Are You a 21st-Century Teacher?

Social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube are real game-changers for communicating opinions and ideas. Inevitably we teachers will use social media to keep in touch with our friends and family. However, we teachers tend to be a tad naive and trusting especially when it comes to social media. So, with that in mind, let's look at some simple safeguards which you can put in place to protect yourself. Essentially you need to make sure that you leave no electronic evidence which could damage you, your reputation, and your career.

Protect your privacy.

Many teachers don't realize that the conversations, activities, and photographs which they considered personal and private are out there for anybody to see when they post on social media. When you do anything on social media, you have to understand that you are leaving an electronic trail of all kinds of information for potential employers, or anybody, for that matter, to see. Why does this matter? It matters because you never know how a future or current employer might interpret some of the things he sees on your Facebook page. Those candid photos of you and your friends enjoying a post-exam beer bash in college might be difficult to explain when you apply to St. Andrew's Methodist School. If you already have a position in a private school, be assured that your students will be searching the internet with a fine toothed comb looking for something - anything - about you. Make sure

You would think it would be easier to get your child into an elementary or primary school than a prep or high school, right? Not exactly. Depending on where you live, demand for places in elementary schools may be greater than the supply. The other issue frequently encountered is the style of teaching. With all of these things and more in mind, let's explore what's involved in getting your child into private elementary school.

Supply and demand

Places for the best elementary schools are always going to be in demand. What do I mean by best schools? Mostly 'best' is a subjective description because there are no rankins of private schools available. Much of a school's reputation rests on things like its campus and facilities as well as the quality of the curriculum and teaching. It is amazing how word gets around about such things but it does.

If you live in cities like New York, Boston or Washington, you literally will need to put your child's name on the list shortly after birth in order to even get an interview at some of the most sought after schools. Well, I am exaggerating a tad. Perhaps not that soon, but don't delay calling the schools and finding out their admissions procedures. Do it well in advance. Two years ahead of time is not too early.

Determine the kind of school you want

This part of the process is the toughest. It is also probably the most important.

Two television series about private schools have received a certain amount of buzz recently. Gossip Girl airs on CW. NYC Prep is on Bravo.

Gossip Girl

Gossip Girl is based on the novels of Cecily von Ziegesar. Ms. von Ziegsar herself is a graduate of Nightingale-Bamford, a Manhattan girls' school. The Gossip Girl series made it to the best-seller lists in 2002. It chronicles the lives and exploits of the wealthy teens attending The Constance Billard School for Girls. Gossip Girl premiered on CW in 2007.

What's to Like

The cinematography is fabulous. You will have plenty of New York City vistas, shops, and restaurants, as well as those incredible Park Avenue apartments to soak up. HDTV makes it a breathtaking experience without a doubt.

The fact that show really does not depict what actually goes on in a fine old Manhattan girls' school. That's a good thing. Because we can only imagine what those poor teachers and administrators have to deal with on a daily basis. New York is a vibrant, exciting city, but it can be terribly rough and 'in your face.' It takes a very tough teacher to face some of those parents and children in a conference room discussing little Rebecca's failing grade in calculus, that's for sure.

The clothes. No American city does clothes better than New York. And these kids know how to wear those clothes. And where to wear them. Fashionistas will find much to

Competitive employment markets mean that you must make the best possible impression at every step of the employment process. All it takes is a couple of common mistakes to quickly move your employment application to the bottom of the pile. You may think that yours is the only application for that math teacher position at Shady Grove Country Day School. Unfortunately, in these very tough economic times, your application will be one of the dozens of applications - perhaps hundreds - for that coveted teaching job. That's why it is so important to make sure that somebody reviews your application, and places it on the short stack of applications marked "Interview".

Put yourself in the place of the person who will be screening job applications. You understand how your students' minds work. Use the same approach here. Think about how an administrator determines who should get interviewed. She has advertised the position in all the usual places. Every business day she receives dozens of envelopes from applicants. Why should your application go on the stack of applications marked "Interview" instead of the one marked "reject"? Because when she scans your application, she sees most of what she is looking for. Remember: she's a very busy person. A lot is riding on her choosing the best candidate for the position which she has to fill.

Depending on how hands-on a person she is, she may delegate the initial scanning process to an assistant. Assistants can be very diligent and