Generation YES Express
Youth and Educators Succeeding
March 2009
In This Issue
$$$timulus funding!
Students speak out
Emily goes to Washington
Constructivist Celebration - don't miss it!
Quick Links
Dear , 

Last year Generation YES partnered with the HFM BOCES in New York to launch New York State Student Technology Leaders. Students in schools from 25 districts in New York came to a week-long summer camp to learn how to support their teachers and ensure that all their classmates become technology literate.

Now we are going global with this concept. I returned last week from Malaysia where the Ministry of Education launched the Malaysian Student Technology Leaders program.

 
This photo shows the male half of the first cadre of STLs who were trained to go back to their schools and support the nation's ambitious K-12 technology programs.

Both STL programs confirm our belief that students are the key component of any effort to reform schools through the use of modern technology. We look forward to more states and nations adopting this model and providing students with the meaningful task of helping to reinventing school for the 21st century and beyond.

Forward... Dennis
Stimulus package contains $650M for educational technology
Get ready, get set - GO!

For U.S. educators, there has been one primary source of funds from the federal government for educational technology over the past few years. It's part of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, Title 2d, or Enhancing Education Through Technology (EETT). With the passage of the stimulus bill, there is new, additional funding in the range of $650M that will be IMMEDIATELY shared between the 50 states, Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico.

The key word there is immediately - so the time to get ready is NOW. The next few weeks should see a flurry of activity as state education departments decide exactly how to do this. If you've been saying -- gee, if we only had the money -- this is your chance. Watch your state ed tech department closely. This will happen FAST.

Since this is one-time only money, you need to find programs that are self-sustaining and proven, like GenYES and TechYES.

GenYES and TechYES have been the basis of hundreds of successful EETT projects in thousands of schools. We know the power of technology can empower students, support teachers, and create a culture of shared ownership of learning at your school. The question is how to do that quickly and reliably. With GenYES and TechYES you don't have to reinvent the wheel, invent a new model, or design 21st century technology curriculum from scratch.

GenYES students in grades 4-12 learn technology skills, project and collaboration skills, so they can teach teachers, do tech support, and share their technology skills with their school and community. This can be after-school or during the day. GenYES combines the passion of youth for technology, the benefits of service-learning, support for teachers in their own classrooms, and provides all the resources and curriculum to get a program up and running quickly. GenYES includes an online help desk where teachers can request help from a GenYES student - whether that means hook up a projector or plan a technology-infused lesson. The really good news is that the EETT can fully fund GenYES, permanently.

TechYES and TechYES Science are project-based student technology literacy certification programs. Printed and online materials guide students in grades 6-9 through the project-process, allowing students to show technology literacy with real world projects, either academic or personal. One of the NCLB goals is that all students achieve technology literacy by grade 8. TechYES offers a way to meet that goal using a project-based philosophy, because you can't show technology literacy through a multiple choice test. (TechYES in Action video)

But whatever approach you take to the stimulus funding, we hope you consider putting the emphasis on classroom technology that enhances the student experience, allows students control and ownership of their own learning, and gives teachers professional development that transcends old "sit and get" models.

Because reviving our economy will be dependent on EVERYONE, including students, working together. This digital generation is ready to step up, and deserves a chance to be part of the solution!

More information on EETT requirements

Arizona GenYES students wow college CIOs

GenYES students from Shadow Mountain HS in the Paradise Valley School District in Arizona were recently featured at an Education Leadership Summit sponsored by Apple for college CIOs.

In front of an audience of over 50 college CIO's and Presidents from across the nation (including Stanford, Purdue, and Ohio State) these students answered a wide range of questions ranging from 'how technology helps students learn', 'how and why they help staff integrate tech to curriculum' , 'expectations of technology in educational environment' and much more. According to proud GenYES Advisor Debbie Kovesdy, they were intelligent, articulate, thoughtful and genuine. (Full blog post)

Shadow Mountain has a GenYES portal where teachers throughout the whole school can request student support and planning help from the impressive list of student expertise. Students help teachers with Mac operations and applications, to help with the district web and email services.

Check out these photos of a staff inservice run by GenYES students

Learn more about GenYES
 
Emily goes to Washington
Sad and happy feeings here at the Generation YES office as our own Emily McCartan has moved to Washington DC to work in the new Obama administration.

Many of you know Emily. She was a GenYES student at Washington Middle School in Olympia, Washington. She presented at the Kentucky KETS conference as an 8th grader and while in high school presented at several NECC conferences and helped plan and run the ISTE Youth Leadership Symposium at the Chicago NECC in 2001. After graduating from Lewis and Clark College, she began teaching in the Virgin Islands. Returning to Olympia, Emily came to work for Generation YES, responsible for grant implementations and the transition of our GenYES curriculum to GenYES 2.0.

Unfortunately for us, but fortunately for the entire nation, Emily just took a job offer as Assistant to the Associate Director of National Security at the Office of Management and Budget. But we love seeing GenYES students succeed, no matter how old they are!

Emily now and then...
CC event logoConstructivist Celebration - Pacific Northwest Style
Computer-rich learning adventures for creative educators

The first ever Constructivist Celebration in the Pacific Northwest is an opportunity for you to let your creativity run free with the world's best open-ended software tools in a collaborative setting with enthusiastic colleagues who share your commitment to children, computing, creativity and constructivism. Think of this as a spa day for your mind and soul!

Pacific Northwest Constructivist Celebration
Saturday May 16, 2009
Puget Sound ESD (Renton, WA - Seattle area)

Participants will enjoy the day's activities, complimentary creativity software and a hearty lunch all for just $55. This event is a joint effort between the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI), the Northwest Council for Computer Education (NCCE), and the Constructivist Consortium.

Dr. Dennis Harper, founder of Generation YES will be there too!

Go to www.constructivistconsortium.org for more information and to register. Space is limited and past events have sold out quickly.

Generation YES | 2584 RW Johnson Blvd. SW | Olympia | WA | 98512
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