Click to Read the Articles
May 1998
Newsletter for Greater Essex County Computer Education Professionals
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As the end of the school year approaches, it's time to reflect on the great things that happen when you use computers in the classroom. Here are my picks from this past year.
Hyperstudio
The best thing that had to come along this year has
definitely got to be the Ministry of Education and
Training's provincial licensing of Hyperstudio. No other
piece of software has the potential for changing the way
that computer technology is used in the classroom. The
ability to have students publishing with a common multimedia
platform throughout the province of Ontario has to be one of
the biggest breakthroughs made in classroom technology in a
long time. Given the number of people that have been out to
the various Hyperstudio minicourses this past year, it
appears as though Greater Essex County teachers are
definitely up for the challenge.
First Class
For years, there have been those of us who have elected to
communicate via BBS systems like the ECBE Wildcat! system,
the Internet via ENOREO, and commercial systems such as the
local Internet vendors. And yet, each of these systems had
their flaws couched in technology. To be effective with
each, you had to configure the ol' home computer and get all
of the proverbial ducks in a row before success was
achieved. The decision to use First Class as an internal
messaging system truly opened up the concept of email and
conferencing from almost anywhere, anytime there was a
computer in the school. (and it was plugged into a wall) All
that we need to do now is figure out how we can configure
Scrabble to run under First Class.
The Promise
Despite all of the good things that are currently available,
the potential for the future is certainly engaging to those
of us who like the challenge of new technology. On the
horizon, I'm excited about the upcoming licensing of Corel
WordPerfect Suite, CorelDRAW!, Canadian Encyclopedia,
Homepage, and more and the promise that they deliver for the
classroom.
People
I've always known that the very best thing that happens in a
child's education life involves people. In terms of computer
integration, in Essex County I've always been blessed to
have been associated with a wonderful group of people
affectionately known as CIESCs. With amalgamation, I can now
add names like Gary, Carla, John, Nancy, Geoff, Sue, Drew,
Joan, Grover, ... to the list.
When all is said and done, it's the last group that really makes the most significant difference. Everyone who has made an effort to use computer technology more effectively in their classroom should feel great about these learning opportunities for students.
Within the next month, the technology will be turned off. When it's turned back on in September, it will heat the room and entice students with colours, sound, and potential.
In addition to the promises, as always, it's going to be the people that will make the difference.
(dp)
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