TEACHER REFLECTIONS AND QUOTES
On the iEARN Global Community: "I think the world must thank iEARN for providing remarkable, committed people like you all. I myself feel really lucky because I can be part of this global family. Though this is only my third year in iEARN,I found that this is a secure and inspiring network. I have learnt a lot of wonderful things, especially related to education, from wonderful people. ... Through iEARN I wish to contribute to make a difference, even only a slight one. I believe that iEARN can help me in pursuing that. And in iEARN I found my strength and confidence to act ...." Ira Fasa, iEARN Teacher from Jakarta, Indonesia.
"Being a part of iEARN is a realization of a vision I thought was far from being possible. The collaborative projects, interactive forum, simultaneous activities participated in by different schools of different countries,...iEARN is indeed a breakthrough in the hearts and minds of the youth and educators around the world..." Melba Angi, iEARN Philippines
PROJECT SPOTLIGHT
Learning Circles Project: This past year has been our most active in the history of iEARN Learning Circles. For 13 years the Learning Circles project has provided a structured process for iEARN teachers to easily get involved in collaborative project work. The recent 2007 January to May session involved 68 schools in 9 Circles. There were over 1750 messages exchanged and 34 different schools published finished projects that featured student work. We even initiated a very popular new Circle that is a collaborative effort between the My Hero Project and Learning Circles. Next year looks like it will be even more exciting. In September of 2007 Learning Circles will be conducting major research to make our project even more exciting for students and teachers to use.
To learn more about this project, click HERE or visit the project website.
To register and join the project for 2007-2008 school year, please contact Barry Kramer, Project Facilitator. |
(1) Project Spotlight
- Learning Circles
- Eye to Eye
- Talking Kites All Over the World
- Water Habitat
- International Teen Scrapbook
- My Name
- Side By Side
- iEARN India's National Conference
- Natural Disaster Youth Summit
- NECC Conference
Want to learn more about iEARN projects, membership and collaboration? Or wish to submit your iEARN success stories or project news, please contact Christine Robinson |
 Students in Seattle and Tehran Collaborate Through Art: Integrating iEARN's Eye to Eye Project, youth from Alderwood Middle School in Seattle, WA and Saba Middle School in Tehran, Iran used art to learn more about each other. Beginning in February 2007, students began to share photos of their art projects focusing on the theme "about me". The Eye to Eye Project encourages youth to create postcard size images focusing on various themes including family and home, school and activities, festivals and holidays, about me, and much more. Like all iEARN projects, students and teachers are encouraged to connect virtually using the Eye to Eye online project forum to promote meaningful discussions about student work. Pictured Left: artwork from Saba youth depicting their daily routines getting to school, and a picture of Alderwood's Middle School iEARN students.
To learn more about this project click HERE or visit the project website. For iEARN members wishing to join this project/discussion click HERE.
Talking Kites All Over the World: Check out the web page that The Cathedral School, located in New York City, created showcasing their iEARN project work.
 Students from Orca Elementary School Take Project Work Outside: Youth from Orca Elementary School, in Seattle, WA conducted a field trip as part of their project work for iEARN's Water Habitat Project. Students visited the Green River to conduct restoration work on the levee and report findings on the online project forum. Orca students have been visiting this same site for four years planting trees and plants, observing water levels, and much more. Pictured Right: students in action observing, mulching and installing irrigation.
To learn more about this project click HERE.
International Teen Scrapbook Project 2007-2008: Nancy Kaplan, teacher from the College of Staten Island High School for International Studies (part of Asia Society's International Studies Schools Network), is seeking teachers and students to join the International Teen Scrapbook Project. The project is a global scrapbook that will reflect the culture, lives, and concerns of teens around the world. Teachers have a variety of ways to incorporate the project into their curriculums including: foster writing processes, work with photography, journalism, computers, and much more. If you are interested in joining this project, please contact Nancy Kaplan or if you are not an iEARN member and wish to join please click HERE to fill out an iEARN membership application.
 5th Graders from Pakistan Join the My Name Project: iEARN's My Name project is facilitated by Pavle Tvaliashvilli from Georgia. The project is conducted in several languages including English, Georgian and Russian. Students from all over the world have come together to share their "name". The project encourages students to research, find and send information about their own name. Students will answer the questions such as: what is your name, what does your name mean in your native language and in other languages, why do you have this name, who gave you this name and much more. Often students create art projects, poems, or stories about their name. Pictured Left: students from Pakistan sharing their project work. If you are interested in learning more about this project, click HERE.
"It has been a great pleasure to work with my students for MY NAME PROJECT .......the thing which influence me a lot is my students' interest towards iEARN .....Their attitude and their cooperation and their hard work has given me more passion to work and to participate in collaborative projects......." Durr-e-shahwar Jawaid, teacher at Aga Khan School, Karachi, Pakistan
 iEARN Brazil Students Share Their Side by Side Portraits: iEARN's Side by Side Project celebrates the individuality of each students using art. Each student shares his/her uniqueness by creating an elongated self-portrait and a terrific way to start the new school year. Teachers and students will get to know about each other as they create their portraits and include symbols about their past, present and future. The portraits should be displayed side by side to represent how many individuals can come together to create a better world.
The project is facilitated by Rowena Gerber and Yvonne Moyer of the USA. Pictured above are students from Brazil sharing their Side By Side portraits. Their teacher, Alessandra Vieira, shared: "This is what my students produced with the project SIDE BY SIDE. They got very excited when I showed them the IEARN site and some projects carried out by other teachers. Actually, the idea of being known by people from all over the world made them interested in this project. I'm proud of my students..." To learn more about this project, click HERE.
iEARN Online Professional Development: iEARN-USA offers nine-week interactive online courses. Our subject-specific courses are a step-by-step guide to integrating an international collaborative project into your teaching. Each course includes twenty teachers from the U.S. and around the world. Our facilitators will help you select and integrate a project during the course period. After nine-weeks you will have begun working on a project which fits into your teaching schedule and meets local/state/national standards. For Professional Development credit information go click HERE, o for early registration write to: onlinepd@us.iearn.org
FOR CALIFORNIA EDUCATORS: iEARN next online courses start October 15th, 2007. Through Cal State San Marcos iEARN's online courses are eligible for 2 units of Extension Credit, at an additional cost of $166 per course. Extension Credit appears on official transcripts and are generally honored by school districts as evidence of professional advancement for salary increases on the pay scale. Credits are not degree applicable. Registration for credit must be completed through Extended Studies department. Click HERE or write to onlinepd@us.iearn.org for more information and early registration.
Teacher Resource: Sponsored by Teachers College, Columbia University "Teaching The Levees" is a curriculum available to teachers. The curriculum uses Spike Lee's movie, "When the Levess Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts," to teach and highlight race and class in America. Visit the website to request a free copy of the curriculum. Click HERE for more.
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iEARN NEWS
Click HERE to read an article highlighting Christel House, an Adobe Youth Voices participant from Bangalore, India, who presented their animation film entitled, "Global Pollution", at the iEARN India National Conference.
 World Environment Day: June 5, 2007 marked World Environment Day, an event sponsored by the World Federation of United Nations Associations, and also the launch of a partnership project between the World Federation, iEARN, and Channel Thirteen called, "(OF)2: Our Footprints Our Future". The project encourages youth from around the world to use online tools and resources to measure their carbon footprint and develop ways to reduce their carbon usage. OF2 has a goal of 1 Million youth to band together to help reduce the total global carbon footprint. Pictured Left: photo from the main event that took place at the United Nations announcing the partnership and project. To read the complete press release, click HERE.
 UN Chronicle Online Edition Features iEARN and World Environment Day: "Star power, artistic expression and joy of learning were combined to mark World Environment Day on June 5 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York... The day's celebration continued with the launch of an international project "Our Footprints, Our Future: A world youth initiative on reducing greenhouse gases," organized by the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA) and the International Education and Resource Network (iEARN), and the public television channel, Channel Thirteen. Read the complete story HERE.
Ohio Launches Technology and International Professional Development Program: June 5, 2007 Ohio Department of Education announced a partnership with iEARN that will enable Ohio teachers to participate in an interactive online professional development course. Download and read the complete press release.
 New York City Global Partners Junior partners with iEARN in the US and eight other countries to connect students (ages 9-13) to help foster global understanding and communication among youth through internet-based exchanges on a unique, collaborative curriculum. The 2006-2007 topic for the project, which is coordinated out of New York City Global Partners and works with the NYC Parks Department, has been “Exploring my Environment.” Students shared their final projects at a celebration in Central Park on June 7th. As part of this year’s project, students made 3-dimensional creations of NYC in the year 2030, complete with innovative ideas for alternative energy, construction, green roofs, and transportation systems. A teacher in Budapest wrote, “The most valuable aspect of the forum is that students can talk to each other without borders and communicate with children from other parts of the world.” A NYC student wrote recently “I learn about other countries and what they do there, what they eat, how they dress and what they do for fun.”
iEARN EVENTS
 iEARN India Celebrates Youth: In May, iEARN India celebrated their annual iEARN National Conference held in Pune. Youth and teachers from schools around India gathered to share their iEARN project work, including youth from Noida and Bangalore who are part of Adobe Youth Voices [AYV], a global initiative empowering youth to create with purpose. Several AYV schools screened their project work including creative works in animation and video production. Pictured Left: local students gathering to discuss community based action based on the documentaries screened at the conference, and students receiving certificates of achievement for the participation and creative work in documentary film making.
Natural Disaster Youth Summit: On May 3-5 iEARN teacher, Chris Hockert, traveled to Aichi, Japan to attend the Natural Disaster Youth Summit - an iEARN project where youth learn the about the importance of human lives and how to cope with the effects of natural disasters. Here is a personal reflection from her visit that highlights how an online project and face to face meeting definitely enhances students' collaborative learning experience:
 "Japan is a beautiful and peaceful country. The people are respectful, helpful, and very kind and considerate. Our trip focused on natural disasters, especially earthquakes that could hit Japan as well as the tsunami. Students worked together in cooperative groups to research the Mihama facility to locate safe places and unsafe places at the facility inside or outside in the event of an earthquake or a tsunami. I was amazed at how well the students worked together although they were from different countries representing a variety of cultural differences and language barriers. Kids are amazing, they meet these challenges and keep on working. They did fantastic presentations in front of their peers, visitors, and teachers..." Click HERE to read more of her personal reflection.
This October 2007, Chris Hockert is also planning to host a teacher from Nepal, Newaraj Baskota, who works with her on the Natural Disaster Project. The iEARN Nepal teacher will be visiting surrounding local schools to learn more about the US educational system and research methods for his school in Nepal. Baskota will also visit with students and teachers to share the Nepalese culture. Pictured Above: Chris Hockert and friends from NYDS, participating youth at the beach, and Diane Midness - iEARN USA Professional Development Coordinator with youth from Nepal who attended the summit.
 NECC Conference 2007: This was a most exciting NECC experience for iEARN USA. We were swamped by people at our poster sessions with requests for more information. Many thanks go to everyone who helped: Freda Goodman from Georgia (she opened her home for people to stay during the conference!), Celia Einhorn from New Mexico, Amy Dwyer from Delaware, Rowena from Florida. In addition Chris Hockert from Tennessee and Jill Dondero from Georgia who had students present Student Showcases. Two of the iEARN summer interns were also invaluable for giving their international prospective, Yuchen (Jennifer) Yu of iEARN-Taiwan but now at Boston University, and Daniela Munca from Moldova now studying at The University of Mississippi. It was especially exciting to have one of Freda's students, Joel Kadish, tell workshop participants what he learned through participating in the Learning Democracy project. He will be graduating from the university next year and hopes to become a high school social studies teacher who will use iEARN in his classroom. A big thank you to these folks as well the iEARN staff, Anindita, Diane, Ed, and Jeff, who made sure as many people as possible knew about iEARN. Pictured Left: McConnel Elementary's iEARN Student Showcase.
 iEARN did a preconference workshop, had a table at the International Participants Reception, had several Global Gallery and Student Showcases, and hosted the Global Projects Birds of a Feather. Now we are looking forward to NECC 2008 which will be San Antonio, Texas. We welcome you to join us in telling others about iEARN. If you are interested in attending and maybe helping with a session please contact Diane Midness. Pictured Right: Riverwood High School iEARN Student Showcase.
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