Quakertown Community School District, Bucks County, PA
Digital and Blended Learning Environments: Cyber and Blended Learning, 1:1, and BYOD
January 8, 2014, 8:30 – 11:30
The Quakertown Community School District in Bucks County, PA, has been nationally recognized for its unique approach to cyber and blended learning under Tom’s leadership. Winners of the iNACOL Innovative Program Award and one of three districts in the country to be recognized on Digital Learning Day 2013, Tom’s program offers ‘complete versatility’ for students. BYOD and 1:1 implications, considerations, risks and rewards will be discussed. The Quakertown story, including successes and roadblocks along the way, will be shared.
Breakout Session: Professional Development Smackdown
Is your district utilizing a one-size fits all approach to PD? Is most of your PD top-down? Are you cultivating a culture of teacher leadership and allowing teachers to lead? What’s your district’s philosophy and vision for professional development? This session will explore methods for PD reform, discuss the value of teacher ownership as part of the professional development process, and ways your district can transform professional development from top to bottom. If surveying your staff wouldn’t lead to overwhelming positive feedback regarding your district’s PD, this session is for you.
Breakout Session: Digital Leadership for Administrators
Administrators hold the key to technology integration in their districts and school buildings. Are you a model of high quality digital leadership to the people you lead? From faculty meetings to in-service days, or with day to day communication, this session will focus on concrete ways administrators can digitally lead by example in their schools. Utilizing Twitter to become a connected educator and grow your “personal learning network” will also be explored. Come ready to share your own successes and learn from colleagues!
About Tom Murray
Tom Murray serves as the Director of Technology and Cyber Education for the Quakertown Community School District in Bucks County, PA. A former middle school assistant and elementary school principal, Murray is passionate about proper technology infusion and differentiated professional development. He was the 2012 recipient of the Blended Schools Network Leadership Award and was featured in Tech & Learning Magazine’s Leadership Profile in December of 2012. Murray’s QCSD cyber and blended learning programs have been highlighted by Forbes.com, T.H.E. Journal, Project Red, the Innosight Institute, iNACOL, and on Digital Learning Day 2013, among others. Murray serves on the advisory board for THE Journal and has co-founded and moderates both #sbgchat and #edtechchat. Connect with him on Twitter @thomascmurray or at www.thomascmurray.com.
