Using Blogs to Lead

An educational leader could benefit from using a blog by using it as a communication tool to disseminate vital information to all school stakeholders.  Since blogs can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection they could be a way to keep the community involved in the activities of the school.  For example, a Blog could be used to get instant feedback to an inquiry about the perceived climate of the school by parents.  This information could be processed quickly and a plan of action developed to address any issues that may arise. 

Take action!

I believe that action research is a great tool for improving the administration, teaching, and learning practices of an educational environment.  Action research requires self-reflection on the part of the practitioner in order to identify an issue or area that needs improvement.  Self-awareness is at the core of this paradigm and requires constant inquiry into current practices in in order to effect improvement.  Once the current practices are scrutinized and data is collected, the practitioner can then analyze the data to come up with a plan of action to reach the desired goal.  Implementation is the next step in the process.  Putting the plan into motion requires a shared vision by all stakeholders followed by evaluation of the effectiveness of the actions undertaken.  In evaluating the strategies implemented new inquiries are made and result in the definition of new problem areas wherein the process begins again.  I would be able to implement the practitioner inquiry process on my campus to assist in defining the role of technology as it relates to student motivation and curriculum engagement.  Data could be collected in these two areas that would either help to justify a substantial investment in updated hardware or discourage the expenditure.