Technology & Learning - September 2008 - (Page 25)

It’s hard to achieve goals when you don’t have a budget of your own. The sort of principal who says “Don’t worry, the money will be there when you need it”, is actually not being all that helpful. You need to plan for capital spending, i.e., buying the equipment in the first place, and for what is called the Total Costs of Ownership (TCO). The TCO are the costs of keeping it all going, and includes, for example, technical support costs. 6 Balance a Budget This is related to #7, of course, but I’m talking here about people rather than an entity called a “department” or a “school,” PD should be regarded as both an entitlement and a duty. By ensuring that the members of your team keep up with their technical and pedagogical skills, you are providing a basis for both commitment on their part and, all-importantly, the best possible teaching for the students. 8 Train Your Teachers What’s the point of leading a great department, if nobody knows? Or, to look at it from the other end of the telescope, if the school is providing you with a small fortune to pay for the equipment, don’t you have a duty to reassure all concerned that they have made an extremely wise choice? Invite the principal in for lessons. Create a newsletter for parents. Offer to give the powers-that-be a report each semester. Make sure the students’ work festoons the walls inside and outside your classrooms. Run tester sessions for your non-techie co-workers. Telling the world does not have to be as obviously self-aggrandising as you might think! Terry Freedman is a U.K.-based education technology consultant and publishes the ICT in Education Web site at www.ictineducation.org, and the electronic newsletter “Computers in Classrooms” 10 Tell the world! Even if you work in the best school in the known universe, you can still learn from others. For example, is there a gender bias in technology examination results? If so, how have other schools addressed this problem? Are there Web sites that showcase good practice in your School District? (Local is better than national or even State because there’s more of a possibility of visiting.) 7 Learn from others This is by far the hardest thing to do if you are a roll-your-sleeves-upand-get-on-with-it type of person. By giving people “ownership” of a particular area, whether that be addressing the needs of high-fliers or organizing the PD program or taking responsibility for a particular unit in the scheme of work, you will be building the foundations for some creative and excellent thinking. And you will be less likely to collapse from overwork or stress! 9 Delegate! http://www.ictineducation.org http://www.learningstation.com/TL http://www.learningstation.com/TL

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Technology & Learning - September 2008

Technology & Learning 9/08 Contents Editor’s Desk News & Trends Put to the Test Lessons on Leadership What, You Worry? Back Office Business How to Get your MEd Online What’s New Student Response Systems Get Smarter Leader of the Year Profile: She’s Got Game

Technology & Learning - September 2008

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