Do All Teachers Need (or Want) an Interactive WhiteBoard?

School administrators know that requests for interactive whiteboards in classrooms is growing. With the downturn in the economy, it's been difficult for schools to make this teaching tool available to all who want to put them to use in their lessons. According to a survey in Technology & Learning and according to what all of us educators already know, not all teachers who have interactive whiteboards in their classrooms use them and not all teachers want one. The T&L survey showed, however, that the majority of folks who voted either had the whiteboards and loved them or didn't have whiteboards and wanted them. Okay, but wouldn't most teachers on the T&L site be favorable to tech tools anyway? The percentages would probably be lower if a random group of educators were asked the same questions. Although we all not ready to put the tools of tech to work in our classrooms today, we have to admit that classrooms and teaching are changing because of what we can do with technology. Back in the late 1960s, discussions at Stanford's School of Education envisioned interactive classrooms in which students felt they were in another country, on another planet, or in another climate. Are interactive whiteboards the beginning of a new era in learning immersion?

National Standards of Education: 46 States & D.C.

Maria Gold's article in the Washington Post (6/1/09) discusses educational standards for students K-12. The idea is that when students who have achieved these standards get their high school diploma, they will be ready for college or the job market and will be "internationally competitive". The effort is led by the National Governors Association and the Council of Chief School Officers. All State governors except those from Texas, Alaska, Missouri, and South Carolina are part of the movement. This July, readiness standards for reading and mathematics will be "unveiled" for high school graduates. The program will eventually include goals for each grade level stating skills students must master to be "on track" for graduation. The effort will not specify what teachers are to teach or how teachers are to teach to help students master the skills.

Free Film Footage—But Only 500 Available

Royalty free film footage on topics such as seashores, winter and snow, nature and animals, high definition variety, autumn, looping backgrounds, beaches and islands, fireworks, Christmas and holidays may be ordered for $8.41 shipping for each DVD. Five hundred copies of each of twelve collections are available to schools. In each DVD there are separate film clips, and the twelve DVDs include over 700 clips. According to Footage Firm, the company making the offer, the collection includes $10,000 worth of footage.

Be A NECC Blogger

ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education) invites you to join in with blogging about NECC 2009 in Washington, D.C. To become a NECC blogger, all you have to do is to submit your name, some brief info, and your blog URL. Once your information is submitted, you'll be added to NECC's Google spreadsheet of bloggers. If you don't have a blog, you can use NECC's Blogger Outreach to find out more about this national ed tech convention, and if you are heading to the conference, you can use the blogs to stay connected while there. So far some of the blogs on the list include ISTE Connects, Edublogs from Perth Australia, UNC Greensboro, and Kenilworth School District from Illinois.

Cisco Networking Sweepstakes: $10,000 & Other Prizes

Until July 13, 2009, you can enter Cisco's sweepstakes, Home Networking Made Easy. It's a promotion for Network Magic Pro, an inexpensive (about $39) Cisco product designed to help with home wireless connections. If you want, you can download a 7-day trial of the product. To have a chance to win the $10,000 sweepstakes prize or the instant prizes (Linksys Media Storage Unit, Flip Video MinoHD, checks for $100 and $15), you'll need to click on the play button and submit basic information.

Facing Down Bullies

Whether it's bullying online or offline, trying to keep it from happening is extremely difficult. According to a New York Times article, the American Academy of Pediatrics will include guidelines about the prevention of bullying in an upcoming policy statement. A model anti-bullying program developed by Dan Olweus of Norway will be recommended for schools. The program works at both classroom and individual levels as it helps students understand that bullies are persons with behavior problems and that other students must learn to stand up for those being bullied. The policy calls for a more active role among pediatricians in encouraging parents and schools to work to help both bullies and their victims.

Why Sing? It's Good for Everyone.

With economic cutbacks, school districts may consider cutting choral activities. That would be a big mistake according to
The Chorus Impact Study (.pdf), for findings show that adults who sing in choral groups are good citizens in their communities, and children who sing in choral groups generally do well in the academics and learn to work with others as a team. A great majority of educators surveyed recommend that students join choral groups and believe that participation in such groups helps students with social skills, sense of community, and even school attendance. The study noted a decline in opportunities for students to participate in choral groups, which is a great concern.

Just How Wireless Is Your School District?

The Charles County School District in Maryland has universal wireless access with a network that can carry both data and voice. The system has a substantial amount of bandwidth—enough for transmitting voice, data, and video without slowdowns or other usage problems. Many of the textbooks used have been digitized, teachers have wireless laptops, and there are over 4000 Voice Over the Internet Protocol (VoiP) phones and approximately 650 wireless phones. To keep all this safe, district officials say that they've added Cisco security to each laptop. So what's the school district looking to do next—wide-area wireless. With that, Charles County wireless will be available between all the facilities in the district. According to an article in School CIO, the project cost about $6 million.

Sharing the Dream: $3000 Grant for Principals

If you are a principal of an elementary or middle school and would like to strengthen community involvement with your school, you'll want to consider the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) and MetLife Foundation grant, Sharing the Dream. The grant targets improving student learning through "community leadership, communication, ownership and involvement...." To enter, you'll need to submit information about your school and a five-page or less narrative about the project you want to do during the 2009-2010 school year. If you win, you'll receive a grant for $3000, resources related to community involvement, and a write-up in NAESP publications. Entries are due by 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time, July 8, 2009; grants will be announced by September 1, 2009.

Picturing America: Resources for U.S. History

Wow! Check out these images of America! Picturing America is all about students using visuals and artwork to explore American History. Students look at the art in the program and learn about the places, artifacts and people in them. Although the actual photographs and art reproductions are no longer available for schools, you and your students can use the wonderful images that are online. Themes covered in the program are Leadership, Freedom and Equality, Democracy, Courage, Landscapes, and Creativity & Ingenuity. Some of the powerful photos and visuals in the program are of George Washington crossing the Delaware, the ride of Paul Revere, Native American pottery and baskets, Rockwell's Freedom of Speech, Allies Day 1917, and Yosemite Valley 1865. Resources are available for each visual.