EIPT 6513
South Central Region Technology
in Education Consortium (SCR*TEC)
(Suggested by Keith
Adolphson)
The South Central Region Technology in Education Consortium's (SCR*TEC)
mission is to help K-12 teachers and other educators create, share, or
find solutions to problems they encounter when integrating technology into
education. This non-commercial, free-access site can be used to network
with other teachers, learners, and planners through a unique system supporting
collaboration and resource sharing. The web site contains a wide range
of features that address the problems educators face daily and support
the integration of technology into education. In short, it can be
an invaluable asset for every educator for virtually any subject--all without
commercial interruption!
Significant SCRTEC Features:
Cynthia Lanius, a former high school math teacher now at Rice University,
has put together an interactive web site on the hot math topic of fractals,
geometric figures with special properties. The site leads visitors through
a series of exercises involving thinking and practical application. Lanius
will even check your answers and reply by email. One page is an archive
of email interactions between Lanius and visitors. The site includes visual
examples of fractals, but they do not dominate. There are plenty of tools
provided, such as special graph paper to print out and a page where one
can make a fractal using color and figures. Links to other sites with more
information or graphic examples of other fractals are plentiful. Students
could use this award-winning site individually, or upper elementary and
middle school teachers could use it with classes. High school teachers
may find it useful also. Printouts of the lessons are available for teachers
at the site. There is no commercial advertising or sponsorship although
some of the award links lead to profit organizations. Math teachers, students,
and classes will find this a fun site that stretches the mind as well.
The
Math Forum
(Suggested by Jody
Cameron)
The Math Forum is a site dedicated to the teaching and learning of mathematics. It is run by Swarthmore University in Pennsylvania and partially funded by the National Science Foundation. Software and hardware grants were given to the Forum by Microsoft and Hewlett Packard. The Forum has four major areas of emphasis -- Student Center, Teachers' Place, Research Division, and Parents & Citizens.
The Student Center is a place for students to go for a variety of resources from the Forum. "Ask Dr. Math" enables students to write in with math questions. A professional mathematician will answer the question by e-mail within 1 - 2 days. Problem of the Week is an internet challenge where students answer a math problem, type up a solution and submit it to the site. Students whose answers are correct have their name posted (some solutions are also highlighted). Grade level pages are also shown, where students may find such things as math chat rooms, hyperlinks to math puzzles, tricks, and tips, and places to look for math camps and summer programs.
The Teachers' Place gives teachers information about resources for the classroom. Teacher2Teacher lets educators ask and answer questions. These are threaded discussions on many topics, including math baseball, making math fun, and number placement. Teachers also have access to a wide variety of lesson plans and web units. These are not only plans that can be downloaded and used in the regular classroom, but also interactive plans/units that can be done while integrating technology. All plans are cross-referenced to the NCTM Standards. Ideas and activities are broken up by grade level or special interest.
The Research Division has links for mathematicians to journals, books, and reference sources on the internet. It also links to lists of discussion areas, educational and societal opportunities, and professional associations.
The Parents & Citizens page is available for people outside of the educational classroom. There is information on math education, including tracking, educational reform, and assessment. One could also find discussions about key issues in society regarding math and education. Several resourced are listed for parents on how to help their child be successful in mathematics, including books, articles, and internet discussions.
This site is really wonderful for all who have some interest in math,
be it as a teacher, student or parent. The resources are abundant, the
site is easy to navigate through, there is only one page with endorsements
(from those who gave funding to the site). I would highly recommend this
for anyone!
Fun
Factory
(Suggested by Steve
Cooper)
This site, hosted by the East of Scotland Water
Company, provides a fun filled environment that teaches students about
the water supply system and how it works. The target grade for this
web-site would be fifth and sixth gradersí. This web-site would
be effective for geography and environmental science classes for the lower
grades. It has a large amount of information about the water supply
from how it is stored to how it is pumped into the cities. The web site
is organized into 4 major sections. These sections are the gamesí
section, teacher resources, road show, and the workshop. The teacher section
provides useful resources for the teacher to use in the classroom. The
gamesí section provides interactive games that relate to responsibilities
the East of Scotland Water Company are responsible for. The Road Show provides
a schedule for the live training that the East of Scotland Water Company
provides for students in Scotland. The Workshop provides the information
and tutorial guide. In the workshop students can learn about water
and how it interacts with nature and humans alike.
The Space Place
(suggested by Daniel
Fields)
Make your own model rocket, a robot rover or mash potato asteroids.
Try cool experiments. See pictures from space. These are just some
of the activities at The Space Place. A great place to learn how the scientists
at NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory are really exploring space.
For Ages 8 to Adult.
Children's Television Workshop
(Suggested by "C"
Haley)
This site has something for everyone. Personally, I enjoyed connecting
the dots on Elmo's kite! If you are a parent, student or teacher
interested in preparing your student/child for school or if you have an
interest in an educational tool to assist in baby or preschool development,
you might find this site very useful. There are five different links
associated with this site: Preschool Playground, Parents Toolbox, Kid City,
Baby & You and Sesame Street. Preschool Playground has everything
from interactive educational games to tutorials on preschoolers web page
building. The Parent Toolbox has a planning section, which helps
develop activities for preschoolers. Kid City area has interesting
poll taking events and chats about what kids like and dislike about returning
to school. Baby & You has a help section to guide parents on
baby development. The Sesame Street section enables the preschooler
to talk to his favorite character and play educational games. This
website is sponsored by Sesame Street but within each link you will find
additional commercial advertisements from NewKid Company, Just For Kids,
Smarterkids.com, Kmart and eToys.
Go Ask Alice!
(suggested by Linda
Gens)
This website provides information to people
about all aspects of health. It was designed for college students,
but people of all ages have found, and will find, good information about
health at this website. "Alice!" is produced and maintained by Alice!,
Columbia Universityís Health Education Program, which is a division
of the Columbia University Health Service.
There are eight main sections to this site:
New ìAlice!î questions, relationships, sexuality, sexual health,
emotional health, fitness and nutrition, alcohol, nicotine, and other drugs,
and general health. In the opening heading, there are three links:
ìAbout Alice!,î ìSearch Alice!,î and ìAsk
Alice!î
This site would be most beneficial bookmarked
on a schoolís library media center computers. In the classroom
setting the teacher might utilize this by having students research a particular
health topic. There are many links in the site leading readers to additional
information and assistance from a variety of sources.
ìGo Ask Alice!î has received
praise from many organizations, including The New York Times, The
Boston Globe, National Public Radio, Voice of America, Harvard Health
Letter, and many others.
ìGo Ask Alice!î has also received
censure from some conservative organizations, such as Oklahomans for Children
and Families (OCAF), and people, such as Dr. Laura Schlessinger, a radio
talk-show personality. However, most of the questions come from young
people and all responses contain factual information; most importantly,
the questions are answered with gravity and without prejudice. ìAlice!ísî
archives contain over 1,500 posted questions and answers. Inquiries
are anonymous. According to the ìAbout Alice!î information,
ìthe answers to the questions undergo a standardized review process
to insure high quality and accuracy.î
50states.com
(Suggested by Carey
Kipp)
The website can be used by grades three through twelve. It can
be used in a social studies-geography (U.S.) educational setting.
The website is educational and has fast facts about the United States and
U.S. territories and commonwealths. There is a link to a state map
and a capital map. From the state homepage, there are links to biographies
of famous people born in the state, the state flower, list of newspapers
found in the state, fast facts of the state, and many other things.
There is a FAQ link from the 50states.com website which answers questions
about the website. At the current time Ray Weber, the maintainer
of the website, is also working on links to Fifty Facts & Trivia Pages,
US Territory pages, Mileage chart between capital cities, and official
flower list. The website is updated every time a change happens, which
includes a URL change or a major addition. There is commercial advertising
on the website and on links from the 50states.com homepage. The commerical
advertising pays for the hardware costs to keep the website up and running.
There is access to a message board which people are allowed to ask and
answer questions about the 50 states. If a teacher of librarian wants
to get printed material about a certain state, you should access the link
Tourism on the selected stateís page.
Education World
(Suggested by Beverly
Laughead)
If you are looking for a K-12 education web site that links you to
everything from the online quizzes about today's current events to a classroom-based
competition that encourages students in grades 4-6 to take a meaningful
interest in computers and technology, Education World is it! Even though
this web site has commercial advertisements, I believe the value of this
web site will be appreciated by even those who feel web site advertising
is annoying.
The primary educational database topics are Arts and Humanities, History,
Mathematics, PE and Health, Sciences, Social Science. While "browsing"
the various pages of Education World, I discovered the means for educators
to link the day's news to their curriculum and challenge students to look
beyond the news by connecting the news to science, geography, social studies,
art, math, language arts, critical thinking, and technology. When discussing
catastrophic weather events such as last spring's devastating tornadoes
in
Oklahoma, educators and students can search The Why Files to learn
the latest about the scientific understandings that explain and support
current events. Students can explore the science behind the latest news
stories, learn about the most recent scientific discoveries, view (or submit)
newsworthy scientific photos, participate in science-based discussions,
and explore the archives for previous topics.
Another link that I found especially interesting is Educated Guess. Educated Guess is a game that helps middle and high school students to connect to the news while developing curriculum-related skills. Student teams collect information about current event topics and try to predict the outcomes of ongoing events. The game identifies standards based on the California History/Social Studies Standards, suggesting that, as they research and evaluate information, students will learn to identify bias and prejudice, compare past and present events, evaluate the consequences of events and decisions, relate current events to the five themes of geography, examine world problems, and consider solutions.
Additionally, this site provides instructors not only an online resource
guide for lesson plans, articles written by education experts, information
on how to make the best use of technology in the classroom, but also an
information source with news from USA Today, monthly site reviews and employment
listing. There are database links for Administration Resources, Adult and
Continuing Education, Distance Education, Education Organizations, Internet
Resources, K12 Schools, Parent Resources, Regional Resources, Research
Resources, Special Education, Student Resources, Teacher Resources,
Universities, University Departments, and Vocational Resources.
The Louvre
(Suggested by Elizabeth
Manz)
I choose this web site as my favorite, excellent example because that's what it is. It begins with a home page that serves the purpose of giving the visitor a chance to choose the language that they would be most comfortable reading. From there, the visitor is taken to what I consider the same home page in the chosen language. The page is laid out in a grid pattern, with the menu bar running down the left-hand side. This site structure remains constant throughout the site with palace and activities, museum, and information being the headings. Numerous subheadings are available for the visitor to click on.
Once a topic has been selected, the available text area on the right hand side shows the new information. There is a scroll bar with which to move text and pictures. If a work of art is selected, the text area will move and the picture will remain constant. The text is right justified, is usually a paragraph long, and is about six to eight words across. This helps make it easier to read, and gives the page balance. The webmaster usually uses black text on a white background, in a font that is easy on the eye. Links are in blue, are underlined, and are in the same font. Occasionally Italics are used to indicate the title of a work of art. These are somewhat more difficult to read. The works of art can usually be enlarged to full screen size, and print well.
Navigation is relatively easy because of the menu bar on the left. Categories of art are broken up into specific periods of time, so the visitor can go directly to the period they are interested in (if they know). Some of the pages that are listed in the menu are available only in French, so this is one downside in the navigation. I feel that they shouldn't be listed at all because it might frustrate the visitor, unless of course, the visitor can read French.
Earlier I stated that most of the pages are white with black text. The section for shopping is black with white and other colors of text. This is much more difficult to read, but I think that it was probably done on purpose to give a contrast between the art, which is free to view on the Internet, and items that can be purchased.
I believe that the information that is presented to interested
visitors is, in fact, as accurate as is possible. The Louvre gives
its own history, and is widely recognized as one of the best museums in
the world. You can visit this excellent site at: www.louvre.fr.
Great Outdoor Recreation
Pages
(Suggested by Sharla
Miller)
The website I found deals mainly with outdoor sports and travel.
But it was so thorough I chose it because it would be an excellent site
for anyone in the upper elementary grades and up in finding information
on several Social Studies issues. These topics might include studies
on the National Parks, endangered animals, outdoor sports such as hiking,
rafting, and camping, etc. The site address is www.gorp.com.
Gorp stands for Great Outdoor Recreation Pages. The site is operated
by a corporation founded by outdoor enthusiasts Diane and Bill Greer.
Apparently their corporation is growing because in their site there were
several job opportunities listed with GORP. The Greers have a very
attractive and enticing website. There are many color photographs
from around the United States as well as around the world. The maps
appeared to be accurate and to the best of my knowledge the information
presented about the National Parks and the different animals appeared to
be accurate as well. There were also many different pictures and
much information given on a wide variety of animals. The site also
included games and puzzles for various ages of viewers. For adult
users there were places to make travel arrangements and hook up with tour
groups and expeditions. I would have to say the website is a commercial
one because of the advertising. The main advertiser I noticed was
Chevrolet. But there were others and even information on how to go
about advertising on the site. Even so, I believe this is an excellent
site for study on animals and social studies topics. The site was
well organized but there seemed to be so much information to look at I
kept getting sidetracked with other areas of information. All of
it was interesting and eye catching. The site has a professional
appearance. I guess it stands to reason that the better the sponsorship
the more professional the site will appear. Gorp claims to exceed
over 9 million visits annually. It has won more than twenty awards.
Some of the awards include 100Hot.com-Travel&Sports, Yahoo Internet
Life Gold Star Award, as well as several awards proclaiming this site safe
for children. I found this site interesting and educational.
I feel it would have a useful place in certain learning environments.
Vamos
a Descubrir El Mundo Hispanico
(Suggested by Christy
Nelson)
This particular website is maintained by two teachers from the Durham
District School Board in Ontario, Canada. The purpose of this site is to
give links to thousands of cultural and technical resources for teachers
and students of Spanish. There are over 1500 links covering a variety of
subjects including music, literature, architecture, and history, to name
a few. The majority of this website is written in Spanish so it would be
most useful to those with at least a general knowledge of the language.
This is a good resource for any student assigned a report or paper about
any topic concerning a hispanic country. The site is easy to navigate and
all of the links are appropriate and functioning. However, because this
web page is on Geocities, there are advertisements. These advertisements
vary but have nothing to do with the content of the site (such as textbooks
or other ads geared towards educators or students).
Fresh Start
Suggested by Crystal
Nowlin)
This is an interactive educational site sponsored by BASF. IT
was created to make learning about nutrition fun for kids. It features
on line games, recipes for parents, links, and lesson plans for teachers.
Vitamin superheroes, Team Antioxidants guide the child through intertaining
lessons.
Harry
Potter Home Page
(Suggested by Martha
Rogers)
Harry Potter is the hottest rage to hit the book world in months. Author
J.K. Rowling has released 3 of the 7 novels in the series in the last 1?
years. Scholastic, Inc. has created this web page to promote the Harry
books. The site is geared toward teachers and library media specialists,
but is primarily for students in grades 4-6. When students visit this site,
they are in for a real treat. Those who arenít already Harry fans
will soon become them! The site introduces each of the three books by providing
summaries and previews of a chapter, as well as by showing the book jackets
and other artwork. For students, there are games to play to see how much
they know about Harry. For teachers and library media specialists, there
are book discussions guides, including story elements, such as plot theme,
setting, etc., author information, and reviews of the titles. Students
may also join the Reading Circle by discussing books online. The colorful
design and the use of art from the books make this site attractive and
exciting to all who visit, both young and old!
The Mars Millennium
Project
(Suggested by Tony
Rose)
The Mars Millenium Project is a very interesting website. Basically,
the site is used to provide a platform where students from all over the
United States can design a virtual community on Mars. Children K-12
will be engaged by the material presented. The children work on teams
with educators, community leaders, and professionals in many fields.
They will try to understand their community better, and extrapolate what
they have learned to the design of their Mars community. The Mars
program weaves together all educational subjects from the arts to sciences.
Those participating must understand what makes up a community, and how
they should contribute what is needed in order for their community to survive.
Sponsors include the U.S. Department of Education, the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration and its Jet Propulsion Laboratory, the National
Endowment for the Arts, and the J. Paul Getty Trust. There are many
other sponsors like public and private organizations, and corporations
and businesses.
Matt Rosenberg's
Geography Site at About.com
(Suggested by Marc
Stahl)
Matt Rosenberg has created an excellent geography reference site.
Updated weekly, each issue offers articles that examine current issues
and events involving geography. The most recent looked at the concept
of primate cities and the factors that contribute to their dominance of
country. There is also an index that connects to over 190 past articles.
There are a number of links to specific topics of geography, such as climate
and weather, population statistics, physical and cultural geography, countries
and nations and so on. There is quick access to a wide variety of
maps, many produced by the National Geographic Society. There is
also a link to clip art that features maps, globes, and flags. Regular
features include a geography quiz and a geography forum where you can post
questions, thoughts, and comments. Links to other About.com websites,
such as Ecology, Environment, and Science and Nature can be made.
There are also links to a geography bookstore and videostore.
This website appears to be aimed at secondary students studying, or
conducting research, into geography topics. It could also be used
by older elementary students. It would be useful in social studies
classes, especially geography, but because it looks at current events it
could be used in other subjects as well. Its links to physical geography
topics could be used in a science class. It would be a valuable reference
resource in school media centers. It is part of the About.com network of
reference sites and, therefore, carries plenty of advertising.
Recommended Website Criteria