Making Our Kids Safer Online: Emphasis on Education

Recently, the U.S. Senate held a committee hearing regarding children's digital safety and steps needed to be taken to prevent predatory behavior. Perhaps you may be surprised to hear that much of the testimony emphasized the importance of online safety education over the use of filters. Even Senate members are beginning to recognize that there is no "silver bullet" approach to keeping kids safe online. Besides Senate members, the current reigning Miss America, Lauren Nelson, who herself was a victim of online advances, spoke out on the topic. To read a summary of the testimony see an article on the PBS site entitled Senate Hearing on Online Safety: More Emphasis on Educating Kids. To see webcasts of the statement and witness testimony go to the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. What will your school be doing this year to promote Internet Safety?

Free Technical Software

You'll want to go to Technology & Learning to read the two free technical software articles, which will lead you and your students to tech tools such as conversion calculators, CAD programs, equation illustrators, screen capture systems, periodic tables, graphing programs, converters, and more. Thanks to author Richard Williams for these leads.

K-6 Small Math & Science Grants

If you teach math or science Kindergarten through Grade 6 and you are interested in inquiry-based projects, you should apply for a Toshiba America Foundation Grant. Toshiba is looking for great ideas from individual teachers or teams of teachers. Examples of previously funded projects will give you an idea of what Toshiba is looking for. October 1, 2007 is the deadline for the current wave of grants.

Gotta Have IT

The K-12 NCWIT (National Center for Women & Information Technology) Alliance (College Board, ISTE, American School Counselor Association, Girl Scouts, and other organizations) offers a free kit packed with materials for encouraging girls to consider careers in information technology (IT). The kit includes the following publications: Totally Amazing Careers in Engineering, Science Can Take Her Places!, Girls and Information Technology, Computing Degrees and Careers, IT is all about Me, and more. You can download the materials in pdf format from the site.

Ban the Internet?

Perhaps they are not out to ban the entire Internet, but the Professional Association of Teachers in Britain has voted to ban Wi-Fi and YouTube. The Association wants Wi-Fi's health risk investigated before it is used in schools. This means not installing new wireless networks and disconnecting the old ones. As for YouTube and similar sites, the Association says that these sites encourage cyberbullying against both students and teachers.

Autistic Girls: What Are Their Needs?

Emily Brazelon's New York Times article, What Autistic Girls Are Made Of, gives us a glimpse into the lives of autistic girls. Studies have focused on boys with autism because there are not many girls that are diagnosed with the disorder. That may be because fewer girls are autistic or because girls are better at hiding it, especially during their early years in school. These girls have the ability to engage in social relationships and want to be like others. It's in middle school that problems escalate because girls with autism want to fit in, but often can't. They aren't like autistic boys who seem a little quirky, but often can interact with others, especially through digital games. The girls understand they are different and their anxiety grows.  To learn more check out the Brazelon article. It's a must for teachers to read.

Do We Need Art in Schools?

There's a new book out by Ellen Winner and Lois Hetland, the authors of Project Zero, a study that claimed, several years ago, that having art classes didn't help students improve academically. The new book says that art-education should be evaluated for its own sake-for its ability to help students see better, learn from mistakes, envision what's possible, make critical judgments, etc. Longtime art proponent, Elliott Eisner, of Stanford, says that art helps student realize there are many solutions to problems. It's tough to evaluate the need for art in schools, but the need is there, isn't it?

Professional Development Change

It's not always easy to find an on-going professional development program, especially one that combines face-to-face support with 24-7 services online. Teachscape features a 3-5 year program of professional development with 12-month professional study programs such as The Early Childhood Series, High-Yield Strategies, Developing and Supporting Beginning Teachers, The Algebra Series, and Supporting English Language Learners. The folks from Teachscape visit schools to work with teachers and administrators. An online program manager provides professional development 24-7 to help educators develop those collaborative and project-based skills needed for success. So-if you school or district's professional development program isn't exactly what you think it should be, you might want to look into what Teachscape can do.

Podcasts in Your Classroom

No matter what grade level or subject you teach, podcasts can be used as teaching resources, for content review, and for student projects. Whether you are planning to create your own for your students or you want your students to dive into podcast creation, the c/net course on podcasting should be valuable to you. The course is part of c/net's Tips and Tricks, a great place to head for digital learning.

Education Grants Deadlines for 2007-2008

Check out the Funding Special Issue 2007 (July) of Technology and Learning magazine for an insert that lists grant deadlines, funding sites, and strategy tips.  Did you know that you should build an elevator pitch for your grant proposals? In plain English that means you should be able to summarize your proposal in the time it takes to ride up (or down) a few floors on an elevator. Those evaluating grants will appreciate a concise summary. Find a copy of the July 2007 issue and pull out and post the insert in your school.