Suggestions for a quality ICN learning experience, including teacher strategies and planning for student ICN participation. Video Conferencing is noted in the 21st Century Learning Skills. Students can practice their skills in preparation for their working careers by utilizing the ICN. http://www.ncrel.org/engauge/skills/effcomm.htm The National Educational Technology Standards for Students, NETS is used in schools around the nation. NETS can be a framework for their participation.

ICN Student Quotes

Kurtis Dop, and Katrina Cummings, PCM High School Students reflect upon first time ICN learning experiences. They visited with U.S. Senator Grassley in Washington D.C. via the ICN.

• Kurtis: "A lot of high school students don’t get this experience,(using the ICN), there are 100 senators in the U.S. and we had the opportunity to talk to one, via our ICN classroom."

Asked if they would recommend to other teachers in using the ICN for student learning.

• Katrina: "It's is a great way to do it (visit at a distance), because we talk directly to the guest."
• Kurtis: "It’s like a field trip; we stay here, yet we talk to Senator Grassley in Washington D.C. "We get to ask questions, and understand how it relates to us, since we decide what things to ask rather than just hearing a speech." See the full article

ICN Teachers Share a Vision

Mr. Davis and Mr. Poldberg, High School Social Studies teachers from Prairie City-Monroe schools, (for the above students), are very interested in further ICN sessions, where they might take a virtual tour with students to a museum or civil war battlefield, or talk again with Senators in Washington D.C. More to come, as to whom they might connect to!

Connie Brown, is a 2007 ICN Distance Learning Featured Teacher. Read about what she says are the benefits for her students in participating in ICN learning opportunities.

Iowa Communications Network's News, Facts, and Legislative Information.

Web 2.0 Tools that support ICN and Distance Learning connections before, during, and after the real time ICN session. Learning Online: E-Learning and Educational Technology News and Resources

High School Online Collaborative Writing: Schools Utilizing a Wiki

An Abstract by Peter Duffy, of theThe Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong etpeterd@inet.polyu.edu.hk (Duffy, P. “Engaging the YouTube Google-Eyed Generation: Strategies for Using Web 2.0 in Teaching and Learning.” The Electronic Journal of e-Learning Volume 6 Issue 2, pp 119 - 130, available online at www.ejel.org)