21 Signs You’re a 21st Century Principal

Are you a 21st Century Principal?  Find out!  PLUS if you can help add to my list you may win a special prize for you and 5 of your teachers.  Keep reading to learn how...

1.  You know that PLN stands for Personal Learning Network…and you collaborate with yours daily.

2.  You use Twitter to find and share resources, engage in international conversation about education, connect with other educators, and make announcements to teachers, parents and students that follow you.

3.  You conduct virtual meetings with faculty and parents using the Google+ Hangout feature.

4.  You've replaced the filing cabinet in
your office with Dropbox… and can
access all of your important documents while out and about.

5.  Your school has started paperless initiatives to help cut down the costs of printing and copying.

6.  You have a school website, blog, Facebook page, and Twitter account…
and they are each updated regularly to keep parents, teachers, and students informed with the latest news, events, activities, and general announcements.

7.  You not only allow but fully support and encourage the use of social media inside school.

8.  You encourage your teachers to take advantage of all of the free resources available online, especially SimpleK12 eBooks and education webinars.

9.  You are actively involved in public relations and fundraising to help secure financial support for your school from local businesses and the community.

10.  You watch webinars, read blogs, and tweet to keep current on the latest education trends and topics.

11.  You encourage your staff to be involved in the selection of new media and technology.

12.  You develop school schedules using a Google Docs worksheet – and have your teachers comment on areas they see as problematic and providing solutions. 

13.  You've organized your own EdCamp: a participant-driven, fun-filled day of professional development for teachers (or you’ve encouraged your teachers to attend a nearby EdCamp!)

14.  You collaborate with faculty members regularly via free web tools such as Google Docs and Titanpad. 

15.  Interactive Whiteboards have replaced nearly every overhead projector throughout the school.

16.  Upon entering the front doors, students make sure they have their mobile devices with them …and that they are turned on. 

17.  You collect classroom walkthrough and observation data via Google Forms (click here to see a great template example!) 

18.  Your technology budget exceeds your textbook budget. 

19.  Computers throughout the school are fully up-to-date and loaded with software, including quicktime, java, etc.

20.  You've purchased Teacher Learning Community memberships for all of your teachers.

21.  You tweet this page, blog about it, "like" it, or email it to someone else...