Journal 8

"School 2.0: The Science Leadership"
by Christopher Lehmann

This article explains some of the issues facing schools of the future. It also describes the Science Leadership Academy (SLA) and how it is adjusting its curriculum to meet changing student needs. Many teachers are currently communicating more with parents then ever. Although email is not face-to-face, it provides an easy way for parents to contact teachers and check their child’s progress. The internet has also provided students with a plethora of resources; however, they become responsible for evaluating legitimacy of the source. The article argues that a successful School 2.0 will be born of the idea that “active, engaged, constructivist learning will lead to active, engaged students and people. At the SLA, for example, curriculum is inquiry driven and based on what the students know and create using all available resources.

1) Can parent-teacher email replace face-to-face conferences?
I believe the best policy would be to include both forms of communication. I love the use of email for quick and frequent communication between parents and teachers; however, I feel meeting someone a few times in person allows you to better know and understand him or her. While observing, I was shown an online school community system, similar to WebCT, which allows parents to log on to view their child’s progress, provided they are given permission by the teacher.

2) Do schools need to compete with new technologies for student attention?
I think schools have always had to compete for student attention. I think personal technologies can be a distraction for some students at schools; however, it is the responsibility of a teacher to ensure the various technologies are stored away when it is time to focus on academics.