Tech & Learning has put together a great list of the Top 20 Social Networks for Education.  If you haven’t seen these, take a moment to visit a few and unleash the power of social networking.  And while you are at it, don’t forget to follow @sapublicschools on Twitter and Like! us on Facebook.

Dear Members of the South Amboy Board of Education,

My name is Wendy Saiff. I am the President of the Highland Park Board of Education.

I’m writing to you about an important opportunity for all of us to let our Governor and our Legislators know how strongly we support public education.

Like your school district, Highland Park has worked hard over the past few years to contain expenses while maintaining a quality public school education for the children of our community. But this year, Governor Christie’s proposed cuts in state aid to schools made this balancing act almost impossible.
During the budget process this year, many Highland Park community members were frustrated by the Governor’s proposed cuts and asked what they could do to make their voices heard. They felt that taking $820 million away from schools, on top of the midyear cuts in state aid, was draconian and that all of our schools, and our children, would suffer. They wanted to let our Legislators know that we are counting on them to do what’s right for all of our children.

A statewide rally on May 22 in Trenton offers all of us the opportunity to be heard. The goal of the event, “Standing Up, Standing Together: A Rally to Protect NJ’s Families and Communities,” is to convince the State Legislature to restore funding to education and social services. Rally organizers are working feverishly to bring tens of thousands of people to Trenton to protest cuts that will hurt students, working families, seniors and others.

The Highland Park Board of Education has decided to endorse the May 22 Rally, which is being sponsored by community groups such as NJ Citizen Action, the Greater New Brunswick NAACP, NJ Working Families Alliance, NJEA, CWA, Garden State Equality, Better Choices Budget Coalition, Our Children/Our Schools, and others. Please consider having your School Board join us in endorsing this rally.

In addition to endorsing, helping to organize participation from your school district is key. There will be buses going to Trenton on Saturday, May 22, from every county in NJ. Please let interested parents and community members know. Use the links below to endorse the rally, sign up to participate or call or e-mail for more information.

I invite you to also contact me if I can be of assistance.

Thank you,
Wendy Saiff
President, Highland Park Board of Education

Community Organizations: You can Endorse the Rally by clicking here.

RSVP Online at http://www.njcitizenaction.org/ and/or for more information, contact Adam Sherman at may22rally@njcitzenaction.org or at 732-246-4772 ext. 22.

Distribute the Rally Flyer: Click here to print it out

Join the Event on Facebook: Click here

If you do, here is a link to a very comprehensive listing of the educational apps available to you.  And with all the recent iPad buzz, it might be time to jump on the bandwagon.

The Lively Sketchbook

I found this fascinating quote today:

Looks like Notre Dame high school in the UK is taking the bull by the horns and moving forward with an initiative to allow the use of mobile phones for educational purposes during class time.

Assistant headteacher Paul Haigh said mobiles, MP3 players and gaming devices were “untapped resources” for teaching and learning.

“We realise as a comprehensive state school we could never afford to buy every student all the IT and mobile devices we would like them to have.

He added: “But most students own many of these devices anyway – they’re just hidden in their schoolbags. What’s more they’re experts in using them, knowing all the short cuts and characteristics of their own equipment as they use it every day.”

Image via Wikipedia

Mr Haigh said there was little logic in allowing pupils to use a netbook in school while banning mobile phones, many of which could access the internet, record sound and take digital photographs.

teach42.com, Teach42

You should read the whole article.

Did you know that Google Earth Pro is *FREE* if you are an educator? Yep! Basically, all you have to do is download the PRO trial version at http://earth.google.com and then follow these instructions, direct from Google:

Our program involves outreach and distribution of Google Earth Pro to qualified educators affiliated with (employed by) lower, middle, and upper grade schools, accredited community and four year colleges, universities and graduate schools, selected vocational training programs, certain education oriented NGOs, public access museums, and academic libraries.

This wide distribution of Google Earth Pro is provided for one full year as a means to increase the use of Google Earth in core curricula.

In return, we ask for your yearly contribution to one of two forums facilitated by the Google Earth Community: http://groups.google.com/group/google-geo-education/topics (geared towards K-12) and/or http://bbs.keyhole.com/ubb/ubbthreads.php/Cat/0. There, you will be joined by other educators seeking collaborative opportunities with their peers for the benefit of students. Whether it be information in the form of a lesson plan, detailed testimony outlining your successes, or questions for fellow teachers, these contributions will foster incentives for creativity and innovation which that can ultimately evolve into Google Earth enhancements geared specifically toward curriculum development.

To apply, please return your updated application to GEEC@google.com. Should your organization qualify you will receive notification via email with detailed instructions on setting up your account and contact information for Google online tech support.

Information required:

1.Your name (key contact person)
2.Organization / Institution
3.A brief description of the Institution / Organization
4.Full mailing address
5.Telephone number
6.User name (complete email address that will be assigned to the license key)
7.Institution’s web address
8.Your Institution’s Tax ID (if applicable)
9.Your Institution’s 501©3 number (US only, if applicable)
10.A description of the intended application including grade level(s), discipline(s) or subject.
11.What features in Google Earth Pro are important to you and how do you wish to use them in your classroom.
12.Number of computers you are requesting to download this software on.
13.Prior license key information [if a renewal].
14.URL or description of contribution to Google Earth Community or Google for Educators message boards
We look forward to working with you to create a one-of-a-kind, global resource for educators.

Google Earth Education
http://www.google.com/educators/geo.html

Through engaging videos, practical resources and an active online community, Teachers TV supports the professional development of anyone working in school, enabling them to widen their skills, develop their practice, and connect with others in the field.

* Instant access to up to date professional development videos and resources
* Learn from other education professionals by going inside their classrooms and into their schools
* Save time with practical tips, lesson ideas and classroom resources
* Help across the year to meet classroom targets and achieve personal goals
* Keep informed with content covering the latest developments in the education agenda

In addition to the website, Teachers TV programmes are available on the TV Channel on Sky 880, Virgin Media 240, Freesat 650 and Freeview 88 (4-6pm) and, most recently, through iTunes U.

Twitter’s popularity has soared recently, and for good reason. What started as a simple way to update friends about daily life has grown into a powerful tool for business, communication, and education. While many campuses are just picking up on the educational rewards possible with Twitter, there is still plenty of room to create new and exciting ways to use Twitter on campus. The following tips will help you know just how to get started using Twitter in academia, teach you etiquette, offer strategies and benefits, provide suggestions for specific ways to use Twitter, list tools to use with Twitter, and more.

100 Serious Twitter Tips for Academics | Best Colleges Online.

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• Wired Explains Proper Etiquette In the World of Social Technology [Etiquette] (gizmodo.com)

Twitter actually can be a helpful study tool, some students and educators say
Tweeting Your Way to Better Grades – US News and World Report.

Twitter can feel like a strange new landscape when you first jump in. It is not always clear what its professional uses are, or what to post in 140 characters or less. But when you start to think of Twitter as a micro-blog (and not just a forum for the personal minutiae of people’s daily lives), you will find that Twitter can be a valuable tool for professional development. Here are 25 ways that teachers can use Twitter to ask for help, get lesson plan ideas, book and professional resource recommendations, connect with other professionals, and even host an online book club.

via 25 ways to teach with Twitter by Sonja Cole.

With so many students, teachers, and librarians on Facebook these days, the social media site has become somewhat of a platform, offering developers a way to create and share applications for education. This, of course, is great news for online education, as it provides all sorts of great tools designed to make learning and administration easier. Check out these applications that represent some of the ideal tools Facebook has to offer for online education.

via The Facebook Classroom: 25 Facebook Apps That Are Perfect for Online Education – College Degree.com.