The Apple (R) Newsletter for Education User Groups
LEAD ARTICLE
Advise. Advice. Action.
Higher Education & K-12 Educators Influence Apple
When a company wants to know how to serve its customers better, what can it do? If it wants to know how customers perceive company image, how and where they like to purchase, what they need for post-purchase support and training, or how to enthusiastically deserve customer loyalty, who has the answers? A company like Apple Computer thinks the best people to ask are the customers, themselves.
With this in mind, Apple created an advisory council from its most enthusiastic and dedicated customer base, its User Groups. Through this Council, valuable input is gathered from the company’s most involved technology users in communities, business, and education.
The User Group Advisory Council (UGAC)* conducts annual meetings and ongoing electronic correspondence. UGAC-member ideas and recommendations are taken seriously and bring Apple to action. Speaking specifically to education, one outcome of the Council is Apple’s strengthened support of its Higher Education (HE) and K-12 customers through Education-specific User Groups. In addition, educators participating with Apple at UGAC ‘90 brought numerous changes and benefits to action at Apple in 1991.
Ideas and Solutions
Three higher education representatives (MIT, Drexel, Iowa State) and two K-12 representatives (from private and public schools) attended UGAC ‘90. That year, the Council did not structure discussion groups around education issues or Education User Groups. Instead, Workplace and Community User Groups were identified, and education participants were integrated into these groups. Here are some of their suggestions and how Apple addressed the issues:
Idea: Education has unique technology needs, and the User Group Connection should establish an Education User Group identity on the council.
Solution: During UGAC ‘91, HE and K-12 representatives met in break-out sessions with one another and with Apple Computer HE and K-12 Marketing Managers to identify education-specific needs.
Idea: UG monthly mailings are useful, but do not directly address technology in education.
Solution: EducatorsConnect, a newsletter for Education User Groups, was created, and dedicated HE and K-12 monthly mailings began—containing materials focused on educational software, applications, and resources.
Idea: Educators (particularly K-12) are not fully aware of the User Group model as a forum for staff development and support.
Solution: A panel of K-12 educators was established to speak at key educational conferences around the country. In addition, the User Group Starter Kit was revised, and a new edition of Just Add Water was published, which specifically addresses Education User Groups. These materials contributed to the growth of K-12 User Groups in 1991 and to the vitality and innovation seen among many HE groups.
Idea: Many Community User Groups have educator members who do not recognize their UG as an education resource.
Solution: Community User Groups were contacted directly and articles in UG publications encouraged establishment of Education SIGs (Special Interest Groups). As a result, 20% of Community UGs now have registered Ed SIGs.
Idea: Videos are an excellent means of sharing information to educators, but UG videos seldom focus on education solutions.
Solution: The past year’s videos included several HE and K-12 education-specific segments, helping educators to investigate and adapt solution models.
Idea: Although their content is excellent, Apple’s videodisc-based training and support materials are too expensive and too hardware-intensive for education customers.
Solution: Apple provided free diagnostic disks and printed technical notes to UGs. Then the company offered a specially-priced, CD-drive purchase opportunity and provided much of the same material on CD for easy access. Since campus sites are self-reliant in terms of hardware/software troubleshooting, given access to these resources, members of HE UGs have been able to take a do-it-yourself approach to repair.
An Influential Voice
Education representatives on the Council hail from university technology centers, administration, and K-12 classrooms. They are influential and visionary. They serve from one to three years and are selected to represent the broad spectrum of existing Education User Groups.
At UGAC ‘91 they consulted with Apple leaders such as Apple’s CEO, John Sculley, and the President of Apple USA, Bob Puette. They cultivated a fertile groundwork of new ideas and new directions—one of them is a desire to help the Education User Group community become more aware of the Council’s work and influence, and to get more of you involved in making the action happen.
As one educator put it, “ When I was first invited to UGAC, I wondered how school groups were going to fit in. While many Council members talked about high-level systems, electronic bulletin boards, Ethernet, and twisted paired cables, I was asking about affordable computers and how Apple could help educators bring technology to their curricula. John Sculley asked me if students needed color monitors. He talked about how important it is for Apple to support schools. My initial qualms about an educator fitting in and making a difference among MIS directors and high-end users have since subsided. I’ve seen first-hand that our suggestions are heard.” •
* To learn more about UGAC, see related article in Quick Connect.
HOW TO
Impact Education UGs at Apple
Your Education UG can influence how Apple supports its education customers at all academic levels. Complete the “Your Ideas Are Heard” flyer in this month’s mailing.
FYI: Educator suggestions currently under consideration
• Continue education-specific materials in monthly User Group mailings.
• Expand EducatorsConnect content to include higher ed news.
• Increase Apple(R) User Group presence at education conferences and events.
• Invite more Education User Group representatives to local product roll-outs.
• Expand telecommunication opportunities to the Internet (an inexpensive network already accessed by thousands of UG members in higher ed).
• Help connect Apple AESCs and Education Account Execs with User Groups.
• Recognize and support technology use at kindergarten and pre-K levels.
USER GROUP NEWS AROUND THE NATION
K-12 & Higher Education Telecommunication Primer
by Mary Anne Mather
“Telecommunication is interesting and fun, but does it have practical application in the curriculum?”
It’s a question I posed to a sampling of K-12 and Higher Education User Group Ambassadors. There was, expectedly, no lack of head-scratching and philosophizing, and, refreshingly, no lack of enthusiasm about the possibilities, “If only we had more...”
Without a doubt, the educational practicality of this technology is in its infancy. K-12 schools are still struggling to get dedicated phone lines and modems (modem penetration has increased from 25% in 1988 to 39% in 1991), and colleges and universities, although one step ahead in the world of networking, are still lobbying faculty members beyond their engineering and technology departments for life-on-line as a viable, everyday resource. And, of course, for both, enough faculty and students need the right equipment-access to have it all make sense.
With hours of phone calls and E-mail messages under my belt, and an interesting accumulation of ideas (which have nothing to do with telecommunication) for future stories to share in this publication, I present examples of how telecommunication activities support today’s curricula in schools and on campuses. These are just some of the possibilities—the seeds to grow your own ideas and visions, if only you had more...
K-12
Who am I? What do I want to be when I grow up? How can the world be a better place? What can I do to make it happen? These four questions, a computer, and a modem are the basis of an exciting multi-disciplinary project that gets students chatting globally, improves their writing, and brings a sense of world-community to Jeanne Sink’s elementary students in South Carolina. Using FrEdMail (Free Educational Mail) to access the Internet, students share their answers to these questions internationally. Often 10-15 responses are received daily. Students locate responding sites on a world map, calculate distance from their base site, plan imaginary trips (figuring plane fares, money exchanges, etc.), discuss differences and similarities of world vision, and create HyperCard (R) software stacks about their own world views. The project supports three online areas: KidCafe (for discussion), KidAct (student solutions to world problems), KidPlan (educator area for spin-off ideas and extension opportunities).
Jeanne Sink
Morningside MUG
Morningside Middle School
N. Charleston, SC
There’s an obvious problem when your district has 65 remote rural schools and just a handful of high school honor students at each location. And there’s an obvious solution—distance learning. It’s a little stretch on telecommunication in the strictest sense, but public schools in Washington State have moved distance learning one step beyond. Districts receive broadcasts of interactive courses in advanced-placement English, math, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish. Activities include student-to-student communication and access to related information from online databases. In addition, the downlink operation is able to split signals and send some to a Macintosh (R) computer that displays follow-up worksheets and assignments. Completed assignments are scanned into the Macintosh and returned to the instructor for correction. And these kids thought there wouldn’t be any homework!
Chris Tschirgi
Educational Technology UG
District 112
Vancouver, WA
One K-12 group uses America Online to participate in ScrapBookUSA, a writing project that links students, grades two through high school. Participating classes join a scheduled scrapbook exchange segment. Traditional scrapbooks are filled with memories, souvenirs, and special moments. In the same way, electronic scrapbook pieces are “verbal postcards” vividly describing people, places, objects, and traditions uploaded to an online scrapbook library. Some classes write all of their “scraps” on a common theme, while others send a grab-bag of poems and essays. At many participating locations, a scheduled Hello Day includes a kick-off celebration during which students meet each other live, online. A hard-copy curriculum toolkit is available for educators.
ScrapBookUSA, AOL: AFC Tooter
Another telecommunication project in Louisiana, called Kid Link, is a User Group in itself. Kid Link incorporates inquiry in all subject areas with cooperative learning. Each participating class (there are 40, grades 3-6 and one special needs group, ages 14-22) is paired with a telepartner. Each class is divided into four cooperative groups that brainstorm for five minutes daily to formulate a challenge question in an assigned subject (math, social studies, language arts, or science) for each telepartner. When they upload the day’s question, they download a challenge question from the telepartner. Answers are researched and posted. The educators in this User Group communicate on line and get together regionally. They also hold an annual conference in May for both students and educators to attend sessions and meet the faces behind the E-mail.
Kid Link, AOL: LuLing1
Higher Education
Perhaps you could say that one step back from curriculum development and support is staff development and research, and those are ways telecommunication is being used at SUNY School of Environmental Science and Forestry and in the Psychology Department at Boston College.
SUNY ESF runs brown-bag seminars where faculty and student teaching assistants attend lunch time, staff development presentations. Follow-up discussion, questions, and professional advice are relayed by posting messages online. In addition, the school developed a three-hour teleconference on Wetlands Assessment and Mitigation as a training program for engineers and biologists. The program featured live panel discussions, video roll-ins, stills, and computer-generated graphics broadcast to 10 designated sites.
At Boston College, telecommunication regularly supports research efforts. Graduate students access and collect project-research data through the Internet. Jilda Morelli, a psychology professor, is currently collaborating with three colleagues, two in Utah and one in Colorado on a paper entitled, Cultural Variations in Infants’ Sleeping Arrangements: Questions of Independence. Students will reap the benefits of the work when the completed piece is used to teach a course offered through the Psychology Department at BC.
Charles Spuches,Coordinator of Instruct. Dev.
SUNY-ESF Mac UG
SUNY-Environmental Sci. & Forestry
Syracuse, NY
Jilda Morelli, Professor of Psychology
Boston College Microcomputer UG
Boston College
Boston, MA
At Columbia, telecommunication uses seem typical of many campuses. The university’s libraries are completely computerized and support online information searches of their collections. And for Computer Science and Engineering students, the population most likely to own equipment and be telecommunication-savvy, E-mail messages about class assignments and schedules are a regular affair. Each phone on campus is equipped with a data line activated for a small monthly charge, which allows computer access to an array of campus online services and the Internet without a modem. Next-phase plans at Columbia include online course registration from these data lines and from touch-screen kiosk locations around campus.
Adam Peller, Undergraduate Student
Columbia University MUG
Columbia University
New York, NY
At Harvey Mudd College, rated in 1991 by U.S. News and World Report as the #1 Science and Engineering College in the United States, an Experimental Calculus course teaches students not only calculus, but also how to use Mathematica Software, computers, and telecommunication. The course combines traditional lectures with online lab and homework. Students access Mathematica from the campus computer lab or home locations via Apple’s Remote Access software running under System 7.0, which provides a virtually transparent interface to all the software on the college’s server. Homework is submitted and returned electronically. It’s the method, not the math that’s experimental at the college, which hopes to use a similar course-delivery format in future math courses and the humanities. By the way, a special homework directory on the server insures that no one “peeks” at another’s work.
Jonathan Knowles, Dir. of Microcomputing
CHOMP UG
Harvey Mudd College
Claremont, CA
On a Personal Note
So, “Does telecommunication have a practical application in the curriculum?” Let me share a thought and story.
Students can be critical when it comes to their notions about things, based on the way they look, sound, or taste. I know; I have a high-school age son. (Perhaps that premise is true for all of us?) What an opportunity for telecommunication to work its magic!
News and weather, quizzes and brainteasers, research for school projects, long discussions, fantasy sports leagues, instant communication...these are the things that marry my son and modem to one another on a daily basis. Once, when he was 13, he disconnected from the on-line service and said, “The forum leader won’t be around on Friday night. He asked me to fill in.” “Does he know you’re a kid?” I inquired. The reply, “I don’t think so.”
I reflect on this anecdote when I ask myself, “Does telecommunication have a practical application in the curriculum?” It reminds me that telecommunication breaks down barriers—geographic barriers, of course, but also stereotypes about age, race, and appearance. It let’s kids (and all of us) get beyond ourselves and clears our minds for thinking. It’s a grand equalizer, just you and a computer collecting and sharing a world of ideas and information. I dream about what all schools and campuses can accomplish. They might wish for...more phone lines, more modems, more money, or more training, but what they have, right now, is YOU to get them inspired. •
Mary Anne Mather oversees editorial development for news and publications of Apple’s Education User Groups. This is second in a three-part series on telecommunication. Upcoming: All About AppleLink.
EXTRA-EXTRA
Apple II Telecom Freebee
“How to Send Electronic Mail and Files Free, or Almost Free, to a Million Closest Friends” is the title of a telecommunication seminar where UG member, Phil Shapiro, distributes a 5 1/4” Apple II computer disk, About GEnie and the ProLine Apple II Bulletin Board. Flip side of the disk features a public domain communications program that even runs on an Apple II+ computer. You can receive a copy of the disk by sending four first-class stamps to: Phil Shapiro, Balloon Software, 5201 Chevy Chase Pkwy. NW, Washington, DC 20015-1747. •
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
Technology events and on-line activities of special interest to user group members.
Jan. 14
America Online forum**
“Are Schools Changing/Can They Really Change?”
Jan. 15-17
SEAM (Scientific & Engineering Applications for the Mac)
San Francisco, CA
508/755-5242
Jan. 16-18
Technology & Reading/Learning Difficulties Conf.
San Francisco, CA
800/255-2218
Jan. 21
America Online forum**
“Special Students and Computers”
Jan. 22
America Online forum*
“Role of Telecommunication in Ed.”
Jan 28
America Online forum**
“Piracy: How Legal Are You?”
Jan. 28-31
FETC (Florida Ed. Tech. Conf.)
Tampa, FL
904/487-8854
Jan. 29-Feb. 1
Nat’l. Assoc. for Bilingual Ed.
Albuquerque, NM
202/898-1829
Feb. 18-21
North Cook ESC: Role of Technology
in Education Conf.
Glenview, IL
708/998-5065
Feb. 21-24
AASA (Am. Assoc. of Sch. Admin.)
San Diego, CA
703/875-0748
Mar.11-13
MacAdemia ‘92
Tampa, FL
407/823-5494
Mar.11-13
MACUL
Grand Rapids, MI
616/387-4174
Mar. 16-18
Microcomputers in Ed. Conf.
Tempe, AZ
602/965-7363
Mar. 16-18
EPECC (Eastern PA Ed. Computing Conf.)
Valley Forge, PA
717/755-7353
Mar. 26-29
NSTA (Nat’l. Science Teachers Assoc.)
Boston, MA
202/328-5800
Apr. 1-4
NCTM (Nat’l. Council of Teachers of Math.)
Nashville, TN
703/620-9840
April 4-7
ASCD (Assoc. for Supervision & Curric. Devel.)
New Orleans, LA
703/549-1403
April 11-14
AACJC (Am. Assoc. of Community & Junior Colleges)
Phoenix, AZ
202/728-0200
April 20-23
Nat’l. Catholic Educators Conf.
St. Louis, MO
202/337-6232
April 23-24
NETA (Nebraska Ed. Tech. Assoc.)
Omaha, NE
402/330-1241
April 25-28
NSBA (Nat’l. Sch. Board Assoc.)
Orlando, FL
703/838-6722
May 3-7
IRA (Internat’l. Reading Assoc.)
Orlando, FL
302/731-1600
May 6-8
California CUE (Comp. Using Educators)
Palm Springs, CA
408/492-9197
June 15-17
NECC (Nat’l. Ed. Computing Convention)
TCEA (Texas Computing Educators Assoc.)-in association w/NECC
Dallas, TX
503/346-3537
* Sign on AOL: Teachers’ Forum, Conference Hall 1, 9:30pm EST (keyword:ttalk)
**Sign on AOL: Teachers’ Forum, Conference Hall 2, 9:30pm EST (keyword: ttalk)
For more information write:
America Online
8619 Westwood Center Dr.
Vienna, VA 22182
PLEASE POST
News and opportunities of special interest to Education User Groups and computer-using educators. Please post at your next meeting or make copies and distribute to your members.
Macintoshed Libraries
The Apple Library Users Group (ALUG) has just released Macintoshed Libraries 4.0. The 94-page book and HyperCard stack include fourteen chapters by ALUG members such as, “Of Mice and Macs: Integration of the Macintosh into the Operations & Services of the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Library,” “Macintoshing the Special Library,” and “The Macintoshed Life in a Junior High School Library Setting.” Macintoshed Libraries is available free by sending a self-addressed mailing label to Apple Library Users Group, 10381 Bandley Drive M/S 8C, Cupertino, CA 95014 (indicate book, stack, or both). •
Possibilities Catalog Wants You
The Possibilities Catalog: the Quest for Excellence and Equity in Education is a Whole Earth Catalog-type resource for schools, featuring programs, practices, and ideas. It is scheduled for free or low-cost distribution in the spring. New York State DOE seeks submissions of creative projects initiated by educators in their schools or communities, and student submissions of favorite school activities. Accepted contributors receive free copies. (Apple Upstate New York has loaned equipment and telecommunication support for a portion of the project.)
Educators send ideas to John Maryanopolis, New York State Education Department, Washington Ave. Rm. 675 EBA, Albany, NY 12234. Students send ideas to sixth-eleventh grade students in the Wheatland-Chili public schools near Rochester, NY who are compiling the best single student idea from each state: c/o Angelo Abby, T. J. Connor Elementary School, Beckwith Ave., Scottsville, NY 14546; AppleLink: K1551. • (Deadline for all submissions is February 1, 1992.)
Johnny Appleseed Awards
Using technology for community service can earn your User Group acknowledgement and awards. The Johnny Appleseed Awards Program is sponsored by Computer Users for Social Responsibility, Inc., a non-profit New York State organization that offers grants and awards to User Groups and educators who use computers for public good—helping the aged, homeless, mentally or physically handi- capped, underprivileged, endangered species, or the environment. For more information contact, Don Rittner, 1726 Lenox St., Schenectady, NY 12308; 518/374-1088; AppleLink: UG0194; AOL: AFL DonR. •
Campus Mac Managers Resource
Are you manager of a large or small Macintosh work-group network? Now, there’s a list of people to call when you need advice. The Mac Managers List currently has 30 members and is looking for more to share ideas and knowledge.
For details, send a message via Internet or Bitnet to Mac-Mgrs Request@Vax.ClarkU.Edu. •
Guidance Help
A free CD-ROM copy of MacLife: The College Search Aid is available to high schools. Students use a Macintosh computer to search a database of two- and four-year colleges that meet the criteria they’ve entered, and then electronically “tour” colleges that have provided maps, photos, and more in-depth descriptions. Contact: HeartBeat Software Solutions, P.O. Box 4497, Cerritos, CA 90703-4497; 213/404-7083. •
Apple-TV Schedule
Apple Computer announces the 1992 schedule of its innovative “Imagine” telecast series, focusing on the integration of technology in education. The series is broadcast live via satellite downlink and can be taped for use in libraries, learning resource centers, and faculty inservice programs. Through video roll-ins, demonstrations, and interactive question-and-answer sessions, the programs present an excellent opportunity for educators to learn what their peers are doing with the Macintosh. All programs air from 10-11 a.m. PST, with a test time from 9-10 a.m. PST:
Jan. 23 Innovations in Technology
Feb. 20 Impact of Computers in Teaching & Learning
Mar. 19 Macintosh Solutions for Math & Science
Apr. 16 Tools for Language & Literacy
May 21 Administrative Solutions
Find program descriptions and satellite coordinates on AppleLink (Sales & Marketing/ Education Icon/Education Folder/Apple Education TV Series Folder) or call the Apple Education TV information line, 408/862-1204. •
Send Your News
Include UG name, location, contact name, address, phone.
AppleLink: X0870 AOL: MaryAnneM (Identify E-mail as PleasePost)
M. A. Mather, editor
EducatorsConnect/PleasePost
93 Main St.
Middleboro, MA 02346
FUTURE ISSUES
EducatorsConnect is looking for news about:
• How Education User Groups attract new members & keep their organizations vibrant
• How K-12 and HE support each other through technology resource sharing
Send information immediately to:
Mary Anne Mather
EducatorsConnect Future Issues
93 S. Main St.
Middleboro, MA 02346
AppleLink: X0870
AOL: MaryAnneM
CREDITS AND DISCLAIMERS
(c) 1992 Apple Computer, Inc. Printed in U.S.A. All rights reserved. Apple, the Apple logo, AppleLink, and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. HyperCard is a registered trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. licensed to Claris Corporation. EducatorsConnect, Quick Connect, and the User Group Connection are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc.
EducatorsConnect articles may be reprinted in User Group publications not sold for profit. Credit: EducatorsConnect, Apple User Group Connection. Sed copy of the publication/reprint to:
