Public Domain Image from AIGA symbol signs collection

Have you ever been Stuck on an Escalator? Literally or figuratively? A literal stuck “seems” to warrant an obvious fix (except for these fine people in this video)–at least it makes sense that it would be. I have however been stuck on a metaphorical escalator a few times in my life and career, and it takes many forms: apathy, complacency, lack of vision, laziness, self-focused, etc. Not only is this video hilarious, it is àpropos to the way we sometimes respond to change. Here are some reflective questions: How does this video serve as a metaphor for the need to lead change and create new paradigms? How is this “Stuck on an escalator” metaphor (actions and attitudes that stagnate and stifle) detrimental to the work of an e-Learning Community (e-LC) or professional learning community (PLC)? What steps need to be in place to ensure that this attitude, complacency, lack of vision and commitment, etc. doesn’t erode what you are attempting to accomplish?

Ask yourself, “Am I stuck on an escalator?” Ask that same question to your faculty, to your leadership team,  to your department, division or grade level teams.

To avoid being “stuck on an escalator,” I challenge you to implement these steps to lead and manage change. These steps are addressed to two systems of leadership (the Superintendency and the Principalship):

1. Deploy and monitor: Create a deployment plan (one that focuses on the what? Who? By When? What action steps are essential to meet goal, who is responsible for managing and monitoring action step and evaluating and dialoguing data? By when will it be accomplished? What are the Next Steps? Use the sample template; begin the conversation with the following mapping strategy: What do we want? How do we Get there? How do we know we are getting there? How do we share and replicate the story to others?
2. Model, model, model: Yogi Bera once said, “If you want to do something you have never done before, do something you have never done before.” Choose the Web 2.0 technology (www.twitter.com, www.facebook.com, www.ning.com are just three examples of social media that can help define and shape a 21^st century learning, leadership, professional development approach) that best aligns to your work and the commitment of the school–don’t get overwhelmed. Start slow, to go fast later.
3. Be the change you want to see. This mirrors and supports number 2.
   
4. Internalize standards: Administrators (2009 National Education Technology Standards for Administrators), technology facilitators and leaders, and teachers (2008 National Education Tech Standards for Teachers) need to read, examine, and implement these standards; use them as an accountability, assessment and evaluation tool (for principals, tech leaders, teachers). Here is another assessment tool to help build an innovation roadmap and to evaluate innovation readiness (find at Teaching Matters: School Assessment and use the Innovative Roadmap Rubric to set direction and evaluate next steps. Also, make strategic indicators from assessment tool a part of Walk-throughs; in addition, use the following free observation tool from the International Society for Technology Education–ISTE): weekly evaluate progress as a standing agenda item or SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities for Improvement, and Threats) analysis, or conduct a stoplight schedule of priorities–what is working really well in terms if innovation transformation (green), what needs attention (yellow) and what is a definite priority (red)
5. Inspect what you expect: Encourage (a “friendly” encouragement) each principal keep a Blog; use a wiki at the school level, cascading to departments and team work; explain purpose, alignment to goals, and how it will benefit them (administrators and teachers and other key educational leaders); provide enthusiasm, assistance, appreciation and recognition to those implementing the change; but don’t dictate or mandate; explore, discover, and collaborate—add value. Be the model in chief.
6. Create an e-Learning Community (e-LC): Your team can begin building capacity through an e-learning community structure; examine the following examples (GO LIVE Google Site (in construction but still viewable), Educator’s PLN (includes groups for district and school administrators), Classroom 2.0, NC 1:1 Learning Collaborative, many of the coursing structures in North Carolina Virtual Public School and Learn and Earn Online’s (NCVPS/LEO) Blackboard course management system–LEA WAVES, Leadership Lagoon, DLA Spa, etc.). Use the district’s course environment to conduct e-LCs, create content, analyze data, monitor deployment planning, post videos, collaborate with groups, work on key processes, seek feedback, etc. (Follow the examples of North Carolina School Districts: Columbus, Rowan-Salisbury, and Avery); many free options exist as well. (www.ning.com, www.dimdim.com, http://sites.google.com, www.facebook.com)
   

   Image licensed under Creative Commons by Antonio Caselli: www.flickr.com/photos/15603459@N00/540724673

7. Conduct 21st Century Learning PD; Create 21^st century learning, skills, and leadership standing agenda items in district and school level administration professional learning communities (PLCs)—weekly focusing on 21st century learning (making sure leaders understand 21st century learning concepts, skills, themes—as found at www.21stcenturyskills.org)  for district and school level leadership teams; same approach for teachers—weekly focus (f2f in PLCs), e-LCs using tools to communicate and collaborate; during departmental and school-wide PD, feature a Web 2.0 tool, modeling, and sharing best practice–be sure that it aligns to innovation team planning, school improvement plans, or the like. Remember that it is not about the tool, it is about changing behavior, creating new paradigms of learning and leading.
8. Study the gurus: Edutopia, Edweek, Leader Talk, eSchoolNews, Scott McLeod (Dangerously Irrelevant Blog), CoolCat Teacher Vickie Davis,  Innovative Educator Lisa Nielsen, Steven Anderson (aka Web20Classroom), Howard DiBlasi, Larry Ferlazzo, Ed Reformer Tom Vander Ark, Consortium of School Networking, NCVPS/LEO’s 21^st Century Professionals Division Leaders Online Blog — this Blog– and NCVPS/LEO’s School Support Division Virtual Learning Consultant Blog.
9. Implement Book Studies. The following are excellent books to study with teams regarding these provocative topics: leading and managing change (Switch by Chip and Dan Heath, Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath, Who Killed Change? by Ken Blanchard, et al), 21^st century learning, skills, and leadership (21^st Century Skills by Bernie Trilling and Charles Fadel, Toybox Leadership by Ron Hunter and Michael Waddell, Creating Magic by Lee Cockerell, CATS: The Nine Lives of Innovation by Stephen Lundin), maximizing learning opportunities for the digital natives (Born Digital by John Palfrey and Urs Gasser, Grown Up Digital by Don Tapscott, Disrupting Class by Clayton Christensen and Michael Horn, The World is Open by Curtis Bonk, and Liberating Learning by John Chubb and Terry Moe), and establishing and maintaining e-learning communities or professional learning communities (Learning by Doing by Rick and Rebecca DuFour and Robert Eakers).
10. Align key processes: Focus efforts on transforming technology; create alignment in school improvement plans to district improvement plans, create e-learning deployment strategies, focused action steps; establish e-learning/innovation teams to monitor, model, coach implementation.
11. Engage teachers and staff in what matters most: A conversation about teaching and learning: Create a common voice and shared knowledge by communicating that e-learning deepens content understanding: learning that focuses on reflection, participatory learning, and higher-order thinking–analysis, synthesis, and evaluation (Focusing especially on blended learning is quite beneficial–for blended learning resources refer to iNACOL’s whitepaper on Blended Learning and NCVPS/LEO’s Educating the Social and Mobile Generation).
12. Commit to virtual options: Examine NCVPS/LEO’s four learning options: Classic (traditional, early calendar, and credit recovery), Modular (Credit Recovery Modular Learning), Mobile, and Blended Learning (Credit Recovery Modular, OCS Course of Study). Be aggressive, target enrollment numbers (here is an aggressive thought—require that every student grade 6-12 take at least one virtual class through NCVPS/LEO for graduation), develop purposeful and strategic student support plans.

Commitment is spelled . . .N-O-F-E-A-R

Peter Senge put forth, “You can’t force commitment, what you can do  . . . You nudge a little here, inspire a little there, and provide a role model. Your primary influence is the environment you create.” To see that we are not “stuck on an escalator” and forward in our thinking to create such an environment, we need vigilance, commitment, purpose, direction, focus, and a 21st century learning and leadership consciousness. Vance Havner once wrote and it bears repeating for its relevance to this issue: “The vision must be followed by the venture. It is not enough to stare up the steps — we must step up the stairs.”  So, there is just one thing left to say: See you at the top of the stairs, uh, I mean escalator.

This quote is from Michael Maccoby who I found on this blog – http://bobsutton.typepad.com/my_weblog/2008/09/michael-maccoby-on-managing-vs-leading.html.  I have really been intrigued by this simple truth and the fact that our educational systems are full of managers who need to become leaders.  There is a distinct challenge in the 21st century economy to promote innovation and creativity – both of which cannot necessarily be measured.  The industrial age focused on managing resources and measuring results – and if you couldn’t measure it, there were no results.  While there are many great leaders of the industrial age, the primary skill set was the ability to manage people and resources.  Productivity was measured by the quantity of results and the quality of the product.  This industrial paradigm still is pervasive in our educational system structure.  We are focused on measuring “tangible” outcomes, managing resources (people, time, materials, budgets) and maintaining traditions that are ineffective and do not allow for innovation and creativity to be fostered.

Leadership is all about relationships. Leadership fosters innovation and creativity at all levels.  Just take a look at the key attributes of an effective leader from Jim Murray.  As education professionals are we leading innovation or managing resources? or are we doing both? I won’t say it’s an “either/or” situation but a “both/and” situation.  Unfortunately, I strongly feel the balance is skewed in the direction of “management” vs. “leadership”.  We should be promoting and training Principals as Leaders, Teachers as Leaders, Students as Leaders, etc. and the professional development should focus on the skill set of the 21st century leader.

Think about the “classroom management” training many of us have been through.  There is a strong focus on “management” techniques vs. the empowerment of critical thinkers who foster innovation and creativity.  Teachers are having to break the mold and jump outside of the box of process and procedure in order to affect students’ learning and make them enjoy the learning experience.  I love this quote from Professor Maccoby:

” . . .this(meaning successful outcomes) can’t be achieved by management (tactics) alone at a time of constant change when people need inspiration, a sense of purpose and enthusiasm to achieve their goals.”

Take a look at these 2 links regarding the differences b/w managers and leaders.

- http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/crosscuttings/leadership_attributes.html

-  http://www.twitpic.com/yye37

I would also suggest reading Bob Sutton’s blog on Leadership Vs. Management.  He draws a very accurate picture of the “both/and” approach to this topic.  My point in all of this is that you can’t focus on managing resources vs. leading innovation.  The workplace has quickly become an agile, ever-changing, and continuously improving ecosystem while education has struggled just to keep up.  Why? I feel it is because we are still steeped in traditional industrial “management” practices of command/control/produce/measure vs. fostering the innovation and creativity in our schools.

If you are on Twitter, follow @donnapeters51, she is Superintendent of Montgomery County Schools and is also the NC Superintendent of the Year.  She is a leader who focuses on leading innovation while building the “management” piece in with leadership teams around her.  So, are you leading innovation or managing resources? or both?

The basic premise behind the book is that some ideas survive and others die. But what makes an idea stick? What gives it its lasting impression? The Brothers Heath offer a very simple acronym to get ideas to stick: SUCCESs (Are ideas simple, unexpected, concrete, credible, emotional, storied?) How do leaders get vision, mission, core values, programs, initiatives, processes to stick? How do leaders communicate leadership philosophy, district or school mission, vision, and values, expectations to raise achievement and close gaps, the power of 21^st century tooling to engage teachers and students in the learning process, the opportunities afforded students with North Carolina Virtual Public School and Learn and Earn Online (NCVPS/LEO), recent board policies that will impact the way districts and schools do business, the necessity of changing a culture, the implications of specific data points, accountability and quality assurance?

The Brothers Heath recount the psychological research of Dr. Elizabeth Newton from Stanford University. In her 1990 research, she created two groups (two roles): Tappers and Listeners and then placed participants within each group. The Tappers received a list of 25 popular songs (“Happy Birthday, “The Star Spangled Banner,” “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,” “Jingle Bells,” etc.). Tappers then chose a song, tapped the rhythm on a table to the Listeners who were charged to then identify the tune based on the tapped rhythm (if you don’t think this is challenging, try it at home with a loved one). The results of the study? 120 songs tapped, 2.5% of the songs were guessed correctly (that is, 3 out of 120).

What made it even more interesting was that before the Listeners guessed the song, the Tappers were asked to predict the odds that the Listeners would guess correctly, predicting that the odds would be 50%. So, the Tappers predicted that the listeners would guess correctly one in every two attempts, but instead got their message across one time in forty attempts. It is obvious that a huge gap existed between expectations and reality. Why were these results astounding? As the Tapper tapped the rhythm, she only heard the tune in her ahead, but what the Listener heard was only disconnected tapping sounds; furthermore, Tappers were even astonished that the Listeners couldn’t guess accurately and had such difficulty making the guess. The authors suggest “enormous information imbalances” as the reason this gap exists.

In every learning system, we have potential Tappers and Listeners; those who are communicating and those who need the communication, the Haves (of knowledge) and the need to Haves (of knowledge). For instance, follow this analogy with me: at the district level, the superintendent could be a Tapper and the principals, Listeners; or at the school level, the principals could be Tappers and the Distance Learning Advisors, Listeners; even still, in the classroom, the teacher could be a Tapper, while the students, Listeners. In our organization, North Carolina Virtual Public School/Learn and Earn Online, Dr. Bryan Setser, our CEO, could be a Tapper, and the chiefs, the Listeners, and so forth it goes in our organization and any other system level.

Tappers Blur Communication

Communication from leadership is key. The barrier though is that oftentimes, we know what must be communicated and then proceed to communicate, but what gets communicated is a series of disconnected tapping sounds. This is absolutely not to say that the above leaders in the aforementioned analogy are poor communicators, or relish in their Tapping role; just the opposite, leaders need to be vigilant that they don’t become a Tapper, for that will only frustrate those who are listening and railroad direction, purpose, accomplishment, and outcomes of the organization. Leaders need a clearly defined communication strategy and follow-up process to ensure quality, reliability, and credibility. We all rely on ongoing communication, but like the Tappers and Listeners we suffer from information imbalances.

When leaders talk about strategic planning, operational versus strategic processes, systems thinking, stakeholder satisfaction, deployment planning, instructional technology integration, blended learning, e-learning goals and expectations, the virtual advantage, assessment for learning (all continuous improvement and e-learning buzzwords), the language gets muddied and mired down in educationese. In so doing, they must not assume that expectations, roles, and responsibilities are communicated clearly and specifically.

The purpose of this Blog post is to speak to the leaders who have students plugged into the virtual advantage with NCVPS/LEO or who desire to get students engaged and active in the 21^st century learning options our organization offers (even though the target audience is quite specific, there is still value-add to all leaders in the words preceding and those that follow). To guarantee that stakeholders are coached, and supported it goes without saying that a district and school communication flow exist between the following key players: superintendent, the county level distance learning advisor, tech director, associate superintendent for secondary education, principals, school level distance learning advisors, lab facilitators, counselors.

What needs communicating? Communicate how 21^st century learning is embedded in district and school improvement plans, what the specific e-learning goals are, how NCVPS/LEO aligns to that, what NCVPS/LEO offers, the strategies in place to market and promote e-leaning and blended opportunities through NCVPS/LEO, expectations of e-learnings teams, school support plans to monitor and engage virtual students, and what the performance and completion rates suggestions and the strategies to decrease those gaps, how to lead and model 21^st century learning, and how Race to the Top funding and the funding formula will positive impact innovation in the district (this is not an exhaustive list, but an essential one).

A communication strategy that cascades down and flows up will decrease information imbalances, and oftentimes, gaps exists between knowing and doing because Listeners only hear disconnected noises from the Tappers. Let’s eat this barrier for breakfast. At NCVPS/LEO we model what an effective communication flow looks like. Our weekly staff meetings create expectations and deliverables and report outs from the respective divisions (which are aligned to SBOE 21^st century goals) which then inform divisional e-learning communities throughout the week and our entire staff e-LCs on Wednesdays and Fridays; from the weekly staff meeting, communication flows to LEAs in the form of video casts, e-letters to superintendents, principals, Blog post to www.thevlc.org, e-lerts to Distance Learning Advisors, letter documents posted for our teachers, and bi-monthly e-LCs with leaders from leading edge districts.

When I was in a brick-and-mortar school, in my email signature line, I included the following statement: “Every decision, every conversation, every action is student centered.” Our core competencies include world class teaching and learning, world class professional development, and world class school support. Every decision, every conversation, and every action focuses on these competencies and we specifically and frequently communicate that message. This is what we are “tight” on, a word Rick DuFour uses to describe the non-negotiables.

District and school teams need a structure to specifically and frequently communicate their message, what they are tight on. What strategies are in place to effectively communicate specificity and alignment of values, core competencies, expectations, and processes? Twitter, Facebook, Ning, a Blog, a district or school wiki, Google Apps., e-mail, instant messaging using Pronto, WebEx, or Google, archived discussions and trainings, e-learning communities via Wimba, Vyew, or GoToMeeting.  These tools are simply a means to end, but the focus needs to be on the “end”–a communication structure led and model by the systems leader to connect core business, expectations and learning.

Finally, there is one point that needs emphasis and it comes from John Maxwell’s new book coming in March 2010 entitled, Everyone Communicates, but Few Connect. He quotes John Beckly from The Power of Little Words: “The emphasis in education is rarely placed on communicating ideas simply and clearly. Instead, we’re encouraged to use more complicated words and sentence structures to show off our learning and literacy. . . . Instead of teaching us how to communicate as clearly

as possible, our schooling in English teaches us how to fog things up. It even implants a fear that if we don’t make our writing complicated enough, we’ll be considered uneducated.”

In chapter 7, Maxwell follows-up, “Bu as lleaders and communicators, our job is to bring clarity to a subject, not complexity. It doesn’t take nearly as much skill to identify a problem as it does to find a good solution. The measure of a great teacher isn’t what he knows; it’s what his students know. Making things simple is a skill, and it’s a necessary one if you want to connect with people when you communicate.”

When we communicate, we must connect people to our message and to our expectations; when we communicate effectively, we connect people to our excitement about the virtual options available for the students of North Carolina; when we communicate clearly and specifically, we connect people to solutions rather than barriers; Therefore, we need to ensure that our listeners hear by not tapping garbled, disconnected, unrelated information but voicing specifics and clarity with purpose and meaning. Tap, tap . . . tap-tap-tap  . . . tap . . .tap . . .tap-ta-tap-ta-tap.  Now, does that make sense?

How do you keep up with all of the emerging Web 2.0 tools out there? How do school leaders make decisions on which ones to use and which ones to abandon due to cost, usage, and/or http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/cipa.html issues out in school districts?  Check out the blog this week about how these decisions can be made across tiers of user groups in your school districts.

Tier 1: Your school district has a website, uses email, blogs, and does a great job with paper mailers and flyers home to the community. You advertise in the local paper, and you have conducted some virtual meetings using www.gotomeeting.com and http://www.elluminate.com/. You may have even used www.skype.com for a few lesson plans and/or to video conference. You know you are using some of the tools, but you feel like you just don’t have time to learn all of them, and it is just easier to pick up a phone and/or go see someone in person. In short, you need a plan to communicate and collaborate that moves your organization into the 21^st Century.

Tier 2: Your school district uses all of the Tier 1 tools, but you also use http://docs.google.com/#all , www.facebook.com , and www.twitter.com . You are trying every new Web 2.0 tool out there to micro-blog, and your district is investing money in collaborative tools like www.webex.com and/or  www.wimba.com . You even have purchased a learning management system like www.blackboard.com and/or may even be trying to use your own www.moodle.com sites across your district. You are all over the place, but you are trying to keep up with collaborative tools to communicate and connect with all of your stakeholders. In short, you need a strategy to accomplish your key meetings, conferences, and professional development opportunities while striking a balance between innovation and security with your technology director.

Tier 3: You have looked at all of the tools in both tiers, and you are starting to think about how to strategically use them. You have seen the recent branding sites on www.twitter.com of the North Carolina Virtual Public School – http://twitter.com/ncvps ; The North Carolina School Board’s Association – http://twitter.com/NCSBA ; The North Carolina Association of Educators –  http://twitter.com/ncae ; and the North Carolina Association of School Administrators – http://twitter.com/_NCASA . You have also read the recent time magazine article on How Twitter will Change the World http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1902604,00.html , and you realize that you need a “tweet deck”-  http://tweetdeck.com/beta/ , a file social application -http://filesocial.com/ , and a strategy built around key events, meetings, and projects.

In addition, you realize that you don’t just want to upload your twitter icon to your website, you want to integrate your twitter strategy with key board meetings, following experts in the field, promotions, and parent sign ups to provide instant access to school events and proceedings.

Your organization also realizes it needs internal messaging and file sharing. You have looked at Wimba’s collaborative suite http://www.wimba.com/solutions/k-12/collaboration_suite_for_k_12/ , and you realize that you can have instant messaging on their pronto tool http://www.wimba.com/solutions/k-12/wimba_pronto_for_k_12/ and have the ability to chat, talk, videoconference, and share applications desktop to desktop. Someone on your team also recommending www.dimdim.com for a similar experience to www.wimba.com and you are weighing a cost, benefit analysis as we speak.

Can’t afford wimba yet? Your district has a strategic team and you’ve also decided to pilot some applications in Google under http://www.google.com/talk/ where you can also use these feeds to make your strategy more robust and still keep costs down:

http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=100173&hl=en . And you have formed a team to look out for products like this one http://wave.google.com/ to integrate the very best features of www.twitter.com and http://www.google.com/talk/ into your sites like www.blackboard.com and www.moodle.com where you can manage all of the communications and collaborative content as well as conduct formative learning assessments with students.

Meanwhile your district’s technology team is making tiered list of which ports and places to pilot innovation and how such efforts will be monitored and leveraged to impact student learning. A robust discussion is also beginning on the appropriate levels of www.youtube.com , www.teachertube.com, and www.schooltube.com for targeted, focused use across the district.

Tier 4: You are incorporating all strategies in the three tiers above, but you also want live classrooms that you can archive for anytime, anywhere professional development. http://www.wimba.com/solutions/k-12/wimba_pronto_for_k_12/ does this process through its live classroom component as does http://www.elluminate.com/.  and http://vyew.com/site/ ,  a free tool for live classroom use in a virtual world.

You  then decide that these live classrooms need a place to reside, and you archive them inside of free e-learning communities like www.ning.com and/or   http://www.gather.com/. These are your first moves towards e-learning communities  where learners and leaders can interact inside of an e-portal in order to use free open source tools and share closed source tools to certain groups of users: community, teachers, etc.

A tier four district is starting to build capacity for anytime, anywhere learning, and it is starting to create succession planning with learning objects, decisions, charts, and 2.0 feedback objects that allow for training, re-induction, and archiving of important processes and documents beyond a Web 1.0 level. Moreover, this organization is becoming a learning organization. It looks at security breaches, usage levels, and value add applications for student learning to track progress and success of slowly, yet strategically opening the networks. In addition, the district is starting to look strategically at 1:1 devices across tiers of users to make your students more mobile and accessible to content.

Tier 5: A tier five organization incorporates all of the previous tiers but now adds mobile applications for learning such as  http://www.apple.com/mobileme/ , http://www.android.com/ http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/appstore/ , and http://www.projectknect.org/Project%20K-Nect/Home.html . that they build through the k-12 iTunes portal here http://arstechnica.com/apple/news/2008/07/itunes-k-12-launches-with-resources-for-students-parents.ars s where teachers, students, and parents can access a host of resources. This district is also investing in wireless hot spots and paying close attention to the construction and re-construction of facilities to make learning more portable.  Gaming http://www.flvs.net/areas/flvscourses/ConspiracyCode/Pages/default.aspx and virtual worlds http://www.poweru.net/demos/poweru-1st-demo.php are also becoming part of the bandwidth discussion at the strategic level as this district seeks to make learning more immersive and engaging. Sites like www.qwaq.com allows users to immerse themselves in the learning experience and still collaborate over all of the web browsers and related Web 2.0 tools inside of a virtual space. This particular district is also leveraging the 1:1 devices to make learning portable through the www.ncvps.org and www.nclearnandearn.gov classes that the state provides to all of North Carolina students.

Which tier are you?

In my blog this week, I take the recent 5 Habits of Successful Executives on Twitter in the article by Bruce Philps at http://mashable.com/2009/06/12/twitter-executives/ and apply the examples to the type of viral leadership superintendents and principals can use in school districts.

1. You are the conscience of your school system or school

For many community members, an ideal superintendent and/or principal is someone who uses their power to make sure teachers and educators do what they are supposed to in order to help children be successful. As a school leader on Twitter, that should be your platform with a twist. What many people also sense in an effective school executive on Twitter is not the echo of what we “have to do”, but the principles by which they lead the school or district and their passion for the job. Skip the marketing, connect your school community to your core beliefs about teaching and learning. Sample superintendent tweet: So proud of our focus on technology. More kids have access to learning over the net than in our history.

2. Don’t sell the district or school, share it.

Twitter isn’t advertising, it’s a conversation. Great school leader tweeters don’t try to sell to their followers, they try to engage them in a personal way. They share things about their school or district’s culture, their leadership values, the great people around them. They help followers with problems. They make student success personal, and sometimes even funny. Each tweet should be a window into the life of the school or district behind the marketing, which will make the community support stronger as a result. Sample tweet: Finance officer Jim Timmons and I discussing the budget. Boy do I need some input from the Rotary Club leaders todayJ

3. Be a real human being. Gates and Dagget first told you about this with relationships, now practice it in a viral way.

On Twitter, what you talk about is who you are. Every Twitter user’s update history paints a true portrait of their character and what matters to them. So, the best school leader tweeters are real people and sound like real people — always. They know the responsibility to keep their brand honest is a duty they owe their customers, but they also know that baseball practice, Saturday errands and that great burger they had at their favorite local eatery last night are the things that make them human. In moderation, share some of those things, too. People will be able to relate to you on a personal level and as a result, they will like and trust you more. Sample tweet: My son thinks I’m old because I write him long text messages instead of in his code.

4. They write well

Nobody will say so out loud, but believe me: Bad grammar and punctuation, or hasty abbreviations to get the character count down to 140, are just a little too humanizing. Great leaders are characteristically great communicators, and it’s no different on Twitter. Sure, informality is fine, charming even, but confident prose is one way people recognize leadership in this forum. Nobody wants to do business with a sixteen-year-old CEO, and the best school leader tweeters don’t write like one. Sample tweet: Back home from West High School choral concert. Loved the versatility of the ensembles and was moved by tonight’s soloist.

5. They commit

The best school leader tweeters are people who have decided to join the party. They tweet a few times a day, and do so at least a few days a week. They build a community and become familiar with their followers. They establish relationships, running jokes, and a personality that defines them. School leaders on Twitter that don’t tweet often can seem distant, or worse, when they do. We don’t feel like they’ve joined the party. We just feel like they walked into the room to make an announcement, and then left. I won’t go so far as to say that you shouldn’t be a Twitter user if you’re not prepared to commit. But almost. Sample tweet: I’ve hired some great teachers this week, tweet me tomorrow for some news on what makes them special.

In all,  joining the education Twitter community as a leader makes your voice inseparable from your school or district’s reputation and its brand. What effective CEO and educational leader tweeters understand, though, is that this doesn’t mean you are that brand. People will follow you, initially at least, because they’re curious to understand who your company is in a deeper way than traditional media allow. But they’ll stay with you only if they like, respect and trust what they discover. Which, as any leader will tell you, is what leadership is all about. To find executives and/or sample tweets on line go here: www.exectweets.com or www.wefollow.com

We seem to be almost rivaling the military as each new day dawns a new learning, acronym paradigm. It is not my intent to minimize the use of acronyms (nor even is it the thrust of this blog post), for each serves a purpose; but in all reality, they can lead to overuse and lose purposeful meaning. Prior to arriving at NCVPS, I worked in a very strategic and progressive district which used 56 different acronyms, carrying 56 different meanings. Leaders and Learners can get lost in the acronym maze.

However, I have one more to add to the growing list, BUT (and this is a big “but”–no pun intended, okay, maybe it was) this one is guaranteed to add value to your professional experience. Let me introduce the PLN, the Professional Learning Network. What is a PLN? How will it add value? In the “social network” (and I really prefer “academic,” “educational”, or “professional”) world of Facebook, Twitter, Edmodo, Ning, or Linkedin, the PLN is a driver — it is what defines these tools, it is what gives these tools substance, it is what shapes these tools, it is what makes or breaks these tools.

A PLN is established when people come together to connect, collaborate, share, and create. I realized the power of the PLN when our staff at NCVPS plugged into Twitter and Facebook. Alvin Toffler penned, “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn.” So, it is here through our PLN where we “learn, unlearn, and relearn.”

Professionally, I use Twitter more than any other Web 2.0 tool, for trying to harness three, four, or even five learning communities can be overwhelming and counterproductive. I needed simple. Twitter provides just that, yet provides powerful, in-time collaboration and communication. Now, this blog is not about Twitter per se (although it provides a deep, rich example of the PLN), but about the benefits of establishing a professional learning network–how the PLN can work and create value–add for principals, superintendents, distance learning advisors, teachers, etc.

So how can the PLN work for those stakeholders?

• Collaborate with the PLN: I witness this power daily. Recently, I was presenting to a cohort of superintendents in the Sandhills Regional Educational Consortium (SREC–another acronym) and to prepare, I tweeted to my PLN: “In 140 characters or less, what one thing must superintendents need to know to lead change?” In a matter of minutes, my PLN responded with practical tips and suggestions, all captured in real time for each superintendent to observe.As another example (and there are many), each Wednesday, our staff holds internal leadership development for external support through our training in systems thinking. In Twitter, we call these events Twestivals, an opportunity for the PLN to come together and participate in the discussion by offering ideas, key learnings, and key strategies related to the focused question tweeted earlier that day. The PLN can follow those comments and provide feedback using the hashtag (#ncvtwest). The screenshot below comes from the Twestival dated 9.23.09 focusing on how districts/schools/divisions ensure systematic assurance.

• Learn with the PLN: When I first came into this role at NCVPS, I had a huge learning curve, a huge achievement gap to close and overcome. My background is English (in the classroom for 14 years); however, three years prior to starting my tenure at NCVPS, I worked in a leadership capacity in my building, applying principles of systems thinking and continuous improvement. Now, I get to experience these principles virtually, supporting and coaching principals and superintendents in building 21^st century leadership capacity to impact 21^st century learning. So, how does my PLN support this?. As I monitor Twitter through Tweetdeck I can capture great ideas on leadership, curriculum standards, classroom literacy strategies, blended learning approaches, tools for technology integration, strategic planning, and so on. What is learned is rich, varied, and purposeful. I then “go and do,” helping to close the gap between knowing and doing, which oftentimes dog school leaders.
• Discuss Important Issues with the PLN: Similar to the Twestivals mentioned above, every Tuesday, my PLN meets at 7:00 p.m. to discuss the focus question, voted on by the PLN on Monday’s using Twtpoll. This past Tuesday’s question: “What is social media’s role in education?” For one hour the PLN tweets thoughts, questions, best practices, pertinent articles addressing the issue, strategies used across the nation to impact learning experiences. If I can’t meet at 7:00, which is normally the case, I can participate the following morning by searching for the hashtag (#edchat) contributing my own insight and reading the insight of my PLNers (Okay, I just made that up; as a former English teacher, I can do that). Read this Archived #edchat session from Tuesday. I have to warn you though: Prepare to be rocked by the insight, wisdom, and thinking of educators like you and me.

How does this apply to our state, district and school leaders?

1. Get plugged into a PLN through any collaborative, networking tool. (Of course, I recommend starting with Twitter).
2. Follow people who will create value-add to your professional experience. Using this link http://twitter4teachers.pbworks.com/ access the related professional area (for instance, literacy coaches, superintendents, principals, PD directors, etc.) on this wiki to read brief explanations (profiles) of educators who want to join a PLN.
3. Create an internal structure with a strategic focus. It is essential to create a plan to develop a PLN and the steps to implement plan. For instance, examine the work of Montgomery County Schools and their development of the internal leadership PLN (via Twitter) supported and modeled from the desks of the superintendent, Dr. Donna Peters, and Director of Curriculum and Innovation, Derek McCoy. Each school has created Twibes, groups using Twitter to share, collaborate, and connect controlled by that group. At the district level, Mr. McCoy has a created a PLN with APs, principals, teachers in like subject areas. Teachers are sharing best instructional strategies based on Marzano’s work, using twitter as formative assessment, all support by the PLN. Distance Learning Advisors can form a PLN to support one another through sharing lab management and communication strategies, posting questions related to registration, promotion and marketing of virtual coursing, and reporting out key learnings and updates on action steps from the schools e-learning goals from the SIP (oops, another acronym, School Improvement Plan).
4. Be purposeful by sharing. Tell your professional story; invest in the professional life of others. Share what works, what doesn’t, what needs improvement; share key learnings, nuggets of wisdom on issues like student support, role of principal in leading change, share communication strategies, articles read that create a new paradigm of thinking and challenge the status quo, or share branding your school or district. It is important to remember what it means to connect many-to-many. The PLN is not just for you or me to focus only on what we feel is important, but to bring others into the conversation, commenting on the points of others, sharing what others say, learning from one another, and recognizing and celebrating the value others bring to the discussion.

These benefits and strategies will help us see the PLN more than a three letter acronym but a valuable place to create meaning and purpose where we learn, unlearn, and relearn. So, let me introduce you to the PLN, and what I know will begin a beautiful, professional relationship.

Additional Reading and Resources for Building Your PLN:

Higher Ed Networking on-Line: Easily Build Your PLN and Your Knowledge

Building Your PLN

Why Everyone Needs a Great PLN

Personal Learning Networks

What’s A PLN, Anyway?

Developing a PLN

Building Your Personal Learning Network (Part 1, Part 2)