Technology Planning - Responses Welcome

Public education is looking to take full advantage of the opportunities afforded by information and communication technologies. Our Director of Information Systems, Gregg Ferrie, is leading us through a planning process designed to provide the Board with a new comprehensive technology plan.

We have placed a response document in the form of a powerpoint presentation on our district website, and we are welcoming responses until Monday, January 19, 2009. After that we will take a revised draft to the Board in February. All of this is designed to have the new 3-5 year plan in place before the end of the school year. Please visit the website, have a look, and respond if you are so inclined. Comments are welcome here on the blog as well. Everything we hear will be incorporated into our thinking and planning. Thanks for your help.

September Newsletter

As we move into the new school year we are reminded of how much we appreciate the fine work of our staff members, the many successes of our students, and the great partnerships that we have with parents and members of our community. We are also thinking about things like the provincial government's feasibility study on all-day kindergarten and school-based programs for 4-year olds and 3-year olds. This issue has significant implications for schools and for families. We have provided district input into the study, and would encourage you to check the information on the provincial early learning website.

This and other topics are covered in my September "Superintendent's Update" which is now posted on our School District 63 website. After you have read the newsletter please feel free to come back and post comments.

Ad Campaign

This is a copy of the second in a series of ads that we have placed in our two local newspapers, The Saanich News and the Peninsula News Review. Sorry that it's not very readable here, but you can see that our focus is "Teach Life" with five ads speaking of trades, academics, global citizenship, athletics/health and the arts. Our Board of Education undertook this ad campaign as a way to inform our public about the successes and challenges of public education in the 21st century. The successes include the ways in which we are supporting every child, right from our most vulnerable learners to those who are graduating with every tool that they need to thrive in our complex society. Our challenges include being able to manage our rising costs, not only of things like fuel and materials, but of the innovations required for teaching and learning in today's technology driven world. Our hope is that these ads will generate interest and dialogue in our communities. We want people to inquire as to what is happening in today's schools and to develop levels of awareness that will create advocacy for a strong public education system. I look forward to your thoughts and input.

Welcome

Welcome to the startup of my Superintendent's Blog. I am interested in hearing from and talking with people who care about public education . I would particularly like to hear from those people who are connected in some way with School District 63 Saanich in British Columbia. My plan is to post links to my monthly newsletters as a way to initiate discussion and solicit feedback, and beyond that to use the blog as an ongoing way to stay in touch. Public education is, after all, the foundation of a healthy democratic society, and this form of communication is one of many ways to stay in touch in support of our children and our future. I look forward to the dialogue.