iEARN in Action, February 23, 2006

"If there was ever a time when using all of our razzle dazzle " communication" technologies to communicate ....not in the technical sense but in the human sense....it is now. And it is hard to think of any organization which has done more to help us cross geographic, language, and ideological boundaries than iEARN."

- Dr. James Bosco, Department of Educational Studies, Western Michigan University, USA

REGISTER NOW FOR THE 2006 iEARN ANNUAL WORLD CONFERENCE AND YOUTH SUMMIT IN ENSCHEDE, NETHERLANDS, JULY 3-7, 2006! Every year one of the countries active in iEARN hosts the annual World Conference and Youth summit as a meeting place for teachers and students in Primary and Secondary Education, NGO and corporate partners, field experts and governmental representatives. The conference is open to anyone who is interested in collaborative online project work! For more information, contact: info@iearn2006.nl. The main sponsor for the 2006 conference is the Dutch Ministry of Education via the national portal Kennisnet, a strategic alliance that allows you to connect to 100's of Dutch educators during the conference. The conference motto is "A learning World"... welcome to Holland! For Youth Summit information see http://www.iearn2006.nl/. To register, click here.

REMINDER -- iEARN EXECUTIVE COUNCIL EMAIL ADDRESS IS ec@iearn.org. For several years the email address
iearn-international@iearn.org.au has been used as a contact address for the iEARN Secretariat and then the Executive Council. Some months ago a new email address, ec@iearn.org was created. As the ec@iearn.org address is now well-known, we are closing the iearn-international@iearn.org.au address. If iearn-international@iearn.org.au is used on your iEARN web site or any documents, please replace it with ec@iearn.org. iEARN's International Executive Council is elected every two years, and is currently comprised of Bob Carter, Australia, Daniel Kakinda, Uganda, and Cheryl Morgan, UK.

Join Us! iEARN Projects, Seeking Contacts, Contributions and Collaborators

**Download the 2005-2006 iEARN Project Book:
http://www.iearn.org/projects/projectbook.html, (available in Arabic, English, French, and Japanese)or for a full listing of iEARN projects, see: http://www.iearn.org/projects/

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HIV+ TESTIMONIES EXCHANGE. Interested in being part of a new initiative to exchange and share information about HIV/AIDS? By working with and learning from people who are fighting against the disease day by day students will have a better understanding of the impact of HIV and AIDS in the world. Contact Oscar David Kirstein in Ghana and Tommie Hamaluba in Botswana or see here.

NEW MY SCHOOL YOUR SCHOOL FORUM. Join with primary and secondary school classrooms from Albania, Lebanon, India, and the USA in an exchange about the similarities and differences of school communities
worldwide. See here for more about My School Your School project started by Silvana Carnicero in Argentina, the project also hosts a Spanish Language Discussion.

NEW EUROPE PROJECT. Public Art is a project to construct a photographic gallery with images brought by pupil groups between 10 and 18 years old from European countries. Inscriptions are available here.

STUDENTS WORLDWIDE CREATE COMFORT QUILTS AND DOLLS. Join them in the Comfort Quilts Project. Among the participants in the project, see a photo of students in Wales with their Comfort Dolls -- http://iearnuk.blogspot.com/. The students will be sharing their experience at the Wales Youth Conference on Global Stewardship on 22 March 2006 in Swansea.

U.S. HIGH SCHOOL HISTORY TEACHER SEEKING PARTNER IN MIDDLE EAST. "My name is Paula Frohman and I teach at Evanston High School and I am teaching a Middle East class. I am looking for a teacher in any Middle East country that would be interested in having online discussion with my students on culture, family, history and politics. Please feel free to e-mail me."

JOIN A DISCUSSION ABOUT THE REAL COST OF "OUR STUFF." Students in schools across the globe trace an everyday object from cradle to grave, or, in other words, they research the ecological and human footprint of their everyday objects. Contact Michel Eubank Spruance in the USA. For more information see here or join the online discussion here.

SWEET WHISPER PROJECT IS HOLDING A WRITING COMPETITION. Deadline -- end of February 2006. You can write an essay of maximum 500 words and post it here. The topics for the competitions are as follows: 1) SERIOUS: A pessimist sees a difficulty in every opportunity but an optimist sees an opportunity in every difficulty. 2) HUMOROUS: I didn't fail. I just ran out of time.

IPPA (iPeace Painting Award) SECOND PAINTING AWARD WILL BE HELD IN JULY 2006 IN THE NETHERLANDS. MAMAE Group from Iran, the facilitator of the project has received paintings from many countries. For more information on how to participate see http://ict-club.schoolnet.ir/lovevoice/.

JOIN THE TEDDY BEAR PROJECT! Maria Anahi Ramos in Argentina, co-facilitator of the project, writes that currently, "many US teachers are very active in this project and are anxious to let their students know other countries. You are welcome to form part of the Teddy Bear Project!!!!" Learn more and login to the forum to register here.

Check it out! Resources, Contests, Web Sites, Announcements (This includes resources that are not part of iEARN)

iEARN FEATURED IN EDUCATION WEEK, FEBRUARY 8, 2006. "Network Sponsors Worldwide Sharing of Curricula." To view articles, register for a free account that allows viewing of 2 articles a week.

NEWS FROM iEARN-TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO (iEARNTnT). Natural Disasters Youth Summit Ambassador, Abraham Fergusson, has been invited along with another student from his school, Rachel Mayers, to the "Children Water and Education at the IV World Water Forum" in Mexico City, March 16 -22, 2006. This event is a component of the IV World Water Forum, and will gather children ages 11 to 15 from the Americas, Europe, Africa, Middle East and Asis-Pacific to present their local action in water environment and sanitation. Additionally, iEARNTnT was named by the International Coordinating Committee for Global Youth Service Day 2006 as the National Lead Agency in Trinidad and Tobago for Global Youth Service Day 2006! The seventh annual GYSD will be celebrated by over 100 countries around the world. For more about iEARNTnT, see http://www.iearntandt.interconnection.org/

iEARN VOICES PROJECT SUPPORTED BY COUNCIL OF 100 (C-100) LEADERS ON WEST-ISLAMIC WORLD DIALOGUE.  iEARN VOICES project is selected as a third highest priority project by the C-100 for funding. Amongst the two-dozen project submitted to the C-100, only eight were endorsed through a selective voting process and subsequent discussions held in Davos at the C-100 annual meeting in Januray 2006.  The Council of 100 Leaders on West-Islamic World Dialogue is a major initiative of the World Economic Forum. The C-100 is a community that promotes understanding and cooperation between Western countries and countries with predominantly Muslim populations.  C-100 core group members include key leaders from both the ?West? and the ?Islamic World? who are leaders in business, religion, academia, the media, as well as leading public figures. See http://www.weforum.org/c100.

ONLINE SCHOOL FOR DISABLED STUDENTS TO BE LAUNCHED BY iEARN-UZBEKISTAN. A unique school which offers students with disabilities to attend high school online. Using computers with Internet access, students will be able to learn online, communicate online, share online and collaborate online.  The school will open on September 2nd, 2006 for 100 students from Uzbekistan. During the first year of education we will supply 100 students with computers and connect them to Internet. The educational curriculum will consist of 20 subject based on the national standards which will be taught to students online by teachers with experience in teaching and use of ICT. The project is administrated by iEARN Uzbekistan Center in collaboration with National Youth Movement ?Kamolot? and Ministry of Education of Uzbekistan. The website is under construction. A fundraising campaign is underway at http://www.school.iearn.uz. For more about iEARN-Uzbekistan, see http://www.iearn.uz/.

OUR WORLD YOUTH SURVEY. Seeking youth opinions about issues of cultural and social identity, challenges affecting our planet, and the degree to which they feel connected to people from other countries. Your students can Participate in the survey (Feb 1 ? March 6): 1) on the www at http://surveys.ourworldgce.net.  The survey is currently available in English, Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, French, Russian, Spanish and (soon) Swahili). 2) via e-mail. Send an email message to ourworld@us.iearn.org and the survey will be sent directly back to you/them. They can then complete and return the survey through email to: ourworldsurvey@gmail.com.

Coming Soon! Upcoming Events and Projects!

iEARN-NEPAL AT NELTA CONFERENCE, FEBRUARY 22-24, KATHMANDU. iEARN Nepal works closely with many educational organisations, including NELTA (Nepal English Language Teachers' Association). NELTA is conducting its 11th International Conference, with workshops focused on better teaching and learning, with experienced professionals from Japan, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, UK and Cyprus. Binita Parajuli, iEARN Nepal Country Coordinator, shares that iEARN Nepal will be introducing iEARN -- integrating ICT into the classroom and sharing how youth are ewpowered with the use of connectivity. Welcome participants in the Teachers Forum.

iEARN BEGINNER WORKSHOP IN THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (UAE), FEBRUARY 24-26. First, iEARN will be introduced to a group of educators through a beginners workshop handled by Dalia Khalil, Country Coordinator for Egypt, and Mrs. Nahed Lotfy, iEARN educataor and trainer. The training will be followed by a TOT program to develop a strong infrastructure of qualified trainers to serve the entire region. In addition, an internet learning center will be installed in a school in Fujirah for students to be able to communicate with the wider environment of iEARN in different parts of the world. The program is sponsored by the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI). Welcome them in the Teachers Forum.

UPCOMING YOUTHCAN EVENTS ---

iEARN-IRAN TO COOPERATE WITH FARZANEGAN ZEYNAB EDUCATIONAL CENTER TO HOLD YOUTHCAN EVENT IN REY, IRAN, MARCH 14, 2006. Students and teachers worldwide who are interested in environmental issues are invited to attend the the conference and to contribute to its sessions and workshops. Contact YouthCaNir@gmail.com or see here.

MIAMI, FLORIDA, USA YOUTHCAN CONFERENCE, APRIL 4, 2006. Coordinated by Miami Country Day School. For more information see here.

YOUTHCAN ENVIRONMENTAL CONFERENCE AT THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, NEW YOKR CITY, USA, APRIL 10, 2006. One of the most exciting parts of the YouthCaN project are the student workshops in New York City and other sites on April 10th. The event is a great opportunity to see what others are doing in environmental projects, and to share your projects and activities. It is a chance for your students to develop their presentation skills. Do you know of a group of students who would like to present their projects as either workshops or display tables? For more information and a workshop presentation/registration form, send a blank e-mail message to: youthcan-info@us.iearn.org. Most workshops are in person, but also can be through technology. For more about YouthCaN, see http://www.youthcanworld.org/.
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MEGACONFERENCE, JR. 2006 - MAY 18 . An Event For and By students of the World http://megaconferencejr.org/. See streaming from previous years here.

eLearning AFRICA CONFERENCE, MAY 24-26, 2006, ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA. Join in the first international conference on ICT for development, education and training to be held in Addis Ababa from May 24 - 26, 2006 (more information available here). Girma Mitiku, iEARN-Ethiopia Coordinator and Conference Advisory Committee member (http://www.elearning-africa.com/partner_advisory.php) writes, "All iEARNers are supposed to participate, especially the African iEARNers!"

KNOWLEDGE FOR GLOBAL CLASSROOMS 2006 INTERNATIONAL SUMMER INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN, USA, JUNE 18-23. Theme: People, Places, and Patterns: Teaching World Geographies & Cultures. Organized jointly by the area studies centers, other international studies programs at the University of Illinois, this intensive institute will address the contemporary issues and concerns, including: societies-environments, rural and urban change, and geographies of social, economic, and political life. Case studies covered and presentations include Africa, East Asia, Latin America, EU, Eastern Europe & Russia, Middle East & South Asia. While all K-12 teachers are welcome, the curriculum materials are geared mainly towards high school and to middle school education. The workshop is aimed at social studies/social science teachers, particularly those teaching human geography, sociology, and world cultures. Visit: http://www.afrst.uiuc.edu/ISI2006.html or contact: Jamie McGowan.

REGISTER NOW FOR THE 2006 iEARN ANNUAL WORLD CONFERENCE AND YOUTH SUMMIT IN ENSCHEDE, NETHERLANDS, JULY 3-7, 2006. See top of News Flash for more detail.

FIRST INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE ROLE OF ICT IN BRIDGE BUILDING AND SOCIAL INCLUSION CONFERENCE. Northern Ireland, September 10-16, 2006. If you are involved in a project linking students together through ICT and want to hear about the latest developments in video-conferencing, the use of 'moodle' to create joint web sites, or the experiences of those in Ireland and elsewhere who are using ICT to build bridges, we'd like to hear from you. If you are an academic interested in the theoretical models behind such work or a policy maker for ICT at national or international level this conference will be an important event. For further details click here.

AUSTRALIAN COMPUTERS IN EDUCATION CONFERENCE (ACEC), OCTOBER 24, 2006. iEARN Australia and the Asia Education Foundation are conference partners in the Australian Computers in Education Conference (ACEC) which will be held in Cairns, Far North Queensland between October 2-4, 2006. iEARN Australia has been allocated 6 workshops during the conference as well as a pre-conference iEARN training session. In addition there will be a key-note speaker via video-conference being organized by iEARN Taiwan. The conference organizers have provided a reduced registration fee for iEARN members. iEARN members have the opportunity to do a workshop or presentation as part of the iEARN stream or to submit a paper for refereeing through the conference web site. If any iEARN members are interested in attending or presenting at this conference in Australia could you please email iEARN Australia iearnoz@iearn.org.au For further details about the conference and registration go to http://www.acec2006.info

Recent Events!

iEARN-LITHUANIA HOLDS NATIONAL CONFERENCE, FEBRUARY 22. The conference, under the title "Projects build bridges for friendship and cooperation" was held in Radviliskis, for a target group of kindergarten and primary school teachers working towards two directions ? national and international projects. The conference was honoured by guests from the neighbouring Belarus, the students and teachers, partners in the Teddy Bear project. Prior to the conference, Vida Povilaitienë, the main organizer of the conference and member of iEARN Lithuania council said, "Let's share what we have got with others. While sharing you will take away a part of yourself, however, what remains will be growing and multiplying. At the same time you will be inviting others to live in creative surroundings. By helping others you will be helping yourself as well. Hand in hand we will move the chain reaction of free will and positive thinking." 17 projects were presented, and each participant got a newly published iEARN project outcome ? a book called "Letters to Motherland."

WELCOME TO E-LEARNING SPECIALISTS FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION IN THE NORTH-WEST PROVINCE OF SOUTH AFRICA! Meet them in the Teachers Forum, where long-time iEARNer Philemon Kotsokoane introduced them on February 14, 2006.

For Reference!