Education
on the Internet
Number
31: 14th August 2002
Introduction
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. Currently there are 25,962
subscribers to the newsletter.
All
reviews are added to our web
directory. There are sections on Primary
Education,
English,
Mathematics, Science,
Modern Languages, History,
Geography, Design
& Technology, Business
Studies, Media Studies, ICT,
Sociology, Music,
Politics, Economics,
Photography,
Art & Design, Theatre
Studies, Physical Education and
Religious Studies.
John Simkin
spartacus@pavilion.co.uk
News
and Articles
Adventure
Learning Foundation: This comprehensive site takes students and
teachers, as virtual participants, on real and virtual expeditions
around the world. Through a collection of original pictures and journal
excerpts, visitors can follow in the footsteps of travelers exploring
the natural environment, culture, and peoples of different continents.
Past expeditions include Alaska and Yukon, Baja California, American
Southwest, Southern Africa, Mexico and Peru. Each expedition is accompanied
by a mixture of information, links, and classroom activities.
Certificate
in eLearning: A new programme of study leading to the Certificate
in eLearning, Teaching and Training is now available at the University
of Greenwich. The four courses that make up the Certificate are resource-based
and represent a range of approaches to eLearning that model current
best practice. The programme is delivered online using a range of tools,
learning, teaching and assessment methods. Participants work as individuals,
in small and larger groups undertaking research, portfolio production,
reflective and analytical writing, and evaluative and collaborative
tasks. The programme will be relevant to any teacher or trainer, irrespective
of geographical location, who has an interest in or requires an understanding
of the theory and practice involved in the design and delivery of eLearning.
EdResearch
Online: EdResearch is a freely searchable web database. It includes
11,000 records from the Australian Education Index, covering all educational
sectors. 8500 of the documents are available on the web for free with
the remainder available for a copyright fee.
History
Victoria
Woodhull: In 1872
was nominated as the presidential candidate of the Equal Rights Party.
Although laws prohibited women from voting, there was nothing stopping
women from running for office. During the campaign Woodhull called
for the "reform of political and social abuses; the emancipation
of labor, and the enfranchisement of women". Woodhull also argued
in favour of improved civil rights and the abolition of capital punishment.
The supporters of President Ulysses Grant decided to attack Victoria
Woodhull's character and she was accused of having affairs with married
men. It was also alleged that Victoria's previous husband was an alcoholic
and her her sister, Utica Claflin, took drugs. Woodhull became convinced
that Henry Ward Beecher was behind these stories and decided to fight
back. She now published a story that Beecher was having an affair
with a married woman. Woodhull was arrested and charged under the
Comstock Act for sending obscene literature through the mail and was
in prison on election day. Over the next seven months Woodhull was
arrested eight times and had to endure several trials for obscenity
and libel. She was eventually acquitted of all charges but the legal
bills forced her into bankruptcy. This website provides an account
of Victoria Woodhull's life and extracts from her speeches and articles.
Curse
of Tut: Fact or Myth: This website was created by the students
at the John F. Kennedy High School in the Bronx, New York and a group
of students in Brazil. The website enables students to learn about
the fascinating life of King Tut. Students can learn the facts behind
the myth and decide for themselves about the truth of the curse. They
can also decode the hieroglyphs to write their names. USA Brazil SchoolLink,
which fostered this project, taps the multicultural capacities of
the web. Teachers will enjoy the spatial reasoning required to solve
the Lock Key puzzle.
Spanish
Civil War Directory: A collection of websites on the Spanish Civil
War sorted by language (Spanish, English, Italian, French, Portuguese,
Catalan and Galician) and by subject (General Websites, International
Dimension of the War, International Brigades, Anarchism, Local History,
Military Aspects, Women’s History, Posters and Photographs and
a particular selection of “essential” websites. The front
page and the “essential” websites page are in English and
Spanish, the rest only in Spanish.
English
Language
Laboratory: This website uses Merlin, an animated interactive
Microsoft Agent Character, to provide a basic overview of the eight
parts of speech of English grammar. To access the site, the user must
have Version 4.0 or better of Internet Explorer with Microsoft Agent
installed, plus the Microsoft agent named Merlin, freely available
from Microsoft Corporation from their website.
Roald
Dahl: An educational website dedicated to the work of Roald Dahl.
It includes biography of Dahl, timelines, pictures, articles, games,
polls, downloads, greeting cards, auctions and contests. In the Classroom
area there are resources under the headings Student Help and Teacher
Ideas.
Modern
Languages
Español
con Carlitos: A website where you can learn Spanish for free.
Carlitos is your guide through the Spanish language and culture. You
find interactive exercises and telecollaborative activities in Spanish.
Three times a year you can participate in an event: build your website
to a certain theme and win a prize! The site also offers grammar support
(Ayuda grammatical, access from the Sitemap) and guidelines (Objetivos)
with detailed information to each of the activities.
Art
Red,
Yellow, Blue: The latest resource created by award-winning AccessArt
that enables young children to explore colour and colour mixing. The
resource was created by Paula Briggs and Sheila Ceccarelli from AccessArt
(both of whom are graduates of the Royal College of Art Sculpture
School), and based upon practical teaching which took place at Greenhedges
School in Cambridgeshire. Red, Yellow, Blue is designed to be used
by children, even those with a limited experience of IT. Text is limited
- the resource is navigated by colour, sound and object based animations.
Each child can create his or her learning pathway - there is no right
or wrong route. Just as importantly, there is no end; the journey
is cyclical and children can spend as long as they like with the resource.
The interactive animated resource is also accompanied by a text-based
printout which introduces teachers and parents to some practical methods
of exploring colour in the home/school or community.
Letters
of Vincent van Gogh: Archive of the complete letters of Vincent
van Gogh. Most of the letters are from Vincent, some are to him, or
among other people. Search by word, or browse by topics such as alcohol,
appearance, attitude, food, health, phobia and state of mind. The
website is currently expanding the number of annotated subjects.
Book
Section
Voyages
of Delusion: The Enlightenment years of the eighteenth century
represented a determined attempt to dispel myth, superstition and
ignorance - yet they also witnessed increasingly irrational efforts
to find a navigable passage through the icy seas of the Arctic from
Hudson Bay to the wealth of the Pacific Ocean. Based on extensive
research, Voyages of Delusion explores the adventures and mishaps
of the successive voyages, the role of the Hudson Bay Company whose
monopoly gave it control over trading opportunities in the far north,
and the increasing interest of national governments in the possibility
of a navigable passage. (Glyn Williams, HarperCollins)
Available
from Amazon Books (order below)
