Education on the Internet
Number 64: 2nd April, 2003
Introduction
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 34,795 subscribers to the newsletter.
All reviews are added to our web directory. There are sections on Internet Services, 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
Ask Jeeves Mini Searchbar: Ask Jeeves is one of the most popular search engines on the Web. Recently it launched its Mini Jeeves Searchbar. It claims it "is the fastest and easiest way to get the information you want, when you want it, from anywhere on the Web". The Mini Jeeves Searchbar is free to download and appears every time you open a new Internet Explorer window. The toolbar also includes a very good dictionary and thesaurus.
ICT Advice: The current edition of ICT Advice includes information about Becta's new Internet Proficiency Scheme for Key Stage 2 pupils. There is also a special feature this month based on a new Becta research report on the use of handheld devices (PDAs) in 30 English schools. It also takes a look at some activities from the Teacher Resource Exchange (TRE) and other websites which can help you to bring history to life. Finally, the Teachers Online digest has tips from last month's forum discussions. Forum host Elaine Brent offers a recap and links to recommended web resources.
Network Of Thematic Museums and Institutes: Traditionally, museums would only display the cultural heritage of one or more countries thus illustrating some nationally relevant 'realities'. A reframed concept would instead see the museum as both a physically flexible place and a virtual space where visitors could find, close to each other, and compared, physically-distant objects, texts and artefacts from different countries but belonging to comparable cultural horizons. Each of the partners from 10 different countries and institutions is organizing one theme autonomously, but only after negotiation with the other partners to ensure compatibility. The selected themes are: Folklore and Traditions (Denmark), Communication and Interraction (Finland), Arts and Cultures (France), Through Memory (Germany), Signs of Spirituality (Hungary), Ordinary People (Ireland), City Images (Italy), Sense of Identity (Norway), Educational Heritage (Portugal) and Symbols of Citizenship (UK).
History
School History Internet Links: This site offers comprehensive Internet links for history teachers and students. It includes reviews of over 1,000 websites. The material is organized under the following categories: Primary, Year 7, Year 8, Year 9, GCSE Modern World, Depth Studies and Additional Studies. A new post 16 section is currently being developed.
Nazi Propaganda 1933-1945: Propaganda was central to Nazi Germany. This section is a collection of English translations of Nazi propaganda for the period 1933-1945. The goal of the website is to help people understand the great totalitarian systems of the twentieth century by giving them access to primary material. The archive is substantial. If you are looking for something specific, you might try the search function available at the bottom of the page.
Mathematics
MathsNet Discussion Forum: This forum offers discussions on teaching, suggestions, ideas, trials of online teaching materials. Subjects covered include Technical Support, Problems, General Mathematics, Graphic Calculators, Puzzles, Challenges and Brainteasers, Software, Cabri Geometry, Omnigraph, MathType, LiveMath, MathsAlive, Geometer's Sketchpad, FX Draw, Excel, Crocodile Mathematics and WebEq.
Maths Web Guide: Created by Education Unlimited, this web guide contains recommended links to hundreds of websites for teachers, parents and students. The websites are organized under the following categories: Mathematics, Problem Solving, Numbers & Money, Measurement & Time, Space & shape, Data management, Algebra, Trigonometry, Calculus, Games & Puzzles and GCSE revision.
Politics
Life of Thomas Jefferson: The foreign policy of Thomas Jefferson was based upon the broad principles of his inaugural maxim: "peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none." Jefferson argued that America would not only refuse to rule over other nations, it would avoid meddling in their affairs altogether. He added that if America wanted to export its brand of liberty, it should do it not through force but by the simple power of its own example. This online book by B. L. Rayner, originally published in 1834, provides an interesting insight into how current American foreign policy has changed since Jefferson's time in office.
Outcome of the Iraq War: In this interesting article George Monbiot argues that there are three possible results of the war with Iraq. (1) There is a popular uprising and Saddam Hussein is overthrown by his generals. The coalition troops are then welcomed into Baghdad by the people of the city. (2) The coalition troops kill Saddam Hussein and destroys the bulk of the army, but has to govern Iraq as a hostile occupying force. (3) The coalition forces fail to kill Saddam Hussein or win a decisive victory in Iraq. If this happens George Monbiot suggests that Saddam Hussein will "slip into the civilian population, occasionally throwing off his disguise and appearing among his troops, to keep the flame of liberation burning."
Mass Media
British Newspaper Library: The national archive collections in the United Kingdom of British and overseas newspapers is held at Colindale in London. It is the only large, integrated national newspaper service in the world, combining facilities for the collection, preservation, and use of newspapers all on one site. The library contains 52,000 newspaper and periodical titles. It is hoped that these newspapers will eventually be placed online. The British Library Online Newspaper Archive (pilot version only) currently includes searchable facsimile issues of London’s Daily News, The News of the World, The Weekly Dispatch, and The Manchester Guardian.
Propaganda War: In this article, Phillip Knightley, the author of the book The First Casualty: The War Correspondent as Hero, Propagandist and Myth Maker, discusses the media coverage of the Iraq War. Despite their superior resources, Knightley believes the coalition is losing the propaganda war with Iraq. He quotes from a leaked Psyops report that proposed: "bringing all Iraqi PoWs into impressively large groups and offering the world's media a photo opportunity; making more use of Iraqi opposition groups; and persuading Iraqis in 'liberated' areas to speak out against Saddam Hussein." Knightley agrees with this approach but warns: "that the media has become suspicious of stories handed to it on a plate. Even if some western correspondents might fall for such an operation, Arab and neutral reporters would expose it."
Internet Sources
CorpusMail: A web-based email service enables you read off the Web, using Internet browsers like Netscape or Internet Explorer. You can read your e-mail anywhere in the world, for example in airports, or in public libraries, any where you can access the Internet. You do not need to own a connection to the Internet to have a web-based e-mail, and there's no software to download, install or configure. This free service provides filters where unwanted or important e-mail messages can sent to a specific folder, to the trash or to a different address.
Yahoo Email: With Yahoo! Mail, you have access to your email from any Internet-connected computer in the world. Whether you are at a cafe, in a library, at work or at home, with Yahoo! Mail, your email address is the same and your account is accessible from all locations. In addition, you can use your Yahoo! Mail account to access mail sent to your other email accounts (such as a work or home account) by using our External Mail feature. Spamguard is a proprietary system is intended to radically reduce the amount of spam you receive in your inbox. Spamguard is designed to direct most spam to your Bulk Mail folder, to help you better manage your mail.
Book Section
Pushkin: Born in Moscow in 1799, Pushkin was expelled from St Petersburg at the age of 20 as a result of his satirical writings. He remained in internal exile - under the supervision of the Emperor - for the next seven years and throughout his life he continued to excite official disapproval for his political and religious beliefs. In 1837 Pushkin became jealous of the attentions paid to his beautiful young wife by a French nobleman and challenged him to a duel, in which he was fatally wounded. Pushkin's life and writings have inspired generations of devotees and his influence continues to be felt in the present day. This is a major new biography of one of literature's most romantic and enigmatic figures. (T. J. Binyon, HarperCollins, ISBN 0 00 215084 0, £20)
