Location
Maryland
About
I am a:
tech coordinator
Short bio or reason for joining Actionable Innovations Global:
Alecia is a Technology Coordinator for a K-8 Independent school just outside of Washington, D.C. She is a Fulbright Memorial Fund Scholar, as well as an experienced presenter at several local and state technology conferences. She was the 2006 Best Paper award winner at the 2006 MICCA Conference. Oh, and she's also a yoga practitioner, fiction author, guitar-playing hack, hiker, spiritual seeker and fashionista.
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I understand why people would question why the need to pay to be part of the iEARN network when it is possible to find partners for international collaboration using other resources.
One of the strengths of iEARN is that each country has its own iEARN organization that provides local support and training for teachers. iEARN is run by an assembly of representatives from iEARN NGO's or non-profits in each country. There are over 33,000 teachers in the network from over 125 countries. Another strength of iEARN is the teachers themselves. They are the ones who created the over 200 different projects that are ongoing at any time.
Each country has its own membership requirements. In the US we charge a fee that do we not think is exorbitant. We feet that some payment is needed to get commitment from the members. The US fees are not mentioned on the iEARN international web page http://iearn.org because they only apply to teachers in the US. They are spelled out on the iEARN US web page http://us.iearn.org/join/apply.php We do offer online and face-to-face professional development for a fee but this is not required. We are always looking for grant resources to provide these opportunities for US teachers. Recently I posted an announcement of the online classes on this Ning because we do have some scholarships available and do not want them to go unused.
Membership in iEARN gives teachers access to the network to enroll their students to work with others around the world. The collaborations mainly take place in the secure password protected environment of the Collaboration Centre http://media.iearn.org
iEARN has created resources that are available to anyone interested in international collaboration. One is our our Multimedia Guide to iEARN. This is directed toward participation in iEARN but also contains many resources helpful for all teachers who want to have their students collaborate with others around the world. http://us.iearn.org/professional_development/multimedia/index.html
iEARN has a global Youth Calculator that does not require membership to use. “"(OF)2: Our Footprints, Our Future!" is an international initiative that encourages youth (ages 19 and younger) from around the world to use online tools and resources to measure their carbon footprint and develop ways to reduce their carbon usage. The goal is for one million students around the world to join together with their families, their schools, and their communities to reduce the total global carbon footprint. (OF)2 is a partnership project between the World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA), the International Education and Resource Network (iEARN), and the public television channel, Channel Thirteen.” http://www.of2.iearn.org/
Many years ago we were asked by the US Department of Education to put together a Teachers’ Guide to International Collaboration on the Internet. http://www.ed.gov/teachers/how/tech/international/guide_pg2.html Unfortunately we are not able to update this resource. Otherwise it would include the Global Education Ning.
I think the teachers and students speak best for the network. I invite you to look at http://media.iearn.org/v/Activities/anniversary/iearnx20thxannivers...
And a film produced by the Chicago Public Schools http://tinyurl.com/CPS-intl-collaboration
iEARN has been around for 20 years. It must be doing something right.
Warm regards,
Diane
You made some very strong statements about iEARN today on your blog http://ed-tech-axis.blogspot.com/ I would like to know where you got your information about iEARN costing "thousands of dollars ". iEARN-USA does charge USA teachers a fee for membership ($100 for a single teacher, $400 for a entire school). Most members around the world do not have to pay anything. I hope you will look into this more and ask some questions before making such inflammatory statements.
Diane Midness
An educator who works for iEARN (earning less than I would teaching) because I am committed to the change it makes in the lives of teachers and students.
Yadab
this is a Teacher wiki we started a few months ago in Pennsylvania and it is booming! Come sign up!