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4 Education Associations Team Up for Technology Access
Online portal lets education leaders discuss issues related to K-12 schools.
Four education associations have agreed to partner with the Consortium for School Networking's (CoSN) online community, Access4Ed.net, to kick start a discussion on ways to provide access to technology in K-12 school districts.
Access4Ed.net, which was launched in March as part of a three-year program called Connected Online Communities of Practice, serves as a portal for district technology leaders, superintendents, school boards, education agencies, researchers, and other education professionals and organizations. CoSN is a professional association for educational technology leaders in the public and private sectors.
Topics of conversation on the site have included student-owned devices and broadband. Possibilities looking ahead include cloud and mobile computing, enabling home and wireless access, and network design. The program is funded by the United States Department of Education.
The partnering groups are:
The American Association of School Administrators, the professional organization for educational leaders worldwide, including CEOs, superintendents, senior level school administrators, cabinet members, professors and aspiring school system leaders. Its purpose is to provide advocacy, professional resources, representation, and networking opportunities.
The National Association of Elementary School Principals is a professional organization for elementary and middle school principals. The association serves as a national representative for elementary and middle school principals to the federal government, media, researchers, educators, and other child advocacy groups. It encourages high standards for school leadership and emphasizes the importance of elementary and middle school education for children.
The National Association of Secondary School Principals provides professional development, resources and advocacy to middle and high school leadership so they can prepare students for post-secondary learning and eventually to enter the work force.
The National School Boards Association represents state association members and more than 90,000 elected local school board members by providing support, research, information, and building partnerships. It also lets its pro-education perspective be known through Congress and the courts.
For further information about the Connected Online Communities of Practice can be found on the group's site.
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Tim Sohn is a 10-year veteran of the news business, having served in capacities from reporter to editor-in-chief of a variety of publications including Web sites, daily and weekly newspapers, consumer and trade magazines, and wire services. He can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @editortim.