Promote Participation to your parents

Below is a sample email you can send to your parents to help promote Speak Up. We suggest that you customize the message with the following:

• Your school or district name
• How you will be using the data
• Why it is important for them to participate
• Any notes about Speak Up events in at your school or district
• A personal note of encouragement to join in

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Our school district (or school) is participating in Speak Up 2008, a national research project facilitated annually by Project Tomorrow, a national nonprofit organization in Irvine, CA. Your ideas and viewpoints about your child(ren)'s education matter to us and we use the Speak Up process to ask you about key educational issues regarding technology, 21st century skills, schools of the future and science education. In February, we will receive the survey results and use the information to inform our discussions and decisions about curriculum, professional development and budgeting priorities.

School districts from across the United States and a few international schools participate in Speak Up regularly. Since inception, the Speak Up process has collected and shared the views of over 1.2 million students, parents, teachers and administrators from all 50 states. In addition to serving our local needs, the Speak Up findings are released through a Congressional Briefing in Washington, DC and various speaking engagements across the country.

Our school has committed to having at least 10% of our students and teachers take the online survey. This is a great opportunity for parents to join students, teachers, and administrators in both the local and national dialog about significant and timely issues impacting education today.

Details:

* Survey is open October 27 – December 23, 2008

* Visit www.netdayspeakup.org/speakup2008/ to take the survey, it will take about 15 minutes

* Complete the survey only once -- even if you have more than one child.

* Enter your child's school name, and optionally the state (to narrow the search), click Find School

* Select the school your child attends and start the survey process

It's quick, easy and 100% anonymous and free.

We hope that you will join us and share your thoughts with us.

Sincerely,