Education
on the Internet
is published by Spartacus
Educational every week. The newsletter includes news, reviews
of websites and articles on using ICT in the classroom. Members of
the mailing list are invited to submit information for inclusion in
future newsletters. In this way we hope to create a community of people
involved in using the internet in education.
Trenches
on the Web: Trenches on the Web is an evolving project being developed
by Mike Lavorone in the USA. New material is being added all the time
and this reflects the concerns and interests of the people who use
the site and are willing to send information to the webmaster. Lavorone
describes himself as the trench-keeper ("a history technician,
not a historian, recording these events with the tools currently available").
Students can explore a wide variety of themes and topics. It is also
possible to look at certain issues in great detail. The range and
display of statistics in this website is especially impressive. The
visitor is never allowed to forget the human tragedy of this conflict
and heart-rendering photographs appear next to the tables and graphs
on the screen.
The
Battle of Hastings: A comprehensive website on the Battle of Hastings
that with the right backup material could be used successfully in
the classroom. The website consists of 850,000 words and 300 graphics.
There is no search-engine but the material is well organised under
headings such as: Kings of Wessex and England, Where is 1066 Country,
Why did the Battle Happen?, The Build up to the Battle, Harold's Battle
Force, William's Battle Force, The Battle, The Aftermath, Norman Rule
After 1066, etc. The author has also provided a comprehensive glossary
of words and people.
The
Second World War: A comprehensive encyclopaedia of the Second
World War. Each
entry contains a narrative, illustrations and primary sources. The
text within each entry is hypertexted to other relevant pages in the
encyclopedia. In this way it is possible to research individual people
and events in great detail. The sources are also hypertexted so the
student is able to find out about the writer, artist, newspaper, organization,
etc., that produced the material. So far there are sections on: Background
to the War; Nazi Germany, Chronology of the War, Political Leaders,
European Diplomacy, Major Offensives, British Military Leaders, USA
Military Leaders, German Military Leaders, Japanese Military Leaders,
The Armed Forces, The Air War, The Resistance, Scientists & Inventors,
War at Sea, Resistance in Nazi Germany, The Holocaust, War Artists,
Weapons and New Technology.
British
Prime Ministers: A website provided free by Britannia. The site
contains pictures and biographical details of seventy-three of Britain's
Prime Ministers. It starts with Sir Robert Walpole in 1721 and ends
with a small section on Tony Blair in 1997. A biography of the Prime
Minister is followed by a time-line of key events that took place
during his/her period in office.
Jewish
Virtual Library: This website claims it is the most comprehensive
Jewish encyclopedia in the world. Created by the American-Israeli
Cooperative Enterprise (AICE), the website includes more than 6,000
articles. Divided into 13 sections such as History, Women, Politics,
Biography, Israel, Religion and Vital Statistics, the entries are
often illustrated by photographs and maps.
English
The
Standards Site: The Standards Site is managed by the Department
for Education and Employment's Standards and Effectiveness Unit (SEU).
The main objective of the site is to supply teachers with "guidance
and tools to help schools improve effectiveness, raise standards and
reduce workload". This includes providing literacy materials
and schemes of work. There is also a detailed section on 'The National
Literacy Strategy' which contains material under headings such as
'What is Literacy?', 'About the Framework for Teaching', 'Resource
Area', 'What is the Literacy Hour' and 'What should literate children
be able to do.'
Infant
Explorer: An excellent website for Key Stage 1 produced by teachers
working with the Canterbury Environment Education Centre. Every term
a new story designed to be used within the literacy hour is added
and so far The Swan Story, In the Autumn and Sebastian's Waddle are
available from the site. Each story encourages the children to explore
seasonal changes in the environment and includes NLS keywords, photographs,
moving graphics and sounds. The story contains interactive sections
which encourages the use of email and provides opportunities for the
children's work to be published on the site.
Gareth
Pitchford's Primary Resources: Illustrated by humorous cartoons,
Pitchford has provided a wide range of lesson ideas and resources
for primary teachers. This includes a good section on Literacy Hour
Resources such as 'Nouns and Adjectives Game', 'Lego Instructions',
'Types of Sentences', 'Conjunctions' and 'Thesaurus Work'. Pitchford,
who teaches at Edleston Primary School, also provides materials for
Maths, Science and Art and numerous links, including one to Paul Cockcroft's
Literacy Hour Resources.
Loopy
Land: As the title of this website suggests, Loopy Land provides
a less traditional approach to delivering the National Curriculum.
Lara Savory has made the material that she has been using with her
Y6 group available to the Internet community. This includes, Liquorice
Hour (new ideas for teaching the literacy hour), Loopy Learning Discussion
(on-line debate), Left to Write (tips for teaching left-handed children)
and Loopy Star Sites (ratings, with links, of other educational sites).
Mathematics
Centre
for Innovation in Mathematics Teaching: The CIMT was established
at the University of Exeter in 1986. As the CIMT is a centre for research
and curriculum development in Mathematics teaching and learning it
was only a matter of time before it began to explore the possibilities
of the Internet. Jointly sponsored by Esso, British Steel, the Post
Office and Singapore Airlines, the website is being used to build
a database of resources for students and teachers. Some of the mathematics
worksheets available include those that cover topics such as Genetic
Fingerprinting, Postcodes, Time Zones, Tin Can Design, Bar Codes and
Birthdays.
MathsNet:
As well as being Head of Maths at the Hewett Comprehensive School
in Norwich, Bryan Dye is one of the pioneer developers of educational
websites. His fantastic MathsNet website is a tremendous resource
for all teachers and students of mathematics. Features include: Interactive,
Articles, QuizBank, Magic Grid, MathsNet Art, Puzzles and Maths Links.
The website also contains reviews of software and books for mathematicians.
Maths
Help: This website provides free help and advice with problems
in Mathematics and Statistics at GCSE, A-level, BTEC, GNVQ and foundation
degree level. You send in your question and Maths Help will send an
email back with hints and general advice and a couple of days later
your answer will appear in the Maths Knowledge Bank. Categories include
Number and Financial Calculations, Trigonometry, Geometry & Mensuration,
Algebra, Functions and Graphs, Calculus, Statistics & Probability
and Applied Maths & Mechanics. There is also a Maths Chat Room
where you can talk with fellow students or the Maths Help tutors.
Interactive
Mathematics: Most of the best educational websites have been created
by people who are enthusiastic about the subjects they teach. Alexander
Bogomolny definitely fits into this category. Interactive Mathematics
is an attempt to reduce what Bogomolny calls "math anxiety".
His strategy is to provide a database of games and puzzles that require
deductive skills. Bogomolny argues that: "Mathematics is the
only deductive science. The peculiar beauty of Mathematics lies in
deduction, in the dependency of one fact upon another". He adds
that he is attempting to create a resource that will help people learn
"if not math itself, then, at least, ways to appreciate its beauty."
Bogomolny's website also includes sections on Maths Quotes, Did you
Know?, Fast Reckoning, Mathematics as a Language and Inventor's Paradox.
Design
& Technology
Design
& Technology Department: This impressive website has been
created by Andrew Davies, the Design & Technology, Head of Department,
at Littlehampton Community School. The website includes details of
Design & Technology projects produced at the school. There is
also information on a very interesting 'Primary School Technology
Day' and a section on important inventions. Andrew Davies has also
put the department's schemes of work online.
StudyWeb
Technology Education: An excellent collection of resources that
can be used for teaching design & technology. A brief description
of the resource is followed by comments on its visual content and
the age group that would best benefit from the material. The resource
list includes: Introduction to Manufacturing System Design, Design
Projects for Technology Education, Electric Vehicles, Environmental
Technology Education, Technology & Industry, and AutoCad.
Journal
of Technology Education: The Journal of Technology Education provides
a forum for discussion on topics relating to technology education.
Produced by researchers in the USA, articles are available online
and contain useful information for technology teachers in Britain.
Subjects covered in the Spring, 1998, edition includes several articles
on successful school projects.
Science
Nine
Planets: The Nine Planets is an amazing website designed by Bill
Arnett, a software engineer from San Jose, California. Bill Arnett
is one of the pioneering figures of the Internet and is developing
standards that hopefully others will try to maintain. Bill Arnett
is to the Internet what D.W. Griffith was to the movies. The Nine
Planets provides an overview of the history, mythology and current
scientific knowledge of each of the planets and moons in our solar
system. Each page has text and images and some have sound and video.
Contents include 'Express Tour', 'Overview of the Solar System', 'Other
Solar System', 'Spacecraft', 'Discovery Chronology', 'The Origin of
the Solar System', 'Planetary Linguistics' and 'Astronomical Names'.
The photographs of the planets and moons are spectacular. There is
also an excellent glossary and links with other relevant websites.
Ask
Dr. Universe: A wonderful site produced for children by Washington
State University. Visitors can ask scientific questions and the university's
team of researchers will find you the answer. The site also contains
a database of previously answered questions. The keyword from the
question is listed in alphabetical order. Question range from: What
is a black hole? to "Why are my eyes blue?" Answers are
usually two pages long and include a photograph of the person answering
the question. Although answered by academics, the answers are written
in a style that most children will understand. It is also possible
to send follow up questions directly to the person who provided the
first answer. A well-designed website that fully deserves the many
awards that it has won.
The
Why Files: This site is funded by the US National Science Foundation
and features stories that explore the technology and engineering involved
in current events. In the past the 'Why Files' have dealt with events
like the stock market fluctuations and archeological digs. The stories
are changed twice a month. In August 1997, the two stories were the
'Sojourner Rover on Mars' and 'Endocrine Disrupters'. The second story
is a good example of how a complex subject can be communicated in
a clear and unpatronising way. Based on a report by the Environmental
Protection Agency, the author provides information pages on how pesticides
are causing problems for humans and animals. The story is linked to
background information on hormones and a case-study of DDT and eagles'
eggs. The final section explores what is being done and the prospects
for success. Past stories are archived and can be recalled. Written
and illustrated in a lively and attractive way, this site is well
worth a regular visit.
The
Skeptics Dictionary: This website has been created by Robert Carroll,
a professor of philosophy and author of the book, 'Becoming a Critical
Thinker'. The main objective of this website is to explain mysteries
such as UFOs, crop circles and telepathy. We all like mysteries and
I suspect that a large number of the 114,000 people who have visited
the site would have been disappointed by Carroll's scientific and
rational explanations. However, this is an impressive attempt to encourage
rational thinking.
Geography
National
Geographic Map Machine: There are several websites on the Internet
that provides maps. Probably the best of these is provided by the
National Geographic Magazine. Developed in association with GeoSystems
Global Corporation the 'Map Machine Atlas' enables the viewer to select
any country in the world. The map is displayed with national flag
and other factual information such as: population, capital, main religions,
languages, literacy rate and life expectancy. There are also sections
on the country's history and economy. The Web Machine also has collections
of 'Political' and 'Physical' maps. A recent addition is 'View From
Above' that shows maps of countries based on satellite photographs.
New
Internationalist: Rivers: An impressive website that provides
detailed information on the world's five longest rivers: Nile, Amazon,
Yangtze, Ganges and the Zaire. The eco-system of each river is briefly
described. For example, we are told that the Yangtze has 700 tributaries
and one in thirteen on the planet live in its basin. This is followed
by an analysis of the dangers threatening these eco-systems. The New
Internationalists is more sympathetic to those problems caused by
culture (the ashes of 40,000 people put into the Ganges) than what
it calls "rampant industrialism" (logging campaigns in Brazil).
The website has a campaigning tone but provides a great deal of fascinating
information.
Geography
World: Geography World has been created by Brad Bowerman, an enthusiastic
geography teacher from Lakeland High School in Jermyn, Pennsylvania.
As well as creating his own material on Pennsylvania, Bowerman has
produced a directory of useful websites for geography teachers. Categories
include Ecosystems, Tectonics, Natural Resources, Earth's Surface/Erosion,
Weather/Climate, Maps & Globes, Cultures, Population, Environmental
Issues and Geography Games.
Virtual
Wildlife: Virtual Wildlife has been produced by the World Wide
Fund for Nature. Concise and lucid text is accompanied by attractive
illustrations. Sections include Polar Regions, Coniferous Forests,
Temperate Forests, Grasslands, Tropical Forests, Mountains, Oceanic
Islands, Freshwater Wetlands and Oceans. After reading a two-page
description of the environment, students have the opportunity to research
the wildlife from the chosen area.
Modern
Languages
ARTFL
Project: The American and French Research on the Treasury of the
French Language (ARTFL) is based at the University of Chicago. The
website contains over 20,000 French texts including the Diderot Encyclopaedia,
Roget's Thesaurus and the French Bible. ARTFL is also working on several
collaborative projects with French educational institutions. These
are all listed and linked from the main website.
Virtual
French Literature: An excellent resource for all teachers and
students of French literature. Virtual French Literature is a large
database of out of copyright classics in French. Writers featured
include Appollinaire, Balzac, Colette, Maupassant, Racine, Rambaud,
Fanon, Flaubert, Gide, Zola, Hugo, Rousseau, Stendhal, Verne and Voltaire.
The website also contains a comprehensive collection of biographies
of French writers.
French-English
Dictionary: The American and French Research on the Treasury of
the French Language (ARTFL) is based at the University of Chicago.
Mark Olsen of the University of Chicago's ARTFL Project is constructing
a French-English Dictionary. So far it contains only 75,000 words
but it is still growing and it is hoped that eventually it will be
as comprehensive as ARTFL's English dictionary. At the moment you
can only search for individual words and not phrases or expressions.
However, it does tell you the gender and whether it is a noun or verb.
Travlang's
German-English Online Dictionary: Travlang was founded by Dr.
Michael Martin in 1995 and is committed to providing a variety of
useful tools for those interested in learning a foreign language.
Travlang's German-English Online Dictionary contains more than 130,000
entries and enables the visitor to translate phrases from German to
English and vice versa. Includes facility for users to add words and
phrases to the dictionary.
Learn
Spanish Online Tutorial: Learn Spanish is an outstanding website
that provides a wealth of information for all students and teachers
of the language. The online tutorial includes written and oral exercises
and currently covers over 50 separate topics. The Vocabulary section
includes hundreds of the most common and useful words needed to speak
Spanish. To make it more enjoyable for the student, each category
includes a series of interactive games. There is also a Cultural Notes
section that attempts to provide the student with "insights into
the people, places and customs" of Spanish-speaking countries.
Do you
want to have your website listed in our web directory? If so, send
a brief description (about 150 words) and the URL to spartacus@pavilion.co.uk.
