We're ecstatic here at WIDE World because years of dedicated teaching and innovative course development has resulted in us winning a Best Practices in Distance Learning Programming Award at the Platinum Level, the highest level possible, from the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA). The award was presented on Monday evening, October 17th, 2005.

"This is a gratifying endorsement of the quality of our WIDE World courses and our commitment to wide-scale improvement of teacher practice," commented David Zarowin, executive director of WIDE World. "We thank all of our researchers, instructors, coaches, and staff for their efforts in developing and delivering world class web-based courses."

The award, the highest recognition in the pre-K-12 Online category, honors WIDE World for its outstanding professional development courses.

"This year the judges awarded only four Platinum awards," noted Don Lake, USDLA's awards chair. "This means WIDE World online courses were rated as exceptional against the awards criteria, which included interactivity, online design, technology, and assessment. This year's award winners represent many of the most innovative leaders in the field of distance learning. These are the best of the best."

The annual USDLA Awards Program was created in 1999 to acknowledge major accomplishments in distance learning and to highlight those instructors, programs, and distance learning professionals who have achieved excellence in the field.

We're so pleased to have worked with dedicated instructors, coaches, students, and staff. They have been pivotal in improving WIDE World's courses and putting Teaching for Understanding into practice in classrooms around the world. A teacher is truly defined by the success of his/her students, and this remarkable achievement really belongs to the vibrant and rapidly expanding educational community of WIDE World learners around the globe.

Gouged out by glaciers and populated with wildlife, the fresh water ponds of New England are a fascinating resource. They provided sustenance for Native Americans and a source of ice for canny nineteenth century entrepreneurs, who shipped it all over the world. Nowadays, reservations like Fresh Pond in urban Cambridge, MA, still serve the community - as water reservoirs, recreational areas and, most importantly, outdoor classrooms.

Cambridge Public Schools' Peg LeGendre, K-6 Science Mentor Teacher, and Susan Agger, Coordinator of the CPS Maynard Ecology Center, and their colleagues are implementing a Grade 6 Ecosystems Project in the Spring of 2006. This builds on curriculum plans they laid out in WIDE World courses under Project COOL and will incorporate technology using some of WIDE World's strategies. In conjunction with John Pickle, of the Boston Museum of Science, Chief Ranger Jean Rogers of Fresh Pond Reservation and the Friends of Fresh Pond group, Dr. LeGendre has planned for the district's students to examine the thriving ecosystem of Black's Nook Pond.

Students will collect data about the pond, in conjunction with the Friends group, and the information will be added to an ongoing database documenting Black's Nook's vibrant physical and chemical life. Using digital cameras, thermometers, electronic data loggers and population counts, Cambridge kids will be involved in learning about methods for collecting scientific data and how seasonal changes affect plants and animals. At the end of the project, they'll present their findings to the public by building a web presentation.

LeGendre is quick to point out the potential benefits of the project. "What I think is compelling about this story is that it is all about collaboration and sharing data (among students in the district, with the public and with scientists). None of it really requires a lot of money."

We're going to follow Peg's progress as she plans and implements the project, and discuss the importance of "understanding" in science as the year progresses. Look in December's edition for an update...

[Pictured from left to right: Jill Stonehouse, Bridget Walters, Shelly Fournier and Betsy Carter]

When Betsy Carter signed on with her Freetown Elementary School colleagues in Massachusetts to take a WIDE World course, she had no idea what might happen. But for those longing for a more personalized education, team learning at WIDE World is one of the ways in which students can combine face-to-face discussion of coursework with the flexibility of the online experience. Teachers from the same school or district who enroll in teams of 3 or 4 are able to take any course as a small group and tailor its ideas to their individual needs.

Teams collaborate offline and contribute their responses as one voice during the course. On-site teams have commented on the increased opportunities to share ideas, with the courses and assignments providing the framework for their face-to-face meetings. "It was almost like we couldn?t work hard enough and fast enough to be sure we weren?t letting the team down," Betsy Carter, a team participant in The Freetown Four, noted. This kind of collaborative online/off-line experience sustained over time reflects one of the key tenets in professional development - that teachers teach better in longer-lasting programs that involve collective discussion and real-life classroom application.

Working in teams provides other benefits. "High- functioning teams are really good at streamlining and distributing their work," David Eddy Spicer, WIDE World's research manager explains. Personal encouragement is another factor. "I think singly, if each of us worked individually we probably would have given up," Carter said. "Even though I'd worked with the others for a number of years, it just brought us so much closer."

And at the end of the course, teams can continue developing and reflecting on their teaching practices using a shared vocabulary. A Project COOL team was surprised to see that team collaboration led to student enthusiasm for group activities, as students observed their teachers developing new and exciting ways to learn. Carter suggested that even when schedules were tight, it was amazing to see her students attack problems afresh with the strategies her team had been implementing.

Betsy Carter has provided WIDE World with MY VIEW, a step-by-step article about her personal experience in a team taking the Teaching Math Fundamentals on the Way to Algebraic Thinking in Elementary School course.

October 17-19, 2005

WIDE World received a Platinum Award, one of four top awards, for Best Practices in Programming at the USDLA-sponsored Training Fall Conference in Long Beach, CA.

October 31, 2005

WIDE World is pleased to be attending the launch of MassONE in Worcester, MA, from 9:00 am to 12:30 pm. MassONE (Massachusetts Online Network for Education) is the state's online learning system, a resource that enables communication, collaboration, and sharing among educators, students and DOE staff.

November 3-5, 2005

WIDE World will be exhibiting and giving a session at the Annual Conference of the National Middle School Association (NMSA) in Philadelphia, PA. Come and meet us at Booth 954.

November 14-15, 2005

WIDE World will be exhibiting at the Annual Technology Conference of the Massachusetts Computer Using Educators, Inc. in Sturbridge, MA. You can find us on the lefthand side of the map.

November 29-December 1, 2005

WIDE World will be exhibiting and giving a session at the Christa McAuliffe Technology Conference in Nashua, NH.

WIDE World offers several Programs of Study, including: Differentiating Instruction and Technology Integration.

Programs of Study are two six-session courses spread out over two semesters and offer WIDE World learners the chance to receive sustained exposure to our coursework and a thorough knowledge of the teaching practices and strategies involved. Differentiating Instruction shows WIDE World students how to accommodate all kinds of learning levels in the classroom, including English language learners. Technology Integration explains how to utilize technology to improve understanding and help students achieve curriculum standards.

If you wish to register for a Program of Study, please email wideworld@gse.harvard.edu to receive a special registration number for enrollment. Please do not go through the normal registration process without receiving a special registration number first.

If you have an idea about a newsletter feature (including projects you've constructed after taking a WIDE World course) or any other suggestions, please contact us at wideeditor@gse.harvard.edu