From: Alan.Hodson@f90.n381.z1.fidonet.org (Alan Hodson)
Newsgroups: k12.ed.math
Subject: Re: MATHMAGIC
Date: Sat, 15 Aug 92 16:31:27 PST
Organization: FidoNet node 1:381/90 - Stallion K12 Net BB, El Paso TX

Hi Kevin. I am enclosing a file you may find useful.
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Greetings from El Paso.
We welcome your interest in MathMagic, and although 
there is some basic info about the project out over the 
net I will recap:
1) What is MathMagic? 
MM.is an attempt to involve students in the process of 
open-ended word problem-solving by providing a telecom-
munications environment where they can work collabora-
tively within a team that has no geographical boundaries 
(I am not too good at short sentences, sorry).
2) Where are you now in terms of the development of MM?
At this point, we have several schools in the El Paso 
area that are going to be working through a local BBS 
(The Academy). Within it, there are two areas, one ac-
cessible by all registered users (MathMagic Student SIG) 
and one for teachers and coordinators. The sysop (Ken 
Blystone) sets accessibility levels according to our 
criteria. Site Coordinators will fill out the forms, and 
enroll their student teams. We will assign partners on a 
round robin fashion, so each School Group has a Partner 
Group from as many sites as possible.
3) How is it going to work?
Basically, the problems are "posted" on Mondays for a 
two week cycle. The "Reporter" from each group d/loads 
the one for their category and is in charge of sending 
and receiving messages with their Partner Group, cc. to 
local Area Record Keeper. By Friday, two weeks into the 
cycle, after their exchanges, each team posts their 
final submission. (Who begins dialog and who uploads 
agreed-upon solution is part of the team assignment).
4) Who else is involved?
Locally we have a volunteer that is in charge of several 
sites (Area Coordinator) and another that receives 
copies of the e-mail exchanges between the roporters 
(Area Record Keeper). There are other volunteers in 
charge of problem selection and evaluation, and who will 
also be available for clarifications.
5) Where do I get more information on the specifics of 
El Paso?
If you have access to the Internet, you can FTP 
laguna.epcc.edu and "get" the ELPASO.TXT file. It will 
also be available (end of Aug/92) as a FREQ (file re-
quest) from 1:381/64 on FidoNet.
6) How will it work for "out of area" users?
There are three possibilities: 
        a) You emulate El Paso's setup and provide basical-
        ly the same BBS environment for your area. All stu-
        dents and       sites *must* register with us. You become 
        the Area Coordinator and carrier of final solutions 
        and/or mayor questions to/from MathMagic.
        b) You have Internet access and the time to forward
        all exchanges *individually* by "dialing" into the 
        MathMagic BBS (soon to emerge- Sept/92) or sending
        e-mail (with a "please forward to..." message) to:
        mathmagic@laguna.epcc.edu - Both time consuming.
        c) Your students have Internet access. Then the
        Reporter can "dial" into the MathMagic BBS and drop 
        or collect exchanges (S/he *MUST* copy the Area
        Record Keeper).
This last entry, student access is the ideal. There is 
an FTP file on laguna... called "INTCOST.TXT" that has 
information on Internet connectivity (at a reasonable 
cost).
7) What are the time guidelines?
El Paso participants will begin cycle 1 (C1/92) Sept. 
8th and submit Sept. 18. At this point, out-of-area par-
ticipants will begin with what is cycle 2 (C2/92) and 
hopefully post solutions by Oct.2. Other cycles are:
C3/92: Oct.5-Oct.16; C4/92: Oct.19-Oct.30; C5/92: Nov.2-
Nov.13. Please notify MathMagic *EARLY* of holidays or 
any schedule conflicts so arrangements can be made.
8) Are there any registration charges?
Not presently. As the program expands we may have 
a nominal charge to cover overhead costs.
======================================================
Send all e-mail to mathmagic@laguna.epcc.edu or to us,
Alan A. Hodson                          Carol Hooper
alanh@laguna.epcc.edu
ahodson@tenet.edu                       cshooper@tenet.edu 
1:381/64 K12 FidoNet                    1:381/64 K12 FidoNet
--------------------
Hope this is useful as you gear up to begin another year
Alan


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