Global Education Network Review

Laura Savary

EDTC 645

To: J. Denny, Pine Crest Elementary School Principal

From: Laura Savary, 4th Grade Teacher

Subject: Global Education Networks

The year 2020 has brought about many changes. Changes with how we learn, where we

learn and, potentially, what we learn. As we begin this unprecedented school year completely

online we are presented with the opportunity to expose our students to the world around them in

a new way. We can use this unique learning experience to harness the digital literacy skills of

the students that attend Pine Crest. By weaving together the Common Core Writing Standards

and the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Standards we will be able to

strengthen the global perspectives of our students. We can incorporate a project for each grade

level that will not only help them develop new ideas and ways of thinking but help them

establish the global networking and thinking skills that are so crucial to have.

Global education is more important now than ever. It will help us to, “bridge the cultural

and linguistic divides that exist not only within our country, but also globally” (Bell-Rose et al.,

2007). With our student population at Pine Crest, it will help students connect with the home

culture, develop writing and problem solving skills and create an engaging online learning

environment that will keep them logged into our zoom meetings. By adopting a project we will

provide real life learning opportunities for our students. “Research shows that when students

learn content through authentic tasks and real-world experiences, they are more likely to engage,

which in turn leads to higher attendance and achievement” (ASCD Guest Blogger, 2018). I

believe that by exposing our students to Global Issues, education, and networks we will be

preparing them for the future.

In order for us to do this I am proposing that we look into joining a Global Education

Network to help us connect our students to the world around them. In this memorandum, I will
review three networks that have the potential to aid us in connecting our students to the students

of the world. By adding in the lessons and ideas of one of these networks we will create an

engaging and safe way for our students to contribute to the world.

The first network is called Global SchoolNet. Global SchoolNet is a non-profit

organization that has a number of collaborative projects that work to connect students and

teachers according to the website they, “(1) produces customized interactive, collaborative

content; (2) develops new online tools; (3) provides consulting services and professional

development to schools, universities, businesses and government organizations; and (4) makes

keynote conference presentations that excite, inform and inspire” (Global SchoolNet, 2020).

Global SchoolNet launched in 1984 and currently has 194 educators around the globe

participating. They offer conferences to 7 different counties to build their network and connect

educators. The program that caught my eye is their International CyberFair. This program is a

great way for students to create and publish their work for many around the globe to see. They

conduct research about their community, use technology to publish their project and then have

the opportunity to evaluate other students' projects around the globe. The pros of Global

SchoolNet is that it is truly a student based and led project. Students are able to produce their

own work and can really take ownership. Some of the cons to Global SchoolNet is the time

commitment. The CyberFair Project has many strict deadlines. We would have to wait until the

following school year to participate. All in all, this is a great network. The opportunity of

collaboration is amazing and students would really be able to learn a lot.

The second network is called iEARN. iERAN is another non-profit organization that

“empowers teachers and young people to work together online using the Internet and other new

communications technologies” (iEARN, n.d). iEARN offers many projects for students to
collaborate and connect with more than 2,000,000 students daily. iEARN prides itself on being a

safe way for students to communicate and problem solve. With the huge amounts of projects that

iEARN offers, we would be able to easily tailor it to each grade level and the standards they

focus on. They offer long range projects, ongoing projects and learning circles, a way for classes

to connect and collaborate on work for a short 3-4 month period. iEARN does have a fee for

educators but the organization and ease of the site are worth it. iEARN has a monthly newsletter

for educators so they can stay up-to-date with the projects. They also offer their own

communication platform making it easy and safe to stay in touch with classes and teachers across

the globe. They way that iEARN can easily tie in with many standards, grade levels makes, and

timelines it a great choice for our school and for digital learning.

The third network is

In order to best recommend a Global Network for us to join we need to look at all three

and see how well they can relate to the focus standard that we are implementing for our school

improvement plan. The chose standards are:

 ● Common Core Writing Anchor Standard: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.W.2

Write informative/explanatory texts to examine and convey complex ideas and

information clearly and accurately through the effective selection, organization,

and analysis of content.

● ISTE Standards for Students 7A: Students use digital tools to connect with

learners from a variety of backgrounds and cultures, engaging with them in ways

that broaden mutual understanding and learning.

By choosing these two standards not only are we able to connect the projects across the

three grade levels but we will have concert data to use to evaluate the successfulness of the

pejocets and intended outcomes. The anchor standards for writing ensure that we have a common

writing goal across the school. We can focus on informative writing and reinforce these skills.

The chosen ISTE Standards connects Pine Crest back to the intention of growing our global

education. We will have access to the various tools through distance learning and by diving

deeper into other cultures and schools we will be able to connect our students to the world

around them though learning.

While all three programs have a lot to offer and could benefit our students in many ways

there is a clear order in which they all relate best to Pine Crest. While ___ offers

Global SchoolNet falls right in the middle. Where this program falls short for me is that it does

not offer as many projects. We would need to make a huge commitment to this network for it to

be successful. I could see Global SchoolNet as a really great club. The projects need extra time

and dedication. It is not something that Pine Crest could equally balance with our other curricular

demands and our new online learning model. That is why of these three networks my

recommendation is that we chose a project from iEARN. While all three networks have really
great missions and ideals, I believe that iEARN is the superior learning network. It offers a

variety of projects that could work for all three grade levels in our building. The iEARN projects

will align very well with the two standards above. For example if we chose to use the project

“School Activity Exchange” in fourth grade students would have the opportunity to collaborate

with a school in another county and learn about their daily life. Students would write informative

pieces about their daily school routine, lunch and recess and content. They would collaborate

with students of another county and be able to Zoom, use a shared FlipGrid, or email back and

forth to teach eotherother, kid to kid. Not only is this a great project that can open doors to

understanding and equity in learning but our students at Pine Crest will be able to become

empathetic to the world around them, share their unique views with students of the world and

each other within their own class.

Not only is iEARN the best choice for the students of Pine Crest, it is also the best choice

for our staff. iEARN is a huge network. They have many participating schools around the

country and globe. They offer professional development that , “...share a common goal of

supporting educators and students to use technology to enable collaborative project work” ().

iEARN offered the option for teachers to start small before they take the deep dive into a full

global project. I believe that this is a great way for us to support our educators as they work to

bring our students into the 21st century.

By joining a Global Education Network and investing time in a project we will be able to

open doors for our students. We will aid them in developing global perspectives that will help

them in college and career. These programs will help us keep our students engaged online and

teach them the 21st century skills they need to collaborate with others around the world.
 References

ASCG Guest Blogger. (2018, March). Why Global Education matters. ASCD INservice.

Retrieved from https://inservice.ascd.org/why-global-education-matters/#:~:text=Global

%20education%20helps%20develop%20self,individuals%20and%20groups%20through

%20effective
Bell-Rose, S., Knell, G., & Van Krey, M. (2007, February 8). Three expert perspectives: The

importance of international education. Edutopia. Retrieved from

https://www.edutopia.org/perspectives-international-education

Global SchoolNet. (2020). About us. Retrieved from http://www.globalschoolnet.org/index.cfm?

section=AboutUs

iEARN. (n.d.) About. International Education and Resource Network. Retrieved from

http://www.iearn.org/about

CCSS

ISTE
In EDTC 640, when I conducted my research to develop my DTTP I included a question about
the ISTE Standards. This program has opened my eyes to them and how impactful they can be
for teachers and students alike. In my question I asked if teachers knew what they were and used
them. The answer was overwhelmingly no. My district prides itself on being one of the best. I
think that it is really interesting how much we do not utilize and teach 21st century and tech lit
skills. With the amount we use technology I do not think it is valued as an academic skill. I think
that as we do this online distace learning we need to reevaulate what standards we use.

I also spoke about how the Italian project is a great example of to incomepate global learning. I
wish I had more time in my classroom for long-range projects. Like you said, I also struggle to
fit them in with the demands of the curriclum.