Connect 2.0

Our second year of thought-provoking discussions in our monthly Parent Technology Coffee Mornings was a great success!

Thanks to a dedicated and engaged group of parents who attend our meetings on a regular basis, we’ve discussed everything from writing in the digital age (using tools like blogs and wikis), to social networking (using tools like Facebook and Ning), to digital storytelling (using tools like iMovie and VoiceThread), to information management, online safety and the changes and challenges facing education today.

These conversations are intended to help parents understand the ways that technology is changing society, and therefore, changing education. Every month we watch a short video and then discuss the implications on education and learning, always with practical examples from classrooms here at ISB.

We are already looking forward to continuing these discussions again next year (with even more parents)!

The wonderful parents who regularly spend the first Wednesday of every month with us have shared some of their reasons for attending:

I want to thank Tara, Kim and Jeff for hosting us ES parents at the monthly Technology meetings this school year.  WOW! It is so wonderful to be able to explore and discuss how technology is affecting us as parents, not to mention learning what our kids are doing on the IT front…or want to be doing…or shouldn’t be doing…or will be doing whether we want them to or not.  I’ve learned that by understanding what is “out there” and being able to have open discussions with our children about these things (instead of ignoring it) is paramount on the parenting front!  Plus it’s always great to gain insight that can help us with our daily lives…whether or not we are currently in the work force or plan to reenter it in the coming years.  Thank you and I look forward to these opportunities again next year.

- Darcy Eid, Mom to Gabrielle (G4) and Elizabeth (G1)

These quick and friendly appointments have represented a valuable opportunity for me to

• get more familiar with the most recent technological updates, realizing how easy it could be just trying (podcasting - I did it and now we are getting addicted to it !)
• finally starting to use the various instruments we have at our disposal (Facebook - I do not hide my name anymore, just know how to use it protecting our privacy !)
• get a bit of understanding of the new world into which our kids are born and immersed and have a first clue about how different their learning experience is compared with ours

I also enjoyed the formula (monthly, about 1 hour long, right after kids enter their classes) and hope you will continue offering us these useful updates.

- Raffaella Ciapponi in Ricci

I attend the Parent Technology Meetings for the light, non-filling, breakfast items that complement the coffee.  Just kidding…

I attend the Parent Technology Meetings to learn what my children’s world looks like and what their future holds in the realm of technology.  How can we, as parent’s, help guide our children, if we are not familiar with their world.  Today’s classroom (libraries, household, businesses)…today’s world is completely unlike the one I grew up with.  It is continually changing.

These meeting give me a chance to become educated about technology.  I am learning what my children are doing in school, with technology.  I am learning how the technology works so that I can use and understand it.  I am learning the benefits of technology.

These sessions give me a place to express my lack of understanding, my apprehensions, my thoughts.  I share what I feel, I ask questions and I learn from others.  We come from different points along the technology timeline, depending on our age.  I am able to hear differing viewpoints.  This allows me to evaluate and form educated opinions about technology.

The sessions are invigorating.  I may not grasp everything that I learn, but I am trying.  It will make things easier, because not just their world is changing, my world is changing as well.  I don’t want to be left behind.

I feel privileged to be given the opportunity to learn more about technology through these eye opening sessions.

- Rufie Harr

We hope to see you next school year! We’ve already organized a great list of topics for our monthly sessions, if you’d like to plan in advance:

September 2009: An Introduction to the Ways Education is Changing in a Digital World: an introduction to the major technological changes that are currently shaping society and changing education. We will also  give an overview of all of the sessions for the rest of the year.

October 2009: An Introduction to Blogging: What is a blog? How and why do people blog? How can parents get connected to all the teacher and student blogs being authored at ISB?

November 2009: An Introduction to RSS: What is RSS? How can it help me stay connected to learning happening at ISB, as well as more personal interests (like gardening or travel)? Bring your own computer and we’ll help you set up your own RSS account!

December 2009: An Introduction to Podcasting & iTunes: What is a podcast? How and why do people podcast? What are some great podcasts for students and parents to listen to and watch? Bring your own computer and we’ll help you subscribe (for free) to podcasts from ISB and around the world!

February 2010: An Introduction to Digital Literacy: What are the new literacies for the 21st Century? How is the understanding of literacy changing in education? How are ISB students learning and using 21st century literacy skills?

March 2010: An Introduction to Social Networking: What is social networking? How are your children using social networking both in school and outside of school? How can we use social networking strategies for learning?

April 2010: An Introduction to Wikis: What is a wiki? How and why do people use wikis? What is the controversy over Wikipedia? Plus, we’ll share some examples of wikis being used for learning at ISB.

May 2010: Summer Tech Activities With Your Kids! Some great tech-rich activities you can do with your children over the summer, like: starting a family travel blog, taking control of your summer vacation pictures, finding the top 10 kid-friendly podcasts for long car trips or plane rides, or making your own summer travel video for YouTube!

Please check your school calendars for the first Wednesday of every month’s Parent Technology Coffee Morning. The more the merrier!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 19th, 2009 at 9:21 am and is filed under The Parent Connection. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.