Positive Educational Use of Blogs

As an educational leader blogging can and should be a resourceful way of communicating with your faculty and other school administration when time does not always permit face to face meetings.
Some discussions that could be used in the blog are:
1. What are teachers discussing in the department meetings?
2. What are some concerns about student discipline that need to be addressed at next faculty meeting?
3. Goals are being set for test scores and if there are ideas that can be shared, let's make them known and communicate how the strategies have worked for you in the classroom.

These are just a few ideas that a campus administrator can put out on the weekly blog and then review the information and address it either during a facutly meeting, departmental/admin meeting, or one on one when a time is made.
I think many subjects of research can be dicussed in blig format as a first step to the action research process.

What is Action Research to Me?

I am beginning my posting with a guote from the Dana book. "Simply stated, administrator inquiry refers to the process of a principal engaging in systematic, intentional study of his/her own administrative practice and taking action for change based on what he/she learns as a results of the inquiry." Therefore, the meaning of action research to me is taking the time to reflectively look at the big picture and ezamine the pros and cons constructively. The next step would be to take the time to put into action a plan to observe other schools, organizations or classrooms to come up with alternative resources that could be implemented into action. Finally, communicating and collaborating those ideas with a TEAM and oraganizing a plan of action of implementation to an area of specific need for change. Then allowing the plan of action to take place and collecting data from the changes that occur and using those to create a positive change for student education of staff education, etc.