Welcome to the Generation YES Express
This email from a Gen Y teacher says it all!
Dear John,
I just wanted to take a minute to thank you and the wonderful staff at Generation
YES. My experience with your organization has been nothing but positive.
It has allowed me to stretch my students' abilities in more ways than I could have imagined. Thank you for all the opportunity it has offered me as a teacher. My students really helped their school and teachers -- they fulfilled many needs they thought were needed.
June Campolongo
Computer Teacher
Peekskill Middle School, Peekskill New York
We are very proud of the support we give our schools. A special pat on the back goes to John Hardy, who has been the Generation YES customer support director for over seven years. John dispenses expertise and wisdom to newcomers to Generation YES and veterans alike. We are even more proud of the students, from this school and all Gen Y schools, who continually exceed everyone's expectations and take on challenges of all shapes and sizes aimed at improving education.
Forward.
Dennis Harper
What's New at Generation YES
Generation YES Website Upgrade is Complete
Over the summer, the entire Generation YES member website was upgraded, including the teacher class management tools and the student project tools. In addition to improving the interface and adding requested features, we've worked hard to support current Web standards with this release, basing code for all of our sites on XHTML and CSS.
The coolest new feature is the blog - yes, we've joined the blogsphere. Generation YES students can now blog about their experiences, and teachers have new features they can use too. The blog operates somewhat like a journal or email, but has features that allow it to be used as a two-way messaging center for different audiences. For example, teachers can message students individually, in groups, or send messages to the whole class. Simple, yet more flexible and more secure than email, the blog is not just a fad, it's a way to acknowledge the power that new technologies can offer learners. We look forward to innovative uses of these new tools by thousands of Generation YES students across the country.
If you would like a tour of our members-only demo site, please visit our contact page and request a demo account at: https://www.genyes.org/scripts/form.php
Generation Y Shows Success In Technology Integration Across the Nation
In the September 2004 issue of Access Learning (from Cable in the Classroom), several Gen Y classes were profiled in an article titled Teacher's Helpers, by Ed Hazell. Generation Y collaboration projects were prominently featured, demonstrating the power of students to improve education through technology. https://www.genyes.org/news
Up and Coming Events
Kansas Gen Y Students to Share National Spotlight at NSBA T+L2
At Longfellow Middle School, a small rural community located in Hill City, Kansas, students are accepted as important members of the technology community. Since joining the Generation Y program 5 years ago, students have used their technology know-how to help teachers integrate technology in every subject area. Now they will share that success with educators from across the country. Three Longfellow Middle school students have been asked to participate in an NSBA T+L2 session presented by Susan Patrick, Director of Education Technology for the U.S. Department of Education.
The session, The National Education Technology Plan: Are Our Schools Ready for Today's Students? will be held Wednesday, October 27 at 3:30 PM - 4:30 PM at the Colorado Convention Center, Room 603.
Jessi Day, Sara Favinger, and Amanda Eckols will give background information and personal reflections about the changes that have occurred at Longfellow Middle School since joining the Generation Y program five years ago. These three girls, who are now in 12th grade, 9th grade, and 8th grade, respectively, not only will share the history of the Generation Y program, but also will share their own perspectives on how Longfellow Middle School has changed thanks to technology integration.
Also at T+L2 ... TechYES - Student Technology Literacy Certification
Thursday, October 28 - 3:30 in Room 709.
TechYES builds a supportive student-centered environment using project-based learning and authentic assessment to demonstrate technology proficiency. Best of all, it's affordable, flexible and satisfies the federal No Child Left Behind requirement for 8th grade technology literacy. (https://www.genyes.org/programs/techyes)
Come visit the Generation YES booth (#940) at the T+L2 conference October 27-29, 2004 in Denver, Colorado. TechYES will also be shown at the Tech4Learning booth (#360). For more information on the T+L2 conference: https://www.nsba.org/t+l/
Hot Technologies Transforming Schools Webcast November 3, 2004 1:00 pm-2:00 pm ET
The Hot Technologies webcast will coincide with the release of CoSNs next emerging technologies report this fall, Hot Technologies in K-12 Education. This report identifies leading trends in technologies that have the potential to change the instructional process, improve assessment and evaluation, address diverse learning styles and student needs, build community in the school environment, and improve the efficiency of school administration. The webcast (and report) will assist district administrators and technology decision-makers in planning for the future. For more information and to register for the webcast, go to https://www.cosn.org/events/webcasts/
Student Action
NetDay Speak Up Day for Students 2004
Help your students' voices be heard by joining this online event where students across the country speak out about using technology and the Internet. NetDay, a national non-profit organization, is launching a revised survey with an exciting goal to collect input from 500,000 students on the issues that matter to them and to you.
The survey will be open for student input from October 11 - 29.Visit https://www.netday.org/ for more info.
News You Can Use
A School Decision-Maker's Guide to Student Technology Support Programs Released
All last year, Generation YES participated in meetings of the Youth Technology Support Collaborative (YTSC), a group of non-profit organizations, technology companies, and professional associations interested in student technology support programs. The result of this collaboration is a website and whitepaper designed to help school decision makers define the type of program that best suits their student and school needs based on the best practices of current practitioners.
The Decision Maker's Guide is not a how-to guide for launching a program. Rather, these pages provide background for decision makers to make a case for such a program and also determine what type of program is most appropriate to pursue. The resources section links to documents and Web sites with specific program development resources. The YTSC white paper: Youth Technology Support Programs: Meeting the Challenge of Technology Support in Schools (PDF), Douglas Levin, American Institutes for Research, February 2004, provides a summary and review of programs and literature.
This guide is designed for administrators considering youth technology support programs: curriculum and instruction directors, technology directors, school-site technology coordinators, teachers, principals, and anyone else making decisions about technology in a school district.
A companion to the guide, the planning worksheet has key questions for decision makers to use as they progress through the guide. You can also Test Your Knowledge about Student Technology Support Programs with this quick quiz.
The website and guide can be found at:
https://www.studenttechsupport.org/about/index.cfm
Librarians Rock!
Kudos to all the fantastic library media specialists who run Gen Y in their schools! A research paper, titled School Libraries Work, indicates that students in schools with strong libraries staffed with certified media specialists, score higher on standardized tests. We knew that all along - now we can prove it!
https://www.scholasticlibrary.com/grolierdocs/home.html
New Education Technology E-Journal
The inaugural issue of Innovate, a peer-reviewed bimonthly e-journal featuring cutting-edge research and practice in using information technology to enhance education is now available at https://www.innovateonline.info
Innovate offers more than just articles - you can comment on articles, share material with colleagues and friends, and participate in webcasts with authors.
Grant and Funding News
Innovative Grant Funding
The Braitmayer Foundation offers two types of grants for K-12 education throughout the United States. Of particular interest are:
Generation Y students not only help support teacher professional development, but also tend to become interested in teaching as a profession themselves. If anyone is interested in submitting a grant for Gen Y, please contact us and we can help.
For more information and deadlines, check https://www.braitmayerfoundation.org/
Schools of Distinction Awards
The Intel and Scholastic Schools of Distinction awards program gives outstanding K-12 schools in the United States the recognition and support they deserve. Last year, 20 U.S schools were awarded $2.3 million in grants and prizes.
This year, the nation's best schools will demonstrate excellence for implementing innovative programs that support positive educational outcomes. The awards highlight their successes, celebrate their innovative use of technology, demonstrate the benefits of strong teamwork, and showcase the classroom practices of excellent teachers.
For more information, visit https://www.schoolsofdistinction.com/
Hope for Education Essay Contest - Win up to $100,000 in Technology Equipment
Opt-in/Opt-out Note
And, of course, additions to the list are more than welcome! Our Generation YES Express sign-up page makes it easy for friends, family, co-workers, colleagues and acquaintances to join the Generation YES community.
Deadline: October 31, 2004
Samsung's Hope For Education, a new philanthropy program created to benefit children's education, is giving 101 lucky elementary, middle, and high schools across the country the chance to win up to $100,000 in much needed technology equipment via a unique online essay contest. The contest offers a top prize of $100,000 in technology equipment and 100 second prizes of $10,000 in tech gear. Anyone can enter on behalf of their favorite elementary, middle, or high school by submitting a 100-word essay describing how Samsung Electronics' technology can benefit a school in their community.
We "hope" you win! For more information: https://www.hopeforeducation.com
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