The International Students Initiative for Peace
Classroom-to-Classroom Portal

project description

Two classrooms in different parts of the world will be linked via an audio/video internet connection, so that each group will be able to see and hear and interact with the other group.

These classrooms (groups) will be "twinned" in a similar manor that cities and villages around the world are twinned. That is a "relationship" between the two classrooms, more precisely, the students and teachers (and parents and guests?) in those classrooms, will be established and maintained (nurtured, exploited, managed). 

CtCP may share some infrastructure (administration, etc.)  with the network of twinned villages that already exists. 

Cooperative projects between the two classrooms can be initiated. These projects can be anything that the educators think may be appropriate (all ages, all subjects).  These classroom projects may or may not incorporate the technology of the collaborative web site.

In support of these activities, the Classroom-to-Classroom Portal project will be organized to facilitate the management of lesson plans and curricula for use with these portals between twinned classrooms as well as to assist with the physical connections. This organization, for now, consists of three Collaborative groups that will meet via an internet conference regularly (web based video conference eventually).

Curricula Collaboration

Technical Collaboration

Coordination Collaboration

The Curricula Collaboration will further sub-divide into "Experts Groups" made up of teachers and other educators with particular subject and grade interests. It is the Experts Groups that will develop lesson plans and create materials for various grades/ages and various subjects. These Experts Groups may consist of 1, 2 or 100 people. The Curricula Collaboration will manage, monitor and assist the work of the individual Experts Groups. The Curricula Collaboration will maintain an on-line repository of lesson plans. The Curricula Collaboration body, as well as some Experts Groups may sub-divide in other ways not yet foreseen, as the educators feel fit  The "classrooms" while primarily perceived as actual classrooms may be other physical environments like assemblies, clubs, school groups, community groups, et al. They can be anything that the educators feel is appropriate.

Initially, the Classroom-to-Classroom Portal project should focus on pre-university students -  ("Kindergarten-through-12" as it is referred to in the US). Expansion beyond these grades (Pre-kindergarten and post-high-school) may be included at a later date.

Live and recorded audio/video input (all multi-media) can/should be mixed into the "feed" between the two (or more?) classrooms.

The Technical Collaboration will be responsible for resolving technical issues and creating "guidelines" for internet Portal connections. Each participating school (District/Authority) will have at least one of its own technical advisors represented in the Technical Collaboration. With IT technology changing rapidly, the Technical Collaboration group can introduce new features into the Classroom-to-Classroom Portals that the Curricula Collaboration group can then exploit.

The Coordination Collaboration as its name implies will coordinate the CtCP project  - the organization. This body will assist new participants in linking to other schools. The Coordination Collaboration will "meet" on a regular basis and deal with administrative and organizational matters. Meetings should incorporate remote conferencing facilities as soon as possible - building on the same technology being introduced into the CtCP classrooms. At least one representative from the Curricula and Technical Collaboration groups will join this meeting. The Academic Coordinator(s) and country Coordinators will also be represented. Others may be invited to join the conference call as the agenda dictates.

The organization that supports the Classroom-to-Classroom Portal project will try to be 100% web based with appropriate access for teachers as developers, teachers as (collaborative) project leaders in the classroom, students, administrators, other educators, the public (?).

Time zone differences and language differences between classrooms, while presenting logistical challenges for long-distance portal connections, also present opportunities. More visual and less verbal curricula may be appropriate in the younger grades. Perhaps participating in an international portal becomes rewarding enough for pre/post school involvement. These and other issues will be the domain of the Curricula Collaboration.

Mission Statement:

Principles:

> The underlying principle of the Classroom-to-Classroom Portal project is that exposure to and respect for other cultures and others' perspectives is essential for coexistence on our planet. 

> The Classroom-to-Classroom Portal project has an underlining mission to be an instrument of peace.  The CtCP project is also called "Students Initiative for Peace".

> The CtCP project should be non "Anglo-centric."

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©Jerome Garfunkel, 2004, 172 Tinker Street, Woodstock, NY 12498
Tel +1 845 679 0770 Fax +1 845 679 0121
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