November 2003 — Applications

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Videoconferencing Takes Cape Elizabeth Middle School on a Distance Learning Adventure

By Jill K. Bell with Linda C. Unger

In October 2001, a computer technician from our district connected the borrowed TANDBERG 500 videoconferencing unit to a TV monitor in my classroom. He also established a special Internet connection, which included taking down a firewall and making sure I had a static IP address. A time was selected for a test connection, and the distance learning instructor at the Bronx Zoo called into the NYIT gateway using an ISDN high-speed phone line. Back at Cape Elizabeth Middle School, I connected to the gateway at the same time using the Internet. What a moment: seeing and hearing the zoo instructor in my classroom and realizing she was more than 200 miles away. We had finally accomplished my goal of becoming the first school in Maine to make a connection to a content provider in another state.

Excited about the new venture, we invited then-governor Angus King to participate in one of our videoconferences with the Bronx Zoo in December 2001. This publicity, along with the enormous success of our numerous connections with the Bronx Zoo and its delivery of superb programs, helped me obtain grants from the Verizon Foundation, the Cape Elizabeth Education Foundation and our middle school parents' association. All tolled, the grants funded permanent equipment and professional development for a year, installation of high-speed ISDN phone lines in my classroom, and connection fees for four programs from other content providers.

New Goals

This past school year, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins met with Cape Elizabeth Middle School eighth-graders to discuss questions related to their U.S. government studies and to talk about current issues, including the war in Iraq. It was her first videoconference with students, and Collins felt it was such a valuable experience that she has requested to participate in another session this year.

I also worked with the school's French instructor to help students in my homeroom practice their French skills with a class in Slough, England. Both classes had similar proficiency in the language and enjoyed reviewing their skills. They especially liked chatting about the differences and similarities in their respective school systems and cultures. In addition, we have had several connections with other content providers such as The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee and the Mote Marine Laboratory's Aquarium in Florida. This school year we hope that all of our students in grades five through eight will have the chance to experience a videoconference.

Currently, we're shifting our focus to the benefits of interactive communication in our educational programs. We know videoconferencing can be used for a variety of purposes, including formal instruction, access to speakers and experts in many fields, school projects, community events, and professional development opportunities. These are our new goals. What's more, thanks to NYIT, Verizon and the Bronx Zoo, Cape Elizabeth Middle School is becoming a model for distance learning in the entire state of Maine.

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Jill K. Bell with Linda C. Unger, "Videoconferencing Takes Cape Elizabeth Middle School on a Distance Learning Adventure," T.H.E. Journal, 11/1/2003, http://www.thejournal.com/articles/16541

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