Edutopia - September 2007 - (Page 2) Contents Edutopia (ISSN 1552-9029) is published 8 times a year – February, March, Apr/May, June, July/August, September, October and November/December – by The George Lucas Educational Foundation, 1 Letterman Drive, San Francisco, CA 94129. Periodicals Postage Paid at San Francisco, CA, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Edutopia, PO Box 15265, North Hollywood, CA 91615-9295. Phone 415/662-1600; fax 415/662-1605; email edutopia@glef.org. New at edutopia.org FLASH VIDEO LIBRARY Videos are much easier to access and view, and now visitors can comment on what they see, and rate their favorite videos. Sort videos by subject matter using the Search by Topic function, or select from and enjoy this week’s Editor’s Picks at www.edutopia.org/video. 5 Editor’s Note 7 Letters 10 Dispatches 12 Sage Advice 14 Ask Ellen Coming Soon to the Video Library: WALTER PAYTON HIGH SCHOOL: THE GLOBAL DIMENSION This math, science, and world-language academy on Chicago’s Near North Side has won awards for its global perspective. Payton offers instruction in languages ranging from French to Zulu and boasts a distance-learning center that connects students to classrooms around the globe, including in China and Morocco. 17 Head of Class Classroom Films • Bag Lunch • Motorcycle Physics • Eastern Sierra • Hot Stuff • Field Trips Cool Districts A rural school district does away with grade levels. The result is enlightening. BY GRACE RUBENSTEIN 26 Northern Lights TECHNOLOGY SERVES: ENVIRONMENTAL AND SPATIAL TECHNOLOGY EAST is what happens when you fill a room with the latest technology and turn students loose to design and execute community-service projects. Launched in 1996, in Little Rock, Arkansas, the initiative has spread to more than 230 secondary schools across the country. THE POLL Pop Quiz: 32 Design Greening the Past In gritty north Jersey, an old chocolate factory becomes a model of sustainability. BY OWEN EDWARDS 60 Do you have an opinion about education? We post a new poll question every week. Share ideas with your colleagues about polls, post relevant experiences you’ve had in your school or classroom, and see what other educators are writing about. Join the growing Edutopia community at www.edutopia.org/poll. LINKS TO LEARNING In every issue of Edutopia, you’ll see yellow text boxes like this one that direct you to additional resources on our Web site, Edutopia.org. Brian Williams NBC’s top newsman talks about teaching history in schools. www.edutopia.org 2 EDUTOPIA SEPTEMBER 2007 http://www.edutopia.org http://www.edutopia.org/video http://www.edutopia.org/poll http://www.edutopia.org http://www.edutopia.org
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