Four Key Areas for Technology Leadership
- Position yourself as the key point person. Chief technology officers, chief information officers, and other district and school technology professionals have a central role to play at the intersection of technology and education. You need to master both the technical and educational aspects of technology—for the students and the adults in your district. This puts you in a position to advocate and implement the best Web 2.0 solutions for your district or school needs.
- Support your superintendent and district leadership team in developing a vision for Web 2.0 use in your district. Help your colleagues understand the connections between Web 2.0 and valued student outcomes, such as improving student engagement and motivation, reaching high-need students, providing targeted academic support for students and developing 21st century skills. Provide examples of how Web 2.0 can be used to support professional development, communities of practice and collaboration for educators and administrators.
- Align your Web 2.0 strategies and tactics to your district’s goals. Understand the key educational challenges your district’s leaders are trying to address. Investigate and share how Web 2.0 can support district goals.
- Increase your personal and team capacity. Learn all you can about Web 2.0 and what it can do to improve student outcomes and contribute to administrators’ and educators’ effectiveness. Be proactive in collecting and sharing information about Web 2.0—particularly information targeted to lay people and educators—with the district leadership team. You likely have the best access to information; don’t keep it to yourself. In addition, make it a habit to use Web 2.0 productivity tools for your work. Introduce your team to new Web 2.0 tools for communications and collaboration, so you can build leadership support for them.