android programming

This past Tuesday I attended our Annual Senior Academic Awards dinner.  It was a great event where New Milford High School students received over $65,000 in local scholarships.  For three hours student after student came up to the podium to receive various scholarships that they had worked so hard for over the course of four years.  One particular presentation provided the motivation for this post.  It was at a point in the evening where the Raymond "Hap" Harrison scholarship was presented.  In short, this scholarship is endowed by Adam Leitman Bailey, an NMHS alumnus (Class of 1988), who was the school's second Distinguished Alumni Award winner in 2008.  The recipient of this annual scholarship receives $10,000 the first year of college, which is then renewable for the remaining years with a G.P.A. of 3.5 or higher. 
Obviously, this is a prestigious scholarship, but there is much more behind this.  Ever since Adam won the distinguished alumni award he and I have formed a partnership to benefit the students of NMHS in many ways besides financially.  We quickly realized that we share a determination and commitment to enhancing and improving educational experiences for NMHS students.  Through extensive communications and face to face meetings we have developed an ever-evolving vision that has led to some significant opportunities that include:

1. Field trips: History students have participated in walking tours of lower Manhattan the last two years where Adam has shared his extensive knowledge on the history of the financial district.  The trip always culminates with a working lunch for all of the students (his treat).
2. Summer internships at his prestigious firm.
3. Mock trials on the campus of NMHS.
4. Participation in our Career Day Program.
5. Facilitation of all Ray "Hap" Harrision scholarship winners into high profile internships at institutions such as Columbia University Medical Center.

This is just one example of a successful partnership that has greatly benefited my students.  Some other successful partnerships that have been established at NMHS include the following (it should be noted that there is no cost to the school, staff, or students):

* Madison Institute: Professional Development
* CBS News: Public relations/Press (5 news stories this year)
* Stevens Institute of Technology: NSF GK-12 Program (S.T.E.M.)
* AverAcademy Showcase School (AverMedia): Technology (document cameras, digital pens) and
   professional development
* Wine & Roses: Worked with our Business Practice Firm class and assisted them with their virtual
   floral business (Wizard of Vase Florists)
* My PLN!!!!!

There are no set guidelines for educators on how to establish successful, sustaining partnerships.  In my opinion schools must place more of an emphasis on this endeavor.  Administrators in particular must be willing to excerpt a great deal of time to seek out and foster these relationships that are mutually beneficial to all parties.  I have found that the successful establishment of the various partnerships is also dependent on the following:

- Flexibility and an open mind
- Effective communication
- Establishment and consensus on a shared vision
- Commitment and follow-through on both ends
- Sharing of student benefits with all stakeholders
- Patience
- Empower and support teachers in establishing their own partnerships
- Reach out to alumni and local businesses
- Leverage social media to connect with potential partners

The formation of partnerships is yet another way to provide meaningful learning experiences to students where the benefits can extend well beyond the instructional day.  I would love to hear about specific partnerships that you have established and the impact they have had or are having on your students.  Any additions to my list of tips would be greatly appreciated as well.

Scholastic recently visited New Milford High School in order to see how we were using and integrating educational technology.  I could not be more proud of how my students represented NMHS and clearly articulated numerous examples of technologies that they have used over the course of the year.

As part of my action plan associated with becoming a Google Certified Teacher, I decided to focus on training other educators about integrating these powerful web 2.0 applications into their instruction. Outside of my role as Principal of New Milford High School, I am the Director of Program Development for Project ABLE International. This is an organization committed to assisting teachers develop authentic-based learning environments in order to provide students with essential 21st Century problem-solving and critical thinking skills. Currently teachers from four different school districts in northern NJ are part of the Project ABLE consortium and have been receiving intense, hands-on training during the course of the 2009-2010 school year. This training has focused on the philosophy, development, and implementation of authentic-based learning activities that are meaningful and relevant to the learner.

As a culminating activity after months of training we decided to illustrate how easily Google Docs and Apps could be integrated into ABLE's in order to foster collaboration and interactivity between the participants. I worked on and develivered the presentation with Keith Devereaux, a science teacher at NMHS who has embraced the use of Google Docs and Apps in my school. We also included Dr. Brian Chinni, Founder and CEO of the Madison Institute that developed Project ABLE. In our development of the presentation we worked collaboratively over the course of a few weeks using the very tools that we would be providing training on. While Keith and I had some face to face contact time, all of Brian's pieces were submitted using Google Docs and Sites. The final result was the creation of a Google Site that included a simple agenda, presentation, and an authentic jigsaw activity where the participants have to create a informative presentation to their home districts using Google Doc and Apps.

Overall we were very satisfied by our presentation and feel that we met all of the objectives that we set. After reflecting we discovered many ways in which to improve the delivery of the conent and have already begun to make adjustments that will make the presentation even more powerful. One thing is certain, all of the educators present experienced the limitless potential that comes with these tools once they investigated each piece and then put them all together. Please take time to visit the Google Site (Project ABLE and Docs) we created and provide us with some feedback!