"Give me a stick of chalk and a
blackboard and let me teach" is what a friend of mine said to me ten
years ago while I was teaching in New York City. Today we find
ourselves asking for laser discs, CD-ROMS, computers and high speed
Internet connections. Have things really changed that much? With all
that is being asked of us; new standards, school report cards and new
Regents is the Internet the answer to all of our needs? No, it's
probably not. The Internet will not make students study or do their
homework but it can be a wonderful resource to both students,
teachers and parents. The Internet is a tool in the tool box, a power
tool!
Like any tool it takes a master
craftsman to build a fine piece of artwork and the computer and the
Internet is no exception. But even I know how to use a drill and it
can make many things easier for me. Not everybody needs to be a
master craftsman on the computer to make the Internet a viable tool.
In order to make good use of the Internet, or any technology, we need
to assess what the real utility is.
What educational value
does the Internet have?
- Resources for research
and supplemental information. The Internet has a wealth of information
ranging from primary source material to statistics on just about
everything. Government agencies, museums, colleges, universities
as well as noted authors all place information on the net for
public access.
- Educational Resources.
There are free sites
to help students on topics such as writing research papers,
dictionaries and on line grammar help are all on the Internet.
- Government
Access. The federal
government has a wealth of information available on the Internet.
Almost every agency and bureau has a web site. Congress has a web
site and Bill and Hillary have a web site. (Of course what Bill is
watching on the net I'm not quite sure!)
- Great
Graphics. The
Internet plays host to a wide variety of graphics, charts and
diagrams. If you know where to look you can find political
cartoons, maps and a just about anything you want!
- Interactive
Activities. There are
many sites that provide hands on activities for students that can
enhance the learning experience. Students can participate in stock
market simulations, scavenger hunts and other activities.
- Communication. At its heart the Internet is a tool for
communication. Email, chat and the posting of information on
teacher and our student produced web sites can all help us to
communicate with students and parents.
How can I use the Internet
for my classes today?
- Find information to help deliver
lessons.
- Have students use the libraries
to gain access. They may do research projects and papers using
information gained on the net.
- Students may use departmental
computers to gain access. Staff may wish to help students research
projects.
- Students may gain access at
home.
- In the next few years we will
have Internet ready labs and classrooms. When this happens we can
have guided tours of various web sites, interactive activities,
information gathering and teleconferencing.
Web Sites
For Educators and Students
All web sites are active as of
1/25/98. Site addresses are subject to change and web sites in
general are often transient in nature.
Educational Resources
Information Center (ERIC), a federally-funded national information
system that provides a variety of services and products on a broad
range of education-related issues.
Teachers
Net:
http://www.teachers.net/
Lesson plan exchange,
networking, pedagogical ideas.
Teachers
Edition Online: http://www.teachnet.com/
Articles on education,
lesson plan ideas, subject area links. Great site.
Hundreds of links, search
tips, online resources, links to other schools and more. A great
site.
Kathy
Schrock's Gui de for Educators: http://www.capecod.net/schrockguide/
Over 1400 links for
teachers divided by content area and links to other information as
well.
This site is designed to
foster the use of technology in schools.
United States
Department of Education: http://www.ed.gov/
Information on grants and
other items of interest to education and education policy.
Lots of links and other
things from Brown University.
Mamma:
http://www.mamma.com
The mother of al search
engines. If you can't find it here it's not there!
Search.com: http://search.com
Many search engines all on
one site.
Teachers
Helping Teachers: http://www.pacificnet.net/~mandel/
This site, produced by a
teacher in Southern California lists lesson plans and teaching ideas.
Best for the inexperienced teacher.
Social Studies Lesson Plans and Resources:
http://www.csun.edu/~hcedu013/index.html
A great site with so many helpful
links I'm jealous!! There is no way I'll put this much work in so I
might as well give you the link!!
John
Makulowich's Awesome Links
http://www.cais.com/makulow/awesome.html
Social
Studies School Service: http://socialstudies.com/
Well worth
the visit
Links for Social Studies
Teacher
Social Studies Resources: http://wwwlwhs.lkwash.wednet.edu/edu/social_studies/default.html
A great site. Divided by content
area.
History/Social Studies Web Site for K-12
Teachers:
http://www.execpc.com/~dboals/boals.html
Another great site divided by
content area.
Lesson Plans
and Resources for Social Studies:
http://www.csun.edu/~hcedu013/index.html
Great site with loads of
links.
Teachers
Guide for Political Cartoons: http://www.cagle.com/teacher/
An archive of current
political cartoons and how to teach them.
Civnet: http://www.civnet.org/
Designed to teach civics.
Good for government classes. Go to the resources section for readings
and primary sources that are good for American History.
FedWorld: http://www.fedworld.gov/
Search through all of the
federal governments web sites.
THOMAS: http://thomas.loc.gov/
U.S. Congress on the
Internet.
The White
House: http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/Welcome.html
Bill, Hillary, Chelsea,
Socks and Buddy! (You won't find Monica, Linda Tripp, Paula Corbin
Jones or Gennifer Flowers here...no not Kenneth Starr either!)
Prof. X.W.
Wang - University of Missouri at Columbia
http://www.missouri.edu/~econwang/
Eco professor with a great
links page..
Interactive Stock Market
simulation.
FDR Cartoon
Page:
Editorial Cartoons from the
FDR years.
Sociological
Subject Areas
Bellingham
High School in Washington State
Some great links in all
subject areas.
Cornell
University Hermes LII
http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/
Text of
thousands of Supreme Court decisions
Global Studies Links
http://socialstudies.com/globalstud.html
Social Studies Resource Center
Links and
American History notes.
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