free service. Thank you Steven for the link to your own school's wiki =
page as an example.
So let me now add some complexity to the equation! I would love to have =
the added functionality of having parents schedule any of the "specials" =
teachers to join the conference if needed and to add private comments =
about what they would like to talk about.
I have tried working with some of the scheduling software online, but =
the free versions don't allow for much. I'm wondering if there is a way =
to do this in GoogleDocs or some other Web 2.0 tool - not sure if this =
is too much to ask from a free solution. Thoughts anyone?
Thanks!
Christina DiMicelli
Technology Integration Specialist
Hampstead Academy
Hampstead, NH
dimicelli@hampsteadacademy.org=20
----- Original Message -----=20
From: Cohen Steven=20
To: ISED-L@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU=20
Sent: Friday, July 10, 2009 9:41 AM
Subject: Re: P/T conference software
Doug,
Think of using Google Docs or a wiki as simply putting up a sign-up =20
sheet on the web. We haven't had any problems in two years. To be =20
fair to folks, I also keep the lists "closed," until an announced =20
"start" time so every parent has the same chance to snag the choice =20
slots. The pros are numerous:
Cons
- families without web access. I try to compile a list of those at the =
=20
beginning of each year, and I am careful to be sure to call them to =20
set appointments up for them.
- You need to publicize well as it lives away from the school website, =
=20
which is where folks will instinctively look for it. We send an email =
or two and put a big link to it on our division page.
-It's open so anyone (i.e., students) can mess with it. (But it hasn't =
=20
happened yet, and if it did, it is all easily reversible by just =20
rolling back the document to any of its previous states.)
Pros
- It takes me just a few minutes to set the whole thing up for the =
year
- Parents can check, change, and make their own appts.
- Teachers can do the same (and it gets them to dip their feet into =20
technological waters they might otherwise not)
- Teachers can also block out times for breaks, insert additional =20
times, and add notes, if they wish
- Everyone's conference schedule is visible to everyone else so, for =20
example, a math teacher who might want to talk to a particular parent =
(homeroom teachers run our conferences) can see when they are coming =20
in and be there
- It's absolutely free and does not involve releasing information to a =
=20
third party company
-It's simple, and you can change how it works or looks at any time =20
without calling a tech support person or paying an additional fee.
As you can see, I'm a fan. If you want to see ours, look here: =
https://upperschool.wikispaces.com=20
(Because I wanted to remove all student names before giving out the =
=20
link, I took this opportunity to set up the lists for the coming year, =
=20
and it took me under five minutes from start to finish.
Steve Cohen
Assistant Upper School Head
The Allen-Stevenson School
New York City
On Jul 10, 2009, at 8:12 AM, Doug Fodeman wrote:
> Greg,
> We used software from Virtual Paragon last fall after reviewing =20
> several
> online solutions last year. Although the folks there were very =20
> helpful
> and the software did exactly what we wanted it to, we found it (and =
> all
> online software) to be very burdensome to set up due to the number =
of
> teachers we have who wear many hats. Having so many people who =20
> crossed
> divisions (we're PK-8 elementary) and were advisors and teachers, we =
=20
> had
> to set up waves of parent signups. Also, it isn't cheap. As a =20
> result, we
> actually scrapped using it in the spring. It might be better suited =
=20
> to
> high schools.
>
> I'm intrigued to hear of some folks using Google Excel or their own =
> wikis.
> I would like to hear more about the pros and cons of this =20
> solutions....
>
> Doug Fodeman
>
> A forum for independent school educators <ISED-L@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU> =20
> writes:
>> Date: Thu, 9 Jul 2009 10:47:36 -0400
>> From: "Smith, Greg" <SmithG@notredameprep.com>
>> Subject: Parent/Teacher conference software
>> Is anyone using a Parent/Teacher conference system that has been =
very
>> successful. We would like to host it in-house if possible but would =
=20
>> look
>> at hosted options also. We currently use PTConferenceMaker from
>> Graphtech which we are happy with but would like to bring in-house =
if
>> possible
>> Thanks
>> Greg Smith
>> Notre Dame Prep
>> Towson, MD
>
> ChildrenOnline.org
> =
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
> Douglas Fodeman
> Director of Technology
> Brookwood School
> Manchester, MA 01944
> http://www.Brookwood.edu
> (978) 526-4500 X6233
> =
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=
=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D
>
>
> [ For info on ISED-L see http://www.gds.org/ISED-L ]
> Submissions to ISED-L are released under a creative commons, =20
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[ For info on ISED-L see http://www.gds.org/ISED-L ]
Submissions to ISED-L are released under a creative commons, =
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