Best Two-Way Video Programs Survey

This post is from Janine Lim, a fellow videoconference program coordinator in Berrien County, Michigan…

Berrien County ISD, Michigan, hosted a Teacher's Choice Awards to select the Best Videoconferencing Content Providers for the 2005-2006 school year. 227 people from United States and Egypt filled out the survey. Votes came in from 24 different states.

Here are the results of the survey:
Best Fine Arts Museums
Center for Puppetry Arts
Cleveland Museum of Art
Best Historical Museums
Conner Prairie
Library of Congress
Best Multidisciplinary Museums & Organizations
Baseball Hall of Fame
Museum of TV & Radio, California
Best Science Museums
COSI Columbus
COSI Toledo
Best Zoos
Columbus Zoo
Indianapolis Zoo

You can find the complete results online here, including Best New Content Providers & Honorable Mentions, and a link to a complete list of content providers. http://www.remc11.k12.mi.us/dl/teacherschoice/

Thanks, Janine, for the work you do to help us all, and thanks for sharing this information.

Science Central Offers Virtual Field Trips

With Science2 You, students can see and hear a live presentation by a Science Central Education Specialist, be actively involved with interactive science investigations, and ask those puzzling questions! ACELINK is proud to endorse two new programs available for classes in an interactive videoconferencing format:

ICKY-STICKY SCIENCE
Grade Levels: 3rd-8th
What do insect shells and glue have in common? In this program, students explore the properties of polymers (aka plastics): how they behave, where they are found, their history of development, and how they can be recycled. Students then get the chance to experience the polymerization process as they make their own "polymer putty" to take home!
Activity Kit supplied
Cost: $75
Time: 45 – 60 minutes

FISH BANKS, INC.
Grade Levels 5th-12th
This computer-aided program pits teams of students against each other as they form and run their own fishing companies. As students manage and make decisions about their companies, they learn environmental conservation principles, analyze data, use negotiation skills, and make decisions in an effort to run a successful company while maintaining a sound environment.
Activity Kit supplied
Cost: $75
Time: 60 - 90 Minutes (one session, or two 45-minute sessions)

To make a reservation for a virtual field trip or get more information, contact Pam George, Science Central distance learning specialist, at 260-424-2400 in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

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Where do you want to go?

Today 20 teachers learned about videoconferencing--many for the first time. My question is--what do you want to connect with? Who should your students have an opportunity to talk to? Where do you want to take your students?

Add your thoughts as a comment below this post. Thanks.

Franke Park Teacher Receives National Recognition for Videoconferencing

Pam Ghaffarian, who team teaches third, fourth and fifth grades at Franke Park Elementary in Fort Wayne, was recently featured in an article in Cable in the Classroom's March publication called Access Learning.

In this article, Pam shared how her students are learning science in new ways. Her class is part of the NASA Explorer program, and they use the Allen County Education Network and videoconferencing equipment to improve science and learning. Among other experiences last year, students piloted STORM-E, an "e-Mission" on weather hosted by the Challenger Learning Center. They also videoconferenced with the Zathura author Chris Van Allsburg and a NASA engineer as they learned to write science fiction stories. First-graders at Franke Park videoconferenced for the first time this year, learning about the Sun from a scientist in Hampton, Va. "They drew pictures of the Sun together and compared them to what they used to think the Sun was like," said Pam.

"Integrating videoconferencing into instruction means students can learn from experts anywhere in the world, giving them access to teachers with specialized knowledge, props, and sometimes even a gift for the theatrical," reported the author.

ACELINK has supported interactive videoconferences at Franke Park, which we also make available to any educator in our consortium. For more information on this funding for programs, contact schaufes@ipfw.edu.