Internet Classroom Connections

EXAMPLES OF HOW THE INTERNET IS BEING USED IN CLASSROOMS NOW

ELECTRONIC MAILING LISTS

Many people on electronic mailing lists such as Ednet, Kidsphere, and the Consortium for School Networking Discussion List (cosndisc) post their projects and ask for partners and collaborators. The K12 hierarchy of USENET NEWS has several groups where educators post these invitations as well. For subscription to these and other electronic lists and for names of news groups, see USENET Discussion Groups

For news groups and mailing lists of special interest to educators, see LISTSERV Discussion Groups and Electronic Journals

Examples of Projects using the Internet from the Kidsphere electronic mailing list, each from a different content area and representing different ways of using the Internet.

PUBLISHING ON THE WEB

Plugged In is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing the tremendous technological resources available in Silicon Valley to low-income youth and families in East Palo Alto, California, nearby communities and, using the Internet, low-income communities across the country. Take a look at some of Plugged In's Projects.

INTERACTIVE PROJECTS ON THE WEB

The Internet is more than a library, a TV, or a printing press. One of its most exciting uses is as a tool of collaboration. It allows teachers and students around the world to work together to design inquiries and explore challenges.Projects which use the Internet sometimes request sites from all over the world to contribute data from the local area then compile that data for use by all. Weather patterns, pollutants in water or air, and Monarch butterfly migration are some of the data that has been collected over the Internet.

• Global SchoolNet Foundation has a collection of the best curriculum projects on the net including ThinkQuest, an annual contest for grades 7-12 with $1 million in prizes available for schools, students, teachers and coaches. It challenges students to work in teams with their teachers, as coaches, to build educational tools and materials for the Internet that can be shared with fellow students.

• Access Excellence is a national educational program sponsored by the biotechnology industry pioneer, Genentech, Inc., that puts high school biology teachers in touch with their colleagues, scientists and critical sources of new scientific information through an online network. It's a virtual beehive of activity!

• Quest, home of NASA's K-12 Internet Initiative, puts your students in touch with NASA scientists, researchers, and engineers. Participate in exciting Online Interactive Projects.

• Judi Harris' Network-Based Educational Activity Structures
  is a collection of 236 exemplary network-based educational activities, collected by Judi Harris.

• InforMNs World Wide Web Server, provides innovative projects such as MayaQuest and Journey North that others from across the country can join.

• KIDPROJ projects are regularly announced through the KIDLINK network. Participate with your class in projects that fit your curriculum. KIDPROJ projects with WWW resources include:
  • Desert and Desertification
  • The Multi-Cultural Calendar
  • The Writer's Corner
  • Math Keypals Project
  • SS Central America
  • Landmarks

• The Earth System Science Community Home Page
  • Earth's Energy Budget
  • Hydrologic Cycle
  • Land Surface: Ecosystems
  • Ozone

• Lakeside School, located in Seattle, Washington, is currently involved in several collaborations and projects including Changing World Changing Schools, FishNet, Physics Collaborative, Sustainable Schools, Thornton Creek Project, and Woodrow Wilson.

• Commercial Collaborative Learning Services
  Certain systems specialize in on-line collaborative learning. Students and teachers utilize these services to stay in contact with other students and teachers subscribing to the same system. The groups of learners are situated around a common goal (designed by either the service provider or the educators involved), such as surveying acid rain samples or raising fruitflies. The network is then used as the medium of information exchange and review.

  • The Global Laboratory Project implements innovative collaborative student research into local and global environmental issues.

  • Labnet is an electronic community for science and math teachers, begun by the National Science Foundation.

  • Scholastic Network is an electronic community that connects thousands of schools in the U.S. Every month, there's a new activity--Earth Day outreach projects, live discussions with astronauts and more.

AS INDICATORS OF ENGAGED LEARNING

Using these Internet tools assumes new ways of looking at learning that promote:

• engaged, meaningful learning and collaboration involving challenging and
• real-life tasks; and technology as a tool for learning, communication, and collaboration.

The North Central Regional Education Laboratory (NCREL) has identified seven variables that, when present in the classroom, indicate that effective teaching and learning are occurring. These appear in Table 1.

INTERNET RESOURCES

There are a several resources on the Internet that are directed specifically at the primary and secondary school communities, and the number is growing.

Yahoo Directory

represents another way to get at a topic without searching for just a subject heading. Pick a subject and dive on in!

The InterNIC Directory of Directories

has a section on K-12 (Kindergarten through 12th grade)

EdWeb

sponsored by The Corporation for Public Broadcasting and CNIDR, explores the worlds of educational reform and information technology.

Learning Through Collaborative Visualization Project (CoVis)

is comprised of thousands of students, over one hundred teachers, and dozens of researchers all working together to find new ways to think about and practice science in the classroom.

NASA's SPACELINK

is directed at primary and secondary school educators.

NYSERNet's Empire Internet Schoolhouse

is an extension of its Bridging the Gap program. [Assembly Hall for Projects and Discussions]

The Hub

houses a number of articles, reports, newsletters, curriculum, projects, and software of value to educators. Hub educational resources focus on science and mathematics, however they also have a rich collection of equity, technology and other educational information.

Classroom Connect on the Net!

includes educational links in Classroom Connect 's site that will lead you to lesson plans, libraries, museums, science projects, and numerous other valuable resources you can use in the classroom today.

National Student Research Center Electronic Library (NSRC)

envisions educating children around the world to become humanitarian and ecological 21st century citizens in an ultimately diverse and highly interdependent, science and technology based, global community. [Elementary, Middle, and High School; On-going program]

Web 66

is designed to facilitate the introduction of Internet technology into K12 schools.

GNN Online Project Catalog

you will find Internet resources for use in and out of the classroom.

Physical Science Activities

contains 34 hands-on activities to bring excitement to your classroom.

Fermilab's OnLine Internet Resources

should serve as good starting points for research on planning educational telecommuncations projects.

MORE Resources and Contacts

COMPUTERS AND EDUCATION IN ACTION: Some Examples

To get a better understanding of how computers may be used in the classroom, take a look at some of the systems and services educators have used to help their students learn and understand. These examples cover a range of methods, uses and levels of sophistication, from complex, yet costly multimedia systems to simple word processing and email-driven lessons. Following each case are important issues for discussion.