From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 2 21:08:47 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:25 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] article on bridging the digital divide Message-ID: <91211539-B4FA-11D8-9949-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Website opens up Internet to black students BY ANDREA ROBINSON arobinson@herald.com Karnita Dumas and Christopher Emile laughed in delight at the animation that appeared on the website: black and brown children reading books, dancing and painting -- the same things they like to do. ''This is great,'' said Karnita, 11, glancing up from the computer screen. Like Christopher, 10, she is a fifth-grader at Linda Lentin Elementary in Biscayne Gardens. Along with the ethnic images and information about local research libraries and museums, the site contains links to homework assistance, scholarship information and tips for taking the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. The website -- www.links4youth.com -- was created by four civic-minded black women who want to help close the so-called digital divide by using computers to boost black children's interest in education, culture and volunteerism. ''Minority kids, and black kids in particular, are not on the information highway as much as other kids are,'' said Cynthia Curry, a local consultant and one of the women who developed the new site. ``Many of our children do not have ready access [to the Internet]. What we're trying to do is help them understand how much richer their information base could be if they had access to the variety of information on the Internet.'' Their belief that technology can help students achieve academic success comes as federal officials say more children are using the Internet to assist with homework. According to the U.S. Department of Education, 42 percent of all students in grades K through 12 use the Internet to complete school assignments. And students rely more on the World Wide Web as they get older. One-third of elementary students reported relying on the Internet, compared with more than half of middle school students and two-thirds of high school students. At the same time, federal figures show, minority students have less access to the Internet at home than do their white counterparts. Fifty-two percent of white students are more likely to use a home computer for completing school assignments, compared with 28 percent of black and 27 percent of Hispanic students. When not at school, Artavia Smith, 17, a graduating senior at Northwestern High, travels 15 minutes from home to use her aunt's computer after school. She prefers researching the Internet to poring through reference books at the public library. ''It is a little hindrance,'' Artavia said. ``But if I have a computer, nothing stops me from getting to it.'' The creators of the website hope their project will help close the divide in the Miami area. Later this year they will award computers to three students as incentive to continue using the website. THE CREATORS Curry and three other women -- retired city of Miami administrator Renee Jones, circuit court administrator Anne T. Herriott and attorney Gail Dotson -- developed the site for their organization, the Links of Greater Miami. The women unveiled the project this month at three Dade schools: Lentin, Richmond Middle and Northwestern High. They plan a district-wide blitz when school resumes in mid-August. All Miami-Dade public schools have computers. ''We want this to be a resource tool for children in South Florida,'' Jones said. ``If you're having problems with homework, you can [connect to] the tutorial service [link]. If you need information on financial assistance, it's there. This is a one-stop resource for youth of the community.'' The site is supposed to inspire kids to ''enrich their potential for success,'' said President Florence Strachan, a retired Miami-Dade school administrator. ``This supplements what the schools are doing. It can't hurt.'' Social scientists say kids are more apt to respond to information and images similar to their own experience. Marvin Dawkins, a University of Miami sociology professor, said a localized, culturally sensitive website could become an invaluable resource for black students. ''The website is the first that I've seen of this type in Miami,'' he said. ``It has potential for having a tremendous impact on both raising awareness and attracting interest and developing an additional resource for black parents, students and teachers to use. ''It engages them more directly when [websites] feature information that relates to their experiences,'' Dawkins said. ``You get their attention, and then you can connect them to other educational tools, even ones that are not about them.'' Herriott said the team relied on input from students in determining content. ''They wanted to know more about HIV/AIDS and drug abuse. We were taken aback that they wanted to know such serious issues, but these are the times they are living in,'' she said. Herriott and other group members introduced the site Tuesday to about 20 fifth- and sixth-graders at Lentin Elementary. All the students, black and Hispanic, said they had a home computer. SURFING AWAY The children busily explored dozens of pages that depicted hip-hop dancers, black ballerinas and cultural icons like Frederick Douglass. Angela Bellamy, a retired Miami administrator and group member, stood near Karnita and Christopher and observed them as they explored the site. ''Information is power. The more information they have, the more it enlightens them,'' she said. ``It's all about access and information.'' http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/education/8806241.htm? template=contentModules/printstory.jsp --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 6807 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040602/9a59b72f/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 2 23:20:29 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:25 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] SETDA and Helping States Implement NCLB Message-ID: The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) recently unveiled its 2003 SETDA National Leadership Institute Toolkit: States Helping States Implement No Child Left Behind. Developed with input from state and national experts, the kit offers resources and best practices on improving learning for all students through the use of technology. It addresses five content areas: ? building partnerships and leveraging resources; ? technology leadership skills for the 21st century; ? data collection and data-driven decision making; ? building high-quality professional development programs; and ? virtual schools and distance learning. The toolkit contains the outcomes of five corresponding work groups that met at SETDA's second annual National Leadership Institute held in December 2003. The institute was attended by over 100 education technology leaders from 46 states, along with U.S. Department of Education representatives and other interested parties. SETDA has also compiled for its Web site a profile report outlining each state's technology plans. For more information, visit www.setda.org. http://www.ed.gov/news/newsletters/achiever/2004/060104.html#4 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 2023 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040602/38790f57/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 3 10:54:17 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:25 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] New Google Search engine Message-ID: New search service creates 'Google for scholars' By Cara Branigan, Associate Editor, eSchool News June 3, 2004 Internet searches might become faster and more fruitful for students, scholars, and other academics as early as this year, thanks to a pilot program being developed as a free service spearheaded by Google, the world's leading internet search engine. The initiative, called CrossRef Search, combines Google's popular search technology with the archives of up to 300 leading scholarly publications, allowing researchers to separate Google's typical search results from high-quality, peer-reviewed, scholarly content. "Everybody is using Google, even scientists," said Ed Pentz, executive director of CrossRef, an association for scholarly publishers. "For a lot of people, Google is the first place they check." Google's general search results can produce an overwhelming amount of links, many of which are unreliable or unrelated to the desired topic. If a science student types "Dolly" into a Google query, for example, he or she will spend valuable time sorting through disparate links about the singer Dolly Parton and the musical Hello Dolly before finding information about the first cloned sheep. Using the terms "Dolly" and "sheep" narrows the search to a still-overwhelming 116,000 links. The CrossRef Search, however, would provide access to full-text articles about Dolly the cloned sheep only from trusted sources, Pentz said. The service aims to help students find authoritative, scientific information faster. "There's so much information and so much being indexed by search engines like Google," Pentz said, but "students [often] don't look at the quality of the search results." Nine publishers--the American Physical Society, Annual Reviews, the Association for Computing Machinery, Blackwell Publishing, the Institute of Physics Publishing, the International Union of Crystallography, Nature Publishing Group, Oxford University Press, and John Wiley & Sons Inc.--have made their archives available for the pilot so far. Using the tool, which is located on each participating publisher's search page, students can search the current and past issues of multiple journals, as well as conference proceeding articles. The CrossRef Search performs like a typical Google search, except that it searches only the participating publishers' archives. More than 3,000 searches have been done since CrossRef Search launched April 28. To refine the search process, CrossRef will gather feedback from those who have used it over the next several months. Once the pilot is complete in December, CrossRef expects to make the search tool available to the general public. At that time, school libraries could add the CrossRef Search box, which includes a Google logo, to their web page for students to use. In the meantime, CrossRef plans to add 20 more publishers to the pilot. Ultimately, the group hopes to add all of its 300 members' publications. http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5097 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 3724 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040603/a617cbd2/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 3 18:12:39 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:25 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Interaction Design and Children Conference Message-ID: <203E25AE-B5AB-11D8-9A0A-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Interaction Design and Children Conference Alan Kay, Marvin Minsky, Seymour Papert and Allison Druin Technology Researchers Thursday, June 03, 2004; 1:00 p.m ET This year, the University of Maryland Human-Computer Interaction Lab holds the third annual Interaction Design and Children conference that focuses on the importance and current challenges of allowing children to be integrated at the early stage of the technology design process. The three-day conference features workshops, seminars and new research and products that include emerging technology, new research methods involving children in the design, development, and evaluation processes and the impact of new technologies on young people. Conference speakers and chair Alan Kay, Marvin Minsky, Seymour Papert and Allison Druin will be online Thursday, June 3 at 1 p.m. ET to discuss the conference highlights and their research. Submit your questions and comments before or during the show. Kay is a senior fellow in HP Labs researching and developing new software platforms. His work includes developing the idea of the personal computer, overlapping window interface and conceptualizing object-oriented programming. Recently, Kay received the 2003 Turing Award, one of the highest honors awarded from the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM). He has worked in Xerox PARC, Atari Research Labs, Apple Computer and the Walt Disney Company. Minsky is the Toshiba professor of Media Arts and Sciences at the MIT Media Lab. He is considered to be one of the "founding fathers" of artificial intelligence. His research includes the possibilities for commonsense reasoning by machines and has made significant contributions to the fields of AI, mathematics, computational linguistics, robotics and children's technology. His books include "The Society of Mind" (1985) and "The Emotion Machine" (2001). Papert is a professor of Education and Media Technology at the MIT Media Lab and at the University of Maine. For over 40 years, Papert has pioneered research in how technology can provide children new ways to learn. In his labs at MIT, he has led research in developing the Logo programming language, LEGO Mindstorms and many other computational "objects to think with." He has also the author of "Mindstorms" (1980). Druin is a faculty member in the College of Information Studies and the Human-Computer Interaction Lab at the University of Maryland. Recently she was appointed by the White House and confirmed by the U.S. Senate to become a Commissioner in the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science. For almost two decades, she has led interdisciplinary teams of researchers and children to develop new educational technologies and to develop new methods of working with children as design partners. http://discuss.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/zforum/04/ sp_technews_druin060204.htm --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 4044 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040603/74d4d4ee/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Sat Jun 5 09:36:04 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:25 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] call for manuscripts Message-ID: <4ABFC990-B6F5-11D8-807B-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Date: Tue, 18 May 2004 15:24:21 -0400 From: James L. Morrison [--] Innovate is a bimonthly, peer-reviewed, online periodical published by Nova Southeastern University. It focuses on the creative use of information technology (IT) to enhance educational processes in all sectors (K-12, college and university, corporate, government). Innovate is dedicated to presenting articles via the most dynamic, interactive technology that is available. For each article, the journal provides an online discussion forum, an interactive webcast that connects authors and readers, and a "read-related" feature that links visitors to articles on similar topics. A multimedia classifieds section and journal editions in multiple languages are both in the planning stages. Theory, practice, vision, and commentary all have a place in Innovate. Articles generally fall into one of four main categories. * Applied Research and Assessment: Evidence related to the extent, effectiveness, and/or impact of IT use in educational and professional settings * Practice: Reports on innovative uses of IT in specific environments, with notable results * Development: Advance information on the newest IT projects, programs, tools, and trends * Commentary: Critical reflections on the changing nature of teaching, learning, and training with IT in the twenty-first century If you would like to submit a manuscript for publication consideration, please review our submission guidelines at http://horizon.unc.edu/innovate/guidelines/ and let me know if you intend to submit a manuscript. Also, please forward this announcement to colleagues who may want to submit manuscripts. The initial issue of Innovate will be published in July 2004. Sign up for our mailing list at http://horizon.unc.edu/innovate/ Many thanks. Jim ---- James L. Morrison Editor-in-Chief, Innovate http://horizon.unc.edu/innovate/guidelines/ Professor Emeritus of Educational Leadership UNC-Chapel Hill http://horizon.unc.edu --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 11:00:04 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Special Needs grants Message-ID: <862A36F1-B95C-11D8-B7A9-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> If you haven't signed up for our listserve, you might consider it. These kinds of things (below) will be sent to emails via the listserve. http://www.touchsmart.net/contact/listserve.html Best Regards, jb > ED > Headquarters and Regional Offices > Discretionary Grant and Mandatory Grant Competitions > Special Education--Research and Innovation to Improve Services and > Results for Children with Disabilities--National Center on Secondary, > Transition, and Postsecondary School Outcomes for Students with > Disabilities > Grant > http://www.fedgrants.gov/Applicants/ED/HRO/DCMGC/ED-GRANTS-060204-002/ > listing.html > > ED > Headquarters and Regional Offices > Discretionary Grant and Mandatory Grant Competitions > Research and Innovation to Improve Services and Results for Children > with Disabilities--Research and Innovation > Grant > http://www.fedgrants.gov/Applicants/ED/HRO/DCMGC/ED-GRANTS-060204-001/ > listing.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 11:05:13 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Sun to make Solaris open source Message-ID: <3E662A68-B95D-11D8-B7A9-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> > SUN TO RELEASE SOLARIS CODE > > In a surprise announcement, Sun Microsystems has said it will release > the source code for its Solaris operating system under an open-source > license. Sun formerly controlled a significant portion of the server > market with its proprietary Solaris operating system, but the company > has been losing ground in recent years to products from Linux and > Microsoft, which can be much less expensive than Sun's offerings. Sun's > announcement did not include specifics about its plan but said that the > company "is in the process of soliciting customer feedback in refining > various aspects of the project." Analysts said the significance of > Sun's > new stance will depend on the particulars, such as whether all or just > part of the source code will be available. "This is not the > manifestation of a grand plan," said Ashok Kumar, an analyst at Raymond > James and Company. "There are more questions than answers at this > point." New York Times, 5 June 2004 (registration req'd) > > http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/05/todaysheadlines/05sun.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 13:58:56 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Virtual Biology Labs due to animal rights? Message-ID: <82F9A0F3-B975-11D8-93DB-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> A second look at the biology lab By April Austin | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor A single whiff of formaldehyde transports many adults back to biology class and dissection. It's hard to forget the odor that arose from trays of rubbery, preserved frogs or fetal pigs. But that rite of passage is now being challenged by students who find dissection objectionable on animal-rights grounds. The issue came up recently on the prime-time television show "8 Simple Rules." The character Kerry, one of the two daughters, becomes concerned about frog dissection in her school and organizes a sit-in to protest the practice. As animal-rights groups have stepped up their campaign to stop the use of animals for research, the message is being heeded by some students in middle and high school. It's a controversy that pits animal rights against traditional methods of teaching science and anatomy. "There's no substitute for dissection," says Wayne Carley, executive director of the National Association of Biology Teachers. He insists the move against dissection comes more from squeamish students being manipulated by radical animal-rights groups than from a groundswell of concern for animal welfare. "High school kids are easy targets," he says. Still, the NABT supports the idea that "teachers should consider how their students would react [to dissection]," says Mr. Carley. "We support the wise use of animals, and that could mean a reduction in the number of specimen animals used." About 6 million animals are dissected each year in US schools, according to the Humane Society of the United States. These include frogs, fetal pigs, and cats. The cats come from shelters that would have euthanized the animals, Carley says, or the animals are procured by dealers in the US or Mexico. But today, the quest is on to find credible alternatives to dissection at all levels - from high school and college classrooms to research labs and veterinary schools. This means some type of computer simulation, such as can be found on websites such as www.froguts.com. Because the technology is still being refined, the programs for the most part aren't sophisticated. Some life-sciences teachers, including Jessica Crosby of Pollard Middle School in Needham, Mass., use virtual- dissection programs to prepare students for the real thing. In April, before the unit on frog dissection, Ms. Crosby gave each of her 90 students a confidential survey that asked how hands-on they wanted to be during the procedure. This year, she says, although some were apprehensive at first, every student participated. "I saw how engaged the kids were. They were so proud that they could identify the organs," she says. Nine states have laws or policies that allow students to opt out of dissection, according to the Humane Society of the United States, and several more are contemplating such measures. But the issue goes deeper, says Andrew Rowan, chief of staff for animal research at the Humane Society. "It's much easier to get students' attention by dropping a dead animal in front of them," he says. "But when students are forced to do dissection, they're turned off. The lesson, which is in part to get them interested in science, has exactly the opposite effect." Crosby says dissection offers an unmatched opportunity to see how each anatomical system is part of the whole. "I wouldn't force a student to do it if it violated their beliefs," she adds. A March survey by the National Science Teachers Association showed that 80 percent of its members think dissection activities are important to science learning, with 76 percent including dissection of animal specimens in their lessons. Of the teachers who said they've decreased the frequency of dissection in class, the biggest reason cited was the expense of specimens, not pressure from students or outside groups. Concern for animals in the larger society has trickled down to high school students, says Rowan. "As a society, we now think differently about hunting, about how well pets are treated, about cosmetics testing, and the rights of animals," he says. "But biology classes are still doing the same things they've always done. Biology should be a study of life, not death." Crosby says her students seemed better able to recall the material after the dissection. "The virtual dissection is still on a screen," she says. "You're not really doing it." http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0608/p14s01-legn.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 7788 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040608/3d44f251/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 20:39:43 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Hamilton, Ohio and NCLB Message-ID: <7FD89B3F-B9AD-11D8-93DB-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Secretary Paige joined U.S. Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, & Hamilton Schools Superintendent Janet Baker at a ceremony celebrating Hamilton High School's role as President Bush's host for the signing of the No Child Left Behind Act. http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2004/06/06082004.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 20:41:10 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Supplemental Educational Services Message-ID: Promising Practices: Supplemental Educational Services Tips & promising practices for implementing supplemental educational services, including tutoring, are offered in "Creating Strong Supplemental Educational Services Programs." http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2004/05/05252004.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 20:41:43 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Tutoring and NCLB Message-ID: Supplemental Services Website A new website helps parents take advantage of free tutoring & other supplemental academic enrichment services for eligible children under NCLB. http://www.tutorsforkids.org --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 20:43:37 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Ohio, Indiana, Ed Representative Message-ID: <0B743D50-B9AE-11D8-93DB-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Secretary Paige announced the appointment of Kristine Cohn as his regional representative for Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio & Wisconsin. http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2004/05/05242004a.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 9 00:48:34 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] TiVo to use Internet at TV Message-ID: <4373F43B-B9D0-11D8-93DB-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> New Service by TiVo Will Build Bridges From Internet to the TV By JOHN MARKOFF June 9, 2004 The Internet, in jumping past the personal computer and into the living room television set, is starting to give viewers the possibility of bypassing traditional cable and satellite services. TiVo, the maker of a popular digital video recorder, plans to announce a new set of Internet-based services today that will further blur the line between programming delivered over traditional cable and satellite channels and content from the Internet. It is just one of a growing group of large and small companies that are looking at high-speed Internet to deliver video content to the living room. The new TiVo technology, which will become a standard feature in its video recorders, will allow users to download movies and music from the Internet to the hard drive on their video recorder. Although the current TiVo service allows users to watch broadcast, cable or satellite programs at any time, the new technology will make it possible for them to mix content from the Internet with those programs. "This is the fourth electronic video service, and it is an alternative to cable, satellite and broadcast television," said Tom Wolzien, an analyst at Bernstein Investment Research and Management. Those traditional services, Mr. Wolzien said, "have been the monster gatekeepers, but this is a way for content providers to get past them." In the new world of Internet-connected television, viewers will not have to worry about when a show is scheduled or from where it comes. "We're fully committed to developing an entertainment experience you can't get over normal broadcast television," said Michael Ramsay, chairman and chief executive of TiVo. "This is what we think the future of television is." A timetable for introducing the video service has not been set, nor has its price. TiVo sustained a big blow Tuesday when DirecTV, the satellite television provider and the biggest source of new subscribers for the TiVo service, said it had sold its entire equity stake of 3.4 million shares in TiVo. Shares of TiVo dropped more than 14 percent to close at $6.41. There is some speculation in the industry that DirecTV is moving toward developing its own digital video recorder. Several analysts suggested TiVo is moving toward Internet downloading as a way to insulate itself against potential competition from DirecTV. Last year TiVo, which has 1.6 million subscribers who use its digital video recorder with cable or DirecTV, acquired Strangeberry, a small Silicon Valley start-up that had developed a new technology to view Internet video streams. TiVo is now developing that technology and plans to integrate it into the TiVo system next year. Video distributors like Netflix, RealNetworks and Blockbuster are also starting to explore the possibility of delivering feature-length movies via the Internet to users for viewing later. "We're no longer in a world where innovation is stopped because somebody is the only game in town," said Rob Glaser, chief executive of RealNetworks, a Seattle-based company that now streams audio and video to computer users through the Internet. The idea of downloading and storing video for conventional television viewing has until now been pioneered by a small group of technology companies like Akimbo, a maker of an Internet digital video recorder that is based in San Mateo, Calif. Because most Internet connections do not yet reliably support data speeds needed to view television-quality video as it is streamed, a number of the Internet video services require that programs first be downloaded and stored on a hard drive before viewing. Now, as broadband Internet becomes widely available in homes and new wireless video networks make it simpler to move video data and streams inside the home, bigger players are starting to emerge. For example, Microsoft demonstrated a service called IPTV at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas this year. The company believes that it is possible to deliver television to rival today's cable programming by using commonly available standard telephone lines, as part of what are called digital subscriber line, or D.S.L., services. It is running two small trials of the technology in Canada and Switzerland, and sees a broad potential. "We sort of expect that TV will shift to where everyone will watch what they want when they want," said Peter T. Barrett, chief technology officer for Microsoft TV. Microsoft executives argue that the technology would be a boon to telephone companies who are now searching for new revenue streams in the face of increasing pressure on their traditional voice-calling businesses. "Every single phone company has to be thinking about video," said Lynne Elander, general manager of marketing for Microsoft TV. But executives at telephone companies said they were not moving quickly to deploy the Microsoft technology. Both Verizon and SBC are engaged in trials and deployment of fiber optic networks, which offer significantly higher speeds than existing D.S.L. services. "The jury is still out on IPTV, we have to see how it works," said Eric Rabe, a spokesman for Verizon. Smaller firms, however, are not waiting for competition to grow in this field. On Monday, Broadband Networks Inc., a start-up based in Los Gatos, Calif., introduced a service it called TimeshiftTV. The new service, using a $299 digital video recorder, will initially focus on offering video programs in eight foreign languages when it is available in December. Broadband's chief executive, Bob Burke, said the company would try to license its technology to other companies. The main challenge facing Internet video distribution is that streaming DVD and HDTV-quality video will require data rates above 5 megabits a second. That is far beyond most D.S.L. network speeds today, which generally range from 300 kilobits to 1.5 megabits. Indeed, even downloading and storing high-definition video for later viewing at most D.S.L. speeds may not be economical. Sending the data stored on a DVD disk over the Internet at those speeds might take several days, making it a poor competitor for "sneaker-net" services like Blockbuster, which require the viewer to walk or drive to the store. But for standard video quality, the economics may already work, according to a recent Bernstein Research report. It costs just 15 cents an hour to stream standard video across a D.S.L. connection, Mr. Wolzien said, and those costs are falling. Whether Internet delivery of programming will be a serious threat in the near future to traditional broadcasters remains a matter for debate among industry executives. In any event, they also expect to capitalize on the new technology. As Steve Burke, president of Comcast Cable, the nation's largest cable operator, said recently in a phone interview, "We're big believers that the Internet is the future." http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/09/technology/09net.html? ei=5062&en=f02ffac2c4b10abd&ex=10873.... --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 7706 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040609/d1d635cc/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 10 08:19:50 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] science at Howard High Message-ID: <789EA193-BAD8-11D8-B416-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Brown's scientific method Mentor: As a volunteer scientist-in-residence at Howard High, Nesbitt D. Brown, 70, hasn't missed a Tuesday or Thursday in eight years of working with students. By Laura Shovan Special To The Sun Originally published June 9, 2004 When he retired after more than 38 years in research and development at Washington's Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the last thing biochemist Nesbitt D. Brown wanted was a second career. But when Howard High School invited him to be its volunteer scientist-in-residence, Brown couldn't resist. The 70-year-old Columbia resident hasn't missed a Tuesday or Thursday in eight years of working with students. "I never had time to go into that blue mode, depression," after retiring, Brown said. Since he began mentoring Howard High students, Brown has guided them through projects on penicillin, cat litter and bug spray, sometimes letting kids use him as a guinea pig in their experiments. "They're so enthusiastic and they're so bright and they're so appreciative," Brown said. "For me, in a personal sense, it's something to look forward to." In April, the Howard County school system honored Brown with its Friends of Education award. Bruce D. Riegel, Howard High's gifted-education specialist, nominated Brown not only for teaching a love of biochemistry, but also because of the retiree's emphasis on giving back to the community. Brown arranged for Walter Reed to donate $200,000 worth of lab equipment to the school, bringing with him a High Performance Liquid Chromatograph (HPLC). The HPLC, a rarity for a university science program, is used to analyze organic and inorganic compounds. "We're the only ones that have this [in the county]," said sophomore Caitlin Joyce, 16. "I feel pretty lucky." Recently, Caitlin and her lab partner, 16-year-old Melanie Keller, have been analyzing a variety of sodas for caffeine levels and the preservative sodium benzoate, which retards bacteria. "We spent three weeks and we injected the samples [of soda] into the HPLC and printed out chromatographs," charts showing peaks in certain compounds, Melanie said. Their findings? "Coke had five times more caffeine than Dr. Pepper," she said. Caitlin said she is not only more aware of how much caffeine she drinks, but she also enjoys scientific research. "We go in the hallway and tell our friends [results of an experiment], and they thought we were weird" for being excited about science, she said. Brown's rapport with the students is clear from their enthusiasm in the lab. He uses stories about his career for motivation, such as the time he helped develop the technology for germ-free animals to go into space. "I say you can do something like that, what I did," he told them. He encourages students to use college libraries and the Internet to find scientific papers. Students choose their research projects. They have to develop an objective, a summary, list the tools of their research and be prepared to present it. Brown credited the school for involving students in science fairs and competitions where they can meet other young scientists. "It's something that shows that you don't have to be in a competitive mode to have fun and do things and learn," he said. The students say they are impressed with how much Brown knows. "He always gives us articles" about discoveries in chemistry or current events related to science, Melanie said. "He told us about testing for drugs in athletes and how the new drugs are undetectable" on the HPLC. Riegel said it was "self-evident" why he nominated Brown for the award. "Not only is he knowledgeable and experienced and an effective communicator, but his enthusiasm and his search for the truth is infectious," he said. Students who come in not particularly liking science "want to do research work and want to develop projects. He's such an incredible role model for kids." Giving back to the community runs in Brown's family. All three of his grown children have volunteered at Howard High School. His wife is Columbia Association President Maggie J. Brown. Nesbitt Brown said the award "was something that I didn't expect, but after I received it, I'm honored and I hope that I can keep doing this and have fun doing it. "That's what life is all about," he said. "Helping people." http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal- ho.chemistry09jun09,0,1102937.story?coll=bal-education-k12 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 5812 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040610/322960d7/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 10 08:22:27 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] e-Rate claims to bridge the digide Message-ID: Schools achieving a dream: Near-universal Net access Despite its problems, E-rate bridges digital divide By Greg Toppo USA TODAY Cameron Independent School District is one of those tiny, rural school systems where the superintendent is named Maxie and he only has four schools to worry about. Eighty miles northeast of Austin, Cameron has only 1,682 students. But if you paired up kids and computers, there'd nearly be one for every other student -- higher than in most wealthy suburban districts. This fall, every classroom in town will get a 42-inch plasma-screen TV bolted to the wall so teachers can surf the Web with students, show Powerpoint presentations or just watch a DVD. The Internet connection in every classroom comes compliments of the federal E-rate program, says Steele Cooley, the district's technology director. And while it can't be used for computers or TVs -- just for the infrastructure necessary to get schools wired to the Web -- E-rate frees up ''tens of thousands of dollars each year,'' Cooley says, allowing schools to use tax receipts for classroom gear. ''It's been an ongoing, driving force in our technology.'' Despite its problems -- including waste, fraud and mismanagement, according to federal investigators, who plan a series of hearings on Capitol Hill next week -- E-rate has been a dazzling success in thousands of public schools and libraries nationwide, advocates say. ''It's helped us to close the digital divide,'' says Anita Givens, Texas' educational technology director. ''We're not there yet, but we've made tremendous progress.'' The program, paid for by a small fee on phone bills, has generated $12.9 billion since 1998. Advocates say E-rate has helped schools and libraries, especially in rural areas, accomplish what might seem an impossible goal: near-universal Internet access. Between 1996 and 2002, the percentage of Internet-wired schools rose from 65% to 99%, according to federal statistics. The percentage of wired classrooms rose from 14% to 92%; likewise, the percentage of Internet-connected libraries, from 28% to 95%. Educators say the Internet is vital to help young people do homework, conduct research and compete in a global economy. ''Technology is something you have to have, and poor school districts like us cannot afford it,'' says Cameron Superintendent Maxie Morgan. The program helps schools pay for all telecommunications, including ongoing phone expenses. By reducing these costs, E-rate has allowed schools to upgrade their computer systems and spend what little money they have on things they couldn't otherwise afford. ''The program, in some respects, has been wildly successful,'' says Mary Kusler of the American Association of School Administrators. Anita Wiseman, principal of North Lewis Elementary School in New Iberia, La., says E-rate helped the school pay its ''astronomical'' monthly phone charges of $200 to $300. ''We were always in the red when it came to our phone bill,'' she says. It also has revitalized public libraries, says Carrie Lowe of the American Library Association. ''Despite the challenges, E-rate has been a huge success for public libraries.'' Libraries get only 5% of E-rate funds, but she says more people use the facilities now because of the free Internet access many now provide. But critics complain that small communities are often at a disadvantage because they don't have trained technology coordinators to write the detailed proposals that E-rate requires. ''Learning all of the ins and outs of telecommunications and discounts, that's a steep learning curve,'' says Givens, who adds that when E-rate debuted, many officials in small districts ''didn't know the difference between what we call POTS and PANS: Plain Old Telephone Service and the Pretty Awesome Neat Stuff.'' Others complain that E-rate leaves middle-class districts behind, since they're ''not poor enough to get the help, but they're not rich enough to get it themselves,'' says Givens. Della Matthis, Alaska's E-rate coordinator, says E-rate allows isolated villages to provide the same courses other students take for granted. ''It also means that kids do not have to be hauled off to boarding schools to get advanced education,'' she says. ''We bring the education to them.'' E-rate also brought Internet connections to villages themselves, she says. ''Suddenly, the demand for not just telephone lines, but for actual, honest-to-God broadband connectivity, has gone up,'' she says. Critics say E-rate's generous subsidies, which pay for as much as 90% of connectivity costs, are too tempting to crooked technology companies, which sell schools fancier equipment than they need. But while vendors in Alaska, at least, may be making a profit, Matthis says, ''we don't have any gold-plated servers in place that I know of.'' Congress in 2005 is scheduled to reauthorize E-rate. A few opponents will likely propose revamping it, but few observers think the accounting problems will sink it altogether. ''It needs changing, it needs tightening,'' says Dennis Pierce, managing editor of eSchool News. But he says even critics agree that it's a worthy program. Ultimately, he says, E-rate ''has provided so much benefit, and there would be such an uproar, that the program is safe.'' http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20040609/6270228s.htm --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 6143 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040610/b2da7a6d/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 10 14:22:22 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] NKU and Science Education Message-ID: <1DA2B144-BB0B-11D8-B416-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Skipped content of type multipart/alternative-------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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Name: clear.gif Type: image/gif Size: 43 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040611/b6388a87/clear.gif -------------- next part -------------- Skipped content of type multipart/alternative From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Sat Jun 12 08:11:07 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Digital Leadership Divide Message-ID: <9589EC24-BC69-11D8-9E18-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Study: Leadership is key to ed-tech success By Corey Murray, Assistant Editor, eSchool News June 11, 2004 Without visionary school leadership, backed by supportive communities, the disparities in ed-tech budgets increase. So say the authors of the "Digital Leadership Divide," a survey released June 10 by the independent research organization Grunwald Associates and the non-profit Consortium for School Networking (CoSN). The quality of leadership, researchers found, is also the primary indicator of whether technology funding--regardless of the funding level--is likely to be spent wisely or be wasted. Despite budget shortfalls affecting schools from coast to coast, visionary leaders refuse to let a lack of funds derail the effective use of technology in their schools. Even in the face of stagnant or declining budgets, the report states, dedicated educators are aggressively pursuing the use of technology by employing creative thinking and innovative partnerships to make up for a shortage of cash. "Schools that are committed to deepening the impact of technology are finding ways to raise or repurpose funds to maintain or increase their level of support for technology, even in difficult budget cycles," the report said. On the flip side, "Schools that are less committed to using technology are falling behind--cutting budgets, reducing staff, and forgoing the professional development that would enable educators to use technology more effectively." The findings are from a nationwide survey of 455 school decision-makers, including superintendents, assistant superintendents, directors of instructional technology, chief technology officers, and administrators of management information systems. The study, sponsored in part by AT&T, Educational Testing Service Inc., and Microsoft Corp., reportedly is the first in a series intended to monitor schools' technology spending and related trends. According to researchers, the key to effective technology integration lies not in the number of dollars spent, but in the ability of school leaders to communicate their needs and harness the power of technology--making the best of what resources are available. "Contrary to conventional wisdom, we found that school budgets may not be the biggest barrier to deploying and utilizing technology effectively in the classroom," said the study's lead author, Peter Grunwald. "Instead, visionary leadership coupled with an aggressive development of community and parental support seem to drive change in the most technology-intensive schools." Chief among researchers' findings were a direct link between the quality of leadership within the district and the amount of money budgeted for technology programs, a need for community and stakeholder buy-in, and a too frequent disconnect between school administrators and classroom educators regarding the effective use of technology. Thinking outside the box Despite recent and widespread budget shortfalls, several of the nation's most tech-savvy districts are finding a way to bring new technologies to bear in their schools. In the Calcasieu Parish Public Schools, a 32,000-student district in Lake Charles, La., where more than 50 percent of the students live in poverty, Superintendent Jude Theriot has remained committed to increasing the district's stake in technology despite three consecutive years of multi-million dollar spending reductions, including a brutal $7 million cut in 2003 and an additional $2.5 million cut in 2004. "The focus has to be on student learning," he said. And that means, "it's just not on the table to cut technology." Instead of scaling back technology programs, Theriot has instructed district leaders to aggressively pursue new opportunities. In terms of professional development, the district offers online courses for teachers as a way to extend training across the entire school system, while saving money on the cost of individual instructors. Through the district's "Laptops for Leaders" program, school principals receive Tablet PCs and attend workshops intended to show them how the technology could be used to appraise student achievement and better meet district goals. For teachers, the district offers its "Implementing a Technology-Enriched Curriculum" (I-TEC) initiative, a professional development model that encourages educators to reflect on effective teaching methods and to explain their successes to other colleagues throughout the school system. Although hardware is critical to any technology initiative, Theriot said, success is ultimately dependent upon the "human element." His philosophy is supported by the findings. "Where there's a will to deepen schools' commitment to technology, there seems to be a way--and this seems to be more important than funding," the survey said. Fostering that will results from a school leader's ability to effectively communicate the need for technology to stakeholders--including parents and school board members, the study found. Seventy percent of school leaders whose classroom-technology budgets increased over the last three years cited the influence of strongly supportive communities--compared with 38 percent of school leaders whose budgets decreased over the same three-year period, according to the survey. Although less dramatically, the same phenomenon applies to administrative technologies. Among leaders whose budgets for administrative technology increased, 42 percent reported having supportive communities. Among leaders whose administrative technology budgets decreased, only 20 percent reported having supportive communities. Where community support is high, a number of tech-savvy districts are experimenting with alternative funding measures--including, fundraising and corporate partnerships--to promote technology in the face of shrinking budgets, the report said. In the case of the Montgomery County Public Schools, a Maryland school district in an affluent suburb of Washington, D.C., school officials turned to advocacy. Behind the momentum of an aggressive public relations campaign targeted at parents and other community stakeholders, district leaders persuaded school board members to double spending for technology--to $90 million over a six-year period--beginning next year, said John Porter, associate superintendent and chief information officer. School leaders produced a program that aired on public television to highlight the benefits of technology in the classroom. The TV program encouraged stakeholders to eMail board members in support of increased technology spending, despite cuts to the overall budget. "While this tack is clearly not an optimum long-term strategy, it can mitigate funding shortfalls in lean budget years," the study said. But this shift in thinking isn't likely to occur on its own. For schools to pursue the effective integration of technology, district administrators must assume the lead as agents of change--with or without funding. Ninety-three percent of survey respondents said top school leaders have the most influence on technology decisions. "When a superintendent says, 'This is the direction we are going in,' everybody gets in line," Porter said. Professional development needed Although the findings indicate a shared vision and broad support from stakeholders at all levels are needed to achieve a high level of technology proficiency in schools, researchers also have found a number of school leaders, especially those in large districts, are frustrated at the lack of technology expertise exhibited by teachers and other school personnel. Nearly half of the school leaders surveyed from large districts (45 percent) say the lack of technology understanding on the part of other district employees poses a significant barrier. Furthermore, school leaders admit they themselves lack the skills to integrate technology effectively. According to the survey, fewer than one in 10 school leaders (7 percent) would classify his or her ability to integrate technology into the learning environment as "very good" or better. Further, most school leaders contend classroom teachers need even more help. On a scale of one to 10, respondents gave teachers an average score of 5.3 on technology competence. Making a difference Even though educators acknowledge they lack sufficient competency with technology, they recognize that technology is essential to reaching district goals. When it comes to improving productivity and efficiency, 74 percent of survey respondents say technology provides timely data for decision-making, while 70 percent report it improves communication among parents, teachers, and the community. Nearly eight out of 10 respondents (78 percent) said their districts currently rely on data-driven decision-making, the study found. Respondents also cited technology's salutary impact on learning. More than two-thirds (68 percent) said technology motivates students and provides them with important life skills (67 percent). Decision-makers also touted classroom technology as a means to create equity for students. Sixty percent of respondents said technology helped level the playing field for learners with disabilities, while 52 percent said technology can help individualize instruction and 51 percent reported it promotes academic equity. The long road ahead In spite of the importance of leadership, educators who responded to the survey made no attempt to hide the devastating effects of budget cuts on their respective technology programs. In fact, 48 percent of the school leaders surveyed cited budgeting issues as a key impediment to effective technology use. In light of the survey's finds, CoSN offered these recommendations: ? Move from automating administrative practices to transforming teaching and learning. "Perhaps the most promising and powerful application of technology in education is the delivery of personalized instruction," the report said. "We are only beginning to glimpse how technology can enable educators to assess students' knowledge and skills continually and get results immediately." ? Invest in strong technology leadership. This includes the creation of the chief technology officer position in which the successful candidate works closely with top district leadership to pursue a shared vision for technology. ? Create new professional development initiatives. The majority of educators still don't possess the technology skills necessary to integrate technology into the classroom, the survey found. In response to this widespread deficiency, CoSN recommends school districts across the country schedule routine technology workshops to better prepare educators for their role in a technology-infused learning environment. ? Recruit the active support of parents and the community. Despite budget constraints, the report states, community support can be a key factor in determining whether or not schools succeed in integrating technology effectively. Links: The Consortium for School Networking http://www.cosn.org Grunwald Associates http://www.grunwald.com http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5109 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 12153 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040612/e902edaa/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Sat Jun 12 08:15:44 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] E-Campus offers chance to brush up on Algebra online Message-ID: <3A9754A5-BC6A-11D8-9E18-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Skipped content of type multipart/alternative-------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: pixel.gif Type: image/gif Size: 50 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040612/570743a0/pixel.gif -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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They are selling books to a population that seems to have forsaken books. They have sold 300K books in a little over a year with 14 titles. http://www.triplecrownpublications.com/index.shtml The founder (African American female) did 5 years in a Federal Penitentiary from a drug dealing conviction. Not only does she seem to have been rehabilitated, she seems to have taken her business sense to a new level. That she is selling books is, by itself great. That they are being sold to kids who ordinarily don't read books seems to be good too. Of course the debate will be about the content of the books. There is an article in Newsweek about her: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5145832/site/newsweek/ Their office is in Columbus, OH. Best Regards, jb --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Mon Jun 14 17:44:59 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] California and textbook costs Message-ID: <1552FDCC-BE4C-11D8-B640-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> California debate on textbook costs draws U.S. interest By Jessica Portner Mercury News Cost-conscious school districts around the country are watching closely as the California Senate prepares to debate a bill this month that would compel the state's board of education to weigh price for the first time when adopting new textbooks. With 6 million public school students, California is the second-largest market in the $4 billion national textbook-publishing industry. A discount secured in California would have a ripple effect on some smaller states that routinely purchase books tailored for California because they lack the financial size and clout to commission texts specifically for them. The bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Joseph Canciamilla, D-Martinez, is set for a hearing in the Senate Education Committee on June 23. It was prompted by a 2002 Mercury News investigation that revealed the cost of state-adopted textbooks nearly tripled in the previous decade -- largely because the state board failed to negotiate for the best price. The bill already has passed the Assembly on a 50-10 vote. ``If California can negotiate so the price goes down, everyone will benefit,'' said Jody Gehrig of the Denver public schools, which had to seek a bond to pay for schoolbooks this year. For years, state board members have determined what academic standards and content -- from Shakespearean sonnets to robotics -- belong in textbooks. School districts must abide by those choices if they use state money to buy the texts. The bill being debated would explicitly add cost to the decision-making equation -- meaning the state, for the first time, might choose a cheaper book that is almost as good as a more expensive one. Publishers, who are lobbying hard in Sacramento against the measure, said the bill could force some booksellers to abandon the California market. ``This would trigger a national reaction that could cost us millions,'' said Stephen Driesler, the executive director of the Association of American Publishers. A multi-state compact called ``Most Favored Nation'' prohibits booksellers from charging a different price for the same book sold in other member states. The legislation is ``an idea with many downsides.'' The bill, AB 2455, also mandates that publishers offer a 30 percent discount on second sets -- allowing schools to give students books to take home and keep a spare set for use in the classroom each day -- and asks them to submit new English and math titles to the board every eight years instead of six. This new schedule would delay by two years the ability publishers have to raise prices when new books are adopted. Don Iglesias, the superintendent-elect of the San Jose Unified School District, said savings are critical at a time when the state budget deficit has prompted schools to choose among scrapping art classes, sacking librarians or waiting another year or two to buy new textbooks. ``We aren't asking for anything outrageous,'' said Iglesias, ``just a quality product at a reasonable price.'' The 2002 Mercury News analysis of state records showed that sixth-grade English/language arts textbooks cost $20 in California a decade before. By 2002, the price had jumped to $57, outpacing the rate of inflation and the spike in Bay Area home prices in the 1990s. Driesler said textbooks are expensive in California because they must be fashioned for the state's rigorous academic standards. ``It not like buying some suit off the rack,'' he said. ``Customized textbooks mean additional costs. That's the trade-off.'' If the bill passes, California wouldn't be the first state whose textbook decisions dictate what districts pay or students read in schools hundreds of miles away. Other large states that adopt texts on a statewide level -- notably Texas -- have a huge influence. Sometimes, Texas' books have been criticized for what's between the covers. This year, the Texas board of education decided to include the discussion of creationism alongside evolution in its science books, which prompted some other consumers of Texas-approved books to bristle. But as major player in the textbook market, Texas also sets a maximum price for the books it buys, which is good news to schools and districts that buy books created originally for Texas. ``We have been dogmatic in holding the price down,'' said Alma Allen, a Texas state school board member. ``I would be glad to see California do that. Hopefully, lots of other states will follow.'' Bud Williams, a deputy superintendent of Montana's education department, said cost savings decided in Sacramento could mean more materials for that state's 150,000 students. ``Our budgets have gotten tighter and tighter,'' said Williams, whose districts choose their titles from publisher's catalogs that market some California-tailored books to other states. ``If textbook companies have to be mindful about cost, prices across the country will change.'' Several members of the Senate Education Committee who are poised to consider the bill are initially supportive. ``We have a limited budget,'' said Sen. Dede Alpert, D-San Diego. ``And if we aren't able to stretch those dollars, that would be a bad mistake.'' Assemblywoman Rebecca Cohn, D-Campbell, noted that throughout debate in the Assembly there was strong backing of the bill. ``Publishers are taking advantage because no one is paying attention,'' she said. ``We have to be more responsible. Taxpayers are demanding it.'' http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/education/ 8906685.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 6656 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040614/c0409b7e/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 15 12:44:10 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Taking tests on computers - how about the special needs? Message-ID: <39EE7766-BEEB-11D8-978C-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> State may issue tests on school computers By CLAUDETTE RILEY Staff Writer All public students could be participating by 2010 If Tennessee can work out the kinks, all public school students will be taking their mandatory exams on computer by 2010. State education officials plan to try out select online end-of-course exams in about 10 districts during the next school year, make adjustments and then phase in other tests ? and districts ? statewide. The state hasn't picked the pilot districts. Schools would probably use computerized testing for the state-mandated reading, language arts, science, math and social studies exams given to students in grades 3?8; end-of-course exams given in high school; and the Gateway Algebra I, biology and English II exams that students must pass to get a diploma. ''Four or five years from now, we'd like to have all our assessments online,'' said Keith Brewer, deputy commissioner of education. ''It's a vision we hope to cultivate and make a reality.'' Advocates of the change say it would save taxpayer money, reduce testing time, allow students to take tests closer to the end of the school year, speed up test results and give schools more time to help struggling students catch up to their peers. ''I'd love to see this happen. This is the future,'' said Paul Changas, student assessment coordinator for Metro schools. ''We could use it to more quickly determine what's happening in the classroom and the school. Right now, there's a lot of lost time.'' For the change to become a reality, state officials said, the system must be secure and each of the state's 136 school systems must have the technology needed to support computerized testing. ''We'd have to make sure there is no security breach,'' Brewer said. Teachers would still be used to monitor testing, he said, and several versions of the tests might be given at one time. A statewide survey is planned to find out which districts have the right computer equipment and which need help getting up to par. ''Once we know how much we've got, we'll start to brainstorm on how to partner with districts to put money toward that,'' Brewer said. ''You'll have some districts out there good to go.'' Officials said they would like to have one fully equipped computer laboratory in every school but might consider having a tiny district or several small schools share a common location. Alfred Boyter, co-chairman of the Robertson County School Board, said using computers ''would be fantastic.'' ''It would be a good use of our resources, it would bring technology into the classroom and save our taxpayers money.'' Boyter said quicker test results would also help schools get struggling students into tutoring or other remedial programs earlier than usual. ''You are hitting the target immediately instead of waiting eight months or even a year later,'' he said. Officials said some schools might elect to use computers for other exams that aren't administered statewide. But educators concede that some students, particularly those with special needs, may never be able to take all their exams on a computer. ''There will probably have to be a small number of paper-and-pencil options,'' Changas said. Other testing changes As Tennessee education officials consider giving mandatory exams on computer, these other testing changes are being studied or have been approved: ? LESS TESTING TIME The amount of time students spend taking mandatory exams will drop by about 25% ? or roughly two hours ? this fall, state education officials said. Testing time nearly doubled last year after a new set of questions was added to state tests to satisfy federal law. The time ballooned from an average of 4? hours to almost 9? hours a year for many students. In response to frustration over the longer testing times, officials retooled the exams so the same set of questions can satisfy both state and federal testing requirements. ''More items serve a dual purpose,'' said Keith Brewer, the state's deputy education commissioner. ''We have cut back on the testing time.'' But even with the changes, the average time will still hover at 6? to 7 hours for most students. ''I don't think we're going to see it go back to the same amount of time,'' he said. ? LINING UP STANDARDS Tennessee might be tweaking its academic standards to make sure they line up with what students are expected to know on a national level. In the coming months, educators are going to look at the state's academic standards for every grade and compare them with those designed by the National Assessment of Education Progress, which puts out the Nation's Report Card every year. The goal is to make sure students can compete nationally. ''We'll see how they align or mirror our standards,'' Brewer said. ''We hope there's some congruence there. We need that congruence to keep our students on the cutting edge.'' Tennessee has participated voluntarily in some of the NAEP exams since 1992 but it no longer has a choice. All 50 states and Washington, D.C., must now test students in grades 4 and 8 every other year in reading and math to comply with the federal No Child Left Behind law. NAEP provides a national yardstick for measuring what students know in key subjects. The results of the report card provide a tool for comparing states, which have different academic standards and ways of assessing students. ? CUTTING COSTS While some states use the same test questions every year with little change, Tennessee has required that nearly all the questions on mandatory exams be brand-new every year. State education officials said the rule created headaches for test-makers and cost the state more money because it couldn't recycle the same exams year after year. Now the state is limiting the percentage of original questions that must be used every year. About 70% of the test items will have to be new, but any question can be reused after five years. It's unknown how much the change will save taxpayers, and educators say they doubt students will notice a difference because they won't be taking the same test within a five-year period. ''We really defined what we meant by the term 'fresh and non-redundant' items,'' Brewer said. ''We can now rotate forms. It's a savings for us.'' ? Claudette Riley http://www.tennessean.com/education/archives/04/06/52878863.shtml? Element_ID=52878863 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 7456 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040615/4bc8c0fa/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 15 21:21:23 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Web-based Tutoring Message-ID: <7B19A44E-BF33-11D8-978C-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Web-based tutoring gives students study aid 24/7 By Cara Branigan, Associate Editor, eSchool News June 15, 2004 A commercial, web-based tutoring service is helping high schools and colleges make live instructors available 24-hours a day, seven days a week to tutor students in mathematics. At the moment, this round-the-clock tutoring service is available only for math help, but the company says on-demand assistance is available in additional subjects for nine hours each day. Gallaudet University, a school for deaf and hard of hearing students in Washington, D.C., will begin offering the 24-hour, web-based tutoring service this fall. University representatives say tutoring at Gallaudet requires a diverse approach, because some of the school's students are born and reared with sign language, while others are new to their hearing loss and are better at reading than at using sign language. Online study help also serves the needs of students who wish to keep their need for assistance confidential. "We suspect there are some students who don't come into our center because they are embarrassed," said Terry Coye, Gallaudet's director of tutorial and instructional programs. The service, provided by a Washington, D.C.-based firm called SMARTHINKING Inc., will help the Gallaudet reach students who are not well served by the traditional sign-language-based tutoring provided by the school's graduate students. SMARTHINKING's tutoring sessions are like web chats, the company explained. Tutors and students communicate by typing on a virtual white board displayed on their computer screens. Each "white board" supports equations, annotations, and color-coded dialogue. Math tutoring is available live, one-on-one, at all times, according to the company. Tutoring in other subjects--including chemistry, economics, physics, biology, accounting, and statistics--is available from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. each day, the company said. When students log in, they can submit questions to live, real-time tutors, or they can schedule a tutoring session for another time. If live tutors are busy, a student's question is placed in a queue. While awaiting personal attention, the student sees the dialogue and equations from another tutoring session on his or her screen. It's like being placed on hold, but instead of music, the student sees someone else's tutoring session. All online interactions between student and tutor are saved, the company said, allowing students or schools to review past tutoring sessions on-demand. Students who can hear are not tied to their computer as they wait for tutors to become available, because an alarm rings when their session comes up. Company representatives conceded this feature will be of limited value for most of Gallaudet's students. The online tutoring will not replace Gallaudet's face-to-face service, Coye said, because the service is not well-suited to all of the university's students' learning styles. "A great [many] of our students are having trouble communicating through print," Coye said. Coye nonetheless predicted that math tutoring should be especially popular, because of the unique challenge math instruction poses for Gallaudet. "It's not easy to teach math to deaf students," he said. "Many students come with weaknesses, because they simply haven't taken many courses." In mainstream classes, deaf students who take math typically learn through an interpreter. "It's very complicated. Deaf students have to look at the interpreter and the blackboard and understand what the teacher is talking about all at the same time," Coye said. But, "the way the [virtual] white-board tutoring is done, is something that might be an excellent way for some students to learn math." Deaf students, who communicate with their hands, are very visual and will be responsive, he said. SMARTHINKING's service also includes a writing-critique component, in which students upload their essays and receive feedback within 24 hours on the strengths and weaknesses of their writing. For first-time clients, the company charges a fixed price for the year based on the number of students. After that, SMARTHINKING charges by the hours used. Gallaudet, which has approximately 2,000 students, is paying $2.95 per full-time student. This deal gives each student at Gallaudet 10 hours of tutoring to use throughout the entire year. According to the company, students use an average of 1.5 hours each. Gallaudet's students access the tutoring service, which can be customized with a school's logo and color scheme, through the school's online curriculum portal. According to SMARTHINKING, 300 colleges and 50 high schools from coast to coast use its service. In the past year, the company said, it has held some 155,000 tutoring sessions for approximately 70,000 students. The live tutoring requires students to learn how to use a virtual white board and spend about 25 minutes actively engaged with a tutor. "Just from the volume of students and repeat students, we know the service gets used a lot," said Burck Smith, CEO of SMARTHINKING Inc. "There's enough students to generate the need for math tutors 24 hours a day." SMARTHINKING said it will expand the availability of tutoring time for other subjects by an hour starting this fall. http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5111 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 6078 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040615/ff16b605/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 15 21:22:57 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Virtual High School is money movement Message-ID: Millions in lost funding spurs district's virtual school plans From eSchool News staff and wire service reports June 14, 2004 The Columbus, Ohio, city school district will develop an online high school in an effort to retain hundreds of students and millions in state funding the district expects otherwise to lose to charter schools next year, school officials said. Columbus Public Schools officials say the district's new school would mirror the services of internet-based charter schools, which reportedly have drawn more than 1,000 students away from the city's public schools already. At least 16 online charter schools operated in Ohio this past year, enrolling 22 percent of the state's 38,248 charter school students and receiving about $50.6 million in state funds. The online schools provide students with a modem and computer, and teachers assigned to them keep in contact by eMail and phone. The district's plan for a virtual school of its own is still "on the drawing table," said spokesman Michael Straughter. But students who are leaving the Columbus schools in favor of online charters "obviously want something from the district that we need to provide," he added. Straughter said the district estimates its online school would serve about 125 students starting in September. He added that four community centers around the city would provide in-person tutoring and computers for students who don't have online access at home. The district has begun surveying exiting students to see what it could do to keep them. The growing volume of those students has thrown off the district's enrollment projections, which means predicted funding isn't materializing. Students who enter charter schools take about $5,000 in state aid with them. The district expects the loss of state funding to charter schools to rise to $34.6 million by 2008, up from $18 million this year. In 2000, a contractor predicting enrollment for the Ohio School Facilities Commission assumed there would be no change in the number of students choosing charter over public schools in 10 years. Now, the number of those students in Columbus alone has more than tripled--to 3,995--and the city expects to lose several hundred more next school year. Columbus had a total enrollment of more than 62,000 students this year. A multibillion-dollar effort to upgrade school buildings necessitates accurate enrollment projections, said Rick Savors, a spokesman for the school facilities commission. "We want to know how many students we're having to build for," he said. "It doesn't do us any good to build too much or too little." The cost of building upgrades for just Columbus and the five other largest districts in Ohio--Akron, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton, and Toledo--is $5.74 billion. The state would pay $2.95 billion of that. Charter schools have their own financial problems. Since 2002, one in four of those audited has ended a fiscal year in the red. Despite those financial troubles, the state Department of Education estimates that 15 more charter schools could open in Franklin County during the next school year, bringing the number of privately run, publicly funded schools in the county to 40. http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5110 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 3947 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040615/860ccf66/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 16 10:00:34 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Fwd: prototype Message-ID: <8964FE67-BF9D-11D8-8763-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> The press release is attached. Feel free to comment: http://www.alwayson-network.com/comments.php?id=4121_0_1_0_C jb -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: Press Release Contest 2 - Pitch Tim Draper 061504.doc Type: application/msword Size: 34304 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040616/2422117a/PressReleaseContest2-PitchTimDraper061504.doc -------------- next part -------------- --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 22 19:46:01 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] New digital divide study Message-ID: <42643.66.210.239.34.1087947961.squirrel@66.210.239.34> [excerpted] The impact of Internet use on the other side of the digital divide Linda A. Jackson, Alexander von Eye, Gretchen Barbatsis, Frank Biocca, Hiram E. Fitzgerald, Yong Zhao In 1998, researchers at Carnegie-Mellon University found evidence of what they labeled "the Internet paradox" [5]. Greater Internet use was associated with decreased psychological well-being and social involvement. These findings were considered paradoxical because Internet use was assumed to facilitate social connection and the psychological and social benefits associated with it [1]. The HomeNet findings captured national attention, inspiring such headlines as "Sad, Lonely World Discovered in Cyberspace" (New York Times, Aug. 30, 1998), "Heavy Net Use Cuts into Real Life" (USA Today, Feb. 16, 2000), and "A Web of Workaholic Misfits? Study Finds Heavy Internet Users are Socially Isolated" (Washington Post, Feb. 16, 2000). Given the importance and visibility of the HomeNet study, it is not surprising it provoked severe criticism from other researchers. Much of the criticism focused on the measures used to assess psychological well-being and social involvement and on the representativeness of the sample [7]. HomeNet researchers responded to both criticisms in a three-year follow-up of the original study's participants, and in a second longitudinal survey study [3]. Results of the three-year follow-up indicated that the negative psychological and social effects of Internet use had dissipated by the third year, with the exception of stress. Findings from the survey study indicated benefits of Internet use for psychological well-being and social involvement, again with the exception of stress. However, benefits were limited to extroverts and those who had greater amounts of social support. To explain changes in findings over time within the original HomeNet study, Kraut et al. [3] suggested that maturation of participants and changes in how they used the Internet may account for the dissipation of negative psychological and social effects. Further, discrepancies in findings between the follow-up to the original study and the longitudinal survey study may be attributable to unmeasured sample differences. However, the most economical explanation, according to CMU researchers, is that changes in the Internet itself account for these differences: "Simply put, the Internet may have become a more hospitable place over time." More friends and family members are likely to be online now than previously. Services that facilitate the development of strong social ties have increased (for example AOL buddy lists and instant-messaging services). In addition, the explosion of information on the Internet may have contributed to the benefits of Internet use by providing a better integration of users' online and offline lives. Other research examining the social impact of Internet use has produced mixed results. Some studies found Internet use contributes to psychological well-being by providing opportunities for social connection and community, as well as convenient access to information [6, 9, 10]. Other studies indicated that Internet use undermines well-being because online connections are weaker than real-life connections, or because online connections are often used to replace real-life relationships and activities [8]. Thus, the social impact of Internet use remains controversial, with a variety of explanations offered for findings of favorable or unfavorable impact. The HomeNetToo project was based in part on the original HomeNet study [4]. As in the original study, we automatically recorded Internet use for an extended period of time (16 months) and measured psychological well-being and social involvement with multiple measures and at multiple times. However, the HomeNetToo study was designed to address questions about the digital divide, particularly the racial digital divide [2]. Our sample is unique in that it consists of low-income African-Americans and Caucasians using the Internet at home for the first time. In this article, we address the following questions: Does Internet use influence psychological well-being in low-income adults? If so, is its influence dependent on race or other factors known to be related to psychological well-being (such as extroversion, or common daily hassles and annoyances)? Does Internet use influence social involvement in low-income adults? If so, is its influence dependent on race or other factors known to be related to social involvement (for example, extroversion)? --- Results of the HomeNetToo project indicate Internet use has no effect on the psychological well-being and social involvement of low-income African-Americans. Nor does it affect these outcomes for low-income Caucasians. The absence of social impact was found regardless of how Internet use was measured (time online, number of sessions) and regardless of how psychological well-being (depression, happiness) and social involvement were measured (number of close friends, time spent with family). Discrepancies between our findings and those of the original HomeNet study?the only other study to automatically record Internet use?are easily explained by differences in sample characteristics and changes in the Internet itself. Of greater interest is why Internet use had neither a positive nor negative social impact for our sample. An explanation for the absence of Internet effects on psychological well-being and social involvement may lie in the low frequency of email use by HomeNetToo participants. Recall that the average number of email messages sent was only three per week, despite evidence that Internet use was nontrivial, averaging about 43 minutes per day. African-Americans, who comprised 67% of our sample, were particularly unlikely to use email. Apparently, our participants never embraced the Internet as a communication tool. Rather, they viewed it as an information tool. Ethnographic data collected by the HomeNetToo project supports this view. Why didn't our participants take to the Internet as a communication tool? The explanation is so obvious as to be elusive. Email is a desirable communication tool only if you have people to communicate with, in particular, family and friends who have home computers and Internet access, or co-workers with whom email communication is encouraged or required. It is likely that many of our participants had family and friends on the same side of the digital divide as they were. It is unlikely that many of our participants had co-workers with whom they communicated using email. Thus, it is not surprising that they never embraced the Internet as a communication tool. Of course, email is not the only way to communicate on the Internet. We recorded the frequency of chat and newgroup activity by HomeNetToo participants and found it to be essentially nonexistent. Some participants were particularly wary of chat rooms, which they viewed as dangerous places where predators lurk. Evidence that Internet use has no social impact on low-income adults has implications for efforts to reduce the digital divide and suggests that concerns about a negative social impact are unwarranted. While finding a positive impact would have been more supportive of efforts to reduce the divide, it may be that a positive impact does occur in domains other than the social domain. For example, Internet use may increase learning motivation and cognitive competencies, possibilities we are examining using other measures from the HomeNetToo project. As the digital divide narrows, the Internet may become an important communication tool for low-income families as well. A reexamination of the social impact of Internet use may be necessary as both the "typical" Internet user and the Internet itself change over time. http://delivery.acm.org/10.1145/1010000/1005819/p43-jackson.html?key1=1005819&key2=9367497801&coll=ACM&dl=ACM&CFID=22966264&CFTOKEN=82014203 -- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing TouchSmart.net http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 24 22:27:10 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Teachers: Limited time, access cut school tech use Message-ID: <2955B939-C64F-11D8-8273-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Teachers: Limited time, access cut school tech use By Corey Murray, Assistant Editor, eSchool News June 24, 2004 Classroom teachers are using technology more than ever before to improve teaching and learning. But even as their sophistication with computers and the internet grows, other barriers are keeping them from using technology to its full potential, according to a survey released June 22 at the National Educational Computing Conference in New Orleans. Gone are the days when teachers claimed ignorance and blamed their inability to bridge the digital divide on a sheer lack of technology know-how. These days, a lack of time during the school day, too few school computers, and complex security measures--including school firewalls and filtering systems--are among the biggest impediments to effective technology integration, survey respondents said. Following up on the success of its National Speak Up Day for Students, NetDay, a nonprofit supporter of educational technology in schools, released the results of its Speak Up Day for Teachers, an online survey of 11,132 teachers representing 885 schools across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and several U.S. Department of Defense schools overseas. The survey, which educators were invited to take on line, was intended to give U.S. teachers in all grades and disciplines an opportunity to speak their minds about technology in schools and at home. "The results of the Speak Up Day for Teachers survey provide a rich snapshot of how teachers view the use of technology in the educational process," said NetDay's chief executive officer, Julie Evans. "We hope this effort will raise awareness about the importance of the teacher as a key stakeholder in technology decisions." Although 98 percent of survey respondents said they had at least one internet-connected computer in their classrooms for professional use, most respondents said there isn't enough time in the day to take advantage of the technology and that a shortage of computers for students still retards achievement. Lack of time in the school day ranked No. 1 among obstacles preventing teachers from using the internet for professional tasks, but computer filters and firewalls also were factors, respondents said, adding that these security measures too often keep teachers from accessing good educational content online. Complex computer security was a frustration also cited in a student portion of the survey, Evans said. Curiously absent from the list of obstacles was any mention of inadequate technology skills. According to Evans, the idea that educators would even classify filters and firewalls as a bother is evidence that their familiarity with technology has advanced well beyond the scope of such basic functions as word processing and printing. In schools, educators rely on hardware and software to assist with a wide array of critical functions, she said; here are some of the key tasks respondents assigned to technology: ? Improving teaching and learning--49 percent ? Communicating with others--24 percent ? Managing the classroom--16 percent ? Implementing professional development--4 percent Survey respondents said the internet is a treasure trove of new learning materials. Twenty-two percent of educators said they "always" use the web to help refresh old lesson plans and construct new classroom activities, and 53 percent said they consult the internet at least "some of the time." Only 3 percent said they "never" use the internet when devising new models for learning. Technology is used to perform a myriad of administrative chores as well. Among teachers, the most popular uses cited included communicating with colleagues, creating tests and handouts, keeping records, and researching information for students. Teachers also rely on technology to help them meet the demands of the No Child Left Behind Act, according to the survey, and 78 percent of respondents classified technology as essential to achieving state and federal targets. But merely having the technology in place is only part of the solution, respondents agreed: Success also depends on how well administrators can articulate a vision of how technology can be used in their schools. Management support, respondents reported, generally is good. Seventy-five percent of teachers who responded to the survey said their current school and working conditions mostly encourage the use of technology, compared with just 4 percent who said the use of technology is discouraged. What's more, 35 percent of respondents said their administrators consider technology their No. 1 priority. Fifty percent said it was of modest concern, and only 3 percent said technology was not a priority at all. Regardless of how willing school and district leaders are to pursue technology initiatives, teachers who took the survey agreed that a decline in access to technology would make their jobs more difficult. Despite criticisms that students sometimes abuse classroom technologies, using the internet to find easy answers to difficult questions and occasionally cheating on tests, for example, the benefits--at least, in the minds of those teachers responding--far exceed the potential drawbacks, the survey said. Teachers said technology has enabled them to build stronger lesson plans, engage students more effectively, meet the needs of individual learners more fully, and communicate more clearly with parents, among other benefits. Eighty-nine percent of educators reported that losing access to the internet would have some sort of impact on their teaching and professional responsibilities--with classroom access being especially important. In fact, 63 percent of educators reported they are more likely to use classroom-based technology for professional purposes, such as designing new lesson plans or sending eMail messages to concerned parents. Only 19 percent prefer to perform such duties from their home computers. Computers boost students' test scores, teachers say Nearly two-thirds of K-12 teachers say the availability of computers improves student performance on standardized tests, yet they do not believe they have enough computers for their students in their classrooms, according to the second annual Teachers Talk Tech survey released June 22 by CDW Government Inc. (CDW-G), a provider of technology solutions to federal, state, and local governments and educators. The CDW-G survey validates the results of NetDay's Speak Up Day for Teachers study, released one day earlier. Sixty-two percent of respondents to the Teachers Talk Tech survey--an increase of 8 percent over last year--said the use of computers improved student performance on standardized tests. Teachers also made it clear that to achieve the advantages afforded by technology, they need additional training and adequate equipment for their students. While teachers as a whole believe computers aid student performance, 77 percent report they only have a few computers in the classroom, which students have to share. Teachers at schools with more than 2,000 students are more likely to say they need "a lot more" computers in the classroom. "Technology has become ingrained in the educational process. It increases teacher productivity on a daily basis, enhances student performance on key subjects, and improves student results on standardized tests," said Chris Rother, vice president of education at CDW-G, who released the findings of the company's second annual Teachers Talk Tech survey at the National Education Computing Conference in New Orleans. "Teachers recognize the many benefits of technology, yet they are telling us they don't have enough computers or good enough software to realize technology's full potential." Mixed grades were given by teachers to the quality of the hardware and software available at their schools. Only 54 percent of teachers rank their hardware as good or excellent, and just 45 percent gave high marks to the software. As for making the most of technology's capabilities, 79 percent of teachers say they need more training. Links: More on the survey. Educators are even less likely to use technology in a community setting. Just 4 percent of respondents said they preferred to use technology to perform professional duties in a teacher-designated work area. Only 3 percent said they prefer to work in school computer labs, and the same percentage reported they prefer to work in public libraries. But teachers' use of technology isn't limited to professional pursuits alone. Much like the nation's students, those teachers surveyed said technology plays an integral role in their personal lives as well. Ninety-three percent of respondents access the internet from their homes, the survey said. Many reported they still are using only dial-up connections, but smaller groups said they have graduated to high-speed cable (24 percent) and DSL (20 percent) hook-ups. Nearly all of the educators (93 percent) said they use technology at home for personal use, but only 50 percent reported spending between one and five hours a week on school-related activities. Contrary to popular opinion, younger educators aren't the only ones embracing the use of technology. According to the survey, older teachers are just as enthusiastic as their younger counterparts. Given that 55 percent of respondents to the online survey were 40 or older, and more than a third had at least 16 years of classroom experience, the survey would seem to indicate that veteran educators feel strongly about the use of technology in schools, Evans said. Having already found a comfort zone in their classrooms and with their students, she added, some veteran educators probably would be more inclined to test out new solutions than their younger colleagues, who might still be learning the ropes. Considering the way the survey was administered, it's fair to ask whether the results are representative of all teachers. Evans concedes the findings probably lean in favor of ed-tech proponents, but a number of school districts required all teachers to participate, regardless of their orientation to technology--thus ensuring at least a somewhat representative sample. Where teachers reported receiving their technology training also was revealing. According to the survey, 37 percent of educators contend that preservice training did nothing at all to prepare them to use technology effectively in the classroom. Forty-four percent said they were "somewhat prepared," but only 18 percent said the training they received in college left them "fully prepared" to use technology in their lessons. Professional development provided by the school district was somewhat more effective, respondents reported. Thirty-five percent said the training they've received since becoming a teacher has them "fully prepared" to use technology. Fifty-six percent classified themselves as "somewhat prepared," and just 7 percent said in-service training has been no help at all. NetDay plans to break the survey responses out anonymously by school system, so administrators can use the results to help them achieve district goals, Evans said. District technology leaders hope the findings will provide a clearer picture of educators' needs, she said, so administrators can plan for the coming school year. "I am really trying to get an idea of the sense teachers have for what is useful to them in the classroom," said Thomas Nemmer, director of technology for the Hamburg Central School District in New York. "Like many other school districts, we have a base of technology in place that is aging, and we are struggling to find the dollars to replace the old while we anticipate the new. I will try to use this feedback with my board of education to make a case for technology as an appropriate tool in this new world of No Child Left Behind." Jim Hirsch, associate superintendent for technology at the Plano Independent School District in Texas, said his district "needed good information on how teachers are using technology resources at work and at home, so we can provide even better support for their use." Added Hirsch: "I plan to provide an overview of the results to our school board and cabinet and use the information to inform our district technology steering committee as it begins the process of planning and budgeting for professional development and other technology initiatives." Speak Up Day for Teachers is supported through a grant and in-kind support from BellSouth Corp. and through the outreach support of Apple Computer Inc., Sun Microsystems Inc., and Google Inc. http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5131 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 13922 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040624/7b9354cd/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 29 16:46:35 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Video on demand boosts students' math scores Message-ID: <695F688A-CA0D-11D8-B903-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Video on demand boosts students' math scores By Corey Murray, Assistant Editor, eSchool News June 29, 2004 Short video clips that reinforce key concepts are effective in increasing student achievement, according to a second research project. An earlier study found that video can improve learning in science and social studies. Now, brand-new research shows judiciously selected video clips also can produce statistically significant gains in algebra and geometry scores. The new study, conducted by independent research firm Cometrika, headed by Franklin J. Boster, a distinguished-faculty-award winner at Michigan State University, was released June 21 during the National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) in New Orleans. Approximately 2,500 sixth and eighth grade students from four Los Angeles area middle schools participated in the study. Each student was given a pre-test to assess comprehension of specific California state education standards for math, and at the end of the quarter, post-test assessments were given to gauge improvement. Throughout the quarter, teachers assigned to experimental-group classes incorporated approximately 20 standards-based, core-concept video clips into their daily lessons, while teachers in control group classrooms continued with their traditional lessons. Boster and his team found that sixth-grade students whose teachers showed them video clips during instruction improved an average of five percentage points more than students in the control group during post-testing. Eighth-grade students in Los Angeles improved an average of three percentage points more than students in the control group. The clips came from the unitedstreaming video-on-demand (VOD) service provided by United Learning, a division of Discovery Education, whose parent company produces the Discovery Channel. These latest results come as educators are looking for ways to help students meet the rigorous testing requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). To help more schools experience the same kinds of gains, Discovery Education has announced it will offer its unitedstreaming service at no cost to one school in every non-subscribing public school district in the United States during the 2004-2005 school year. School districts already subscribing to the service are not eligible for the introductory program. From July 1, 2004, through June 30, 2005, the company's new "VOD Pass" program offers free access for one school building in every new district. According to the company, the service provides access to more than 2,200 full-length videos and 22,000 video clips correlated to individual state education standards. Educators in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) had an inkling of what the study's outcome might be even before the results were official. Jill Longman, a sixth-grade teacher at LAUSD's Olive Vista Middle School in Sylmar, Calif., said she wasn't surprised by the latest study results. She knew the videos were working, she said, by the way her students had responded to them. "We were feeling the positive effects long before the results came in," said Longman. "The [students] were telling us it was working." In January, the research team approached officials at LAUSD, the nation's second-largest urban school system (behind New York City), with a proposition: Open your doors to a group of independent researchers for five months, and if you like what you see, Discovery Education will give participating schools free access to its content for one full year. Aware of favorable results involving science and social studies in a similar study conducted across three rural Virginia school districts in 2002 (see Virginia schools boost student achievement with video on demand"), LAUSD officials signed on to the idea. For Discovery Education, it meant a chance to achieve, for the second time, what has become the gold standard in the school field: a control-based experiment designed to demonstrate a product's effectiveness in the classroom, as required by the scientifically based research provision of NCLB. But for LAUSD officials, the project was risky. If the technology worked as they hoped, it would provide a new tool for educators to use in reaching the district's 750,000 students--especially the more visual learners, who sometimes struggle to grasp concepts related by educators in classroom lectures. However, if the project failed to show improvement--or worse, if teachers' use of the technology resulted in a drop in student achievement--school officials would be faced with the prospect of explaining to angry parents why the project was approved in the first place. They decided to let teachers participate on a voluntary basis. In the end, the results proved to be worth the risk. In an interview with eSchool News, Discovery Education Vice President Jim McColl branded the project a success and said the combination of the two studies is proof that unitedstreaming can be deployed effectively by educators at almost any grade level, across a wide range of disciplines, regardless of rural or urban locales. The company's program currently is used in approximately 26,000 schools from coast to coast. In the classroom, educators saw results quickly. At Olive Vista, where two-thirds of the student population speaks English as a second language, Longman used the power of video to highlight mathematical concepts where words sometimes failed. "Visuals are helpful when language is a barrier, especially for math," she said. Olive Vista Principal Joan Whitaker said students were so enthusiastic about the use of the videos that many went home and told their parents about the project. In turn, many parents requested that the videos be demonstrated during community meetings and asked when school officials planned to roll out the service to all students, not just those involved in the study. As word of the study spread throughout the district, Whitaker said, many teachers and parents began asking for access to the clips. Of course, one problem with any control-based experiment is that educators must agree to offer the solution to some students, while withholding it from others. To sidestep a potential headache, McColl said, Discovery offered participating schools access to its full video library for one year following the conclusion of the research. "We hope this will be a really valuable resource that they will continue to use from this point forward," said McColl, who added that LAUSD's willingness to participate in the survey was predicated upon the success of the earlier research, researchers' ability to explain the intricacies of experimental-control design, and a pledge to cut the project short should it have any adverse effect on student achievement. It also didn't hurt that the program was easy to introduce. The technology is web-based. Unlike some educational solutions, where cumbersome installations and training programs divert attention from busy school technology staffs, the unitedstreaming model requires no installation and little training, according to Olive Vista Technology Coordinator Robert Benavidez. Throughout the district, participating teachers underwent a two-day training program to learn how to navigate the site, Benavidez said. Meanwhile, Discovery Education kept representatives on hand to answer any technology questions and to ensure the implementation went as smoothly as possible. At Olive Vista, officials downloaded more than 100 video clips to a local server and also burned them onto CD-ROMs for participating teachers in the event that the web site went down or teachers ran into traffic problems online. Despite an ongoing construction project at the school, no problems were reported, Benavidez said. Educators at Olive Vista already have begun planning how to deploy the technology in the upcoming school year. Besides using the application in the classroom, Principal Whitaker said, the school also will offer access to unitedstreaming from a private area in the school library, where students who were absent on a given day can watch the videos to review any concepts they might have missed in class. "To see the look on a child's face when they connect with a concept and share in their joy when they truly understand the subject matter is a wonderfully gratifying experience for all of our teachers," said Whitaker of the technology. Hoping to replicate those feelings in schools across the country, Discovery Education on June 22 announced the creation of its VOD Pass initiative. "By providing the unitedstreaming VOD Pass to every non-subscribing public school district, we're introducing educators across the country to the only video-based learning offering scientifically proven to improve student performance in math, science, and social studies," Steve Sidel, Executive Vice President for Discovery Education, told eSchool News. To apply, district instructional technology coordinators can log on to the initiative's web site at http://vod.unitedstreaming.com. Once eligibility is verified, information and instructions for accessing the unitedstreaming service will be provided via eMail, the company said. Links: Summary report of study (PDF format) Los Angeles Unified School District Olive Vista Middle School Discovery Communications unitedstreaming http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5134 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 10479 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040629/f7ff08de/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 30 14:02:29 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] NECC 2004 Message-ID: NECC 2004: Heavy corporate hitters put their weight behind ed tech By Dan David, Online Editor, and Cara Branigan, Associate Editor, eSchool News June 30, 2004 Anyone seeking evidence of a healthier U.S. economy and renewed tech-sector growth should have been in New Orleans from June 20-23 for the 25th annual National Educational Computing Conference (NECC). The largest educational technology exhibit in the world drew a record crowd of more than 17,500 people, according to the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), which staged the conference. The massive crowd included 13,302 registered attendees from roughly 50 countries. They made the trek across an expansive convention floor that featured 1,189 booths and 450 companies displaying their hardware, software, and other solutions for educators. News from the exhibit hall The host city's festive reputation helped shape an upbeat atmosphere surrounding the four-day show, but the real engine of enthusiasm was a tangible sense that the future is bright for ed tech. NECC 2004 seemed proof that the entire technology industry has reawakened after several difficult years, and the education field is one of its top priorities. How else to explain the presence of so many high-profile attendees at this year's show? Two of the world's largest technology companies, Dell and Intel, both sent their CEOs to New Orleans, a clear indication of the field's promise and NECC's importance. Michael Dell, the founder and chairman of Dell Inc., who will relinquish his CEO post next month, was at NECC to launch his company's Intelligent Classroom initiative. The program will provide schools with a low-cost bundle of computers, projectors, cameras, presentation screens, and other high-tech devices, giving classrooms an entire technology upgrade in one fell swoop. (See Dell expands push into classrooms.) Dell, whose company's success has translated into a personal net worth of more than $13 billion, spoke of Dell's central role in education. Nearly half of all U.S. school computers and computer equipment are Dell products, and the new Intelligent Classroom initiative could make Dell's educational presence even greater. This rapid growth, dubbed the "Dell Effect" by Business Week, resulted from the company's commitment to lowering prices in all sectors in which it competes. From 1998 to 2003, Dell's sales to the education field increased by 224 percent, the company reported, compared with the average rate of 36 percent. "By passing savings along to our customers, we have grown education and made technology more available to students," Dell said. "& This helps the country develop a future workforce that can stay competitive with the rest of the world." For Craig Barrett, the CEO of Intel Corp., NECC offered the perfect setting for a black-tie gala awards ceremony at which 20 schools were named winners of the Intel-Scholastic 21st Century Schools of Distinction Award. The awards recognized these schools' "comprehensive programs exhibiting excellence in the use of technology, involvement of parents and community, professional development, teamwork, and high academic standards." Several major ed-tech companies teamed up to present more than $2.3 million in technology grants to the 20 winners, with each school receiving curriculum materials, professional development resources, software, and hardware worth more than $120,000. The big winners at the Academy Awards-style event were Houston County High School in Warner Robins, Ga., and MacArthur High School in Irving, Texas, which were named "Best of the Best" among the 20 honorees. The Intel Foundation awarded a $25,000 grant to each school, while distributing $10,000 to each of the 18 other schools. "By sponsoring these awards, we hope to share the outstanding programs and efforts these schools have put in place with other schools around the country," Barrett said. "We have to learn from each other in order to transform our classrooms and our schools." Dell and Barrett weren't the only corporate heavyweights in New Orleans. Also on hand, having just engineered a $77 million initial public offering--the largest IPO of 2004--was Blackboard Inc. chairman and co-founder Matthew Pittinsky. He gave a speech on how online learning has affected relationships among education stakeholders. Pittinsky's recent Wall Street success was yet another indication that educational technology's key players feel the economic climate is ripe for expansion. Mona Westhaver, the president and co-founder of Inspiration Software, who was ahead of her time 16 years ago in developing one of the most popular educational programs in U.S. schools, also sees big opportunities in 2004. Westhaver came to New Orleans to showcase Inspiration for the Palm OS--making it one of the first major educational software applications to take the leap to handhelds. "We moved to the Palm OS because our customers were asking for it," Westhaver said. "Educators felt there weren't good products available for the handheld." Handhelds were a major focus at the show, and the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) turned up the spotlight by releasing "A Guide to Handheld Computing in K-12 Education." The 56-page report, compiled by CoSN's Emerging Technologies committee, features 12 case studies that describe how different schools are using handhelds and graphing calculators. CoSN examines the benefits of this technology, while also considering challenges that include management issues, the breakage and loss of handhelds, inappropriate use of the devices, and the relatively limited availability of software. "As more schools use handheld computers or are considering their use, it is critical to address the potential impact these devices can have on the education community," said CoSN CEO Keith Krueger. "& We needed a resource to answer questions about how handhelds can function to facilitate student learning and development." The handheld-computing guide is available for purchase at CoSN's Online Store. Assessment and professional development Another key theme of the show was professional development solutions for teachers who are struggling to keep up with the available technology. Robin Surland and Deanna Somers, both members of the Instructional Technology Department for the Wichita Public Schools, gave a presentation on the history of their district's innovative Standards for Teachers through Educational Projects (STEPs) program, which helps Wichita teachers learn new technology skills, create project-based lesson plans, and meet ISTE's National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS*S). The intensive-but-optional program has enabled many Wichita teachers to become more comfortable with technology, while inspiring them to make it part of their curricula. Assessment and professional development have taken on added significance because of an approaching deadline. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation mandates that by 2006 every eighth-grade student in the United States must be proficient in technology literacy skills. To help teachers monitor student progress toward meeting those requirements, several initiatives were announced at NECC. For starters, a new free, web-based assessment tool made its debut. The tool was developed as a collaboration between ISTE and Microsoft Corp. and is a component of Microsoft's U.S. Partners in Learning program. Based on NETS*S, the tool will contain 12 assessments along with classroom curriculum and teacher support materials. Seven assessments have been available since June 19 at the ISTE web site, and the remaining five will be available in mid-August. Each assessment meets at least two NETS*S standards and includes a mapping tool to specify the standards met. ISTE also is working directly with two educational testing companies to develop a technology literacy assessment for middle-school children. The assessment, which also draws on ISTE's NETS*S, is designed to help school administrators meet the technology literacy requirements of NCLB. The International Computer Driving License U.S. company (ICDL-US) and online testing company Vantage Learning are the partners with ISTE in this venture. The web-based assessment will consist of several specific test units, each lasting up to an hour, with knowledge-based, performance-based, and open-ended questions that require students to apply what they've learned. A pilot project for the new assessment will launch in five to 10 states or large districts during the 2004-05 school year. In addition, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills--a public-private organization whose members include the AOL Time Warner Foundation, Apple Computer, Cable in the Classroom, Cisco Systems, Dell, Microsoft, the National Education Association, and SAP--issued a series of free tools to help teachers, administrators, and lawmakers incorporate specific "21st-century skills" into the core curriculum. (See New guides help teach 21st century skills.) Few companies were as busy on the NECC news-making front as Sprint Corp. The global communications provider made several announcements in conjunction with the show. Two of Sprint's announcements involved the company's Empowered Education Desktop for Schools program, which combines Sprint's network with online delivery of many learning tools from a wide range of K-12 content producers. At NECC, Sprint announced that the Empowered Education Desktop for Schools has added Atomic Learning's online software tutorials and an application service provider (ASP) version of ParentLink, a web-based program that lets parents and teachers securely access essential school-related data through the web. Sprint also announced that it was teaming with Cisco Systems to offer a network video solution to enable teachers and administrators to provide rich, dynamic video content to classrooms using the school's existing bandwidth. Digital video in the classroom When they weren't talking about professional development or assessment, convention visitors focused on digital imaging and the integration of video into the curriculum. As teachers strive to make technology work for students, high-end video editing applications have been among the first to find a home in classrooms. A spokesman for Atomic Learning, which offers online tutorials to familiarize teachers and students with numerous software products, said the company's most popular tutorials of late have been the iMovie program for the Macintosh and Windows Movie Maker for the PC. Video on demand also is heating up as an educational tool. In an independent study commissioned by Discovery Education, the use of short video clips during instruction was found to increase students' math scores in four Los Angeles middle schools. Results of the study, which were released at NECC, supported earlier research that showed the company's "unitedstreaming" video solution also was effective in teaching science and social-studies concepts. (See Video on demand boosts students' math scores.) To help more schools experience the same kinds of gains, Discovery Education has announced it will offer its unitedstreaming service at no cost to one school in every non-subscribing public school district in the United States during the 2004-2005 school year. According to the company, the service provides access to more than 2,200 full-length videos and 22,000 video clips correlated to individual state education standards. Interactive videoconferencing, another popular use of video in the classroom, has gained momentum from the push for more professional development and the fact that the infrastructure necessary for its use is largely covered by eRate funding. At NECC, Canon USA and Tandberg showcased high-end systems that enable districts to bridge physical distances between educators looking for more technology instruction and IT personnel who might not otherwise be able to visit the school on short notice. Tandberg's newest product, a videoconferencing unit on wheels, allows schools to easily move the equipment from one classroom to another, enabling multiple teachers to employ distance learning. ISTE also weighed in on the topic of videoconferencing, releasing "Videoconferencing for K-12 Classrooms: A Program Development Guide." The book, written by three educators with extensive videoconferencing experience, offers numerous best practices for the technology. It is available for purchase through ISTE's online bookstore. Feeding off the popularity of video, interactive whiteboards were out in full force. SMART Technologies, Promethean, GTCO CalComp, Numonics Corp., Mimio, and Polyvision all demonstrated their latest incarnations of hardware that transforms the traditional classroom blackboard into a multimedia learning environment, complete with interactivity and other elements designed to engage a generation of children who have grown up with video games and other visually stimulating technology in their homes. Students as technology 'mavens' Technology's role in helping increase students' enthusiasm for learning was particularly evident during a CoSN forum to announce the release of the Youth Technology Support Collaborative's new "School Decision-Maker's Guide to Student Technology Programs." In this 20-page report, YTSC examines the emerging trend of students providing technology support and leadership in schools. The entire guide is available online at http://www.studenttechsupport.org. "When it comes to technology, students sometimes can know more than their teachers," said Tim Magner, deputy director of the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology. "In many schools the technology 'mavens' are the kids themselves, and they are eager for opportunities to participate in the life of the school." In a news conference detailing the report, YTSC presented five students, all from grades 5-8, who had spent the past school year in such programs. "I didn't expect the program to be as rewarding as it turned out to be," said Falan McKnight, an eighth-grader from Weir, Miss. "And I didn't expect to learn everything that I learned." "I was just surprised I could learn how to replace a power supply. I had never even seen the guts of a computer before," said Kelly Lott, a sixth-grader from Purvis (Miss.) Middle School. McKnight, who took the course for a letter grade, recalled having to explain software to a science teacher multiple times because the teacher kept forgetting how to use it. She also said the experience brought her closer to the teachers, helping her realize her own value to the school. She noted that younger teachers were more comfortable with technology in their classrooms than their more experienced counterparts. Building a top-notch IT team Another major CoSN forum in New Orleans brought chief technology officers from several K-12 schools together to discuss their experiences with building their own IT teams and encouraging teachers to embrace technology. Jim Hirsch, associate superintendent for technology at the Plano (Texas) Independent School District, urged his colleagues to focus on personnel issues and recognize that the effective use of technology in schools would largely depend on those charged with overseeing it. "Mediocre people are going to give you mediocre results," said Hirsch. "Good is not an option here. You have to look for great people and find staff who take responsibility and want to help others." Dave Richards, technology and information systems director for the Rochester, Mich., Community Schools, spoke on the importance of a CTO's role in creating professional development programs and ensuring that adequate funding is available. "The real challenge for most of us is getting people to fund professional development," Richards said. "Bond money pays for hardware, but not for training of teachers. It's our job to do a needs assessment and make sure training opportunities are appropriate." Although his IT staff was limited, Richards found that by enlisting several of Rochester's most respected teachers as "technology coaches," he was able to break down many barriers. Teachers who were previously reluctant to integrate technology into their curricula became more receptive to the idea when presented with esteemed colleagues who had made the leap themselves. Bringing about change Two of the convention's keynote speakers also emphasized the valuable role technology plays in the learning process and the importance of having teachers who are comfortable with it. Malcolm Gladwell, a staff writer for The New Yorker and author of The Tipping Point, was the opening keynote speaker. He described how a single event--a live broadcast of a $1 million prize fight in Jersey City in 1921 between Jack Dempsey and George Cartier--helped personal home radios take hold in U.S. society. "Change happens far more quickly than you can imagine," Gladwell said, whether it's getting radios into the mainstream or computers into classrooms. The fall of the Berlin Wall is another example. It's not economic or political power that brings change, Gladwell said. It's social power, and it's social power alone that can "bring about change to education." Most people have a social circle of about 35 people, but a few people, whom Gladwell calls "connectors," have social circles in the hundreds. Connectors, he says, have social power because they connect one person to the next and spread ideas. "Unless you have social power, unless you have the ability to reach many, many people in many, many different worlds, then you don't have the ability to make a difference, to make a social change," Gladwell said. Gladwell tied his concept of social power to the unique relationship teachers have with their own colleagues as well as students. He told the audience that they need to help those who are overwhelmed and frustrated by technology. "You may not be the most powerfully connected people, you may not be the most wealthy, but you have social power," Gladwell said. "If you use it wisely, you can bring about social change." Peter Reynolds, the author-illustrator who is also founder and CEO of Fablevision, gave a rousing speech to end the convention, urging educators to get technology into the hands of children because it will stimulate their natural creativity. Reynolds told the story of how his own high school teacher in Toronto sparked his interest in math by encouraging him to apply his artistic talents to an animated film about a mathematical concept. Reynolds credited this teacher with changing his entire life, putting him on a path to educational story-telling that ultimately led to the 1996 founding of Fablevision. A strong advocate of school laptop programs, Reynolds demonstrated the wonders of a graphics tablet by drawing one of his popular animated characters for the several hundred members of the audience. He then showed a short film based on his children's book The Dot, which tells the story of a young girl named Vashti who feels her artistic talent is limited to her ability to draw dots. Vashti's teacher encourages her to hone her dot-drawing skills, and by the end of the story, the formerly disenchanted girl has become a respected artist who inspires other students at her school. Reynolds urged educators to think of his story as a model for student-teacher relationships. By encouraging young people to use technology in creative ways, they can raise their self-esteem and make them more excited about learning, he said. "Let's put tests in perspective and bring back creativity," he said. "Right now, computers are often used in unspectacular ways, like test prep and testing. They aren't used to get kids to be creative. Let's put the technology right in the kids' hands and let them make their mark with it." Links: National Educational Computing Conference International Society for Technology in Education Consortium for School Networking http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5136 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 21373 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040630/068d386f/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 30 17:24:21 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Wed Aug 18 16:10:26 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Schools must use $2 billion or lose it Message-ID: Schools must use $2 billion or lose it Tuesday, June 29, 2004 Posted: 11:02 AM EDT (1502 GMT) WASHINGTON (AP) -- States are getting a reminder from the federal government: Quickly make plans to spend more than $2 billion in education money, or be ready to lose it. The Education Department has found that all the states, the District of Columbia and eight territories have high cash balances left from 2002, including money meant for poor children, disabled students and limited-English learners. That money must be obligated -- not spent, but at least legally earmarked toward a specific expense -- by September 30, which is 27 months after it was released to states. States then have two final years to spend the money. Ultimately, school money not committed or spent returns to the federal treasury, as happened with $155 million last year. The department's move comes as an election-year fight grows over whether states and schools have enough money to do what's demanded of them under new federal law. House Republicans announced Monday that states have $16.8 billion in unspent school money dating from the former Clinton administration, a figure that the Education Department confirmed but state school officials called misleading without context about how school financing works. GOP leaders are expanding an argument made this year by the department, the White House and congressional Republicans, that schools are flush with federal money. It's meant to counter the claim that President Bush, who championed a law demanding greater improvement in all schools, has not come close to keeping his promise to pay for changes the law demands. "We've literally flooded the system with cash, and it's time to start focusing on improving student achievement instead," said Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee. The Education Department has issued letters to chief state school officers, reminding them of what appeared to be substantial cash balances with just three months before the September deadline. Meeting obligations More than $2.1 billion is unspent from 2002, or about 8 percent of the money allocated for five broad areas, including special education and adult education. The department's letters to states identified only those cash balances that seemed particularly high. Todd Jones, a department budget official, acknowledged Monday that the agency does not know how much of that money already has been obligated. He said it makes sense that some cash is not yet committed, such as money for summer reading expenses that have yet to occur. Still, Jones said, the department issued its reminder to ensure that states don't miss their chances to use the money. It's part of a broader effort this year to help states account for all the federal money available and to draw it down more quickly. "The states are telling us that they're not seeing this as a red flag at all," Jordan Cross, lobbyist for the Council of Chief State School Officers, said after leaders there reviewed the numbers with budget and top education executives from at least 10 states Monday. "They expect, by September, that almost all of that money will be obligated." Patty Sullivan, the council's deputy executive director, added: "To the department's credit, they gave us a heads-up on this. I don't think this is a `gotcha' activity. I think they really are trying to help." Still, Sullivan said, the implication that states "have a closet full of money," is misleading. Her group plans to publish a document that explains school financing for the public, knowing the issue will come up again. http://www.cnn.com/2004/EDUCATION/06/29/school.money.ap/index.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 4524 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040630/4ea9c5e7/attachment.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 2 21:08:47 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] article on bridging the digital divide Message-ID: <91211539-B4FA-11D8-9949-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Website opens up Internet to black students BY ANDREA ROBINSON arobinson@herald.com Karnita Dumas and Christopher Emile laughed in delight at the animation that appeared on the website: black and brown children reading books, dancing and painting -- the same things they like to do. ''This is great,'' said Karnita, 11, glancing up from the computer screen. Like Christopher, 10, she is a fifth-grader at Linda Lentin Elementary in Biscayne Gardens. Along with the ethnic images and information about local research libraries and museums, the site contains links to homework assistance, scholarship information and tips for taking the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. The website -- www.links4youth.com -- was created by four civic-minded black women who want to help close the so-called digital divide by using computers to boost black children's interest in education, culture and volunteerism. ''Minority kids, and black kids in particular, are not on the information highway as much as other kids are,'' said Cynthia Curry, a local consultant and one of the women who developed the new site. ``Many of our children do not have ready access [to the Internet]. What we're trying to do is help them understand how much richer their information base could be if they had access to the variety of information on the Internet.'' Their belief that technology can help students achieve academic success comes as federal officials say more children are using the Internet to assist with homework. According to the U.S. Department of Education, 42 percent of all students in grades K through 12 use the Internet to complete school assignments. And students rely more on the World Wide Web as they get older. One-third of elementary students reported relying on the Internet, compared with more than half of middle school students and two-thirds of high school students. At the same time, federal figures show, minority students have less access to the Internet at home than do their white counterparts. Fifty-two percent of white students are more likely to use a home computer for completing school assignments, compared with 28 percent of black and 27 percent of Hispanic students. When not at school, Artavia Smith, 17, a graduating senior at Northwestern High, travels 15 minutes from home to use her aunt's computer after school. She prefers researching the Internet to poring through reference books at the public library. ''It is a little hindrance,'' Artavia said. ``But if I have a computer, nothing stops me from getting to it.'' The creators of the website hope their project will help close the divide in the Miami area. Later this year they will award computers to three students as incentive to continue using the website. THE CREATORS Curry and three other women -- retired city of Miami administrator Renee Jones, circuit court administrator Anne T. Herriott and attorney Gail Dotson -- developed the site for their organization, the Links of Greater Miami. The women unveiled the project this month at three Dade schools: Lentin, Richmond Middle and Northwestern High. They plan a district-wide blitz when school resumes in mid-August. All Miami-Dade public schools have computers. ''We want this to be a resource tool for children in South Florida,'' Jones said. ``If you're having problems with homework, you can [connect to] the tutorial service [link]. If you need information on financial assistance, it's there. This is a one-stop resource for youth of the community.'' The site is supposed to inspire kids to ''enrich their potential for success,'' said President Florence Strachan, a retired Miami-Dade school administrator. ``This supplements what the schools are doing. It can't hurt.'' Social scientists say kids are more apt to respond to information and images similar to their own experience. Marvin Dawkins, a University of Miami sociology professor, said a localized, culturally sensitive website could become an invaluable resource for black students. ''The website is the first that I've seen of this type in Miami,'' he said. ``It has potential for having a tremendous impact on both raising awareness and attracting interest and developing an additional resource for black parents, students and teachers to use. ''It engages them more directly when [websites] feature information that relates to their experiences,'' Dawkins said. ``You get their attention, and then you can connect them to other educational tools, even ones that are not about them.'' Herriott said the team relied on input from students in determining content. ''They wanted to know more about HIV/AIDS and drug abuse. We were taken aback that they wanted to know such serious issues, but these are the times they are living in,'' she said. Herriott and other group members introduced the site Tuesday to about 20 fifth- and sixth-graders at Lentin Elementary. All the students, black and Hispanic, said they had a home computer. SURFING AWAY The children busily explored dozens of pages that depicted hip-hop dancers, black ballerinas and cultural icons like Frederick Douglass. Angela Bellamy, a retired Miami administrator and group member, stood near Karnita and Christopher and observed them as they explored the site. ''Information is power. The more information they have, the more it enlightens them,'' she said. ``It's all about access and information.'' http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/living/education/8806241.htm? template=contentModules/printstory.jsp --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 6807 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040602/9a59b72f/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 2 23:20:29 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] SETDA and Helping States Implement NCLB Message-ID: The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) recently unveiled its 2003 SETDA National Leadership Institute Toolkit: States Helping States Implement No Child Left Behind. Developed with input from state and national experts, the kit offers resources and best practices on improving learning for all students through the use of technology. It addresses five content areas: ? building partnerships and leveraging resources; ? technology leadership skills for the 21st century; ? data collection and data-driven decision making; ? building high-quality professional development programs; and ? virtual schools and distance learning. The toolkit contains the outcomes of five corresponding work groups that met at SETDA's second annual National Leadership Institute held in December 2003. The institute was attended by over 100 education technology leaders from 46 states, along with U.S. Department of Education representatives and other interested parties. SETDA has also compiled for its Web site a profile report outlining each state's technology plans. For more information, visit www.setda.org. http://www.ed.gov/news/newsletters/achiever/2004/060104.html#4 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 2023 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040602/38790f57/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 3 10:54:17 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] New Google Search engine Message-ID: New search service creates 'Google for scholars' By Cara Branigan, Associate Editor, eSchool News June 3, 2004 Internet searches might become faster and more fruitful for students, scholars, and other academics as early as this year, thanks to a pilot program being developed as a free service spearheaded by Google, the world's leading internet search engine. The initiative, called CrossRef Search, combines Google's popular search technology with the archives of up to 300 leading scholarly publications, allowing researchers to separate Google's typical search results from high-quality, peer-reviewed, scholarly content. "Everybody is using Google, even scientists," said Ed Pentz, executive director of CrossRef, an association for scholarly publishers. "For a lot of people, Google is the first place they check." Google's general search results can produce an overwhelming amount of links, many of which are unreliable or unrelated to the desired topic. If a science student types "Dolly" into a Google query, for example, he or she will spend valuable time sorting through disparate links about the singer Dolly Parton and the musical Hello Dolly before finding information about the first cloned sheep. Using the terms "Dolly" and "sheep" narrows the search to a still-overwhelming 116,000 links. The CrossRef Search, however, would provide access to full-text articles about Dolly the cloned sheep only from trusted sources, Pentz said. The service aims to help students find authoritative, scientific information faster. "There's so much information and so much being indexed by search engines like Google," Pentz said, but "students [often] don't look at the quality of the search results." Nine publishers--the American Physical Society, Annual Reviews, the Association for Computing Machinery, Blackwell Publishing, the Institute of Physics Publishing, the International Union of Crystallography, Nature Publishing Group, Oxford University Press, and John Wiley & Sons Inc.--have made their archives available for the pilot so far. Using the tool, which is located on each participating publisher's search page, students can search the current and past issues of multiple journals, as well as conference proceeding articles. The CrossRef Search performs like a typical Google search, except that it searches only the participating publishers' archives. More than 3,000 searches have been done since CrossRef Search launched April 28. To refine the search process, CrossRef will gather feedback from those who have used it over the next several months. Once the pilot is complete in December, CrossRef expects to make the search tool available to the general public. At that time, school libraries could add the CrossRef Search box, which includes a Google logo, to their web page for students to use. In the meantime, CrossRef plans to add 20 more publishers to the pilot. Ultimately, the group hopes to add all of its 300 members' publications. http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5097 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 3724 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040603/a617cbd2/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 3 18:12:39 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Interaction Design and Children Conference Message-ID: <203E25AE-B5AB-11D8-9A0A-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Interaction Design and Children Conference Alan Kay, Marvin Minsky, Seymour Papert and Allison Druin Technology Researchers Thursday, June 03, 2004; 1:00 p.m ET This year, the University of Maryland Human-Computer Interaction Lab holds the third annual Interaction Design and Children conference that focuses on the importance and current challenges of allowing children to be integrated at the early stage of the technology design process. The three-day conference features workshops, seminars and new research and products that include emerging technology, new research methods involving children in the design, development, and evaluation processes and the impact of new technologies on young people. Conference speakers and chair Alan Kay, Marvin Minsky, Seymour Papert and Allison Druin will be online Thursday, June 3 at 1 p.m. ET to discuss the conference highlights and their research. Submit your questions and comments before or during the show. Kay is a senior fellow in HP Labs researching and developing new software platforms. His work includes developing the idea of the personal computer, overlapping window interface and conceptualizing object-oriented programming. Recently, Kay received the 2003 Turing Award, one of the highest honors awarded from the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM). He has worked in Xerox PARC, Atari Research Labs, Apple Computer and the Walt Disney Company. Minsky is the Toshiba professor of Media Arts and Sciences at the MIT Media Lab. He is considered to be one of the "founding fathers" of artificial intelligence. His research includes the possibilities for commonsense reasoning by machines and has made significant contributions to the fields of AI, mathematics, computational linguistics, robotics and children's technology. His books include "The Society of Mind" (1985) and "The Emotion Machine" (2001). Papert is a professor of Education and Media Technology at the MIT Media Lab and at the University of Maine. For over 40 years, Papert has pioneered research in how technology can provide children new ways to learn. In his labs at MIT, he has led research in developing the Logo programming language, LEGO Mindstorms and many other computational "objects to think with." He has also the author of "Mindstorms" (1980). Druin is a faculty member in the College of Information Studies and the Human-Computer Interaction Lab at the University of Maryland. Recently she was appointed by the White House and confirmed by the U.S. Senate to become a Commissioner in the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science. For almost two decades, she has led interdisciplinary teams of researchers and children to develop new educational technologies and to develop new methods of working with children as design partners. http://discuss.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/zforum/04/ sp_technews_druin060204.htm --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 4044 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040603/74d4d4ee/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Sat Jun 5 09:36:04 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] call for manuscripts Message-ID: <4ABFC990-B6F5-11D8-807B-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Date: Tue, 18 May 2004 15:24:21 -0400 From: James L. Morrison [--] Innovate is a bimonthly, peer-reviewed, online periodical published by Nova Southeastern University. It focuses on the creative use of information technology (IT) to enhance educational processes in all sectors (K-12, college and university, corporate, government). Innovate is dedicated to presenting articles via the most dynamic, interactive technology that is available. For each article, the journal provides an online discussion forum, an interactive webcast that connects authors and readers, and a "read-related" feature that links visitors to articles on similar topics. A multimedia classifieds section and journal editions in multiple languages are both in the planning stages. Theory, practice, vision, and commentary all have a place in Innovate. Articles generally fall into one of four main categories. * Applied Research and Assessment: Evidence related to the extent, effectiveness, and/or impact of IT use in educational and professional settings * Practice: Reports on innovative uses of IT in specific environments, with notable results * Development: Advance information on the newest IT projects, programs, tools, and trends * Commentary: Critical reflections on the changing nature of teaching, learning, and training with IT in the twenty-first century If you would like to submit a manuscript for publication consideration, please review our submission guidelines at http://horizon.unc.edu/innovate/guidelines/ and let me know if you intend to submit a manuscript. Also, please forward this announcement to colleagues who may want to submit manuscripts. The initial issue of Innovate will be published in July 2004. Sign up for our mailing list at http://horizon.unc.edu/innovate/ Many thanks. Jim ---- James L. Morrison Editor-in-Chief, Innovate http://horizon.unc.edu/innovate/guidelines/ Professor Emeritus of Educational Leadership UNC-Chapel Hill http://horizon.unc.edu --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 11:00:04 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Special Needs grants Message-ID: <862A36F1-B95C-11D8-B7A9-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> If you haven't signed up for our listserve, you might consider it. These kinds of things (below) will be sent to emails via the listserve. http://www.touchsmart.net/contact/listserve.html Best Regards, jb > ED > Headquarters and Regional Offices > Discretionary Grant and Mandatory Grant Competitions > Special Education--Research and Innovation to Improve Services and > Results for Children with Disabilities--National Center on Secondary, > Transition, and Postsecondary School Outcomes for Students with > Disabilities > Grant > http://www.fedgrants.gov/Applicants/ED/HRO/DCMGC/ED-GRANTS-060204-002/ > listing.html > > ED > Headquarters and Regional Offices > Discretionary Grant and Mandatory Grant Competitions > Research and Innovation to Improve Services and Results for Children > with Disabilities--Research and Innovation > Grant > http://www.fedgrants.gov/Applicants/ED/HRO/DCMGC/ED-GRANTS-060204-001/ > listing.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 11:05:13 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Sun to make Solaris open source Message-ID: <3E662A68-B95D-11D8-B7A9-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> > SUN TO RELEASE SOLARIS CODE > > In a surprise announcement, Sun Microsystems has said it will release > the source code for its Solaris operating system under an open-source > license. Sun formerly controlled a significant portion of the server > market with its proprietary Solaris operating system, but the company > has been losing ground in recent years to products from Linux and > Microsoft, which can be much less expensive than Sun's offerings. Sun's > announcement did not include specifics about its plan but said that the > company "is in the process of soliciting customer feedback in refining > various aspects of the project." Analysts said the significance of > Sun's > new stance will depend on the particulars, such as whether all or just > part of the source code will be available. "This is not the > manifestation of a grand plan," said Ashok Kumar, an analyst at Raymond > James and Company. "There are more questions than answers at this > point." New York Times, 5 June 2004 (registration req'd) > > http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/05/todaysheadlines/05sun.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 13:58:56 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Virtual Biology Labs due to animal rights? Message-ID: <82F9A0F3-B975-11D8-93DB-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> A second look at the biology lab By April Austin | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor A single whiff of formaldehyde transports many adults back to biology class and dissection. It's hard to forget the odor that arose from trays of rubbery, preserved frogs or fetal pigs. But that rite of passage is now being challenged by students who find dissection objectionable on animal-rights grounds. The issue came up recently on the prime-time television show "8 Simple Rules." The character Kerry, one of the two daughters, becomes concerned about frog dissection in her school and organizes a sit-in to protest the practice. As animal-rights groups have stepped up their campaign to stop the use of animals for research, the message is being heeded by some students in middle and high school. It's a controversy that pits animal rights against traditional methods of teaching science and anatomy. "There's no substitute for dissection," says Wayne Carley, executive director of the National Association of Biology Teachers. He insists the move against dissection comes more from squeamish students being manipulated by radical animal-rights groups than from a groundswell of concern for animal welfare. "High school kids are easy targets," he says. Still, the NABT supports the idea that "teachers should consider how their students would react [to dissection]," says Mr. Carley. "We support the wise use of animals, and that could mean a reduction in the number of specimen animals used." About 6 million animals are dissected each year in US schools, according to the Humane Society of the United States. These include frogs, fetal pigs, and cats. The cats come from shelters that would have euthanized the animals, Carley says, or the animals are procured by dealers in the US or Mexico. But today, the quest is on to find credible alternatives to dissection at all levels - from high school and college classrooms to research labs and veterinary schools. This means some type of computer simulation, such as can be found on websites such as www.froguts.com. Because the technology is still being refined, the programs for the most part aren't sophisticated. Some life-sciences teachers, including Jessica Crosby of Pollard Middle School in Needham, Mass., use virtual- dissection programs to prepare students for the real thing. In April, before the unit on frog dissection, Ms. Crosby gave each of her 90 students a confidential survey that asked how hands-on they wanted to be during the procedure. This year, she says, although some were apprehensive at first, every student participated. "I saw how engaged the kids were. They were so proud that they could identify the organs," she says. Nine states have laws or policies that allow students to opt out of dissection, according to the Humane Society of the United States, and several more are contemplating such measures. But the issue goes deeper, says Andrew Rowan, chief of staff for animal research at the Humane Society. "It's much easier to get students' attention by dropping a dead animal in front of them," he says. "But when students are forced to do dissection, they're turned off. The lesson, which is in part to get them interested in science, has exactly the opposite effect." Crosby says dissection offers an unmatched opportunity to see how each anatomical system is part of the whole. "I wouldn't force a student to do it if it violated their beliefs," she adds. A March survey by the National Science Teachers Association showed that 80 percent of its members think dissection activities are important to science learning, with 76 percent including dissection of animal specimens in their lessons. Of the teachers who said they've decreased the frequency of dissection in class, the biggest reason cited was the expense of specimens, not pressure from students or outside groups. Concern for animals in the larger society has trickled down to high school students, says Rowan. "As a society, we now think differently about hunting, about how well pets are treated, about cosmetics testing, and the rights of animals," he says. "But biology classes are still doing the same things they've always done. Biology should be a study of life, not death." Crosby says her students seemed better able to recall the material after the dissection. "The virtual dissection is still on a screen," she says. "You're not really doing it." http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0608/p14s01-legn.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 7788 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040608/3d44f251/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 20:39:43 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Hamilton, Ohio and NCLB Message-ID: <7FD89B3F-B9AD-11D8-93DB-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Secretary Paige joined U.S. Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, & Hamilton Schools Superintendent Janet Baker at a ceremony celebrating Hamilton High School's role as President Bush's host for the signing of the No Child Left Behind Act. http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2004/06/06082004.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 20:41:10 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Supplemental Educational Services Message-ID: Promising Practices: Supplemental Educational Services Tips & promising practices for implementing supplemental educational services, including tutoring, are offered in "Creating Strong Supplemental Educational Services Programs." http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2004/05/05252004.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 20:41:43 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Tutoring and NCLB Message-ID: Supplemental Services Website A new website helps parents take advantage of free tutoring & other supplemental academic enrichment services for eligible children under NCLB. http://www.tutorsforkids.org --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 8 20:43:37 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Ohio, Indiana, Ed Representative Message-ID: <0B743D50-B9AE-11D8-93DB-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Secretary Paige announced the appointment of Kristine Cohn as his regional representative for Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio & Wisconsin. http://www.ed.gov/news/pressreleases/2004/05/05242004a.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 9 00:48:34 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] TiVo to use Internet at TV Message-ID: <4373F43B-B9D0-11D8-93DB-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> New Service by TiVo Will Build Bridges From Internet to the TV By JOHN MARKOFF June 9, 2004 The Internet, in jumping past the personal computer and into the living room television set, is starting to give viewers the possibility of bypassing traditional cable and satellite services. TiVo, the maker of a popular digital video recorder, plans to announce a new set of Internet-based services today that will further blur the line between programming delivered over traditional cable and satellite channels and content from the Internet. It is just one of a growing group of large and small companies that are looking at high-speed Internet to deliver video content to the living room. The new TiVo technology, which will become a standard feature in its video recorders, will allow users to download movies and music from the Internet to the hard drive on their video recorder. Although the current TiVo service allows users to watch broadcast, cable or satellite programs at any time, the new technology will make it possible for them to mix content from the Internet with those programs. "This is the fourth electronic video service, and it is an alternative to cable, satellite and broadcast television," said Tom Wolzien, an analyst at Bernstein Investment Research and Management. Those traditional services, Mr. Wolzien said, "have been the monster gatekeepers, but this is a way for content providers to get past them." In the new world of Internet-connected television, viewers will not have to worry about when a show is scheduled or from where it comes. "We're fully committed to developing an entertainment experience you can't get over normal broadcast television," said Michael Ramsay, chairman and chief executive of TiVo. "This is what we think the future of television is." A timetable for introducing the video service has not been set, nor has its price. TiVo sustained a big blow Tuesday when DirecTV, the satellite television provider and the biggest source of new subscribers for the TiVo service, said it had sold its entire equity stake of 3.4 million shares in TiVo. Shares of TiVo dropped more than 14 percent to close at $6.41. There is some speculation in the industry that DirecTV is moving toward developing its own digital video recorder. Several analysts suggested TiVo is moving toward Internet downloading as a way to insulate itself against potential competition from DirecTV. Last year TiVo, which has 1.6 million subscribers who use its digital video recorder with cable or DirecTV, acquired Strangeberry, a small Silicon Valley start-up that had developed a new technology to view Internet video streams. TiVo is now developing that technology and plans to integrate it into the TiVo system next year. Video distributors like Netflix, RealNetworks and Blockbuster are also starting to explore the possibility of delivering feature-length movies via the Internet to users for viewing later. "We're no longer in a world where innovation is stopped because somebody is the only game in town," said Rob Glaser, chief executive of RealNetworks, a Seattle-based company that now streams audio and video to computer users through the Internet. The idea of downloading and storing video for conventional television viewing has until now been pioneered by a small group of technology companies like Akimbo, a maker of an Internet digital video recorder that is based in San Mateo, Calif. Because most Internet connections do not yet reliably support data speeds needed to view television-quality video as it is streamed, a number of the Internet video services require that programs first be downloaded and stored on a hard drive before viewing. Now, as broadband Internet becomes widely available in homes and new wireless video networks make it simpler to move video data and streams inside the home, bigger players are starting to emerge. For example, Microsoft demonstrated a service called IPTV at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas this year. The company believes that it is possible to deliver television to rival today's cable programming by using commonly available standard telephone lines, as part of what are called digital subscriber line, or D.S.L., services. It is running two small trials of the technology in Canada and Switzerland, and sees a broad potential. "We sort of expect that TV will shift to where everyone will watch what they want when they want," said Peter T. Barrett, chief technology officer for Microsoft TV. Microsoft executives argue that the technology would be a boon to telephone companies who are now searching for new revenue streams in the face of increasing pressure on their traditional voice-calling businesses. "Every single phone company has to be thinking about video," said Lynne Elander, general manager of marketing for Microsoft TV. But executives at telephone companies said they were not moving quickly to deploy the Microsoft technology. Both Verizon and SBC are engaged in trials and deployment of fiber optic networks, which offer significantly higher speeds than existing D.S.L. services. "The jury is still out on IPTV, we have to see how it works," said Eric Rabe, a spokesman for Verizon. Smaller firms, however, are not waiting for competition to grow in this field. On Monday, Broadband Networks Inc., a start-up based in Los Gatos, Calif., introduced a service it called TimeshiftTV. The new service, using a $299 digital video recorder, will initially focus on offering video programs in eight foreign languages when it is available in December. Broadband's chief executive, Bob Burke, said the company would try to license its technology to other companies. The main challenge facing Internet video distribution is that streaming DVD and HDTV-quality video will require data rates above 5 megabits a second. That is far beyond most D.S.L. network speeds today, which generally range from 300 kilobits to 1.5 megabits. Indeed, even downloading and storing high-definition video for later viewing at most D.S.L. speeds may not be economical. Sending the data stored on a DVD disk over the Internet at those speeds might take several days, making it a poor competitor for "sneaker-net" services like Blockbuster, which require the viewer to walk or drive to the store. But for standard video quality, the economics may already work, according to a recent Bernstein Research report. It costs just 15 cents an hour to stream standard video across a D.S.L. connection, Mr. Wolzien said, and those costs are falling. Whether Internet delivery of programming will be a serious threat in the near future to traditional broadcasters remains a matter for debate among industry executives. In any event, they also expect to capitalize on the new technology. As Steve Burke, president of Comcast Cable, the nation's largest cable operator, said recently in a phone interview, "We're big believers that the Internet is the future." http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/09/technology/09net.html? ei=5062&en=f02ffac2c4b10abd&ex=10873.... --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 7706 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040609/d1d635cc/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 10 08:19:50 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] science at Howard High Message-ID: <789EA193-BAD8-11D8-B416-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Brown's scientific method Mentor: As a volunteer scientist-in-residence at Howard High, Nesbitt D. Brown, 70, hasn't missed a Tuesday or Thursday in eight years of working with students. By Laura Shovan Special To The Sun Originally published June 9, 2004 When he retired after more than 38 years in research and development at Washington's Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the last thing biochemist Nesbitt D. Brown wanted was a second career. But when Howard High School invited him to be its volunteer scientist-in-residence, Brown couldn't resist. The 70-year-old Columbia resident hasn't missed a Tuesday or Thursday in eight years of working with students. "I never had time to go into that blue mode, depression," after retiring, Brown said. Since he began mentoring Howard High students, Brown has guided them through projects on penicillin, cat litter and bug spray, sometimes letting kids use him as a guinea pig in their experiments. "They're so enthusiastic and they're so bright and they're so appreciative," Brown said. "For me, in a personal sense, it's something to look forward to." In April, the Howard County school system honored Brown with its Friends of Education award. Bruce D. Riegel, Howard High's gifted-education specialist, nominated Brown not only for teaching a love of biochemistry, but also because of the retiree's emphasis on giving back to the community. Brown arranged for Walter Reed to donate $200,000 worth of lab equipment to the school, bringing with him a High Performance Liquid Chromatograph (HPLC). The HPLC, a rarity for a university science program, is used to analyze organic and inorganic compounds. "We're the only ones that have this [in the county]," said sophomore Caitlin Joyce, 16. "I feel pretty lucky." Recently, Caitlin and her lab partner, 16-year-old Melanie Keller, have been analyzing a variety of sodas for caffeine levels and the preservative sodium benzoate, which retards bacteria. "We spent three weeks and we injected the samples [of soda] into the HPLC and printed out chromatographs," charts showing peaks in certain compounds, Melanie said. Their findings? "Coke had five times more caffeine than Dr. Pepper," she said. Caitlin said she is not only more aware of how much caffeine she drinks, but she also enjoys scientific research. "We go in the hallway and tell our friends [results of an experiment], and they thought we were weird" for being excited about science, she said. Brown's rapport with the students is clear from their enthusiasm in the lab. He uses stories about his career for motivation, such as the time he helped develop the technology for germ-free animals to go into space. "I say you can do something like that, what I did," he told them. He encourages students to use college libraries and the Internet to find scientific papers. Students choose their research projects. They have to develop an objective, a summary, list the tools of their research and be prepared to present it. Brown credited the school for involving students in science fairs and competitions where they can meet other young scientists. "It's something that shows that you don't have to be in a competitive mode to have fun and do things and learn," he said. The students say they are impressed with how much Brown knows. "He always gives us articles" about discoveries in chemistry or current events related to science, Melanie said. "He told us about testing for drugs in athletes and how the new drugs are undetectable" on the HPLC. Riegel said it was "self-evident" why he nominated Brown for the award. "Not only is he knowledgeable and experienced and an effective communicator, but his enthusiasm and his search for the truth is infectious," he said. Students who come in not particularly liking science "want to do research work and want to develop projects. He's such an incredible role model for kids." Giving back to the community runs in Brown's family. All three of his grown children have volunteered at Howard High School. His wife is Columbia Association President Maggie J. Brown. Nesbitt Brown said the award "was something that I didn't expect, but after I received it, I'm honored and I hope that I can keep doing this and have fun doing it. "That's what life is all about," he said. "Helping people." http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/education/bal- ho.chemistry09jun09,0,1102937.story?coll=bal-education-k12 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 5812 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040610/322960d7/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 10 08:22:27 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:17 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] e-Rate claims to bridge the digide Message-ID: Schools achieving a dream: Near-universal Net access Despite its problems, E-rate bridges digital divide By Greg Toppo USA TODAY Cameron Independent School District is one of those tiny, rural school systems where the superintendent is named Maxie and he only has four schools to worry about. Eighty miles northeast of Austin, Cameron has only 1,682 students. But if you paired up kids and computers, there'd nearly be one for every other student -- higher than in most wealthy suburban districts. This fall, every classroom in town will get a 42-inch plasma-screen TV bolted to the wall so teachers can surf the Web with students, show Powerpoint presentations or just watch a DVD. The Internet connection in every classroom comes compliments of the federal E-rate program, says Steele Cooley, the district's technology director. And while it can't be used for computers or TVs -- just for the infrastructure necessary to get schools wired to the Web -- E-rate frees up ''tens of thousands of dollars each year,'' Cooley says, allowing schools to use tax receipts for classroom gear. ''It's been an ongoing, driving force in our technology.'' Despite its problems -- including waste, fraud and mismanagement, according to federal investigators, who plan a series of hearings on Capitol Hill next week -- E-rate has been a dazzling success in thousands of public schools and libraries nationwide, advocates say. ''It's helped us to close the digital divide,'' says Anita Givens, Texas' educational technology director. ''We're not there yet, but we've made tremendous progress.'' The program, paid for by a small fee on phone bills, has generated $12.9 billion since 1998. Advocates say E-rate has helped schools and libraries, especially in rural areas, accomplish what might seem an impossible goal: near-universal Internet access. Between 1996 and 2002, the percentage of Internet-wired schools rose from 65% to 99%, according to federal statistics. The percentage of wired classrooms rose from 14% to 92%; likewise, the percentage of Internet-connected libraries, from 28% to 95%. Educators say the Internet is vital to help young people do homework, conduct research and compete in a global economy. ''Technology is something you have to have, and poor school districts like us cannot afford it,'' says Cameron Superintendent Maxie Morgan. The program helps schools pay for all telecommunications, including ongoing phone expenses. By reducing these costs, E-rate has allowed schools to upgrade their computer systems and spend what little money they have on things they couldn't otherwise afford. ''The program, in some respects, has been wildly successful,'' says Mary Kusler of the American Association of School Administrators. Anita Wiseman, principal of North Lewis Elementary School in New Iberia, La., says E-rate helped the school pay its ''astronomical'' monthly phone charges of $200 to $300. ''We were always in the red when it came to our phone bill,'' she says. It also has revitalized public libraries, says Carrie Lowe of the American Library Association. ''Despite the challenges, E-rate has been a huge success for public libraries.'' Libraries get only 5% of E-rate funds, but she says more people use the facilities now because of the free Internet access many now provide. But critics complain that small communities are often at a disadvantage because they don't have trained technology coordinators to write the detailed proposals that E-rate requires. ''Learning all of the ins and outs of telecommunications and discounts, that's a steep learning curve,'' says Givens, who adds that when E-rate debuted, many officials in small districts ''didn't know the difference between what we call POTS and PANS: Plain Old Telephone Service and the Pretty Awesome Neat Stuff.'' Others complain that E-rate leaves middle-class districts behind, since they're ''not poor enough to get the help, but they're not rich enough to get it themselves,'' says Givens. Della Matthis, Alaska's E-rate coordinator, says E-rate allows isolated villages to provide the same courses other students take for granted. ''It also means that kids do not have to be hauled off to boarding schools to get advanced education,'' she says. ''We bring the education to them.'' E-rate also brought Internet connections to villages themselves, she says. ''Suddenly, the demand for not just telephone lines, but for actual, honest-to-God broadband connectivity, has gone up,'' she says. Critics say E-rate's generous subsidies, which pay for as much as 90% of connectivity costs, are too tempting to crooked technology companies, which sell schools fancier equipment than they need. But while vendors in Alaska, at least, may be making a profit, Matthis says, ''we don't have any gold-plated servers in place that I know of.'' Congress in 2005 is scheduled to reauthorize E-rate. A few opponents will likely propose revamping it, but few observers think the accounting problems will sink it altogether. ''It needs changing, it needs tightening,'' says Dennis Pierce, managing editor of eSchool News. But he says even critics agree that it's a worthy program. Ultimately, he says, E-rate ''has provided so much benefit, and there would be such an uproar, that the program is safe.'' http://www.usatoday.com/usatonline/20040609/6270228s.htm --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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The quality of leadership, researchers found, is also the primary indicator of whether technology funding--regardless of the funding level--is likely to be spent wisely or be wasted. Despite budget shortfalls affecting schools from coast to coast, visionary leaders refuse to let a lack of funds derail the effective use of technology in their schools. Even in the face of stagnant or declining budgets, the report states, dedicated educators are aggressively pursuing the use of technology by employing creative thinking and innovative partnerships to make up for a shortage of cash. "Schools that are committed to deepening the impact of technology are finding ways to raise or repurpose funds to maintain or increase their level of support for technology, even in difficult budget cycles," the report said. On the flip side, "Schools that are less committed to using technology are falling behind--cutting budgets, reducing staff, and forgoing the professional development that would enable educators to use technology more effectively." The findings are from a nationwide survey of 455 school decision-makers, including superintendents, assistant superintendents, directors of instructional technology, chief technology officers, and administrators of management information systems. The study, sponsored in part by AT&T, Educational Testing Service Inc., and Microsoft Corp., reportedly is the first in a series intended to monitor schools' technology spending and related trends. According to researchers, the key to effective technology integration lies not in the number of dollars spent, but in the ability of school leaders to communicate their needs and harness the power of technology--making the best of what resources are available. "Contrary to conventional wisdom, we found that school budgets may not be the biggest barrier to deploying and utilizing technology effectively in the classroom," said the study's lead author, Peter Grunwald. "Instead, visionary leadership coupled with an aggressive development of community and parental support seem to drive change in the most technology-intensive schools." Chief among researchers' findings were a direct link between the quality of leadership within the district and the amount of money budgeted for technology programs, a need for community and stakeholder buy-in, and a too frequent disconnect between school administrators and classroom educators regarding the effective use of technology. Thinking outside the box Despite recent and widespread budget shortfalls, several of the nation's most tech-savvy districts are finding a way to bring new technologies to bear in their schools. In the Calcasieu Parish Public Schools, a 32,000-student district in Lake Charles, La., where more than 50 percent of the students live in poverty, Superintendent Jude Theriot has remained committed to increasing the district's stake in technology despite three consecutive years of multi-million dollar spending reductions, including a brutal $7 million cut in 2003 and an additional $2.5 million cut in 2004. "The focus has to be on student learning," he said. And that means, "it's just not on the table to cut technology." Instead of scaling back technology programs, Theriot has instructed district leaders to aggressively pursue new opportunities. In terms of professional development, the district offers online courses for teachers as a way to extend training across the entire school system, while saving money on the cost of individual instructors. Through the district's "Laptops for Leaders" program, school principals receive Tablet PCs and attend workshops intended to show them how the technology could be used to appraise student achievement and better meet district goals. For teachers, the district offers its "Implementing a Technology-Enriched Curriculum" (I-TEC) initiative, a professional development model that encourages educators to reflect on effective teaching methods and to explain their successes to other colleagues throughout the school system. Although hardware is critical to any technology initiative, Theriot said, success is ultimately dependent upon the "human element." His philosophy is supported by the findings. "Where there's a will to deepen schools' commitment to technology, there seems to be a way--and this seems to be more important than funding," the survey said. Fostering that will results from a school leader's ability to effectively communicate the need for technology to stakeholders--including parents and school board members, the study found. Seventy percent of school leaders whose classroom-technology budgets increased over the last three years cited the influence of strongly supportive communities--compared with 38 percent of school leaders whose budgets decreased over the same three-year period, according to the survey. Although less dramatically, the same phenomenon applies to administrative technologies. Among leaders whose budgets for administrative technology increased, 42 percent reported having supportive communities. Among leaders whose administrative technology budgets decreased, only 20 percent reported having supportive communities. Where community support is high, a number of tech-savvy districts are experimenting with alternative funding measures--including, fundraising and corporate partnerships--to promote technology in the face of shrinking budgets, the report said. In the case of the Montgomery County Public Schools, a Maryland school district in an affluent suburb of Washington, D.C., school officials turned to advocacy. Behind the momentum of an aggressive public relations campaign targeted at parents and other community stakeholders, district leaders persuaded school board members to double spending for technology--to $90 million over a six-year period--beginning next year, said John Porter, associate superintendent and chief information officer. School leaders produced a program that aired on public television to highlight the benefits of technology in the classroom. The TV program encouraged stakeholders to eMail board members in support of increased technology spending, despite cuts to the overall budget. "While this tack is clearly not an optimum long-term strategy, it can mitigate funding shortfalls in lean budget years," the study said. But this shift in thinking isn't likely to occur on its own. For schools to pursue the effective integration of technology, district administrators must assume the lead as agents of change--with or without funding. Ninety-three percent of survey respondents said top school leaders have the most influence on technology decisions. "When a superintendent says, 'This is the direction we are going in,' everybody gets in line," Porter said. Professional development needed Although the findings indicate a shared vision and broad support from stakeholders at all levels are needed to achieve a high level of technology proficiency in schools, researchers also have found a number of school leaders, especially those in large districts, are frustrated at the lack of technology expertise exhibited by teachers and other school personnel. Nearly half of the school leaders surveyed from large districts (45 percent) say the lack of technology understanding on the part of other district employees poses a significant barrier. Furthermore, school leaders admit they themselves lack the skills to integrate technology effectively. According to the survey, fewer than one in 10 school leaders (7 percent) would classify his or her ability to integrate technology into the learning environment as "very good" or better. Further, most school leaders contend classroom teachers need even more help. On a scale of one to 10, respondents gave teachers an average score of 5.3 on technology competence. Making a difference Even though educators acknowledge they lack sufficient competency with technology, they recognize that technology is essential to reaching district goals. When it comes to improving productivity and efficiency, 74 percent of survey respondents say technology provides timely data for decision-making, while 70 percent report it improves communication among parents, teachers, and the community. Nearly eight out of 10 respondents (78 percent) said their districts currently rely on data-driven decision-making, the study found. Respondents also cited technology's salutary impact on learning. More than two-thirds (68 percent) said technology motivates students and provides them with important life skills (67 percent). Decision-makers also touted classroom technology as a means to create equity for students. Sixty percent of respondents said technology helped level the playing field for learners with disabilities, while 52 percent said technology can help individualize instruction and 51 percent reported it promotes academic equity. The long road ahead In spite of the importance of leadership, educators who responded to the survey made no attempt to hide the devastating effects of budget cuts on their respective technology programs. In fact, 48 percent of the school leaders surveyed cited budgeting issues as a key impediment to effective technology use. In light of the survey's finds, CoSN offered these recommendations: ? Move from automating administrative practices to transforming teaching and learning. "Perhaps the most promising and powerful application of technology in education is the delivery of personalized instruction," the report said. "We are only beginning to glimpse how technology can enable educators to assess students' knowledge and skills continually and get results immediately." ? Invest in strong technology leadership. This includes the creation of the chief technology officer position in which the successful candidate works closely with top district leadership to pursue a shared vision for technology. ? Create new professional development initiatives. The majority of educators still don't possess the technology skills necessary to integrate technology into the classroom, the survey found. In response to this widespread deficiency, CoSN recommends school districts across the country schedule routine technology workshops to better prepare educators for their role in a technology-infused learning environment. ? Recruit the active support of parents and the community. Despite budget constraints, the report states, community support can be a key factor in determining whether or not schools succeed in integrating technology effectively. Links: The Consortium for School Networking http://www.cosn.org Grunwald Associates http://www.grunwald.com http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5109 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 12153 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040612/e902edaa/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Sat Jun 12 08:15:44 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] E-Campus offers chance to brush up on Algebra online Message-ID: <3A9754A5-BC6A-11D8-9E18-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Skipped content of type multipart/alternative-------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: pixel.gif Type: image/gif Size: 50 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040612/570743a0/pixel-0005.gif -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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Name: spacer.gif Type: image/gif Size: 43 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040612/aab27039/spacer-0006.gif -------------- next part -------------- Skipped content of type multipart/alternative-------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: spacer.gif Type: image/gif Size: 43 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040612/aab27039/spacer-0007.gif -------------- next part -------------- Skipped content of type multipart/alternative From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Sat Jun 12 10:51:56 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] a publishing company for hip hop? Message-ID: <0CA0C5AD-BC80-11D8-9E18-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Question for the list - is this a good thing? Triple Crown Publishing is a company may have stumbled onto something. They are selling books to a population that seems to have forsaken books. They have sold 300K books in a little over a year with 14 titles. http://www.triplecrownpublications.com/index.shtml The founder (African American female) did 5 years in a Federal Penitentiary from a drug dealing conviction. Not only does she seem to have been rehabilitated, she seems to have taken her business sense to a new level. That she is selling books is, by itself great. That they are being sold to kids who ordinarily don't read books seems to be good too. Of course the debate will be about the content of the books. There is an article in Newsweek about her: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/5145832/site/newsweek/ Their office is in Columbus, OH. Best Regards, jb --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Mon Jun 14 17:44:59 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] California and textbook costs Message-ID: <1552FDCC-BE4C-11D8-B640-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> California debate on textbook costs draws U.S. interest By Jessica Portner Mercury News Cost-conscious school districts around the country are watching closely as the California Senate prepares to debate a bill this month that would compel the state's board of education to weigh price for the first time when adopting new textbooks. With 6 million public school students, California is the second-largest market in the $4 billion national textbook-publishing industry. A discount secured in California would have a ripple effect on some smaller states that routinely purchase books tailored for California because they lack the financial size and clout to commission texts specifically for them. The bill, sponsored by Assemblyman Joseph Canciamilla, D-Martinez, is set for a hearing in the Senate Education Committee on June 23. It was prompted by a 2002 Mercury News investigation that revealed the cost of state-adopted textbooks nearly tripled in the previous decade -- largely because the state board failed to negotiate for the best price. The bill already has passed the Assembly on a 50-10 vote. ``If California can negotiate so the price goes down, everyone will benefit,'' said Jody Gehrig of the Denver public schools, which had to seek a bond to pay for schoolbooks this year. For years, state board members have determined what academic standards and content -- from Shakespearean sonnets to robotics -- belong in textbooks. School districts must abide by those choices if they use state money to buy the texts. The bill being debated would explicitly add cost to the decision-making equation -- meaning the state, for the first time, might choose a cheaper book that is almost as good as a more expensive one. Publishers, who are lobbying hard in Sacramento against the measure, said the bill could force some booksellers to abandon the California market. ``This would trigger a national reaction that could cost us millions,'' said Stephen Driesler, the executive director of the Association of American Publishers. A multi-state compact called ``Most Favored Nation'' prohibits booksellers from charging a different price for the same book sold in other member states. The legislation is ``an idea with many downsides.'' The bill, AB 2455, also mandates that publishers offer a 30 percent discount on second sets -- allowing schools to give students books to take home and keep a spare set for use in the classroom each day -- and asks them to submit new English and math titles to the board every eight years instead of six. This new schedule would delay by two years the ability publishers have to raise prices when new books are adopted. Don Iglesias, the superintendent-elect of the San Jose Unified School District, said savings are critical at a time when the state budget deficit has prompted schools to choose among scrapping art classes, sacking librarians or waiting another year or two to buy new textbooks. ``We aren't asking for anything outrageous,'' said Iglesias, ``just a quality product at a reasonable price.'' The 2002 Mercury News analysis of state records showed that sixth-grade English/language arts textbooks cost $20 in California a decade before. By 2002, the price had jumped to $57, outpacing the rate of inflation and the spike in Bay Area home prices in the 1990s. Driesler said textbooks are expensive in California because they must be fashioned for the state's rigorous academic standards. ``It not like buying some suit off the rack,'' he said. ``Customized textbooks mean additional costs. That's the trade-off.'' If the bill passes, California wouldn't be the first state whose textbook decisions dictate what districts pay or students read in schools hundreds of miles away. Other large states that adopt texts on a statewide level -- notably Texas -- have a huge influence. Sometimes, Texas' books have been criticized for what's between the covers. This year, the Texas board of education decided to include the discussion of creationism alongside evolution in its science books, which prompted some other consumers of Texas-approved books to bristle. But as major player in the textbook market, Texas also sets a maximum price for the books it buys, which is good news to schools and districts that buy books created originally for Texas. ``We have been dogmatic in holding the price down,'' said Alma Allen, a Texas state school board member. ``I would be glad to see California do that. Hopefully, lots of other states will follow.'' Bud Williams, a deputy superintendent of Montana's education department, said cost savings decided in Sacramento could mean more materials for that state's 150,000 students. ``Our budgets have gotten tighter and tighter,'' said Williams, whose districts choose their titles from publisher's catalogs that market some California-tailored books to other states. ``If textbook companies have to be mindful about cost, prices across the country will change.'' Several members of the Senate Education Committee who are poised to consider the bill are initially supportive. ``We have a limited budget,'' said Sen. Dede Alpert, D-San Diego. ``And if we aren't able to stretch those dollars, that would be a bad mistake.'' Assemblywoman Rebecca Cohn, D-Campbell, noted that throughout debate in the Assembly there was strong backing of the bill. ``Publishers are taking advantage because no one is paying attention,'' she said. ``We have to be more responsible. Taxpayers are demanding it.'' http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/living/education/ 8906685.htm?template=contentModules/printstory.jsp --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 6656 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040614/c0409b7e/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 15 12:44:10 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Taking tests on computers - how about the special needs? Message-ID: <39EE7766-BEEB-11D8-978C-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> State may issue tests on school computers By CLAUDETTE RILEY Staff Writer All public students could be participating by 2010 If Tennessee can work out the kinks, all public school students will be taking their mandatory exams on computer by 2010. State education officials plan to try out select online end-of-course exams in about 10 districts during the next school year, make adjustments and then phase in other tests ? and districts ? statewide. The state hasn't picked the pilot districts. Schools would probably use computerized testing for the state-mandated reading, language arts, science, math and social studies exams given to students in grades 3?8; end-of-course exams given in high school; and the Gateway Algebra I, biology and English II exams that students must pass to get a diploma. ''Four or five years from now, we'd like to have all our assessments online,'' said Keith Brewer, deputy commissioner of education. ''It's a vision we hope to cultivate and make a reality.'' Advocates of the change say it would save taxpayer money, reduce testing time, allow students to take tests closer to the end of the school year, speed up test results and give schools more time to help struggling students catch up to their peers. ''I'd love to see this happen. This is the future,'' said Paul Changas, student assessment coordinator for Metro schools. ''We could use it to more quickly determine what's happening in the classroom and the school. Right now, there's a lot of lost time.'' For the change to become a reality, state officials said, the system must be secure and each of the state's 136 school systems must have the technology needed to support computerized testing. ''We'd have to make sure there is no security breach,'' Brewer said. Teachers would still be used to monitor testing, he said, and several versions of the tests might be given at one time. A statewide survey is planned to find out which districts have the right computer equipment and which need help getting up to par. ''Once we know how much we've got, we'll start to brainstorm on how to partner with districts to put money toward that,'' Brewer said. ''You'll have some districts out there good to go.'' Officials said they would like to have one fully equipped computer laboratory in every school but might consider having a tiny district or several small schools share a common location. Alfred Boyter, co-chairman of the Robertson County School Board, said using computers ''would be fantastic.'' ''It would be a good use of our resources, it would bring technology into the classroom and save our taxpayers money.'' Boyter said quicker test results would also help schools get struggling students into tutoring or other remedial programs earlier than usual. ''You are hitting the target immediately instead of waiting eight months or even a year later,'' he said. Officials said some schools might elect to use computers for other exams that aren't administered statewide. But educators concede that some students, particularly those with special needs, may never be able to take all their exams on a computer. ''There will probably have to be a small number of paper-and-pencil options,'' Changas said. Other testing changes As Tennessee education officials consider giving mandatory exams on computer, these other testing changes are being studied or have been approved: ? LESS TESTING TIME The amount of time students spend taking mandatory exams will drop by about 25% ? or roughly two hours ? this fall, state education officials said. Testing time nearly doubled last year after a new set of questions was added to state tests to satisfy federal law. The time ballooned from an average of 4? hours to almost 9? hours a year for many students. In response to frustration over the longer testing times, officials retooled the exams so the same set of questions can satisfy both state and federal testing requirements. ''More items serve a dual purpose,'' said Keith Brewer, the state's deputy education commissioner. ''We have cut back on the testing time.'' But even with the changes, the average time will still hover at 6? to 7 hours for most students. ''I don't think we're going to see it go back to the same amount of time,'' he said. ? LINING UP STANDARDS Tennessee might be tweaking its academic standards to make sure they line up with what students are expected to know on a national level. In the coming months, educators are going to look at the state's academic standards for every grade and compare them with those designed by the National Assessment of Education Progress, which puts out the Nation's Report Card every year. The goal is to make sure students can compete nationally. ''We'll see how they align or mirror our standards,'' Brewer said. ''We hope there's some congruence there. We need that congruence to keep our students on the cutting edge.'' Tennessee has participated voluntarily in some of the NAEP exams since 1992 but it no longer has a choice. All 50 states and Washington, D.C., must now test students in grades 4 and 8 every other year in reading and math to comply with the federal No Child Left Behind law. NAEP provides a national yardstick for measuring what students know in key subjects. The results of the report card provide a tool for comparing states, which have different academic standards and ways of assessing students. ? CUTTING COSTS While some states use the same test questions every year with little change, Tennessee has required that nearly all the questions on mandatory exams be brand-new every year. State education officials said the rule created headaches for test-makers and cost the state more money because it couldn't recycle the same exams year after year. Now the state is limiting the percentage of original questions that must be used every year. About 70% of the test items will have to be new, but any question can be reused after five years. It's unknown how much the change will save taxpayers, and educators say they doubt students will notice a difference because they won't be taking the same test within a five-year period. ''We really defined what we meant by the term 'fresh and non-redundant' items,'' Brewer said. ''We can now rotate forms. It's a savings for us.'' ? Claudette Riley http://www.tennessean.com/education/archives/04/06/52878863.shtml? Element_ID=52878863 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 7456 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040615/4bc8c0fa/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 15 21:21:23 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Web-based Tutoring Message-ID: <7B19A44E-BF33-11D8-978C-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Web-based tutoring gives students study aid 24/7 By Cara Branigan, Associate Editor, eSchool News June 15, 2004 A commercial, web-based tutoring service is helping high schools and colleges make live instructors available 24-hours a day, seven days a week to tutor students in mathematics. At the moment, this round-the-clock tutoring service is available only for math help, but the company says on-demand assistance is available in additional subjects for nine hours each day. Gallaudet University, a school for deaf and hard of hearing students in Washington, D.C., will begin offering the 24-hour, web-based tutoring service this fall. University representatives say tutoring at Gallaudet requires a diverse approach, because some of the school's students are born and reared with sign language, while others are new to their hearing loss and are better at reading than at using sign language. Online study help also serves the needs of students who wish to keep their need for assistance confidential. "We suspect there are some students who don't come into our center because they are embarrassed," said Terry Coye, Gallaudet's director of tutorial and instructional programs. The service, provided by a Washington, D.C.-based firm called SMARTHINKING Inc., will help the Gallaudet reach students who are not well served by the traditional sign-language-based tutoring provided by the school's graduate students. SMARTHINKING's tutoring sessions are like web chats, the company explained. Tutors and students communicate by typing on a virtual white board displayed on their computer screens. Each "white board" supports equations, annotations, and color-coded dialogue. Math tutoring is available live, one-on-one, at all times, according to the company. Tutoring in other subjects--including chemistry, economics, physics, biology, accounting, and statistics--is available from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. each day, the company said. When students log in, they can submit questions to live, real-time tutors, or they can schedule a tutoring session for another time. If live tutors are busy, a student's question is placed in a queue. While awaiting personal attention, the student sees the dialogue and equations from another tutoring session on his or her screen. It's like being placed on hold, but instead of music, the student sees someone else's tutoring session. All online interactions between student and tutor are saved, the company said, allowing students or schools to review past tutoring sessions on-demand. Students who can hear are not tied to their computer as they wait for tutors to become available, because an alarm rings when their session comes up. Company representatives conceded this feature will be of limited value for most of Gallaudet's students. The online tutoring will not replace Gallaudet's face-to-face service, Coye said, because the service is not well-suited to all of the university's students' learning styles. "A great [many] of our students are having trouble communicating through print," Coye said. Coye nonetheless predicted that math tutoring should be especially popular, because of the unique challenge math instruction poses for Gallaudet. "It's not easy to teach math to deaf students," he said. "Many students come with weaknesses, because they simply haven't taken many courses." In mainstream classes, deaf students who take math typically learn through an interpreter. "It's very complicated. Deaf students have to look at the interpreter and the blackboard and understand what the teacher is talking about all at the same time," Coye said. But, "the way the [virtual] white-board tutoring is done, is something that might be an excellent way for some students to learn math." Deaf students, who communicate with their hands, are very visual and will be responsive, he said. SMARTHINKING's service also includes a writing-critique component, in which students upload their essays and receive feedback within 24 hours on the strengths and weaknesses of their writing. For first-time clients, the company charges a fixed price for the year based on the number of students. After that, SMARTHINKING charges by the hours used. Gallaudet, which has approximately 2,000 students, is paying $2.95 per full-time student. This deal gives each student at Gallaudet 10 hours of tutoring to use throughout the entire year. According to the company, students use an average of 1.5 hours each. Gallaudet's students access the tutoring service, which can be customized with a school's logo and color scheme, through the school's online curriculum portal. According to SMARTHINKING, 300 colleges and 50 high schools from coast to coast use its service. In the past year, the company said, it has held some 155,000 tutoring sessions for approximately 70,000 students. The live tutoring requires students to learn how to use a virtual white board and spend about 25 minutes actively engaged with a tutor. "Just from the volume of students and repeat students, we know the service gets used a lot," said Burck Smith, CEO of SMARTHINKING Inc. "There's enough students to generate the need for math tutors 24 hours a day." SMARTHINKING said it will expand the availability of tutoring time for other subjects by an hour starting this fall. http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5111 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 6078 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040615/ff16b605/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 15 21:22:57 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Virtual High School is money movement Message-ID: Millions in lost funding spurs district's virtual school plans From eSchool News staff and wire service reports June 14, 2004 The Columbus, Ohio, city school district will develop an online high school in an effort to retain hundreds of students and millions in state funding the district expects otherwise to lose to charter schools next year, school officials said. Columbus Public Schools officials say the district's new school would mirror the services of internet-based charter schools, which reportedly have drawn more than 1,000 students away from the city's public schools already. At least 16 online charter schools operated in Ohio this past year, enrolling 22 percent of the state's 38,248 charter school students and receiving about $50.6 million in state funds. The online schools provide students with a modem and computer, and teachers assigned to them keep in contact by eMail and phone. The district's plan for a virtual school of its own is still "on the drawing table," said spokesman Michael Straughter. But students who are leaving the Columbus schools in favor of online charters "obviously want something from the district that we need to provide," he added. Straughter said the district estimates its online school would serve about 125 students starting in September. He added that four community centers around the city would provide in-person tutoring and computers for students who don't have online access at home. The district has begun surveying exiting students to see what it could do to keep them. The growing volume of those students has thrown off the district's enrollment projections, which means predicted funding isn't materializing. Students who enter charter schools take about $5,000 in state aid with them. The district expects the loss of state funding to charter schools to rise to $34.6 million by 2008, up from $18 million this year. In 2000, a contractor predicting enrollment for the Ohio School Facilities Commission assumed there would be no change in the number of students choosing charter over public schools in 10 years. Now, the number of those students in Columbus alone has more than tripled--to 3,995--and the city expects to lose several hundred more next school year. Columbus had a total enrollment of more than 62,000 students this year. A multibillion-dollar effort to upgrade school buildings necessitates accurate enrollment projections, said Rick Savors, a spokesman for the school facilities commission. "We want to know how many students we're having to build for," he said. "It doesn't do us any good to build too much or too little." The cost of building upgrades for just Columbus and the five other largest districts in Ohio--Akron, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dayton, and Toledo--is $5.74 billion. The state would pay $2.95 billion of that. Charter schools have their own financial problems. Since 2002, one in four of those audited has ended a fiscal year in the red. Despite those financial troubles, the state Department of Education estimates that 15 more charter schools could open in Franklin County during the next school year, bringing the number of privately run, publicly funded schools in the county to 40. http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5110 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 3947 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040615/860ccf66/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 16 10:00:34 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Fwd: prototype Message-ID: <8964FE67-BF9D-11D8-8763-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> The press release is attached. Feel free to comment: http://www.alwayson-network.com/comments.php?id=4121_0_1_0_C jb -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: Press Release Contest 2 - Pitch Tim Draper 061504.doc Type: application/msword Size: 34304 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040616/2422117a/PressReleaseContest2-PitchTimDraper061504-0001.doc -------------- next part -------------- --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 22 19:46:01 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] New digital divide study Message-ID: <42643.66.210.239.34.1087947961.squirrel@66.210.239.34> [excerpted] The impact of Internet use on the other side of the digital divide Linda A. Jackson, Alexander von Eye, Gretchen Barbatsis, Frank Biocca, Hiram E. Fitzgerald, Yong Zhao In 1998, researchers at Carnegie-Mellon University found evidence of what they labeled "the Internet paradox" [5]. Greater Internet use was associated with decreased psychological well-being and social involvement. These findings were considered paradoxical because Internet use was assumed to facilitate social connection and the psychological and social benefits associated with it [1]. The HomeNet findings captured national attention, inspiring such headlines as "Sad, Lonely World Discovered in Cyberspace" (New York Times, Aug. 30, 1998), "Heavy Net Use Cuts into Real Life" (USA Today, Feb. 16, 2000), and "A Web of Workaholic Misfits? Study Finds Heavy Internet Users are Socially Isolated" (Washington Post, Feb. 16, 2000). Given the importance and visibility of the HomeNet study, it is not surprising it provoked severe criticism from other researchers. Much of the criticism focused on the measures used to assess psychological well-being and social involvement and on the representativeness of the sample [7]. HomeNet researchers responded to both criticisms in a three-year follow-up of the original study's participants, and in a second longitudinal survey study [3]. Results of the three-year follow-up indicated that the negative psychological and social effects of Internet use had dissipated by the third year, with the exception of stress. Findings from the survey study indicated benefits of Internet use for psychological well-being and social involvement, again with the exception of stress. However, benefits were limited to extroverts and those who had greater amounts of social support. To explain changes in findings over time within the original HomeNet study, Kraut et al. [3] suggested that maturation of participants and changes in how they used the Internet may account for the dissipation of negative psychological and social effects. Further, discrepancies in findings between the follow-up to the original study and the longitudinal survey study may be attributable to unmeasured sample differences. However, the most economical explanation, according to CMU researchers, is that changes in the Internet itself account for these differences: "Simply put, the Internet may have become a more hospitable place over time." More friends and family members are likely to be online now than previously. Services that facilitate the development of strong social ties have increased (for example AOL buddy lists and instant-messaging services). In addition, the explosion of information on the Internet may have contributed to the benefits of Internet use by providing a better integration of users' online and offline lives. Other research examining the social impact of Internet use has produced mixed results. Some studies found Internet use contributes to psychological well-being by providing opportunities for social connection and community, as well as convenient access to information [6, 9, 10]. Other studies indicated that Internet use undermines well-being because online connections are weaker than real-life connections, or because online connections are often used to replace real-life relationships and activities [8]. Thus, the social impact of Internet use remains controversial, with a variety of explanations offered for findings of favorable or unfavorable impact. The HomeNetToo project was based in part on the original HomeNet study [4]. As in the original study, we automatically recorded Internet use for an extended period of time (16 months) and measured psychological well-being and social involvement with multiple measures and at multiple times. However, the HomeNetToo study was designed to address questions about the digital divide, particularly the racial digital divide [2]. Our sample is unique in that it consists of low-income African-Americans and Caucasians using the Internet at home for the first time. In this article, we address the following questions: Does Internet use influence psychological well-being in low-income adults? If so, is its influence dependent on race or other factors known to be related to psychological well-being (such as extroversion, or common daily hassles and annoyances)? Does Internet use influence social involvement in low-income adults? If so, is its influence dependent on race or other factors known to be related to social involvement (for example, extroversion)? --- Results of the HomeNetToo project indicate Internet use has no effect on the psychological well-being and social involvement of low-income African-Americans. Nor does it affect these outcomes for low-income Caucasians. The absence of social impact was found regardless of how Internet use was measured (time online, number of sessions) and regardless of how psychological well-being (depression, happiness) and social involvement were measured (number of close friends, time spent with family). Discrepancies between our findings and those of the original HomeNet study?the only other study to automatically record Internet use?are easily explained by differences in sample characteristics and changes in the Internet itself. Of greater interest is why Internet use had neither a positive nor negative social impact for our sample. An explanation for the absence of Internet effects on psychological well-being and social involvement may lie in the low frequency of email use by HomeNetToo participants. Recall that the average number of email messages sent was only three per week, despite evidence that Internet use was nontrivial, averaging about 43 minutes per day. African-Americans, who comprised 67% of our sample, were particularly unlikely to use email. Apparently, our participants never embraced the Internet as a communication tool. Rather, they viewed it as an information tool. Ethnographic data collected by the HomeNetToo project supports this view. Why didn't our participants take to the Internet as a communication tool? The explanation is so obvious as to be elusive. Email is a desirable communication tool only if you have people to communicate with, in particular, family and friends who have home computers and Internet access, or co-workers with whom email communication is encouraged or required. It is likely that many of our participants had family and friends on the same side of the digital divide as they were. It is unlikely that many of our participants had co-workers with whom they communicated using email. Thus, it is not surprising that they never embraced the Internet as a communication tool. Of course, email is not the only way to communicate on the Internet. We recorded the frequency of chat and newgroup activity by HomeNetToo participants and found it to be essentially nonexistent. Some participants were particularly wary of chat rooms, which they viewed as dangerous places where predators lurk. Evidence that Internet use has no social impact on low-income adults has implications for efforts to reduce the digital divide and suggests that concerns about a negative social impact are unwarranted. While finding a positive impact would have been more supportive of efforts to reduce the divide, it may be that a positive impact does occur in domains other than the social domain. For example, Internet use may increase learning motivation and cognitive competencies, possibilities we are examining using other measures from the HomeNetToo project. As the digital divide narrows, the Internet may become an important communication tool for low-income families as well. A reexamination of the social impact of Internet use may be necessary as both the "typical" Internet user and the Internet itself change over time. http://delivery.acm.org/10.1145/1010000/1005819/p43-jackson.html?key1=1005819&key2=9367497801&coll=ACM&dl=ACM&CFID=22966264&CFTOKEN=82014203 -- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing TouchSmart.net http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Thu Jun 24 22:27:10 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Teachers: Limited time, access cut school tech use Message-ID: <2955B939-C64F-11D8-8273-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Teachers: Limited time, access cut school tech use By Corey Murray, Assistant Editor, eSchool News June 24, 2004 Classroom teachers are using technology more than ever before to improve teaching and learning. But even as their sophistication with computers and the internet grows, other barriers are keeping them from using technology to its full potential, according to a survey released June 22 at the National Educational Computing Conference in New Orleans. Gone are the days when teachers claimed ignorance and blamed their inability to bridge the digital divide on a sheer lack of technology know-how. These days, a lack of time during the school day, too few school computers, and complex security measures--including school firewalls and filtering systems--are among the biggest impediments to effective technology integration, survey respondents said. Following up on the success of its National Speak Up Day for Students, NetDay, a nonprofit supporter of educational technology in schools, released the results of its Speak Up Day for Teachers, an online survey of 11,132 teachers representing 885 schools across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and several U.S. Department of Defense schools overseas. The survey, which educators were invited to take on line, was intended to give U.S. teachers in all grades and disciplines an opportunity to speak their minds about technology in schools and at home. "The results of the Speak Up Day for Teachers survey provide a rich snapshot of how teachers view the use of technology in the educational process," said NetDay's chief executive officer, Julie Evans. "We hope this effort will raise awareness about the importance of the teacher as a key stakeholder in technology decisions." Although 98 percent of survey respondents said they had at least one internet-connected computer in their classrooms for professional use, most respondents said there isn't enough time in the day to take advantage of the technology and that a shortage of computers for students still retards achievement. Lack of time in the school day ranked No. 1 among obstacles preventing teachers from using the internet for professional tasks, but computer filters and firewalls also were factors, respondents said, adding that these security measures too often keep teachers from accessing good educational content online. Complex computer security was a frustration also cited in a student portion of the survey, Evans said. Curiously absent from the list of obstacles was any mention of inadequate technology skills. According to Evans, the idea that educators would even classify filters and firewalls as a bother is evidence that their familiarity with technology has advanced well beyond the scope of such basic functions as word processing and printing. In schools, educators rely on hardware and software to assist with a wide array of critical functions, she said; here are some of the key tasks respondents assigned to technology: ? Improving teaching and learning--49 percent ? Communicating with others--24 percent ? Managing the classroom--16 percent ? Implementing professional development--4 percent Survey respondents said the internet is a treasure trove of new learning materials. Twenty-two percent of educators said they "always" use the web to help refresh old lesson plans and construct new classroom activities, and 53 percent said they consult the internet at least "some of the time." Only 3 percent said they "never" use the internet when devising new models for learning. Technology is used to perform a myriad of administrative chores as well. Among teachers, the most popular uses cited included communicating with colleagues, creating tests and handouts, keeping records, and researching information for students. Teachers also rely on technology to help them meet the demands of the No Child Left Behind Act, according to the survey, and 78 percent of respondents classified technology as essential to achieving state and federal targets. But merely having the technology in place is only part of the solution, respondents agreed: Success also depends on how well administrators can articulate a vision of how technology can be used in their schools. Management support, respondents reported, generally is good. Seventy-five percent of teachers who responded to the survey said their current school and working conditions mostly encourage the use of technology, compared with just 4 percent who said the use of technology is discouraged. What's more, 35 percent of respondents said their administrators consider technology their No. 1 priority. Fifty percent said it was of modest concern, and only 3 percent said technology was not a priority at all. Regardless of how willing school and district leaders are to pursue technology initiatives, teachers who took the survey agreed that a decline in access to technology would make their jobs more difficult. Despite criticisms that students sometimes abuse classroom technologies, using the internet to find easy answers to difficult questions and occasionally cheating on tests, for example, the benefits--at least, in the minds of those teachers responding--far exceed the potential drawbacks, the survey said. Teachers said technology has enabled them to build stronger lesson plans, engage students more effectively, meet the needs of individual learners more fully, and communicate more clearly with parents, among other benefits. Eighty-nine percent of educators reported that losing access to the internet would have some sort of impact on their teaching and professional responsibilities--with classroom access being especially important. In fact, 63 percent of educators reported they are more likely to use classroom-based technology for professional purposes, such as designing new lesson plans or sending eMail messages to concerned parents. Only 19 percent prefer to perform such duties from their home computers. Computers boost students' test scores, teachers say Nearly two-thirds of K-12 teachers say the availability of computers improves student performance on standardized tests, yet they do not believe they have enough computers for their students in their classrooms, according to the second annual Teachers Talk Tech survey released June 22 by CDW Government Inc. (CDW-G), a provider of technology solutions to federal, state, and local governments and educators. The CDW-G survey validates the results of NetDay's Speak Up Day for Teachers study, released one day earlier. Sixty-two percent of respondents to the Teachers Talk Tech survey--an increase of 8 percent over last year--said the use of computers improved student performance on standardized tests. Teachers also made it clear that to achieve the advantages afforded by technology, they need additional training and adequate equipment for their students. While teachers as a whole believe computers aid student performance, 77 percent report they only have a few computers in the classroom, which students have to share. Teachers at schools with more than 2,000 students are more likely to say they need "a lot more" computers in the classroom. "Technology has become ingrained in the educational process. It increases teacher productivity on a daily basis, enhances student performance on key subjects, and improves student results on standardized tests," said Chris Rother, vice president of education at CDW-G, who released the findings of the company's second annual Teachers Talk Tech survey at the National Education Computing Conference in New Orleans. "Teachers recognize the many benefits of technology, yet they are telling us they don't have enough computers or good enough software to realize technology's full potential." Mixed grades were given by teachers to the quality of the hardware and software available at their schools. Only 54 percent of teachers rank their hardware as good or excellent, and just 45 percent gave high marks to the software. As for making the most of technology's capabilities, 79 percent of teachers say they need more training. Links: More on the survey. Educators are even less likely to use technology in a community setting. Just 4 percent of respondents said they preferred to use technology to perform professional duties in a teacher-designated work area. Only 3 percent said they prefer to work in school computer labs, and the same percentage reported they prefer to work in public libraries. But teachers' use of technology isn't limited to professional pursuits alone. Much like the nation's students, those teachers surveyed said technology plays an integral role in their personal lives as well. Ninety-three percent of respondents access the internet from their homes, the survey said. Many reported they still are using only dial-up connections, but smaller groups said they have graduated to high-speed cable (24 percent) and DSL (20 percent) hook-ups. Nearly all of the educators (93 percent) said they use technology at home for personal use, but only 50 percent reported spending between one and five hours a week on school-related activities. Contrary to popular opinion, younger educators aren't the only ones embracing the use of technology. According to the survey, older teachers are just as enthusiastic as their younger counterparts. Given that 55 percent of respondents to the online survey were 40 or older, and more than a third had at least 16 years of classroom experience, the survey would seem to indicate that veteran educators feel strongly about the use of technology in schools, Evans said. Having already found a comfort zone in their classrooms and with their students, she added, some veteran educators probably would be more inclined to test out new solutions than their younger colleagues, who might still be learning the ropes. Considering the way the survey was administered, it's fair to ask whether the results are representative of all teachers. Evans concedes the findings probably lean in favor of ed-tech proponents, but a number of school districts required all teachers to participate, regardless of their orientation to technology--thus ensuring at least a somewhat representative sample. Where teachers reported receiving their technology training also was revealing. According to the survey, 37 percent of educators contend that preservice training did nothing at all to prepare them to use technology effectively in the classroom. Forty-four percent said they were "somewhat prepared," but only 18 percent said the training they received in college left them "fully prepared" to use technology in their lessons. Professional development provided by the school district was somewhat more effective, respondents reported. Thirty-five percent said the training they've received since becoming a teacher has them "fully prepared" to use technology. Fifty-six percent classified themselves as "somewhat prepared," and just 7 percent said in-service training has been no help at all. NetDay plans to break the survey responses out anonymously by school system, so administrators can use the results to help them achieve district goals, Evans said. District technology leaders hope the findings will provide a clearer picture of educators' needs, she said, so administrators can plan for the coming school year. "I am really trying to get an idea of the sense teachers have for what is useful to them in the classroom," said Thomas Nemmer, director of technology for the Hamburg Central School District in New York. "Like many other school districts, we have a base of technology in place that is aging, and we are struggling to find the dollars to replace the old while we anticipate the new. I will try to use this feedback with my board of education to make a case for technology as an appropriate tool in this new world of No Child Left Behind." Jim Hirsch, associate superintendent for technology at the Plano Independent School District in Texas, said his district "needed good information on how teachers are using technology resources at work and at home, so we can provide even better support for their use." Added Hirsch: "I plan to provide an overview of the results to our school board and cabinet and use the information to inform our district technology steering committee as it begins the process of planning and budgeting for professional development and other technology initiatives." Speak Up Day for Teachers is supported through a grant and in-kind support from BellSouth Corp. and through the outreach support of Apple Computer Inc., Sun Microsystems Inc., and Google Inc. http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5131 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 13922 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040624/7b9354cd/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Tue Jun 29 16:46:35 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Video on demand boosts students' math scores Message-ID: <695F688A-CA0D-11D8-B903-000A95A5E63A@touchsmart.net> Video on demand boosts students' math scores By Corey Murray, Assistant Editor, eSchool News June 29, 2004 Short video clips that reinforce key concepts are effective in increasing student achievement, according to a second research project. An earlier study found that video can improve learning in science and social studies. Now, brand-new research shows judiciously selected video clips also can produce statistically significant gains in algebra and geometry scores. The new study, conducted by independent research firm Cometrika, headed by Franklin J. Boster, a distinguished-faculty-award winner at Michigan State University, was released June 21 during the National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) in New Orleans. Approximately 2,500 sixth and eighth grade students from four Los Angeles area middle schools participated in the study. Each student was given a pre-test to assess comprehension of specific California state education standards for math, and at the end of the quarter, post-test assessments were given to gauge improvement. Throughout the quarter, teachers assigned to experimental-group classes incorporated approximately 20 standards-based, core-concept video clips into their daily lessons, while teachers in control group classrooms continued with their traditional lessons. Boster and his team found that sixth-grade students whose teachers showed them video clips during instruction improved an average of five percentage points more than students in the control group during post-testing. Eighth-grade students in Los Angeles improved an average of three percentage points more than students in the control group. The clips came from the unitedstreaming video-on-demand (VOD) service provided by United Learning, a division of Discovery Education, whose parent company produces the Discovery Channel. These latest results come as educators are looking for ways to help students meet the rigorous testing requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). To help more schools experience the same kinds of gains, Discovery Education has announced it will offer its unitedstreaming service at no cost to one school in every non-subscribing public school district in the United States during the 2004-2005 school year. School districts already subscribing to the service are not eligible for the introductory program. From July 1, 2004, through June 30, 2005, the company's new "VOD Pass" program offers free access for one school building in every new district. According to the company, the service provides access to more than 2,200 full-length videos and 22,000 video clips correlated to individual state education standards. Educators in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) had an inkling of what the study's outcome might be even before the results were official. Jill Longman, a sixth-grade teacher at LAUSD's Olive Vista Middle School in Sylmar, Calif., said she wasn't surprised by the latest study results. She knew the videos were working, she said, by the way her students had responded to them. "We were feeling the positive effects long before the results came in," said Longman. "The [students] were telling us it was working." In January, the research team approached officials at LAUSD, the nation's second-largest urban school system (behind New York City), with a proposition: Open your doors to a group of independent researchers for five months, and if you like what you see, Discovery Education will give participating schools free access to its content for one full year. Aware of favorable results involving science and social studies in a similar study conducted across three rural Virginia school districts in 2002 (see Virginia schools boost student achievement with video on demand"), LAUSD officials signed on to the idea. For Discovery Education, it meant a chance to achieve, for the second time, what has become the gold standard in the school field: a control-based experiment designed to demonstrate a product's effectiveness in the classroom, as required by the scientifically based research provision of NCLB. But for LAUSD officials, the project was risky. If the technology worked as they hoped, it would provide a new tool for educators to use in reaching the district's 750,000 students--especially the more visual learners, who sometimes struggle to grasp concepts related by educators in classroom lectures. However, if the project failed to show improvement--or worse, if teachers' use of the technology resulted in a drop in student achievement--school officials would be faced with the prospect of explaining to angry parents why the project was approved in the first place. They decided to let teachers participate on a voluntary basis. In the end, the results proved to be worth the risk. In an interview with eSchool News, Discovery Education Vice President Jim McColl branded the project a success and said the combination of the two studies is proof that unitedstreaming can be deployed effectively by educators at almost any grade level, across a wide range of disciplines, regardless of rural or urban locales. The company's program currently is used in approximately 26,000 schools from coast to coast. In the classroom, educators saw results quickly. At Olive Vista, where two-thirds of the student population speaks English as a second language, Longman used the power of video to highlight mathematical concepts where words sometimes failed. "Visuals are helpful when language is a barrier, especially for math," she said. Olive Vista Principal Joan Whitaker said students were so enthusiastic about the use of the videos that many went home and told their parents about the project. In turn, many parents requested that the videos be demonstrated during community meetings and asked when school officials planned to roll out the service to all students, not just those involved in the study. As word of the study spread throughout the district, Whitaker said, many teachers and parents began asking for access to the clips. Of course, one problem with any control-based experiment is that educators must agree to offer the solution to some students, while withholding it from others. To sidestep a potential headache, McColl said, Discovery offered participating schools access to its full video library for one year following the conclusion of the research. "We hope this will be a really valuable resource that they will continue to use from this point forward," said McColl, who added that LAUSD's willingness to participate in the survey was predicated upon the success of the earlier research, researchers' ability to explain the intricacies of experimental-control design, and a pledge to cut the project short should it have any adverse effect on student achievement. It also didn't hurt that the program was easy to introduce. The technology is web-based. Unlike some educational solutions, where cumbersome installations and training programs divert attention from busy school technology staffs, the unitedstreaming model requires no installation and little training, according to Olive Vista Technology Coordinator Robert Benavidez. Throughout the district, participating teachers underwent a two-day training program to learn how to navigate the site, Benavidez said. Meanwhile, Discovery Education kept representatives on hand to answer any technology questions and to ensure the implementation went as smoothly as possible. At Olive Vista, officials downloaded more than 100 video clips to a local server and also burned them onto CD-ROMs for participating teachers in the event that the web site went down or teachers ran into traffic problems online. Despite an ongoing construction project at the school, no problems were reported, Benavidez said. Educators at Olive Vista already have begun planning how to deploy the technology in the upcoming school year. Besides using the application in the classroom, Principal Whitaker said, the school also will offer access to unitedstreaming from a private area in the school library, where students who were absent on a given day can watch the videos to review any concepts they might have missed in class. "To see the look on a child's face when they connect with a concept and share in their joy when they truly understand the subject matter is a wonderfully gratifying experience for all of our teachers," said Whitaker of the technology. Hoping to replicate those feelings in schools across the country, Discovery Education on June 22 announced the creation of its VOD Pass initiative. "By providing the unitedstreaming VOD Pass to every non-subscribing public school district, we're introducing educators across the country to the only video-based learning offering scientifically proven to improve student performance in math, science, and social studies," Steve Sidel, Executive Vice President for Discovery Education, told eSchool News. To apply, district instructional technology coordinators can log on to the initiative's web site at http://vod.unitedstreaming.com. Once eligibility is verified, information and instructions for accessing the unitedstreaming service will be provided via eMail, the company said. Links: Summary report of study (PDF format) Los Angeles Unified School District Olive Vista Middle School Discovery Communications unitedstreaming http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5134 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 10479 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040629/f7ff08de/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 30 14:02:29 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] NECC 2004 Message-ID: NECC 2004: Heavy corporate hitters put their weight behind ed tech By Dan David, Online Editor, and Cara Branigan, Associate Editor, eSchool News June 30, 2004 Anyone seeking evidence of a healthier U.S. economy and renewed tech-sector growth should have been in New Orleans from June 20-23 for the 25th annual National Educational Computing Conference (NECC). The largest educational technology exhibit in the world drew a record crowd of more than 17,500 people, according to the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), which staged the conference. The massive crowd included 13,302 registered attendees from roughly 50 countries. They made the trek across an expansive convention floor that featured 1,189 booths and 450 companies displaying their hardware, software, and other solutions for educators. News from the exhibit hall The host city's festive reputation helped shape an upbeat atmosphere surrounding the four-day show, but the real engine of enthusiasm was a tangible sense that the future is bright for ed tech. NECC 2004 seemed proof that the entire technology industry has reawakened after several difficult years, and the education field is one of its top priorities. How else to explain the presence of so many high-profile attendees at this year's show? Two of the world's largest technology companies, Dell and Intel, both sent their CEOs to New Orleans, a clear indication of the field's promise and NECC's importance. Michael Dell, the founder and chairman of Dell Inc., who will relinquish his CEO post next month, was at NECC to launch his company's Intelligent Classroom initiative. The program will provide schools with a low-cost bundle of computers, projectors, cameras, presentation screens, and other high-tech devices, giving classrooms an entire technology upgrade in one fell swoop. (See Dell expands push into classrooms.) Dell, whose company's success has translated into a personal net worth of more than $13 billion, spoke of Dell's central role in education. Nearly half of all U.S. school computers and computer equipment are Dell products, and the new Intelligent Classroom initiative could make Dell's educational presence even greater. This rapid growth, dubbed the "Dell Effect" by Business Week, resulted from the company's commitment to lowering prices in all sectors in which it competes. From 1998 to 2003, Dell's sales to the education field increased by 224 percent, the company reported, compared with the average rate of 36 percent. "By passing savings along to our customers, we have grown education and made technology more available to students," Dell said. "& This helps the country develop a future workforce that can stay competitive with the rest of the world." For Craig Barrett, the CEO of Intel Corp., NECC offered the perfect setting for a black-tie gala awards ceremony at which 20 schools were named winners of the Intel-Scholastic 21st Century Schools of Distinction Award. The awards recognized these schools' "comprehensive programs exhibiting excellence in the use of technology, involvement of parents and community, professional development, teamwork, and high academic standards." Several major ed-tech companies teamed up to present more than $2.3 million in technology grants to the 20 winners, with each school receiving curriculum materials, professional development resources, software, and hardware worth more than $120,000. The big winners at the Academy Awards-style event were Houston County High School in Warner Robins, Ga., and MacArthur High School in Irving, Texas, which were named "Best of the Best" among the 20 honorees. The Intel Foundation awarded a $25,000 grant to each school, while distributing $10,000 to each of the 18 other schools. "By sponsoring these awards, we hope to share the outstanding programs and efforts these schools have put in place with other schools around the country," Barrett said. "We have to learn from each other in order to transform our classrooms and our schools." Dell and Barrett weren't the only corporate heavyweights in New Orleans. Also on hand, having just engineered a $77 million initial public offering--the largest IPO of 2004--was Blackboard Inc. chairman and co-founder Matthew Pittinsky. He gave a speech on how online learning has affected relationships among education stakeholders. Pittinsky's recent Wall Street success was yet another indication that educational technology's key players feel the economic climate is ripe for expansion. Mona Westhaver, the president and co-founder of Inspiration Software, who was ahead of her time 16 years ago in developing one of the most popular educational programs in U.S. schools, also sees big opportunities in 2004. Westhaver came to New Orleans to showcase Inspiration for the Palm OS--making it one of the first major educational software applications to take the leap to handhelds. "We moved to the Palm OS because our customers were asking for it," Westhaver said. "Educators felt there weren't good products available for the handheld." Handhelds were a major focus at the show, and the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) turned up the spotlight by releasing "A Guide to Handheld Computing in K-12 Education." The 56-page report, compiled by CoSN's Emerging Technologies committee, features 12 case studies that describe how different schools are using handhelds and graphing calculators. CoSN examines the benefits of this technology, while also considering challenges that include management issues, the breakage and loss of handhelds, inappropriate use of the devices, and the relatively limited availability of software. "As more schools use handheld computers or are considering their use, it is critical to address the potential impact these devices can have on the education community," said CoSN CEO Keith Krueger. "& We needed a resource to answer questions about how handhelds can function to facilitate student learning and development." The handheld-computing guide is available for purchase at CoSN's Online Store. Assessment and professional development Another key theme of the show was professional development solutions for teachers who are struggling to keep up with the available technology. Robin Surland and Deanna Somers, both members of the Instructional Technology Department for the Wichita Public Schools, gave a presentation on the history of their district's innovative Standards for Teachers through Educational Projects (STEPs) program, which helps Wichita teachers learn new technology skills, create project-based lesson plans, and meet ISTE's National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS*S). The intensive-but-optional program has enabled many Wichita teachers to become more comfortable with technology, while inspiring them to make it part of their curricula. Assessment and professional development have taken on added significance because of an approaching deadline. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation mandates that by 2006 every eighth-grade student in the United States must be proficient in technology literacy skills. To help teachers monitor student progress toward meeting those requirements, several initiatives were announced at NECC. For starters, a new free, web-based assessment tool made its debut. The tool was developed as a collaboration between ISTE and Microsoft Corp. and is a component of Microsoft's U.S. Partners in Learning program. Based on NETS*S, the tool will contain 12 assessments along with classroom curriculum and teacher support materials. Seven assessments have been available since June 19 at the ISTE web site, and the remaining five will be available in mid-August. Each assessment meets at least two NETS*S standards and includes a mapping tool to specify the standards met. ISTE also is working directly with two educational testing companies to develop a technology literacy assessment for middle-school children. The assessment, which also draws on ISTE's NETS*S, is designed to help school administrators meet the technology literacy requirements of NCLB. The International Computer Driving License U.S. company (ICDL-US) and online testing company Vantage Learning are the partners with ISTE in this venture. The web-based assessment will consist of several specific test units, each lasting up to an hour, with knowledge-based, performance-based, and open-ended questions that require students to apply what they've learned. A pilot project for the new assessment will launch in five to 10 states or large districts during the 2004-05 school year. In addition, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills--a public-private organization whose members include the AOL Time Warner Foundation, Apple Computer, Cable in the Classroom, Cisco Systems, Dell, Microsoft, the National Education Association, and SAP--issued a series of free tools to help teachers, administrators, and lawmakers incorporate specific "21st-century skills" into the core curriculum. (See New guides help teach 21st century skills.) Few companies were as busy on the NECC news-making front as Sprint Corp. The global communications provider made several announcements in conjunction with the show. Two of Sprint's announcements involved the company's Empowered Education Desktop for Schools program, which combines Sprint's network with online delivery of many learning tools from a wide range of K-12 content producers. At NECC, Sprint announced that the Empowered Education Desktop for Schools has added Atomic Learning's online software tutorials and an application service provider (ASP) version of ParentLink, a web-based program that lets parents and teachers securely access essential school-related data through the web. Sprint also announced that it was teaming with Cisco Systems to offer a network video solution to enable teachers and administrators to provide rich, dynamic video content to classrooms using the school's existing bandwidth. Digital video in the classroom When they weren't talking about professional development or assessment, convention visitors focused on digital imaging and the integration of video into the curriculum. As teachers strive to make technology work for students, high-end video editing applications have been among the first to find a home in classrooms. A spokesman for Atomic Learning, which offers online tutorials to familiarize teachers and students with numerous software products, said the company's most popular tutorials of late have been the iMovie program for the Macintosh and Windows Movie Maker for the PC. Video on demand also is heating up as an educational tool. In an independent study commissioned by Discovery Education, the use of short video clips during instruction was found to increase students' math scores in four Los Angeles middle schools. Results of the study, which were released at NECC, supported earlier research that showed the company's "unitedstreaming" video solution also was effective in teaching science and social-studies concepts. (See Video on demand boosts students' math scores.) To help more schools experience the same kinds of gains, Discovery Education has announced it will offer its unitedstreaming service at no cost to one school in every non-subscribing public school district in the United States during the 2004-2005 school year. According to the company, the service provides access to more than 2,200 full-length videos and 22,000 video clips correlated to individual state education standards. Interactive videoconferencing, another popular use of video in the classroom, has gained momentum from the push for more professional development and the fact that the infrastructure necessary for its use is largely covered by eRate funding. At NECC, Canon USA and Tandberg showcased high-end systems that enable districts to bridge physical distances between educators looking for more technology instruction and IT personnel who might not otherwise be able to visit the school on short notice. Tandberg's newest product, a videoconferencing unit on wheels, allows schools to easily move the equipment from one classroom to another, enabling multiple teachers to employ distance learning. ISTE also weighed in on the topic of videoconferencing, releasing "Videoconferencing for K-12 Classrooms: A Program Development Guide." The book, written by three educators with extensive videoconferencing experience, offers numerous best practices for the technology. It is available for purchase through ISTE's online bookstore. Feeding off the popularity of video, interactive whiteboards were out in full force. SMART Technologies, Promethean, GTCO CalComp, Numonics Corp., Mimio, and Polyvision all demonstrated their latest incarnations of hardware that transforms the traditional classroom blackboard into a multimedia learning environment, complete with interactivity and other elements designed to engage a generation of children who have grown up with video games and other visually stimulating technology in their homes. Students as technology 'mavens' Technology's role in helping increase students' enthusiasm for learning was particularly evident during a CoSN forum to announce the release of the Youth Technology Support Collaborative's new "School Decision-Maker's Guide to Student Technology Programs." In this 20-page report, YTSC examines the emerging trend of students providing technology support and leadership in schools. The entire guide is available online at http://www.studenttechsupport.org. "When it comes to technology, students sometimes can know more than their teachers," said Tim Magner, deputy director of the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Educational Technology. "In many schools the technology 'mavens' are the kids themselves, and they are eager for opportunities to participate in the life of the school." In a news conference detailing the report, YTSC presented five students, all from grades 5-8, who had spent the past school year in such programs. "I didn't expect the program to be as rewarding as it turned out to be," said Falan McKnight, an eighth-grader from Weir, Miss. "And I didn't expect to learn everything that I learned." "I was just surprised I could learn how to replace a power supply. I had never even seen the guts of a computer before," said Kelly Lott, a sixth-grader from Purvis (Miss.) Middle School. McKnight, who took the course for a letter grade, recalled having to explain software to a science teacher multiple times because the teacher kept forgetting how to use it. She also said the experience brought her closer to the teachers, helping her realize her own value to the school. She noted that younger teachers were more comfortable with technology in their classrooms than their more experienced counterparts. Building a top-notch IT team Another major CoSN forum in New Orleans brought chief technology officers from several K-12 schools together to discuss their experiences with building their own IT teams and encouraging teachers to embrace technology. Jim Hirsch, associate superintendent for technology at the Plano (Texas) Independent School District, urged his colleagues to focus on personnel issues and recognize that the effective use of technology in schools would largely depend on those charged with overseeing it. "Mediocre people are going to give you mediocre results," said Hirsch. "Good is not an option here. You have to look for great people and find staff who take responsibility and want to help others." Dave Richards, technology and information systems director for the Rochester, Mich., Community Schools, spoke on the importance of a CTO's role in creating professional development programs and ensuring that adequate funding is available. "The real challenge for most of us is getting people to fund professional development," Richards said. "Bond money pays for hardware, but not for training of teachers. It's our job to do a needs assessment and make sure training opportunities are appropriate." Although his IT staff was limited, Richards found that by enlisting several of Rochester's most respected teachers as "technology coaches," he was able to break down many barriers. Teachers who were previously reluctant to integrate technology into their curricula became more receptive to the idea when presented with esteemed colleagues who had made the leap themselves. Bringing about change Two of the convention's keynote speakers also emphasized the valuable role technology plays in the learning process and the importance of having teachers who are comfortable with it. Malcolm Gladwell, a staff writer for The New Yorker and author of The Tipping Point, was the opening keynote speaker. He described how a single event--a live broadcast of a $1 million prize fight in Jersey City in 1921 between Jack Dempsey and George Cartier--helped personal home radios take hold in U.S. society. "Change happens far more quickly than you can imagine," Gladwell said, whether it's getting radios into the mainstream or computers into classrooms. The fall of the Berlin Wall is another example. It's not economic or political power that brings change, Gladwell said. It's social power, and it's social power alone that can "bring about change to education." Most people have a social circle of about 35 people, but a few people, whom Gladwell calls "connectors," have social circles in the hundreds. Connectors, he says, have social power because they connect one person to the next and spread ideas. "Unless you have social power, unless you have the ability to reach many, many people in many, many different worlds, then you don't have the ability to make a difference, to make a social change," Gladwell said. Gladwell tied his concept of social power to the unique relationship teachers have with their own colleagues as well as students. He told the audience that they need to help those who are overwhelmed and frustrated by technology. "You may not be the most powerfully connected people, you may not be the most wealthy, but you have social power," Gladwell said. "If you use it wisely, you can bring about social change." Peter Reynolds, the author-illustrator who is also founder and CEO of Fablevision, gave a rousing speech to end the convention, urging educators to get technology into the hands of children because it will stimulate their natural creativity. Reynolds told the story of how his own high school teacher in Toronto sparked his interest in math by encouraging him to apply his artistic talents to an animated film about a mathematical concept. Reynolds credited this teacher with changing his entire life, putting him on a path to educational story-telling that ultimately led to the 1996 founding of Fablevision. A strong advocate of school laptop programs, Reynolds demonstrated the wonders of a graphics tablet by drawing one of his popular animated characters for the several hundred members of the audience. He then showed a short film based on his children's book The Dot, which tells the story of a young girl named Vashti who feels her artistic talent is limited to her ability to draw dots. Vashti's teacher encourages her to hone her dot-drawing skills, and by the end of the story, the formerly disenchanted girl has become a respected artist who inspires other students at her school. Reynolds urged educators to think of his story as a model for student-teacher relationships. By encouraging young people to use technology in creative ways, they can raise their self-esteem and make them more excited about learning, he said. "Let's put tests in perspective and bring back creativity," he said. "Right now, computers are often used in unspectacular ways, like test prep and testing. They aren't used to get kids to be creative. Let's put the technology right in the kids' hands and let them make their mark with it." Links: National Educational Computing Conference International Society for Technology in Education Consortium for School Networking http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showStoryts.cfm?ArticleID=5136 --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text/enriched Size: 21373 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://six.pairlist.net/pipermail/bridging_the_divide/attachments/20040630/068d386f/attachment-0001.bin From jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net Wed Jun 30 17:24:21 2004 From: jbarkeloo at touchsmart.net (Jason Barkeloo) Date: Sat Nov 20 05:29:18 2004 Subject: [Bridging_the_digital_divide] Schools must use $2 billion or lose it Message-ID: Schools must use $2 billion or lose it Tuesday, June 29, 2004 Posted: 11:02 AM EDT (1502 GMT) WASHINGTON (AP) -- States are getting a reminder from the federal government: Quickly make plans to spend more than $2 billion in education money, or be ready to lose it. The Education Department has found that all the states, the District of Columbia and eight territories have high cash balances left from 2002, including money meant for poor children, disabled students and limited-English learners. That money must be obligated -- not spent, but at least legally earmarked toward a specific expense -- by September 30, which is 27 months after it was released to states. States then have two final years to spend the money. Ultimately, school money not committed or spent returns to the federal treasury, as happened with $155 million last year. The department's move comes as an election-year fight grows over whether states and schools have enough money to do what's demanded of them under new federal law. House Republicans announced Monday that states have $16.8 billion in unspent school money dating from the former Clinton administration, a figure that the Education Department confirmed but state school officials called misleading without context about how school financing works. GOP leaders are expanding an argument made this year by the department, the White House and congressional Republicans, that schools are flush with federal money. It's meant to counter the claim that President Bush, who championed a law demanding greater improvement in all schools, has not come close to keeping his promise to pay for changes the law demands. "We've literally flooded the system with cash, and it's time to start focusing on improving student achievement instead," said Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, chairman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee. The Education Department has issued letters to chief state school officers, reminding them of what appeared to be substantial cash balances with just three months before the September deadline. Meeting obligations More than $2.1 billion is unspent from 2002, or about 8 percent of the money allocated for five broad areas, including special education and adult education. The department's letters to states identified only those cash balances that seemed particularly high. Todd Jones, a department budget official, acknowledged Monday that the agency does not know how much of that money already has been obligated. He said it makes sense that some cash is not yet committed, such as money for summer reading expenses that have yet to occur. Still, Jones said, the department issued its reminder to ensure that states don't miss their chances to use the money. It's part of a broader effort this year to help states account for all the federal money available and to draw it down more quickly. "The states are telling us that they're not seeing this as a red flag at all," Jordan Cross, lobbyist for the Council of Chief State School Officers, said after leaders there reviewed the numbers with budget and top education executives from at least 10 states Monday. "They expect, by September, that almost all of that money will be obligated." Patty Sullivan, the council's deputy executive director, added: "To the department's credit, they gave us a heads-up on this. I don't think this is a `gotcha' activity. I think they really are trying to help." Still, Sullivan said, the implication that states "have a closet full of money," is misleading. Her group plans to publish a document that explains school financing for the public, knowing the issue will come up again. http://www.cnn.com/2004/EDUCATION/06/29/school.money.ap/index.html --- Jason Barkeloo President TouchSmart Publishing http://www.touchsmart.net tele 513.225.8765 This electronic mail (email) communication, and any files transmitted with it, are confidential, and intended solely for the indicated recipient(s). Any review, use, or distribution by anyone other than the intended recipient(s) is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, or are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender, and delete all copies immediately. -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... 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