Lightning in a Bottle

The Computers 4 Kids program for Washington state has surplus computers available for donation to schools. The wait list in the past has been quite long, but the number of computers available has increased and shortened the wait time to a few months. The minimum processor for a Windows computer is a Pentium II, and for a Mac is a G3 (although very few Macs come through the program). You can read more details on the minimum specifications and how to apply at www.k12.wa.us/c4kids/.

Please note, however, that the application must be submitted by the technology director of the district. OSPI wants to make sure that your district is ready to install the computers when they are delivered!

Here’s another article about using the Internet to keep parents connected with how their children are doing - www.ajc.com/friday/content/epaper/editions/friday/metro_f32e89f1464be1cd00b1.html. This system even can even send parents an email if their kids skip a single class.

A company local to the Seattle area has a parent communication tool called ParentOrganizer. It provides a web-based system that provides a one-stop place for your child’s calendar, including due dates for assignments, after-school activities, and more. If you have more than one child, everything is coordinated on one calendar. It can also be used to let parents authorize field trips (no more “Mom, I lost the sheet that you need to sign for the field trip today”), pay for lunches, complete surveys and other kinds of critical parent-to-school communications. You can check out their web page at www.parentorganizer.com or an article about them at www.kingcountyjournal.com/sited/story/html/149163.

A number of school districts are moving to a new kind of assessment that replaces traditional standardized testing. These tests are taken via computer, and adapt dynamically to the skills of the student during the course of the test. More capable students are given harder questions, and struggling students are given easier questions. This allows the test to fine tune it’s measure of the students’ capabilities.

An added advantage is that results are available in just a few days, rather than the months it takes with paper tests. Feedback from the assessment can be used almost immediately to fine-tune instruction and student assignments, instead of being used at the start of the following school year. Tests can also be aligned with state standards, rather than a generic national test.

The tests are often less costly than paper and pencil tests. The tradeoff is arranging for all the technology to make the test possible.

1,100 districts nationwide are using the Measures of Academic Progress (or MAP) test from the Northwest Evaluation Association in Portland. You can read about the experiences of a school in Philadelphia at www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/7439046.htm.

The Seattle Times has a good article today on districts that make grades available online for parents. I think it’s a great idea, especially for parents of middle school and high school students, because you can see problems when they are developing (and can be fixed), not at the end of the grading period when it’s too late. (As Duane Duxbury of Everett points out in the article, however, it’s just one more area where students from poor homes are at a disadvantage, since their parents are less likely to have a home computer.)

The article is at seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/education/2001811529_grading10m.html. You may need to fill out a brief registration before viewing the site.

GoKnow’s Handheld Learning Environment for Palm OS (HLE) provides K-12 teachers with a unique classroom management program and integrated educational software tools to allow for the pedagogically-effective use of handhelds with students. Backed by scientific classroom research at the University of Michigan, HLE delivers the full benefits of technology for education.

GoKnow’s Handheld Learning Environment includes
* For Teachers:
PAAM - Palm OS Archive and Application Manager
The classroom synchronization manager that allows teachers to easily manage, assess, and back-up student handheld work.

* For Students:
HLE Tools - Integrated Software for Learning
Productivity applications expressly designed for K-12.

Lessons - Activities that Engage Students
With each classroom purchase of HLE, GoKnow provides 50 standards-based lessons for middle grades (4-9) to help teachers effectively integrate the technology and software into ongoing curriculum.

HLE is available for $19.95 per handheld as a yearly subscription. Discounts apply for multi-year and multi-classroom purchases. For more information visit www.goknow.com/Products/ or call 800-203-3412.

The EDS corporation is making grants of $1,500 available to teachers to purchase hardware, software, or other technology-related resources. The due date for applications is January 23, 2004. I’ve included the entire notice below, including contact information. (The contact information on this notice is for Washington state. If you’re from elsewhere, follow the web link in the message to find your contact.)

Go for it!

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The EDS Technology Grant challenges teachers to develop innovative uses of technology for classroom learning. The program enables schoolteachers of children ages 6 through 18 purchase information technology products and services that will improve their students’ ability to learn. EDS teams/accounts worldwide sponsor and award $1,500 grants to teachers through a competitive application process. The grants are awarded to teachers through their schools.

Grants must be used to pay for technology products, training, and services and EDS encourages teachers to propose innovative classroom projects or student exercises. Examples of qualified grant expenditures include computer software and hardware, multimedia equipment, CD-ROM libraries, scanners, modems, Internet access, online time to networks or databases, and student technical training.

Eligibility:
To apply for an EDS Technology Grant, the applicant must meet the following requirements:
* Be a current full-time teacher of students ages 6 through 18.
* Teach at a public, private or charter school.
* Teach at a school located within 50 miles of an EDS office that is sponsoring a grant.
* Apply individually or in teams of two.

Ineligible Applicants:
* Home school or co-op home school providers.
* After school or weekend programs managed by nonprofit organizations, churches and other groups.
* Junior colleges, state and private universities.

Deadline and Submission:
* Teachers may obtain an application by contacting an EDS grant sponsor. A listing of grant sponsors can be found by visiting the EDS Web site at www.eds.com/community_affairs/com_tech_grants.shtml
* Applications should be submitted to the address indicated on the application form.
* Applications must be postmarked by January 23, 2004.
* Grants will be awarded in March 2004.
* A list of winners will be published on eds.com June 2004.

For more information
Contact Guyanna Young, EDS@Weyerhaeuser Technology Grant Coordinator at (253) 924-3854, or by e-mail at guyanna.young@eds.com.

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If you have any questions regarding the 2004 Technology Grant program, you may contact me directly at (253) 924-3853. Thank you for your assistance and remember - Innovation is the key!

Guyanna Young
EDS@Weyerhaeuser
33405 8th Ave S
Federal Way, WA 98003
Phone 253-924-3853
Fax 253-924-5376
E-mail guyanna.young@eds.com

The Concord Consortium has released a free, downloadable program for graphically modeling molecular interactions. You can read descriptions and download the software at workbench.concord.org. It will run on Windows XP or Mac OSX. (I wish I had access to this kind of software when I took chemistry!)

They are also looking for high school and community college science teachers in testing the software. They offer support and a small stipend to those that participate. If you’re interested, contact Amy Pallant (apallant@concord.org).

The New York Times has an article today about online schools that features two northwest programs - Salem-Keizer Online from Oregon, and Christa McAuliffe Academy in Yakima, Washington. The Oregon school is a public school, and the Washington school is a private school.

Much of the article consists of interviews with parents and students participating in these programs. The major reasons given for attending virtual schools instead of traditional schools are social, rather than educational. Many of the students speak of alienation at school, not feeling a connection to other students or the staff.

The author of the article seems ambivalent about the whole idea. She’s clearly sympathetic to the kids and what they have escaped, but still seems uneasy about what they lose in leaving school for learning at home. I kept wondering why it’s so hard to create a high schools where students don’t feel so completely alone and vulnerable.

The article is at www.nytimes.com/2003/12/07/magazine/07CYBER.html?pagewanted=1. You need to register to view the article, but it’s free. It also gives you access to all of the newspaper, and there are often very informative articles on education.

From a teacher in Omaha really using handhelds well as he integrates their use into a fifth grade curriculum.

“The educational program “Teaching NOW!” visited my school (Willowdale) last spring. They have produced a half-hour program about the use of handhelds in my classroom and in my school titled “Handhelds in Omaha.” It will air on public television. Also, it is available for viewing online at” http://teachingnow.org./tn101.php

I thought you PDA-heads would find this interesting:
http://weblogs.jupiterresearch.com/analysts/gartenberg/archives/001880.html