Common Tech Problems

The table below demonstrates the solutions I'd use for the suggested common technical issues a student might have. I would demonstrate these possible solutions and then have the students practice those solutions as well, so that they'd be better prepared if these problems were to occur. Then the students could ask questions, and possibly present other troubleshooting scenarios that we could try to solve together in class.

Problems	Solutions to Demonstrate to Students
There is no sound coming out of the speakers on the student computers.	Check to see if the cable is connected. Make sure the speakers are turned on. Check the volume knob on the speaker. Check the internal computer volume.
I can’t connect to the network.	Double check your Username and Password. Make sure the CAPS lock isn’t on. Make sure you’re not logged in on another device.
My computer keeps freezing up on me.	Force close open programs. Restart computer. Teacher may need to do virus scan and/or update system.
My printer won’t print.	Check to see if printer is on. Verify you sent the print job to the correct printer (if on networked printer.) Check that the printer is on-line. Try to print a test page to see if that prints. Make sure there’s not a paper jam.
My SMARTboard pens aren’t working.	Check the ready light. What color is it? Make sure computer is on. Remove and reinsert the cabling to reset the connection. Make sure the pen trays are clean.

Troubleshooting Technology

Computer Troubleshooting for Teachers and Students

This is a website that is meant to help provide online technical support for teachers and students, for some of the most common technology issues that occur on a regular basis. It is broken down into categories for easy location of helpful information: Common Input/Output Devices, Internet and Networking, SmartBoard and Projectors, and Microsoft Office Applications. And then those categories are broken down into various subcategories that, when clicked on, take you to the troubleshooting page for each example device, program, or issue. Each troubleshooting page is setup as a table, with a typical Problem listed on the left side, and possible Solutions on the right. There are also usually helpful links on the far right of the web page, related to whatever issues are being shared in the main content area. The whole site is operated by a group of current and aspiring teachers from Pace University in  New York. 

My Thoughts: I really like this website--what a great reference for troubleshooting common problems! I have bookmarked the site and I'm sure I will use it in the future as the need arises. I think I am going to send the link to my mentor teacher for my practicum. She is a computer teacher at the local elementary school and she often gets overwhelmed with tech support requests, even though that's not really her job. She doesn't mind helping the other teachers at all, but she gets so busy sometimes helping others that it can take too much of her time. I think this site would be something she can share with her teachers that may help them resolve a lot of common problems they may have.

A Computer for Every Student and Teacher

This article is about a pilot program that began in 2008 at twelve high schools in North Carolina that implemented a 1:1 learning initiative, with the goals to "improve teaching practices; increase student achievement; and better prepare students for work, citizenship, and life in the 21st century." The schools were evaluated using a variety of data, including teacher and student surveys, focus groups, classroom observations, interviews, and other existing data. Their most notable lesson from this program is that "it takes administrators, teachers, and students time to adjust to the significant, systematic changes enabled by the introduction of a 1:1 learning environment." The article goes on to list all their recommendations based on the results of what they learned from the study. Eight interrelated critical issues were found to be vital for the success of the 1:1 program.

1. Deployment: They recommend six months planning and preparation before the distribution of the laptops, and teachers should get theirs the semester before the students and get extensive professional development on how to use them.
2. Wireless Network: The infrastructure for the technology needs to be able to support the use of it, so an evaluation of existing infrastructure should be conducted before implementation with regard to retrofitting, upgrades, and connectivity.
3. Hardware & Software Tools: Selecting the most appropriate devices and tools is of the utmost importance for successful 1:1 implementation. Power, Peripherals, Repairs, and Laptop Loaners are important considerations as well. As are Resources for Teachers (which apps, programs and websites), and Resources for Students.
4. Policies & Procedures: Policies and procedures for acceptable use must be implemented, and issues like "student participation, security and storage, virus protection, access privileges, filters, student email accounts, saving student work, discipline, cheating and cyberbullying, and classroom management also must be considered in those policies.
5. Support Personnel: Different types of personnel are recommended to help ensure a successful program: Technology Facilitator (to help teachers and students use the technology to improve learning), On-site Technicians (for tech support), and Student Technology Teams (student volunteers to help support the program). 
6. Professional Development: Specific types of PD were recommended for the program's success. These include content-specific PD, hands-on activities, instructional strategies, lesson planning sessions, site visits to other 1:1 schools, assessment with technology, differentiated levels of PD, classroom management & policy issues, opportunities to collaborate, ongoing support through social networks, more planning and practise time, and just in time mentoring from the technology facilitator. 
7. School Leadership: Leadership must be consistent, supportive, provide a vision with goals, include teachers in some decision-making and allow for teacher feedback, create advocacy, provide appropriate infrastructure, PD, and training, evaluate the program and student outcomes, and utilize effective communication. 
8. Sustainability: A couple of important factors here include budget planning and stakeholder engagement. 

The article concludes that all of this work in necessary, for the sake of the students, to better prepare them for "their futures in a globally-connected, technologically-supported world.

My Thoughts: I hadn't really thought about all of the different factors at play in implementing a 1:1 program in a school or district. There are really a lot of things that have to be considered, and a lot of planning and ongoing support that must occur in order for this kind of program to be successful. It's definitely a lot of work, but I think it's necessary and important if we're going to help our students live and work in the 21st century.

Reflection

I really think that the website for computer troubleshooting is something that I will use in the future when I'm teaching again--whether I'm teaching art or a computer class. I'm fairly tech-savvy as it is, but I don't know everything. And it's very good to know there's a website that is available, focused on teachers and students who may need technical support for common tech problems. This is especially true considering that there is often inadequate technical support available in many schools due to budget constraints. I also found it very enlightening to read about the factors necessary to help ensure the success of a 1:1 program. There are still many schools that haven't yet gone 1:1, so there's every possibility that I may teach in a school that hasn't. But even if I teach in one that does, this article provided me with some insight that may be helpful in either case.

Global Communication and Collaboration

Educating for Global Competence: Preparing Our Youth to Engage the World

Chapter one highlights a world in transition and the new educational demands presented as a result. Also the expectations on our youth to have "more powerful, relevant, and self-directed learning" that is going to prepare them to "live, compete, and collaborate" in a global way.  Global competence is expected of our youth and is comprised of three main factors.

1. A flattened global economy changes the demands of work. Jobs that "demand expert thinking and complex communication" will continue to grown in demand as more routine tasks are completed by computers or workers in developing worlds. The digital age is demanding workers who can creatively synthesize a variety of information, innovators and forward thinkers. It demands design skills, organization, adaptability, and global awareness of our interconnected world in a variety of domains. It also demands an ability to "recognize their own and others' perspectives and communicate their positions clearly" and an ability to take action. 
2. Unprecedented global migration. Growing migration trends are emphasized and it is noted that "social remittances" occur with this migration--the transport of "ideas, know-how, practices and skills that influence their encounters with and integration into the societies that host them," and back to their countries of origin as well. Students need to be prepared for the norm of diversity and be able to manage difference and "cultural complexity" because it is essential to their success in a global world. Teachers of all subject areas must help to nurture "intercultural sophistication," which involves a capacity to recognize all perspectives and effectively communicate ideas to a diverse audience.
3. Climate instability and environmental stewardship. Climate change is expected to continue with many consequences, and the next generation is expected to be able to manage that change and create possible solutions for "mitigation and adaptation." So students need a deep understanding of the earth, and of climate change, its causes, and its consequences. "Thinking about climate change in ways that consider multiple locations, perspectives, and concerns, and communicating effectively about these various conditions prepares students for effective transnational cooperation" is the necessary global approach to affect change.

Our youth play a central role in the demands of changing world, so they need to understand the problems of global importance and how they must be able to take action and communicate in that diverse and interdependent world. The Common Core was designed to be a tool to that end, and many countries have adopted similar plans.

Chapter 4 emphasizes recognizing one's own perspective and that it may be very different from others. So students need to be able to understand, "articulate and explain" other people's perspectives in order to have a full understanding of world issues. Four specific capacities for recognizing perspectives are listed.

1. Recognize and express their own perspective on situations, events, issues, or phenomena and identify the influences on that perspective.
2. Examine perspectives of other people, groups, or schools of thought and identify the influences on those perspectives.
3. Explain how cultural interactions influence situations, events, issues, or phenomena, including the development of knowledge.
4. Articulate how differential access to knowledge, technology, and resources affects quality of life and perspectives.

An example is shared of a shelter project between two US schools (one urban and one suburban) and one in Bangalore, India where the communicated and shared and created site-specific shelters in each of their locations. The project allowed the students to really see and experience diverse perspectives, environments, cultures, and knowledge. It also allowed them to interact globally, collaborate, and exchange ideas to develop a deeper understanding. And they were able to articulate their similarities and differences and how various factors affect each others way of life.

Another example is shared about a project on the benefit of laughter between the US and Afghanistan. Students debated jokes and the differences between senses of humor and its structure and social function in each country. Afghanistan students tend to use humor as means of coping with fear and healing, which isn't really the norm in America. As a result of the project the students can appreciate and be sensitive to other perspectives and they understand more easily how those perspectives are shaped.

Understanding differing perspectives is viewed as a fundamental skill for the 21st century, as well as the ability to transform social stereotypes, and to develop and appreciate intercultural awareness. Teachers are tasked with nurturing these skills in ways that are informed and respectful. 

My Thoughts: It makes a lot of sense to me that as teachers we are expected to change and adapt to our 21st century world, just as our students are. The world is different, and changing quite rapidly in this digital age. Global competence is expected in our students if they're going to "live, compete, and collaborate" in our changing world. Chances are that most of the jobs our students have as adults don't even exist yet, so they need to be prepared for whatever job their future may hold. And the key to doing that is their ability to think and communicate, and their understanding of our global economy, climate instability, and cultural diversity.

Sister Cities and Sister Schools

This partnership of Sister Cities was created as the result of the "manifestation of ideals of global connectedness and citizenship." Their mission is to "promote peace, respect, and cultural understanding between two foreign communities." Sister Schools are an extension of that relationship and operate on the same premise. The growth in technology has made it possible to create a much greater variety of educational projects, and that technology has helped create global understanding. And Web 2.0 has made even more levels of collaboration possible. Their website has resources for Global Learning Networks, Blogs, Presentations, Skype & FaceTime, Websites & Wikis, YouTube, Foreign Exchange programs, and Teacher Exchanges. Blogs are the new pen-pal technology, help to provide communication between students and schools; and it's noted that student blogs have a need for monitoring and moderation. Presentation tools are shared and explained as to how they have evolved over time, making it much more dynamic than it used to be. The Skype and FaceTime page highlight the live interactions that are possible to create global connectedness. A Skype "chess match" is even noted between schools. Websites and Wikis are promoted as effective tools to increase collaboration and connectedness between schools and cities. YouTube is noted for its ability to promote global understanding and education. Several videos are shared of Sister Schools from around the world. The Sister-Cities website itself has a lot of great information on how to become a partner to another sister city in the world. They offer programs to help students experience "international affairs and citizen diplomacy." Sister Cities International was founded by President Eisenhower in 1956 and are celebrating their 60th anniversary.

My Thoughts: I think the idea of Sister Cities and Sister Schools is wonderful, and a very meaningful way to help students understand and experience global connectedness and citizenship. And thanks to the wide variety of technology we have at our fingertips today, that connectedness is easier than ever before. Websites like Sister-Cities.org also help to make very meaningful experiences happen, by providing a starting point for making connections to students, classrooms, and cities across the globe. They even have a youth art showcase, which would be a great way to introduce art students to the idea of Sister Cities.

Virtual Field Trip: Global Trek to Egypt and Beyond

I chose the Global Trek on the Scholastic website for my virtual field trip and I chose Egypt as my starting point destination. The website provides a variety of destinations that students can choose from. The first page of the journey provides several clickable links: a map of Egypt, background information on Egypt and life there in ancient times, myths about Egypt, and info about kids in Egypt--which even includes a Q&A with facts about what life is like for kids there. The site also provides a means for kids to provide an online travel journal, so that they can take notes throughout their "journey." Once I read everything about Egypt I was able to add notes to my journal or continue on by choosing a new destination. I chose to visit Australia next, and similar background info was provided about that destination. I also visited Greece, England, and Germany. Each destination always provides information about the country and its history, culture, and people; and then also provides a way to add to the virtual travel journal, which can be printed too at the end.

My Thoughts: I think that the Global Trek virtual field trips have a wonderful amount of content for students, but not enough photos. As a whole, I think the content is the most important aspect, because at least then it can be used to create assessments. But being that it's the digital age, I think Scholastic should improve on these virtual trips by adding more photos and video at the very least. Some of the links to more info do take you to websites with photos, but I think the actual Global Trek site would benefit and be more engaging to have more photos displayed as students are reading the site's content.

OER Commons

This site provides teaching and learning materials for free to any teacher or learner. "This includes full courses, modules, syllabi, lectures, homework assignments, quizzes, lab activities, pedagogical materials, games, simulations, and many more resources contained in digital media collections from around the world." Their content covers pretty much any subject area and grade level. Some examples include: Visual Art, Philosophy, Welding, Educational Technology, Algebra, and Archaeology, just to name a few. The site also allows you to create an account so that you can save the resources that you find for future reference. 

My Thoughts: This website is a wonderful resource that I have bookmarked and I am sure I will use in the future. I found a wonderful resource called, Active Learning with Technology, by David Jennings. It has some really great info on how to promote student engagement with active learning activities that utilize technology. It even provides several pages of specific ideas for learning opportunities for kids that create active engagement. It also offers an overview of relevant key learning theories. I downloaded that one too so I could read it more carefully.

Reflection
Well I had a whole reflective paragraph here, and then my browser decided to wonk out on me and I lost it all when I had to restart the browser. Now my train of thought is totally gone. Sigh. In looking back at my notes and thoughts, I'd say that it seems very obvious that students of today need to be well prepared for our changing world and economy, and be ready for jobs in the future that don't even exist yet. They need to be globally aware, globally connected, and very appreciative and respective of diverse cultures and perspectives. Teachers also need to be globally aware and active, or else they do a great disservice to their students and the future they will build beyond their public education. In that regard, I like the idea of virtual field trips, but I think live interactions with students in other countries would be far more meaningful. So if I ever manage to find another teaching job, I hope to make experiences like that happen for my students.

Art Teacher in Hong Kong

In addition to my virtual field trip, I've managed to connect with an art teacher in Hong Kong. Her name is Kelsey Long (@KLong_Art) and she teaches at the American International School in Hong Kong. She only just replied to my tweet today, so I've introduced myself and explained my coursework, and I've asked her to share with me some information about what her life is like as a teacher in Hong Kong. I've also told her that my hope is that when I manage to find another teaching job, that we could have our classes connect via Skype or some other technology to work together on a project. 

One possibility for a future project is the Joining Our Worlds Project. That is a Global Learning Project that uses art portraits and communication skills to teach K-4 students how to appreciate diversity, and develop respect and appreciation for everyone. The kids utilize Google Slides and Google Hangouts to help connect, share, and discuss their projects, and they can learn some valuable digital citizenship and communication skills in the process. I've bookmarked that site in hopes that I can use it in the future. Or it may inspire me to do something similar once I'm teaching again, and I'm excited by the possibility. So we'll just have to see what happens.

Virtual Field Trip to Puget Sound

This is a virtual field trip I've created using Google's Tour Builder website. It features the town in the state of Washington where I spent half of my high school life as a teenager: Grapeview, Washington, on Puget Sound. It was my favorite place to live growing up, as we moved around a lot when I was young. It was beautiful there and I still miss it. So I thought I'd create a little tour of this part of Puget Sound. It's such a scenic place and it holds many wonderful memories for me. I really hope to visit there one day to see how it's all changed since I've been gone.

Click on the photo to start your tour...

Twitter and Social Interaction

Tweeting the Night Away, Using Twitter to Enhance Social Presence

According to the authors of this article, "to be truly effective, online learning must facilitate the social process of learning." So their article is about encouraging and utilizing online social interactions, particularly Twitter, to enhance learning. The authors discuss how a typical  LMS can "constrain how online educators design and develop their online courses," because it is missing "just-in-time" interactions that occur outside of class. And these interactions can have strong instructional value and strengthen interpersonal relationships between students and teachers that can enhance the classroom learning community. Contact between students and teachers is considered "critical for student engagement because it influences student motivation and involvement." Twitter is considered beneficial because it occurs outside of the typical LMS--so it is less constraining, more informal, and helps create connections on a more emotional level. When activities are primarily occurring within an LMS, social presence is not adequately enhanced. The authors describe Twitter as "a powerful, convenient, and community-controlled microsharing environment," and they used it successfully with the students in their online instructional design and technology courses. As a result their students were able to "engage in sharing, collaboration, brainstorming, problem solving, and creating within the context of our moment-to-moment experiences;" and the interactions occurred more naturally than if they occurred within their typical LMS. 

The authors listed several benefits of using Twitter in online learning: Addressing student issues in a timely manner, writing concisely, writing for an audience, connecting with a professional community of practice, supporting informal learning, and maintaining ongoing relationships. Possible drawbacks were also noted: Twitter can be time-consuming, addictive, encourage bad grammar due to character limit, potential data/texting fees, just to name a few. The authors also provided an informative list of guidelines for using Twitter with students; and they listed two unexpected benefits of using Twitter with their students (related to the Community of Inquiry framework): Cognitive Presence and Teaching Presence. 

My Thoughts: I really like the idea of using Twitter as an additional component of online coursework. I personally don't use Twitter all the time; it's more of an occasional thing for me. I use it for sharing fandoms I'm guilty of belonging to, sharing my artwork or student work, sharing links to articles or info that I find interesting, or relevant to teaching and learning etc. It can be a great way to communicate with people who share your interests, to be sure. I think it could be used with K-12 students too, but with caveats and definite guidelines that would have to be in place for its use. Some other social interactions tools could also be used in a safer environment for students. The authors even mentioned one of these, Edmodo. Schoology would be another one that would be good for students. But I can definitely see the benefits of using Twitter, made much more clear by the authors of this article.

The Design of an Online Community of Practice for Beginning Teachers

This article begins by discussing statistics about the number of beginning teachers who leave the profession within the first five years of teaching (39% according to Ingersoll's study from 2001). They included a large list of the most common reasons that teachers quit teaching. The authors stress that a "greater emphasis should be placed on finding strategies to retain teachers." They also note that Induction and Mentoring are key factors in the solution to retaining teachers, and that teachers who participated in these activities during their first year of teaching were less likely to leave the profession. The use of the internet for induction and mentoring activities is stressed as having great potential as a "medium for support and guidance" of new teachers. Some various online programs of this type are introduced and outlined in the article. An in-depth look was provided at the BEST (Beginning and Establishing Successful Teachers) program, a website designed in Australia specifically for beginning primary and early education teachers. Though the site seems to be defunct now (or perhaps evolved into something else), it was originally designed "around significant problem-based issues identified by beginning teachers." The website provided communication tools that enabled ongoing support and reflection. It was unique in that instead of establishing new communities for teachers, it built on existing ones that were already created at universities for pre-service teachers. Student were introduced to this site before they even graduated, so that it would be there for them after they began teaching. The BEST program is based on Herrington and Oliver's (2000) nine characteristics of authentic learning environments. And the whole site used the Internet Cafe metaphor, in order to create a friendly and inviting environment.

My Thoughts: First I'll just note that this seems to be an older article, so several of the links are outdated or no longer work. So I couldn't check out most of the sites that were referenced in the article that interested me. I'll also add that I had interest in this article because I left teaching in 2007. There were many factors that affected that decision, only a few of which were school-related. And I had always planned to return to teaching (although I've been looking with no luck since 2009!), so it was supposed to just be a temporary absence for me. But I was interested to read about the various programs this article noted since I have experience as a teacher who (regrettably) left the field. I can definitely see the benefits of this type of website and program. I think all new teachers need a reliable support system built in to help them--even beyond the first year. And I think a site like this could provide that ongoing support. 

I had a mentor teacher my first year of teaching--all new teachers in my district were required to have one. That teacher was great, but she wasn't a teacher in my content area. So even though I did learn a lot from her and she was always there for me, I think I could have gotten way more out of it if I'd had a mentor teacher in Art. And having a website like BEST may have helped too, though I wasn't aware of a site like this at the time I left teaching. Who knows if I'd have still left, but being able to reach out to more teachers through social avenues (which wasn't quite as common back then as it is now) could have been a great resource as a new or even seasoned teacher. And it might even have played a role in my ultimate decision to leave teaching...we will never know though. 

What Parents Want in School Communication

This article discusses a 2011 survey of 50 school districts to "learn the communication preferences of both parents and non-parents." Among its results, it showed that parents wanted to use internet/electronic communication more than any other option for delivery of school news. However, social media (Facebook, Twitter and blogs) actually ranged near the bottom of the results though. The results also showed what types of information they want to have communicated: updates or insight on child progress, timely notice when performance is lacking, info on learning goals for the year, and homework and grading policies were the most desired types of information among all grade levels. Behavior reports were also deemed as important for elementary parents. Parents also wanted a calendar of events, curriculum descriptions, info on students safety, and educational program updates. 47% of parents said they would like this information as often as decisions are made. 36% of parents also wanted monthly updates. The article ends by stressing that each district should research and develop a strategy of communications that meets the specific needs of their own community. 

My Thoughts: I think this survey did a pretty good job of discovering what kind of information parents of students want to receive, the method in which they want to receive it, and how often. It was interesting to me that social media appeared at the bottom of the results, but it was good that electronic/internet communication in general was the most desired. That is really the fastest and most efficient way to deliver information, and let's be honest: it saves a lot of trees too, from organizations that are historically the biggest consumers (and often wasters) of paper products anywhere. And as the article suggests, I think all schools should survey their parents and find out what their wishes are with regard to communication. It just makes sense: find out what they want and then give it to them how they want and when they want it. Win, win.

Mrs. D's Class

I really like the layout and content of Mr. D's first grade class, even though it appears it's not being used anymore. It is setup in a blog format, which I think is very effective and makes it easier to edit. He has pages there for various content area resources, an interactive calendar page, an email link for making contact, and a list of learning games that the kids either use in class and/or can use at home. Lots of good information there for parents.

My Thoughts: I think Mr. D. could have a little bit more on his website than he does. My ideas would include pages for:

• Grading and Homework Policies,
• An About page with information about himself--even a photo would be nice,
• Info about learning goals for the year for each new class.

As a parent, these are things I would like to see on a teacher's website myself. Mr. D. may have switched to another type of electronic news, so maybe that's why this site seems out of use now. But I think this site overall is pretty good as far as communicating with parents. I'd give it a grade of 'B.' 

5 Steps to Better School/Community Collaboration

This article describes the need for "strong, authentic community connections and actions" in order to create real education transformation; and the need for schools, communities, and businesses to come together to support young people and their learning. It highlights the important themes for education transformation:

• Community/business school partnerships
• Parental collaboration
• Curriculum connected to real world experience
• Student voice
• Locals creating solutions to local problems

Five steps are also listed for transforming schools for effective 21st century learners:

1. Include the Community in the vision of School (Experiential Learning)
2. Include ALL stakeholders (Parents, Students, Teachers, Biz's, Community Members, etc.)
3. Creating a Community Resource Map (Skills people have to offer)
4. Connect real life experience with the Curriculum (Meaningful Learning, Project-based learning)
5. Create a Community Challenge to reinvent the school experience

My Thoughts: I think the key focus in this article is on transforming schools through contributions from everyone in the community, because creating meaningful learning and education should involve everyone and should capitalize on each person's strengths. I like that there is emphasis on meaningful and relevant learning experiences, and on project-based learning, because these are things that our 21st century learners need. I browsed the Facebook group, Chicago Students Organizing to Save Our Schools. Their mission was to ensure that all people have the equal access to quality public education, and they were a student-led group. It seems like it was a great group for those Chicago-area students, who seemed determined to fight against Charter Schools, because they were effectively robbing CPS of funds and causing public school closures. So the students rallied together to help fight this. The FB page hasn't been active since October though, and neither has their Twitter account.

Reflection

After reading the first article, I think I can see many pros for teachers using Twitter with their students in online courses. I think teachers of any grade level can utilize Twitter, as long as some rules and guidelines are in place for its use. Although I think alternatives such as Schoology or Edmodo might be a better solution for social interaction for K-12 students, since the social environment can be more easily monitored and moderated by teachers. 

I also really like the idea of new teachers (or even veteran teachers) having online communities they can utilize for induction, mentorship, and ongoing professional and emotional support. But in many ways, teachers can still do this without a dedicated website, thanks to Facebook groups created for pretty much any individual/professional need you can think of. And even Twitter can be used this way to some degree, not to mention audio and video chats and other in-the-moment technology platforms. 

With regard to Parent Communication preferences, I think the results of their study would be fairly common, but local school districts could benefit from surveying their students' parents with similar questions. That way, districts and teachers can provide the exact type of communication that is preferred and deliver it to parents in a timely and effective manner. That is definitely what I would want to do for my students' parents, when I get teaching again. And I'd definitely create a website to provide them with as much of their desired information and communication as possible. 

The five steps to better school and community collaboration makes a lot of sense. Don't we all want the same things (for the most part) for our students: for our kids to have meaningful and relevant learning experiences--relative to real life experiences--and to be successful 21st century learners? It just seems logical to help utilize the community and all of the people and skills within it to make those goals a reality. I'm not sure that it's all really do-able though, considering that schools are driven by standardized testing and little else. And as long as that is the case, school transformation is going to be little more than a lofty ideal rather than an attainable reality. It's good to dream though.