February 13, 2006
By JIM FARRELL, Courant Staff Writer
Jane Callery, a science teacher at
Two Rivers Magnet Middle School in East Hartford, said she is looking
forward to bringing her students to the new science center that
is scheduled to open in Hartford's Adriaen's Landing in two years.
In the meantime, though, Callery said
she is excited that her students will have the chance to use the
Internet to access lessons tied to the actual construction of the
$150 million building.
"I think it's great that the kids
can see science in action in the real world," Callery said
Friday, a day after she demonstrated the science center's inaugural
online lesson to some of her seventh-graders.
The lessons are being developed as
a partnership between the AT&T Foundation and the Connecticut
Center for Science & Exploration.
Representatives of both institutions
were at Two Rivers Thursday, as were a group of politicians and
"America is losing its competitive
advantage over other countries because we are substantially lacking
scientists and engineers," said state Sen. Thomas Gaffey, co-chairman
of the legislature's education committee, in a press release. He
said groups involved in the online initiative are "committed
to being a part of the solution and are helping to bridge the gap."
State Sen. John Fonfara, co-chairman
of the legislature's energy and technology committee, agreed.
"As our world continues to flatten,
it is imperative that technology and education come together in
the classroom if we are to continue to be competitive," he
said in a press release.
Construction of the science center
began almost four months ago and camera crews have been videotaping
much of the work for use with the Web-based lessons.
The video students saw Thursday had
images of backhoes excavating the site interspersed with diagrams
that explain how leverage is needed to move heavy objects.
After watching the video on a classroom
smart board, students were given blocks and wedges for a hands-on
lesson about fulcrum principles.
The students had been learning about
levers for a few days leading up to the demonstration, and the online
dimension was welcome, Callery said.
"I see this as a very important
tool in the teaching profession," she said.
Officials say the lessons are aligned
with state guidelines and thus will help students prepare for the
science exam that will be part of the Connecticut Mastery Test starting
After the center opens, officials say,
the website will be used to offer lessons that will supplement classroom
The site also has a database that is
designed to help teachers develop and share lesson plans, learn
about enrichment opportunities and plan trips to other science organizations
The lessons are part of the AT&T
Learning Connection and are funded by a $500,000 grant from the
The website for Connecticut Center
for Science & Exploration is www.ctcse.org.
Reprinted with permission of the Hartford Courant.
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