Technology & Learning - April 2009 - (Page 20) news trends and money to ensure that higher education is not only accessible but attainable. T&L: What is your plan related to developing online research networks? RW: An online teacher-resource network would help bring teachers into the 21st century by facilitating their use of the Internet to support classroom instruction in practical and meaningful ways. At the AFT, we have committed to helping teachers grow professionally through technology. In New York, AFT members have partnered with public television to create a 24/7 TV channel and broadband service devoted to professional development of the K-12 workforce. We also launched a Web site for educators to provide information, materials, and a set of lesson plans entitled “2008 Historic Election: A Teachable Moment,” to help students absorb moments of the history-making presidential campaign and election. In addition, we’re a proud primary Randi Weingarten TEACHER’S AIDE: MEET AFT PRESIDENT RANDI WEINGARTEN Former high-school history teacher, lawyer, and union counsel Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), was elected to this influential post last July. She has also served ten years as president of the 200,000-member United Federation of Teachers (UFT), the largest union local in the United States. Weingarten reflects on questions posed to her by T&L. T&L: How do you define modernizing schools? RW: President Obama sees a sound public-education system as a cornerstone of a sound economy; improving the two are inextricably linked. AFT just launched a campaign called Fight for America’s Future: It’s Dollars and Sense, to make sure funding at federal, state, and local levels continues to provide for Medicaid assistance for states, infrastructure that includes modernizing schools, funding for NCLB and IDEA, funder of Colorín Colorado, a free Web site with information, activities, and advice for educators of English-language learners [ELLs], and a variety of teaching and learning resources in Spanish geared to their parents. We have also collaborated with Teachscape, an online professionaldevelopment company, to create and offer online courses and resources for novice and veteran teachers. —Barbara Axelson We have a winner! Sponsor: HP and Tech&Learning Prize: HP xw4550 workstation Teachers and students visited the Tech & Learning forum to tell us which innovative projects they would do with an HP xw4550 workstation. Judges chose Melinda Sprinkle, a teacher at Bedford County public schools in Virginia, for her winning ideas. Here are the top 10 things Melinda said she would do if she “had the power”: “If I Had the Power” Tech & Learning Forum Contest Winner Announced War I, and the civil rights movement. 5. Students would participate in VoiceThreads, a multimedia slideshow that can hold 10. I could collaborate with photos, documents, and video. other educators seamlessly. 4. I would create interactive Melinda Sprinkle 9. Blogging with students online lessons and activities. and teachers would be easier. 3. Each child would be given individ8. Students could create podcasts. ual work time at the computer. 7. I would create “studycasts” that 2. I would be able to model the would allow my students to listen to strength of technology in today’s history reviews from their MP3 players world. or online. 1. If I Had the Power, the kids would 6. I would create professional have access to a computer, and this videos for learning about topics like in itself creates student excitement the Spanish-American War, World about learning. 20 | TECH & LEARNING
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.