VISIT FROM CHINESE EDUCATORS

The delegation of Chinese educators with whom I worked when I visited China in the spring is scheduled to visit Nashville November 6 – 11. Their schedule is being coordinated by Pearl Sims and others at Vanderbilt. Details specific to Metro Schools are as follows: November 8 - attend and be recognized at the School Board meeting, attend dinner hosted by the Board and Cabinet (location to be determined); November 9 – visit Chinese class at Martin Luther King, meet with the Cabinet, lunch at Glencliff High School prepared by their Culinary Arts program; November 10 – visit Meigs Middle Magnet. You are certainly invited to attend all of these events. As soon as the schedule is finalized I will share a copy with you.

LANCE LOTT, ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT FOR TECHNOLOGY AND STRATEGIC PLANNING

The district is undertaking the development of a new long-range plan for Information Technology. The existing plan was created in 2002 and called for, among other things, the replacement of key systems such as the student management system, accounting and human resource systems, and the library system, and an overall improvement in the infrastructure and management of IT resources. While some of the work on these initiatives continues, a new plan outlining a vision for the use of technology in the classrooms is needed.

With the implementation of PCs in every classroom, we have begun to impact the approach to technology used by our teachers. The new plan will guide the district in the implementation of technologies that will further advance its use in the classroom. We are in the early stages of organizing and plan to have broad district and community participation in the five work groups that will comprise the project team. The plan is targeted for completion in early February 2006.

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