When we understand how something works, we can manage it better and are more likely to use it to good effect. The same is true of values, which impact every aspect of our lives but so often we are not consciously aware of their significance.

Shared values

Take, for example, identifying what makes you “click” with someone. Start by considering what it is that you have in common and what it is that enables you to enjoy each other’s company and want to work together. How does the “clicking” manifest in terms of:

Parents have a very different perspective. Whilst educators wax lyrical about the potential of the iPad for learning, there are concerns from parents about its impact on their child. Or so we thought.

All parents of iPad trial students were asked to complete a questionnaire, attend a focus group meeting and email any further thoughts to inform the decision making progress for future iPad use. A great deal of time was taken by these parents as they were keen to convey their thoughts to inform the research process and we are very grateful for all their efforts.

Below are direct responses to questions from the focus group where parents were encouraged to discuss with each other the various advantages and disadvantages of the iPad for learning.

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/dgmckelvey

I don’t see very many school Twitter accounts and I think that’s because we think parents are not on Twitter.

I see Twitter as a valuable communication tool, vital in engaging parents and establishing the school’s online identity. So, how do we use Twitter to connect with parents who haven’t yet got a Twitter account?

Answer: Tell them that you can link the school's twitter account with their mobile phones!

Here are the instructions:

Pearson, the world’s leading provider of education tools and content, has commissioned a survey with OnePoll¹ that found that over 25% of parents do not have clear insight into their children’s progress at school. With the backdrop of these trends, Pearson launched Imagine, a new cloud-based software suite incorporating Pearson’s e¹, a Management Information System (MIS), and the Fronter Learning Platform. The on-demand software enables increased student and teacher access to learning resources, parental engagement and easy access to student attendance and achievement data.

Pearson has recently commissioned two separate surveys into teacher and parent attitudes to student learning. Pearson commissioned a survey with the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER)², which surveyed over 1,500 teachers in the UK on student learning as part of its Teacher Voice omnibus survey in November 2011. The NFER survey revealed that 85% of primary school teachers mainly communicate with parents in person, but only 16% of secondary school teachers do the same. Both parents and teachers struggle with time constraints to discuss student learning, and there is clearly a need for parents of secondary school students to interact with teachers and access information about their child’s academic progress in alternative ways.

SchoolsWorld (www.schoolsworld.tv) is now live with the 3,500 educational videos from Teachers TV. SchoolsWorld is for everyone who engages with the world of schools – from governors to teaching assistants, parents to pupils, and also the business world interested in online learning.

The high quality videos launched on SchoolsWorld cover a huge range of subjects across education.

Ed Balls, Shadow Chancellor and MP for Outwood and Morley, visited Morley Newlands Primary School on 6th January 2012 to see for himself how a paperless online communication system, designed specifically for primary schools is improving links between parents and teachers.

Scholabo was founded in December 2010 by Brent, a parent of two primary school aged children, when he set out to provide an innovative solution for school to parent communication after finding it difficult to keep up to date with events and scheduled arrangements, which were primarily communicated via letters placed in his son’s school bag. 

Is your school considering online payments for parents?

With a steady decline in the use of cheques, schools are becoming increasingly concerned with the growing amounts of cash being handled on school premises. Not only is this an obvious burden for school administrative staff, it also represents a substantial risk to a school’s security, which results in an increase in insurance coverage. There is not a better time to consider an alternative cashless payment mechanism that parents can use to settle costs for school trips, uniforms or other school related items.

Regardless of the number of transactions your school makes, you can benefit from becoming a cashless school. The benefits of an online payment portal direct to schools include: the reduction of administrative burden, no duplicate entries, fully auditable payments, and a reduction in the costs of security associated with handling cash and cheques on school premises. Hours can be saved by not having to count, report and bank cash or cheques received from pupils and parents. In addition, payments can be easily reconciled to give an up-to-date picture of who has paid for items and those with amounts outstanding.

Technology, the internet, computers, are words that confuse, even frighten, many parents. In my blog, Ask a Tech Teacher, I post lots of tips, tricks, a list of hundreds of kid-friendly websites, self-help articles on how to address this in your homeschooled child's education. Every week, I get lots of questions from parents about the right way to address access to technology. Most want suggestions on how to make computer use a positive experience for their little ones.

After fifteen years of teaching technology in a classroom and online, I can tell you without a doubt that educating your child can be done more efficiently and with better results in the world of computers. I don't mean ONLY on computers. I mean using technology to extend your scholastic reach: