ISTE 2008: Chris Lehman: School 2.0

Chris is principal of a school in Philadelphia that is working to "walk the talk" with the Web 2.0 tools. There are several things about his presentation that "hit home" with me. His primary points started off with the fact that the school needs to be a "Caring Institution." That follows my exact thoughts in that as we look at becoming more and more digital in our presentation, we need to remember that students still respond to the one to one personal touch they can only get from a caring teacher.

The school must be student centered, focused on the work they do and the relationships formed with the students. It can't be about the adults or about the technology. Everything that is done and every decision that is made needs to be based on what is best for the students.

Technology instruction, like Science, need to be inquiry driven, and driven by asking authentic questions that we do not necessarily know the answers to. Giving students the opportunity to truly dig in and discover the answers to "real" questions.

The projects and activities students engage in have to be passionate and have to matter to the students. If it isn't important, today's students do not necessarily care to engage in it. They will be come passionate about things that are important and have significance.

Once projects are complete and learning has taken place, we need to allow students the opportunity to reflect on their learning. They need to be engaged in the meta-cognitive process of thinking about what they did, thinking about their learning, and thinking about their thinking.

And learning opportunities need to have technology infused to the point that it is ubiquitous, necessary, and invisible. That means technology needs to be available so learning does not have to be scheduled around when the technology is available. It has to be available "on demand" when it is needed.

I believe Chris explores some interesting ideas that provide a framework for developing a rich learning environment infused with technology. Keeping the focus on the students and away form the adults and technology is the key, which I believe is the key to any successful school community.