The Nuts and Bolts of College Writing
http://nutsandbolts.washcoll.edu/
Despite the relatively high levels of literacy among the general populace of college students in the United States, many of them have difficulty with writing clearly and effectively. A new writing primer has been developed by Michael Harvey (a professor at Washington College in Maryland), and will be of great help to many students who find themselves grappling with writing college-level assignments and papers. The homepage for the guide contains hypertext links to various sections, including those dealing with style, structure, evidence, and paper mechanics. From the main page, students and educators can access any of the primer's many sections quickly, such as those dealing with the use of the historical present, finding a voice, and nominalizations. All of these sections are complemented by a profuse number of examples that illustrate the different writing tools and potential pitfalls that students may encounter. This online guide is a welcome addition to the Web resources available to students seeking to become more effective and compelling writers. [KMG]
[Back to Contents]

Children of a Lesser State: Sustaining Global Inequality through Citizenship Laws [.pdf]
http://www.jeanmonnetprogram.org/papers/03/030201.pdf
The Jean Monnet Project at New York University's Law School was established in 1990 to promote teaching in European integration, particularly in the fields of law, economics, political science, and history. As part of the Project's mission, they have an extensive archive of working papers dealing with these various topics. Written by Ayelet Schachar, a professor of law at the University of Toronto, this recent 52-page working paper from this series was released in January 2003. Much of this paper is concerned with a critical examination of how differing conceptions of citizenship may perpetuate global inequality across nations. As Professor Schachar notes in her introduction, "Perhaps the most dramatic consequences for children's lifelong prospects follow from the basic determination that any political community must make: defining which children that polity views and protects as its 'own.'" Throughout the remainder of the paper, Professor Schachar offers a broad range of material covering conceptions of citizenship, along with exploring ways in which children become members of their respective political communities. [KMG]
[Back to Contents]

Flags of the World
http://flagspot.net/flags/
Maintained by a staff of editors from around the world, the Flags of the World Web site contains over 18,000 pages of information about flags and over 32,000 images of flags. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the site is the multitude of ways in which users can look for different flags: by country; page title; date of last page update; and most interestingly, topic. Some of these topics include oil companies, pirates, signal flags, weather flags, and flags in movies. Each flag page includes information about the flag's history, the flag's symbology, and in some cases, different incarnations of the nation's flag. For users hoping to learn more about the study of flags (i.e., vexillology), there is a thorough glossary of words commonly used in the field. The site is rounded out by a section that answers frequently asked questions, such as "How do you hang a flag at half mast?" and "Why are these flags similar?" [KMG]
[Back to Contents]

Two Towns of Jasper
http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2002/twotownsofjasper/index.html
The subject of race and race-relations in the United States is one that is at times avoided by many persons, but the documentary Two Towns of Jasper and its well-conceived Web site developed by PBS foster meaningful dialogue about these issues. The documentary deals with the murder of James Byrd (a black man), who was dragged to his death behind a truck driven by three white men in Jasper, Texas. On the Web site, visitors can read about what has happened in Jasper since the events of 1998, including hearing from the family of Mr. Byrd, the ongoing town-hall meetings, and about the convicted murderers. The Web site also allows visitors to listen to a series on "Race in America," hosted by Amy Goodman. Visitors can also ask questions of the documentary filmmakers, Marco Williams and Whitney Dow, along with browsing a fine selection of related Web sites and related classroom resources that will help educators facilitate discussion on race. [KMG]
[Back to Contents]

Center for the Study of Teaching and Policy at the University of Washington
http://www.depts.washington.edu/ctpmail/
The Center for the Study of Teaching and Policy at the University of Washington draws on the scholarly work of four different universities, including Stanford, the University of Michigan, and the University of Pennsylvania. The purpose of their research is "to identify ways that leaders, policymakers, teacher developers, and the reform community can support teachers' work and careers." Researchers will want to look at the ongoing research projects in progress at the Center, which include examinations of the role of unions in the teaching environment and a comparative study on school district investment in the improvement of teaching. Probably the most valuable aspects of the site are the online policy briefs, occasional papers published by the center, and working papers from the past several years. Lastly, visitors have an opportunity to sign up to receive updates on the Center's work via email. [KMG]
[Back to Contents]

Florida Center For Environmental Studies
http://www.ces.fau.edu/
Based at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, the Florida Center for Environmental Studies collects and disseminates research and educational materials related to water-dominated ecosystems, especially the Everglades. Scholars working in the field of ecology will want to read about their current multi-year research projects, which include working to coordinate ecological restoration efforts in South Florida and to alleviate the effects of agriculture on the complex ecosystems in the region. One of the more valuable features on the Web site is a searchable database of over 600 Web sites related to water ecosystems. The database is searchable by organization type, geographic scope, language, and location. The site also contains a list of upcoming academic conferences around the world and those sponsored in conjunction with the work of the Center. Educators and students alike will want to peruse the educational opportunities available for both groups under the Education and Outreach area of the site, many of which offer professional development or academic credit. [KMG]
[Back to Contents]

Digital Library Technology Trends [.pdf]
http://www.sun.com/products-n-solutions/edu/whitepapers/pdf/digital_library_trends.pdf
Published in August 2002, the white paper from Sun Microsystems examines technology trends in digital libraries. It starts with a discussion of the fundamentals of building a digital collection and how practices have evolved in the past few years. The paper notes a few pioneering efforts that were originally intended for the preservation of historical works, and in doing so, underscores the importance of digital library design. By using several different sites as examples, the paper describes how digital libraries are implemented. The document concludes with a look at how future technologies will impact the creation and organization of digital libraries. This site is also reviewed in the January 31, 2003 NSDL MET Report. [CL]
[Back to Contents]

National Railway Museum [Quick Time]
http://www.nrm.org.uk/
The British railway system was one of the first national systems in the world; so, it is not surprising that they also have the largest railroad museum in the world. Offering a number of online exhibits, their site is an excellent resource for anyone, young and old, hoping to learn more about the history of railroads in Britain. For starters, users may want to look at the Frequently Asked Questions section, where the Museum's experts answer a number of queries, such as "How does a steam locomotive work?" and "What is the world's heaviest train?" From there, users will want to take a virtual tour of the Museum by navigating to the Panoramas section, where they will have the ability to look around the Museum's Great Hall, where legendary British locomotives are kept, as well as viewing the interior of the Mallard, the world's fastest steam locomotive. The digital exhibits are located in the Exhibits section, which includes presentations combining short essays and visual materials on nine different themes, including "The History of Railway Photography;" "Railway Posters;" and "North by Northwest," which highlights recent photographic work taken along rail routes in Scotland. [KMG]
[Back to Contents]