patth@dasys1.UUCP (Patt Haring) (09/19/88)
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== STUDENTS MEET "ELECTRONICALLY" by Evan Rudowski ==
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NEWSPAPER IN EDUCATION WEEK March 9, 1988
Last fall, Newsday teamed up with several Long Island schools to
begin a unique experiment. With Newsday's help, elementary and high school
students in distant locations began to converse with each other through
their classroom computers.
This dialogue took place on the Newsday Bulletin Board System, an
interactive computer service that can be called by anyone with a personal
computer equipped for telecommunications (that is, a PC that can be linked
to a telephone line). The Newsday BBS offers callers information on
subjects such as news, business, entertainment and sports. It also allows
callers to leave messages for each other and for Newsday.
Staffers at Newsday's Electronic Information Services department
saw the educational potential of the Newsday BBS after some teachers
indepedently began to use it as a classroom tool. In addition, many
teachers and students have called the Newsday BBS on their own time. The
Newsday in Education staff also realized that, by using the Newsday BBS,
teachers could help fulfill the New York State mandate to bring technology
into the classroom.
The project involved classes at Bay Shore High School, Newfield
High School in Selden, Wenonah Elementary School in Lake Grove and the
Guggenheim School in Port Washington. These classes were given an area
where they could "meet" electronically to discuss current issues and events
that they read about in Newsday. There were discussions on subjects such as
Long Island's waste-disposal problem, favorite places to visit and drugs in
the schools. Individual students also branched off and began conversations
with other users of the system.
Participating teachers had access to an electronic mailbox where
they could electronically discuss the project as it progressed. An
Electronic Information Services staff member also visited this conference
regularly to get feedback about the project.
The 10-week pilot project enabled participants to see firsthand how
telecommunications works in a classroom setting. By the end of the project,
some initial assumptions were discarded. Some students - and teachers -
needed more technical guidance than anticipated before they could
communicate with other callers. Classes also needed more time than
originally expected to formulate and express their ideas.
Besides, the single incoming phone line that serves the Newsday BBS
could accommodate only one caller at a time, and classes sometimes got busy
signals when they tried to call. An expansion to three phone lines is
planned.
Despite its occasional problems, the initial project helped make
students more aware of a technology that will affect their lives in the
future. Bay Shore High School teacher Chuck Litwin said he felt the project
succeeded in "breaking the ice and introducing the concept of
telecommunications."
The next project, planned for this spring, will differ somewhat
from the initial test. The Newsday BBS staff will soon be able to poll
users electronically and tabulate the results, allowing students to be
surveyed for their opinions on newsworthy subjects. An electronic
presidential ``election'' might even be possible later this year.
Additionally, telecommunications skills will be more heavily
emphasized. Text files containing educational information will be available
to the participants. Students will be encouraged to converse independently
with their electronic pen pals.
In the future, more area schools will be invited to come "on
line" with Newsday. As the educational role of the Newsday BBS becomes
more clearly defined, it can be opened up to larger numbers of students and
teachers. It is hoped that teachers and other educators will find the
Newsday BBS a good place to exchange ideas.
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== A Newsday BBS Download ==
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== This download is intended for private, non-commercial use only. ==
== It may be distributed on other bulletin boards only in its original, ==
== unaltered form. Copyright (c) 1988, Newsday, Inc. All Rights Reserved ==
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--
Patt Haring {sun!hoptoad,cmcl2!phri}!dasys1!patth
-or- uunet!dasys1!patth
Big Electric Cat Public Access Unix (212) 879-9031 - System Operator
"I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way." Jessica: Who Framed Roger Rabbit?