Technology & Learning - February 2009 - (Page 30)

ISTE Members experiencing the NECC closing keynote (Idit Caperton), streamed live into Second Life, July 2, 2008. offer support and mentoring within the world to new arrivals. (https://secure-web6.secondlife.com/join/ISTE/) The ISTE SL membership numbers almost 4,000 and hosts a Speaker Series featuring prominent members of the international education community. Topics are varied, and often the question-and-answer period afterward lends an opportunity to extend friendship, and to network and connect with experts in the field. 2008 was wrapped up by fabulous presentations by online-safety expert Anne Collier, young-adult author Marc Aronson, and digital storyteller Bernajean Porter. Timothy Magner, director of the DOE Office of Educational Technology also visited ISTE for an in-depth discussion of virtual worlds and education. Other events hosted on ISTE Island are less-formal socials, workshops, tours, campfires, storytelling sessions, and even beach parties! (http://secondlife.iste.wikispaces.net/events) These and myriad other opportunities are available to anyone interested who has a fairly new computer and an Internet connection. Second Life supports affinity groups for K-12 education, ESL, special ed, higher ed, grad students, preservice teachers, and tech teachers as well as groups specifically supporting the needs of every content area from basket weaving to zoology. The account is free, the community is welcoming, and the possibilities are limitless. So if someone offers you a Second Life, take it. Better yet, go and get one yourself. Get thee to ISTE! Peggy Sheehy is an instructional-technology facilitator and media specialist at Suffern Middle School in Suffern, NY. After a twenty-five-year career as a professional musician, Peggy understands the power of student engagement and established the first middle-school educational presence in Teen Second Life: Ramapo Islands. Now in their third year of learning in Second Life, Ramapo Islands hosts over 1400 student and teacher accounts. Other learning communities Atlantis Rising Campus: Grand opening January 2009 Welcome to a Second Life for learning! Launching a collaborative venture of creative learning, credited courses, e-resources, and amazing in-world intellectual playgrounds! The courses will bring educators whole new experiences for learning forward into skills, topics, group tools, and virtual worlds that are capturing the imaginations of our students. http://atlantisrisingcampus.us/ NMC: The New Media Consortium Launched under the banner of the Educational Gaming Initiative and with initial support from the MacArthur Foundation, the NMC Campus in Second Life has evolved into the largest educational presence in that virtual world, occupying the virtual equivalent of more than 2000 acres. www.nmc.org/proj DEN in SL The Discovery Educator Network in SL is a global community of educators who are excited by the power of digital media and want to collaborate and share resources with other educators. http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/secondlife/ Google Certified Teachers in Second Life Newly established on Idea City Island, the Google Certified Teachers (GCT) group in Second Life is a group of educators who offer workshops and presentations supporting the use of Google tools for education. www.google.com/educators/gta.html Virtual Pioneers Use MUVEs to teach social studies. http://virtualpioneers.ning.com/ An impromptu meeting demonstrated a huge Second Life Education Community show of support for the new Google Teacher Headquarters in Second Life on Idea City Island. 30 | TECH & LEARNING https://secure-web6.secondlife.com/join/ISTE/ http://atlantisrisingcampus.us/ http://secondlife.iste.wikispaces.net/events http://www.nmc.org/proj http://blog.discoveryeducation.com/secondlife/ http://www.google.com/educators/gta.html http://virtualpioneers.ning.com/

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Technology & Learning - February 2009

Technology & Learning - February 2009 Contents Editor's Desk News & Trends How It's Done - The Science of Class Collaboration Put to the Test: T&L Editors Take Some New Products for a Test Drive NComputing X550 Epson DC-10s Samsung UF-130DX Digital Presenter Brother MFC-6490CW All-in-One Adaptive Curriculum: Science Dukane AirSlate 3 A Second Life for Professional Development Control Room 11 Tips for Better Laptop Learning One-to-One Veteran Advice What's New They Said It

Technology & Learning - February 2009

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