Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Global Collaboration

by Becky Ranks

My last post from NECC centers on the Keynote address on Tuesday. Lester Holt from NBC News interviewed two Canadian educators, Jim Carleton and Mali Bickley who are involved with numerous collaborations with classes from all over the world. It was a very moving presentation as they have participated in projects that have sent student made peace pigeons to Hiroshimaand have raised funds to build a high school for very needy students in Sierra Leone. NBC is involved as they have released their historical video archives for teaching and learning through a website called Hotchalk. There are numerous resources out there for global collaboration projects and many were highlighted in this keynote address.

iEARN (International Education and Resource Network) is the world's largest non-profit global network that enables teachers and youth to use the Internet and other technologies to collaborate on projects that enhance learning and make a difference in the world.

Another is:TakingITGlobal.org, an online community that connects youth to find inspiration, access information, get involved, and take action in their local and global communities. It's the world's most popular online community for young people interested in making a difference, with hundreds of thousands of unique visitors each month.

There are so many unique ways to make connections and have students realize that they can make a difference, so I hope that this will inspire everyone to look further. Start small and collaborate with students in your own district, and then think bigger to connect with students across our country and then the world.

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