Because students now are more likely to get in trouble for sending text messages in school than for shooting spitballs, school administrators must embrace new technology.

Students’ parents are also more technology savvy than ever before, and principals in Chilton County are responding accordingly.

Many county administrators have started using Web logs, or simply “blogs,” to communicate with students, school staff and parents. A blog is a Web site where an individual, in this case the administrators, can post entries relating to, for example, upcoming school events. Blogs can be effective when used in this manner because information can disseminated quickly and directly from the source.

Local administrators are using blogs as part of a professional learning community focusing on technology integration and 21st Century skills in education.

The program was designed and developed by Janet Taylor of the Alabama Technology in Motion program and Karen Mitchell, professional development coordinator for Chilton County Schools.

“As far as I know, this is the only professional learning community for administrators focusing on technology in the state,” Taylor said.

The administrators are encouraged to add at least one entry per week as part of a special training exercise, and the blogs are accessible from individual school Web sites, which are linked to the Chilton County Board of Education’s site at www.chilton.k12.al.us.

The Web is the new way to exchange information, and administrators are doing well to catch on.