Edutopia - April/May 2008 - (Page 49)

Edwin Gragert Bridging borders, both real and imagined. A s Edwin Gragert, executive director of iEARN-USA, tells it, the nonproﬁt organization was founded on the belief that students working in teams and using technology to bridge international borders would become “global citizens, who recognize that the way you deal with the world’s issues is by working together.” Two decades later, iEARN (the International Education and Resource Network), which started with the establishment of a telecommunications connection between twelve schools in New York State and twelve others in Moscow, administers programs in 120 countries; some 2 million students participate. Gragert still believes one of iEARN’s most important missions is promoting collaboration, both as a learning tool and an end in itself. To that end, iEARN’s programs focus on combining technological tools with the social, emotional, and intellectual skills that enable strong, productive teamwork. The emphasis, Gragert says, is on honoring different perspectives, incorporating different points of view, and utilizing the array of abilities an international team of students can bring to problem solving and the completion of joint projects. Given what the planet faces in the years ahead, the wisdom of the iEARN philosophy, and the millions of students beneﬁting from it, provide ample reason for hope. “Whether it’s global warming, poverty, or conﬂict in general,” says Gragert, “if we don’t have a process by which students learn to address these issues by working together, they won’t be addressed.” Perhaps the greatest beneﬁt of learning to work effectively in international teams is that it empowers students to be effective global citizens. Projects sponsored by iEARN have included student teams working together to chart bird migration, produce literary anthologies and video documentaries, and improve the water quality of streams near their homes. Seeing that their research, plans, and actions can bring about positive changes in the world they’re growing up in not only changes the way students see the future, it actually changes the future. To many of us, Gragert says, the world’s problems seem so insurmountable that we give up on a solution without even trying. The collaborative aspect of iEARN, he adds, “gives students a sense that by working together they can address a curriculum project, but they also can address larger issues because the technology allows them to no longer be just one, but to be 10, 20, 1 million working together to solve the same problem.” Formative Assessment for Struggling Learners Does your school have an effective benchmarking and progress monitoring system in place? Benchmarking and Progress Monitoring Tools Bringing effective assessment practices to your classrooms will guide your differentiated instruction choices to more effectively teach all students and gauge their academic progress. AIMSweb® uses 1 to 3 minute curriculum-based measurement (CBM) probes for grades K through 8 to benchmark and monitor essential skill areas: Early Literacy Reading – Fluency – Comprehension Spelling Early Numeracy Math Computation Written Expression The Power to Learn. s !)-3WEBCOM http://AIMSweb.com http://AIMSweb.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Edutopia - April 2008

Edutopia - April 2008 Contents Up Front Feedback Dispatches Sage Advice Ask Ellen Head of the Class Cool Schools Design Reinventing the Big test The Daring Dozen Heart & Soul Pop Quiz: Jack Prelutsky

Edutopia - April 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.