ...

We see districts who have an established learning culture, and their classrooms are filled with authentic learning experiences. How did they get there? Our story Jon Castelhano and I have the privilege of presenting at the Arizona CIO/CTO Forum 2011 on October 6th. We are going to share how our district closed the door on the 20th century and opened 21st century student-centered classrooms. Our district started teching up the classrooms with engaging, standards-based, student-centered learning, despite the financial climate we are in. The next three posts will share about our journey, and some of the key game-changers for us. The focus and the vision Our district focuses on our learners. We ask, what's good for our learners? What do they want? What can we do to improve their education? If you listen to their answers , they will tell you about our vision. Leadership Those in leadership roles in the district believe in building relationships as the foundation fo...

After experiencing the EdubloggerCon ISTE 2011 Web 2.0 Smackdown , I knew I wanted to see this in our district during professional development. To add to that idea, I read a post by Patrick Larkin , Burlington High School Principal, about their flipping the Smackdown to the beginning of their Professional Development as a preview for their breakout sessions. Our Collaboration Coaches , are just the people to introduce this idea to. They are passionate learners, collaborators, and focus on creating student-centered classrooms. Our version of a Web 2.0 Smackdown Any participants could share whatever tools/resources connecting to lesson improvement, coaching skills, or tech integration. The process: Submit topic and link to your visuals before we meet (collected in a Google Form). On the day we meet, present for 2 minutes live or show a recorded "trailer" for us. After smackdown, we'll vote for one to learn more about. Tools and Resources Here's what th...

Talk about it all you want, and we'll talk about it. Use it, model it, demonstrate it, and we'll give it a try. It won't happen all at once, but it will happen. Effective Leaders understand Monkey See, Monkey Do Some rights reserved by Stuck in Customs Do you want the focus to shift from a teacher centered classroom to a student centered classroom? Then focus your staff developments by actually doing what you want to see in the classroom. If a student centered classroom is innovative, engaging, relevant, and motivating, then model it in your "classroom" which is your staff development. Offer options for them to pick and choose from: Give them a choice board or a menu to pick and choose their professional development trainings. Try FedEx-ing it : Work collaboratively on a PBL or a student-centered lesson. At the end of the training, you must "deliver it" and bring it back to the whole group.  Flip your Professional Development by gi...

I was reminded what it felt like to be incredibly frustrated with technology. Perceptions of Failure I had everything ready for my first BlackBoard Collaborate webinar where I was a guest of Shelee King George for Peer Coaching . My computer was ready, and just in case, I had Plan B set up -- my laptop was booted up with the URL typed in. When it was time to start, my computer crashed and my laptop froze. Panic. Anxiety. I ended up using our System Admin's computer because neither of mine would reboot. Pictures by AJUSD's Brian Killgore I was taking a risk and trying something new, but didn't feel like I was connecting with my audience because I couldn't see nor hear them. Plus, I didn't feel like my calm collected self after the technical errors. I easily could have dismissed the whole experience and told myself, "I guess it's just not the medium for me, so I'll never try that again."   Time Gives Perspective, even Inspirati...

Forbes blog post, " Suddenly Noticed By Big Investors, Kevin Tanner's RIA Is Bracing For Billions Of AUM ," caught my attention as I thought about educational leadership. Kevi n Tanner focused on his strengths and passions. "He was never as interested in financial planning and spent his time perfecting his investing methodologies ." He wasn't co ntent with running things the way others did just because that's how it's always been done. Great Leadership Great leaders invest in their strengths and imagine the possibilities. Great leaders see where they are going, plan for it, remain focused on the goal, and know how to develop others. John Maxwell , author of The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership , describes this as "the law of navigation ." The fear of change doesn't hold back great leaders because they intuitively strategize and plan for success. They value the strengths of others, and recognize that building other leaders a...