Education
http://www.ueet.nasa.gov/engines101.php
NASA's Ultra-Efficient Engine Technology program offers this website with links to online resources that provide basic information about the science of aeronautics and about jet engines. The various resource websites are organized by topic and address questions students might have about aeronautics as a discipline in general, the basic principles of aeronautics, how engines work, the different types of engines, current technologies used for designing engines, careers in engineering, and the history of engine development. The site also provides links to various test facilities and tutorials on a range of topics, such as wind tunnels, materials and structures, and emission reduction. [VF]
http://www.edweek.org/ew/toc/2005/05/05/index.html
Ed Week (see also Scout Report from September 13, 1996) publishes the annual Technology Counts report, now on its eighth edition, which reports on the status of technology and education. This years' report "tracks the economic and policy forces that are converging to push changes at the federal, state, and local levels." The article reports that the previous focus on funding instructional technologies, such as personal computers and learning software, is being superseded by a growing emphasis on data-management technologies. They trace this need for online student-data systems to "the expansive reporting requirements and ambitious student-achievement goals set forth in the federal No Child Left Behind Act." The article discusses these shifts and offers links to Web resources relating to data management technologies, student achievement reporting requirements, and more. Note that visitors must complete a simple and free registration form to view the articles in Ed Week. [VF]
Web Interface for Statistics Education (WISE) is a project out of the School of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences at Claremont Graduate University, which "aims to develop an on-line teaching tool to take advantage of the unique hypertextual and presentational benefits of the World Wide Web (WWW)." The tool is intended to serve as a supplement to traditional teaching materials and to assist teachers in addressing specific topics. The online tutorials, which students can use to learn and review concepts at their own pace, address topics such as Sampling Distributions of the Mean, Central Limit Theorem and Hypothesis Testing. Other sections of the website provide links to numerous other online resources for learning statistics. The Glossary section offers links to online glossaries, although not all the links were working at the time of this report.
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http://www.nbm.org/Education/Educator/guides.html
National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., has developed Educator Resource Packets, which it makes available for download free of charge from this website. The three packets available at the time of this report were: Patterns that Thump, Bump, and Jump; City by Design; and Bridge Basics. The first packet is intended for students in pre-kindergarten through second grade and aims to increase students' awareness of patterns, their ability to predict patterns, and understanding of ways "to examine and interpret patterns that are found in the built environment." The City by Design packet is intended for kindergarten through sixth-grade students and aims to increase students' awareness of the communities in which they live, promote an understanding for how people's use of land and buildings affects the environment, and to explore the implications of various transportation options. Finally, the packet on Bridge Basics provides instructional ideas for teaching students in grades four through eight about bridge construction and the environmental impact of bridges. Each packet offers a review of key concepts, suggests a few activities and offers some resources for further exploration, along with information on visiting the National Building Museum. Hard copies of the packets are available upon request. [VF]
Aerospaceweb.org is a non-profit organization operated by engineers and scientists in the aerospace field who volunteer their time and services to create this website that provides "educational information on a variety of subjects ranging from aviation to space travel to weaponry." Visitors to the website can learn about a variety of topics, such as aerodynamics, propulsion systems, vehicle design, engineering career information, and aerospace history. The Aircraft Museum section offers an extensive online collection of photos and background information on the most well-known aircraft of the jet age, with future plans to include the aircraft of the piston age (from the Wright brothers through World War II). The Aerospace Design section offers several articles discussing issues related to the development of aerospace technologies. Visitors can also submit a question to the staff of "rocket scientists," who then choose a question or two to be answered and posted on the website. Previously answered questions are posted in the archive, which is organized by subtopic. The online calculators are free to use for computing aerodynamic and atmospheric properties, while the Shop section offers various products for purchase. [VF]
http://www.teacherlaptop.org/teacherregistration.html
The Teacher Laptop Foundation believes that "every teacher should own an up-to-date computer." The mission of this nonprofit organization is to make it possible for individuals and businesses to make tax-deductible contributions which help teachers purchase their own computer technology. The website includes information on how to donate and a form to create flyers to post at your local school or community. To demonstrate support for its mission, the Foundation also posts testimonials from stakeholders in education and stories from teachers, as well as summaries of research studies, which address the question, "Why provide all teachers with their own laptop computers?" [VF]
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/archives/math.shtml
Education World (See also February 22, 2002 Scout Report) offers a wealth of instructional resources for teachers. This section of the website is devoted to mathematics resources, primarily articles and lesson ideas. Each lesson idea lists the appropriate grade levels for the activity, the Standards and instructional goals addressed through the activity, supplies needed, key words to learn, and assessment strategies. The articles address various topics in teacher professional development and school administration. Education World also invites educators to submit their original lesson plans for selection and inclusion in this collection using a simple online form. [VF]
Ecybermission is a Web-based regional and national competition intended to engage students in grades six through nine in math, science, and technology explorations. The teams propose a solution to a real problem in their communities and compete for awards (such as US savings bonds). The website provides information on how to register as well as volunteer options such as judging, acting as a CyberGuide providing online coaching and assistance to teams, or becoming an ambassador, spreading the word about the program. The site also features the project that won last year's competition, a two-digit key code system that can be used to improve speed at which 911 calls can be handled. Registration for the next competition has not yet opened, but last year's registration ran from September 1 through December 13. The program is sponsored by the Department of Army and the final judging event is held in Washington, D.C. [VF]
