They post results of their local field investigations online, to initiate electronic collaborations with students around the world, and compare and contrast research findings to develop hypotheses. Imagine the excitement in the classroom when video, audio and data signals originating from the primary exploration sites are downlinked to the classroom in less than half a second. I ask 'why' much more than I did before. My students and I have an enthusiasm that easily spreads throughout the classroom and into the community. It has also opened doors for me to communicate with other educators, share ideas, and extend my own learning and thinking.
Students feel the power of being a community of learners.
They identify themselves as scientists, and are willing to make predictions, research on their own, and go online at home to teach their parents what they are learning in the classroom. Parents are becoming part of the learning process with their children. I love to see parents bringing students to the broadcast on Saturday to find out what all the excitement is about. More notably, they often stay for two broadcasts, their children explain the terminology to them, and they begin sharing the enthusiasm with their children. The community gets involved in the project in many ways, said Pearson.