Testimonials

CyberSmart! Knowledgebase are loaded with material—direct, short, and to the point. They provide easy-to-understand reasons for implementing technology in the district classroom in order for students to learn 21st Century skills through authentic learning.

George Lieux, District Student Assistance Technology Academy Specialist, Fort Smith Public Schools, Arkansas

This CyberSmart! workshop is relevant for all teachers because they can tailor the assignments to match their specific discipline. As a result, they will be better equipped with 21st century tools and skills to make learning fun, thought provoking, and relevant for their students.

Diane Heath, Principal of Woodington Middle School,
Kinston, NC

I loved the use of online surveys, discussions and the "online community of learners" approach to this workshop. The CyberSmart! Knowledgebase of kept me engaged for hours, literally. It was great to listen to experts as they shared their perspectives on 21st Century learning.

Kirstin Riddick, Resource Teacher Coordinator, Newark Public Schools, Newark, NJ

The online digital tools [integrated in the workshop] influenced the way I'll engage my students the most. In fact, I used an online survey as part of one of the assignments during this workshop! And now that I know how easy it was, I look forward to showing my teachers about the blogs and surveys to use with their own students.

Kelley Fahey, Technology Specialist, New Providence School District, New Providence, NJ

NSBA's Techology Leadership Network is pleased to work with CyberSmart! as a provider of online professional development in 21st century skills to NSBA's TLN member districts.

These workshops are for all kinds of educators, it doesn't matter what you teach. The skills I learned will be with me for life.

Meg Swecker, Instructional Technology Resource Teacher, Roanoke County Schools, Virginia

This workshop has helped me confirm what I have suspected all along. We have many teaching tools and resources available to us that are being left dormant due to our own reservations and reluctances ... to incorporate them in our classrooms. It has been an awakening for me...

Lee Anne Hardy, Asst. Principal of Woodington Middle School, Kinston, NC

While working with my geometry students I would think back to some of the strategies I was exposed to in the CyberSmart! workshop ... This is what is so great in working in a collaborative environment...

Jessica Nelson, HS math teacher, Forsyth County, Georgia

Looking back at the past month I have learned a great deal not only about myself as a teacher but how I can use the cyberworld to create better lessons...The fact that the workshop took place over an extended period of time gave me time to reflect on the week and consider my answers and projects. There is no other way to teach a class on 21st century learning and teaching than on-line. It gives us the tools to use and shows us the methods immediately. We are learning as we are doing.

Carolyn Stefanou, Special Education Teacher Grades 6-8 Social Studies, Elmwood Park, New Jersey School District

I understand better how online learning can be integrated with regular classroom learning to provide more resources and a broader learning venue...

Susan Tussing, Principal, Lyndeborough Central School,
New Hampshire

I didn't realize how isolated I was professionally until I experienced an online workshop where I interacted within extended 'conversations' that sometimes took unexpected turns but always remained lively and interesting.

Diane Cordell, K-12 School Library Media Secialist,
Fort AnnSchool, New York

After 23 years of teaching ... and such big changes taking place ... thank goodness for this course. Without this collaborative group ... without the interaction ... without the glimpse of connectivity that's out there, I'd be at almost a total loss for what to do. I guess in a nutshell that my awareness is raised considerably, and I at least have an inkling on what path to take. ... For starters, I'm using CyberSmart!'s Curriculum in the classroom ...

I have really enjoyed the conversations and it is encouraging that the conversation[s] are continuing.

I really enjoyed the experience and especially liked that I could participate whenever I wanted to. The watching of the [CyberSmart!] Knowledgebase [of experts] videos in PJ's with a cup of tea was especially liberating.

There were so many valubable aspects of this workshop. The most valuable aspect thought may have been the information that I received about copyright and fair-use.

Cyberbullying has become more of an issue and I really appreciated listening to the experts [in the Knowledgebase]. They were short and to the point.

The most valuable aspect [for me] thought may have been the information that I received about copyright and fair-use.

I was impressed throughout the course by the number of different interpretations our group members had of the information given in the [Knowledgebase] clips.

The beauty of this course is that it is not just for teachers—it's for anyone who wants to learn how to access quality information through an efficient and thorough process. It's a pathway to lifelong learning!

If I didn't have the guidance from the CyberSmarty and the other participants, I probably would have dropped out after the second week. The collaboration aspect was exceptional!!!

This was my first online course experience, and I thought that this was a very valuable, and purposeful professional development. I know for a lot of us this was even more of a positive experience because we are in the same building and could easily continue these interesting conversations that we were engaging in online.

The format of the course was great! Best online course I've ever taken. The videos made a huge difference.

Look out world!!!! Web 2.0 here I come! I've started a wiki!!! Check it out ...

I liked taking this course with others I worked with so that conversation took place beyond the course.

Thank You very much for this experience. This workshop has generated many great discussions not only on this website but also at lunch and in the halls of our school.

The most helpful aspect of the workshop? Stopping my daily grind to think about these issues.

I loved having the CyberSmart! Knowledgbase as a tool during this workshop for the open ended research questions we were given each week.

Loved this experience! The conversation has continued in school.

I learned a LOT of information. I heard from experts that supported my theories on technology education. I was exposed to technology that I hadn't been in the past. Great experiences! I also felt the class was very well organized. I knew what was expected of me, where I'd been, and where I was going.

The collaboration with my peers was wonderful.

I found several things valuable and couldn't choose one: copyright info, plagiarism, invisible web. Overall, I felt this course was well worth my time and I am glad that I participated.I am definitely a more knowledgeable instructional leader because of it.

This was my first online course experience, and I thought that this was a very valuable, and purposeful professional development. I know for a lot of us this was even more of a positive experience because we are in the same building and could easily continue these interesting conversations that we were engaging in online. In terms of professional development, I feel that this course has penetrated through the surface of so many important issues.

Imagine if we [all the educators in our school] met regularly to discuss common attitudes towards cyberbullying and other concerns, and discussed possible preventative, educational approaches to help educate our students about these issues ... Transforming our school culture by first addressing our educators [to] engage in professional dialogue would be a great starting point to address cyberbullying and other issues.

I learned from both the assignments and the interactions with participants. Communicating this way, through written posts, ...I find my ideas come clearer when I write them, and I learn more concretely this way, as well.

Taking part in the online surveys and posting things immediately made the learning much more meaningful, especially when I could instantly see what others wrote. Using any online tools, especially with kids today can be very beneficial. It's their language, it's what they know and are comfortable with. So why not utilize that tool!

Having access to my peers comments and a wealth of expert information at any time I logged on was awesome.

Look out world!!!! Web 2.0 here I come! I've started a wiki!!! Check it out...

23 years of teaching ... and such big changes taking place ... thank goodness for this course. Without this collaborative group ... without the interaction ... without the glimpse of connectivity that's out there, I'd be at almost a total loss for what to do. I guess in a nutshell that my awareness is raised considerably, and I at least have an inkling on what path to take. ... For starters, I'm using CyberSmart!'s Curriculum in the classroom ...

This was my first experience taking a course online, and it was an entirely positive one for me. I felt I had ample time to do my work, and to explore the site. The more I clicked around, the more interesting nooks and crannies I found, sparking my interest and learning process. I think that someone with less experience at the computer may find it just as friendly.

I was very comfortable in this online learning environment. The asynchronous nature of the forums fits in with my lifestyle very well — I can't guarantee I can get to a training site at 4:30 PM every day, but I can guarantee I can login for a few minutes every day at some point before I go to bed.

I really enjoyed the experience and especially liked that I could participate whenever I wanted to. The watching of the [CyberSmart!] Knowledgebase [of experts] videos in PJ's with a cup of tea was especially liberating.

I have been reluctant to sign up for on-line learning because I tend to be very over scheduled, and unless I have something scheduled on my calendar, it often does not get done. My concern has always been that I will sign up for something, and then not complete the requirements because of all my other commitments. I found that putting some time on my calendar each week, along with gentle prompting from our [facilitator], allowed me to not only complete the course, but to actually get something out of it.

I understand how important it is now for students to create questions instead of picking a topic to research. Also, how important it is for a student to have a connection and/or interest with that question. If there is no interest and/or connection, the motivation will not be there in most cases.

I wholeheartedly agree that it is important to train children in cyber ethics at an early age. I also think we should reinforce that training throughout the year. I'm sure it would be easy, for example, to address this in your Art History class by discussing copyright laws concerning copying original images posted on the Internet.

This is an area that we really should be speaking to students about. I guess I'm not as concerned about people watching what I do online as I am concerned about the privacy of information that I input on different Web sites. I need to get a lot better about reading privacy policies and checking cookies on my computer — this should definitely be something that is part of the cybersafety curriculum at any school!

Over-thirty five years of teaching plagiarism has been a major issue for me. It made me reevaluate my teaching not just blame the students. As students become so good in cyberspace the challenges as a teacher became greater, driving me to find ways to encourage not punish, to achieve the proper academic results.

Thanks for sharing the information about Bernie Dodge. ... love the WebQuest idea to create a radio program with a video drama format. That could be the topic for the grade 6 podcasts that we will be doing with the new MacBook lab. It would be a good way to integrate copyright law. The students could send an email to the author/owner of the music or image that they want to use. ... Let's talk on Monday...

This learning experience was very valuable. The CyberSmart! Knowledgebase [of experts] is an incredible resource.

I felt like I was learning, in easy bites, from real experts. Their word-choices never seemed above my comprehension. I appreciated that all video and audio on CyberSmart! is accompanied by transcripts; I found them to be helpful references while I did my assignments.

I loved listening to the experts. They were short and to the point. When you listened to them all you walked away with a deeper understanding of the topics.

There were so many valuable aspects of this workshop. The most valuable aspect though may have been the information that I received about copyright and fair use.

I can remember sitting in several classes over the years with a book, a notepad, a pencil, and a teacher standing at the front of the room writing notes on the board that we had to copy. I can remember how bored I was and now when I look back on it, I can't remember much of what I was taught in those classes. The classes I remember were the ones where we took on our learning, we were actively involved. This workshop has kept me actively involved throughout the entire process and I've enjoyed it.

I understand better how online learning can be integrated with regular classroom learning to provide more resources and a broader learning venue. It is sort of like taking a trip without leaving your classroom.

Even if all the bullying were to take place outside of school, as long as kids are forced to be together during school hours, we have the responsibility of making sure that they feel safe. I don't mean just physically safe, but emotionally safe as well.

Educating the children themselves to make smart choices in their lives seems the best bet to keep them safe, and lead to a rewarding future.

The more educated teachers are about both the technologies available to students and what signs to look for if a student is being bullied by text or over the Internet would help to decrease the number of incidents of cyberbullying.

Hearing what some of my colleagues do in their classes has made me rethink and rework some of my assignments.

I have now come to realize how wrong I was. We accept differing learning styles in our students, why not accept their learning culture is very different from our own?

Thanks for directing me to Dr. Joyce Valenza in the [CyberSmart!] Knowledgebase [of experts] ... I really liked how she mentioned helping kids to understand how these skills really relate to essential life skills. I like to get into the "So what?" question with my students whenever I introduce a skill because as we all know well, student buy-in can start with students wanting to know what relevance the lesson has to "real life." I thought she did a nice job of connecting real life situations to the examination of the validity and purpose of Web sites and information.

The most useful bit of information that I found was the practical idea of being prepared for that "teachable moment" in class when you come upon a [hate] site. Instead of just clicking out of it, [Carol M. Stern-Larosa from the Anti-defamation League] suggested instead letting students see your thinking process in action when you decide that a site is unreliable or hateful. ... This fits in nicely with what I already do with students when they write and research, but I had not thought about "getting into it" with a hate site. The more I think about it, the more I realize that I have missed an opportunity to explore author's purpose, intended audience, and format used to reach their purpose. We do this with our own writing, why not with others?

One of the speakers mentioned not choosing only from the first 2 pages of Yahoo hits, looking for the best possible information. I was thinking of a lesson where the students had to answer some sort of general reference question in Google or Yahoo, but couldn't use the first couple of pages of results. That might be an interesting experiment for me. I'll keep you posted.

Your comment about revamping research projects really hit home with me. Here's something I've been kicking around in my head, tell me what you think? ... I'd like to try not having the students actually write the paper, but rather place the entire emphasis on the research and the works cited page. The Which One, Why, What If questions would work well with this format. Thinking in terms of your careers project, the student would wonder "how much money would I make, do I have to go to college, why I would not want to be a librarian?"

Next year, our librarian and I are going to focus on developing research skills with our students and teachers. [She] has already created a draft outline of what skills would be appropriate to teach at each grade level (6-8). We also want to plan training early in the year for our teachers. Our main focus is to introduce students and teachers to the "Invisible Web" and help them to create good essential and subsidiary questions and keywords.

I taught the Smart Keyword Searching lesson to 8th graders as they were beginning research for a major term paper. ... Students think they understand everything there is to know about online searching. The bottom line is that they are computer literate (can cut, paste, play with graphic files, download, etc.) but they are not information literate. I have watched kids surf endlessly through Google with poor results. Often, they have no idea what to enter as a good search term. I thought this excellent lesson would help them create effective search terms for their major research.

I enjoyed the blog experience. It's a great way to communicate and get feedback regarding topics of interest to you. This on-line [Workshop] experience has felt like a blog because you post your thoughts around a topic — but then you get to put your spin on it. ... I wish students could blog more at school ... Something about the computer and your own space makes some people feel more at ease with responding. Could be a real benefit.

I talked about the Invisible Web yesterday in class when I taught our students about one of our subscription databases. I love the term and I think it communicated to students that you can find information in the databases that are "invisible" when you search ordinary search engines. ... It was nice to put [what] I learned to good use.

Maybe we should not be thinking about [embracing new technologies] as implementing these things separately. Obviously when you are working with science your kids need to know how to read, write and do math. Doesn't it make sense to be learning about the "core" subject areas and integrating of technology synonymously?

I learned a lot about plagiarism prevention and I have been thinking of ways to alter my assignments. Good professional development in the context of what we do and where we are — job-embedded — and that is really productive.

The results of the poll show how conflicted many of us are on placing sole responsibility for online safety onto any one group — whether it's parents, schools, or elsewhere. We all know that students react to information differently depending on where the information is coming from, so perhaps, as many have said, it truly needs to be all-encompassing. Depending on the district and the parental involvement, the people most present when kids are online may be either parents OR school personnel.

Participating in this course reignited my desire to educate the parents, teachers, faculty, staff and students on Internet safety and security.

As educators we have to also bear some of the responsibility for our students online safety. We have to teach them (and their parents) how to use the Internet safely and effectively. We have to work with the parents to ensure the safety of our students. I don't believe that it is solely the responsibility of the parents or solely the responsibility of the educators to teach the children/students how to use the Internet safely. I think that it should be a partnership between parents, teachers, and students — everyone should share the responsibility.

This really is a first try for me on a more formal basis at using specialized databases. It's been a good way to get my feet wet, and I must say they felt pretty soaked right now. Did I gain valuable experience? Yes. Is my head spinning from staring at the monitor for so long? Yep. For me, I think it would be best to have all the educator databases right at my fingertips so I am looking forward to using the [CyberSmart! Educator] Toolbar.

Loved this experience! The conversation has continued in school.

The CyberSmart! [Educator] Toolbar, and the free lesson plans, are great tools to take away from class, as well; the links, as reference and refresher, will aid in communicating what I've learned to coworkers.

I also liked taking this course with others I worked with so that conversation took place beyond the course.

Offer more. Good way to get to talk with colleagues about important issues. Thank you!

• Art teachers
• Business teachers
• Computer instructors
• Computer lab assistants
• English teachers
• Guidance counselors
• History teachers
• Industrial Arts teachers
• K-6 classroom teachers
• Language Arts teachers
• Math teachers
• Principals

• Paraprofessionals
• Reading teachers
• Science teachers
• School librarians
• School library/media specialists
• School nurses
• School principals
• Special education teachers
• Teaching assistants
• Technology coordinators
• Technology resource teachers
• Technology integration specialists