Global Schoolhouse

[Kathleen McGlynn Rutkowski <[e-mail]>]

Ray Harder suggested posting information on this listing concerning the Global
Schoolhouse project. This is a project offered by the FrEdMail Foundation of
Bonita, California and its description follows.



    To:   Schools Around the Globe

    From: FrEdMail Foundation
          Yvonne Marie Andres, President
          Al Rogers, Executive Director

    Re:   Invitation to Participate in the Global School House
    Date: April 8, 1993

                     THE GLOBAL SCHOOLHOUSE

           makes its debut with the S.A.F.E.R. Water Project
              Student Ambassadors for Environmental Reform

    Students, their parents, and teachers are invited to participate in a
    very exciting and significant Global Schoolhouse project that will
    combine the elements of student problem solving skills, environmental
    issues, global conscientiousness, and modern information technologies
    to accomplish a common goal. They will be asked to investigate the
    problems created by water run-off and to design a public awareness
    program that can be implemented in their own communities, and then
    shared and replicated globally.  They will help make the world's
    waters safer by becoming student ambassadors for environmental
    reform.

    Dependence on toxic chemical has serious consequences for our
    environment and is compromising our future.  Improper use or disposal
    of motor oil, antifreeze, pesticides, fertilizers, agricultural

    by-products, rock salt, household cleaning products, paints,
    solvents, and waste products contribute to serious water
    contamination through urban runoff, also known as nonpoint source
    pollution.  Students have the power to play an important role in
    making their neighborhoods and the global environment safe from
    toxics and protecting the earth's water quality.  Many regulatory
    agencies and educational programs have already been established to
    address the issue of urban runoff.  Therefore, students will be
    encouraged to gather, compile, analyze, synthesize, organize, and
    share existing information in order to generate a strategic plan that
    will apply their findings in a useful and effective manner.  Students
    will produce a newsletter and a calendar from collaborative their
    research.

    Four 5th through 8th grade classrooms are currently conducting
    research on the environment.  These classrooms, located in
    California, Tennessee, Virginia, and London, are reading Vice
    President Gore's "Earth in the Balance: Ecology and the Human Spirit"
    (Houghton Mifflin, 1992).  In conjunction with their reading, the
    students are investigating the problems created by water run-off and
    are designing a public awareness program that can be implemented in
    their own communities.  These same programs can later be replicated

    in other communities throughout the world.

    Throughout the Global Schoolhouse project, the classrooms will
    interact with each other through the use of FrEdMail and the
    Internet.

    The four original partner schools will engage in several special
    video teleconferences that will be conducted over the Internet using
    the Cornell CU-SeeMe software for the Apple Macintosh.  Several guest
    speakers have been invited to help moderate this video
    teleconference, allowing the classrooms to present their findings and
    engage in a mutual dialogue about the environment and what can be
    done by both students and national leaders.

    The Global Schoolhouse project will be aired on television during
    National Science and Technology Week (April 26-May 1), a yearly event
    conducted by the National Science Foundation to showcase programs of
    particular note.

    The implementation of this project is being made possible through
    funding and support from the National Science Foundation, and
    donations of equipment and services from CERFnet, FrEdMail, Pac Bell,

    Sprint, Apple Computers, Cisco, Cayman, JDL Technologies, Cornell
    University, and other companies not yet determined.

    Curriculum and coordination of classroom activities for the project
    is being facilitated by the FrEdMail Foundation.


    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    Your Invitation:

    Although the project itself is limited to the four pilot schools, we
    would like to share our activities and findings with other schools
    around the world, as this is a worldwide issue. Students may elect to
    conduct similar activities at their sites, develop their own public
    awareness campaigns, and become:

    STUDENT AMBASSADORS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL REFORM!

    If you would like to be added to the mailing list that monitors and
    receives updates of this project, please send a request to:

    [e-mail]

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

                       <<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>>
    Yvonne Marie Andres, Program Coordinator
    Oceanside Unified School District
    823 Acacia Avenue, Oceanside, CA 92054

    Director of Visionary Learning Applications
    FrEdMail (Free Educational Electronic Mail) Foundation
    " Linking Students and Educators Around the Globe"

    [phone] or/619 439-0914      FAX/619 433-1409  [e-mail]
                       <<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>><<*>>




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