21st+C+Learning_Going+Global

Keeping up with the Net Generation: Schools in the 21st Century
A passionate student is a learning student. As the people of the world are becoming more connected, the nature, use, ownership, and purpose of knowledge are changing in profound ways. Our goal as educators is to leverage these connections and changes as powerful means to improve teaching and learning in our schools. And at the core of this challenge is how well we realize the potentials of today's emerging technologies in our own personal and professional learning practice. Come listen as Sheryl stirs a sense of urgency for shifting classroom practice to meet the demands of a modern world while remaining relevant in the lives of the students we teach.

**Powerful Learning Practice-Creating Online Communities for Professional Development**
As the physical and virtual worlds converge to become the "real world" of teaching and learning, virtual exchanges, online mentoring, and other Web-based environments will play increasingly important roles in education reform. This session will describe the work done by the presenter in creating a sustainable model for ongoing professional development using 21st Century technologies. It will focus on the ways in which emerging technologies can be blended with face to face activities to build capacity for systemic change both in teaching pedagogies and curriculum. Participants will learn about the specific tools (such as Ning.com and Elluminate, among others), and they will learn how these tools are being used to create change. In addition, they will learn how to identify, create and prepare core teams to lead the professional development activities, how to include and leverage administrative support, and how to build momentum for building out a program throughout their districts.