Mid-Atlantic Regional Technology in Education Consortium   1301 Cecil B. Moore Ave. Ritter Annex 9th Floor Temple University - CRHDE Philadelphia, PA 19122 800-892-5550 215-204-5130 (fax) General Inquires: Laurence Peters Johann Sarmiento Judith Stull   Technical Assistance: Barry Mansfield   Professional Development: Joan Pasternak Temple University Center for Research in Human Development and Education Building a Webcentric Family and Community Network                                                                                       116 by Susan Arisman and Marcia Cushall Frostburg State University Technology has burst onto the educational enterprise with renewed vigor and vitality. Not since the early 1970s has it been viewed as such a panacea for educational reform of all kinds and at all levels. Whole states like South Dakota and Iowa are wired. South Dakota alone has a Digital Dakota Network that connects "more than 400 buildings" and stretches over "more than 75,000 square miles." Nationally, 98% of public schools have Internet access, with the number of computers per student now standing at 6:1 (Johnson, 2001). One aspect of technology that has received considerable attention is its potential to bring families and schools together. Long known as a critical aspect of effective schools, family involvement takes on new meaning when technology is used (Lezotte, 2001). In rural America, reaching out to families and to the full community has the potential not only to enhance achievement of students but also to become a transforming agent for the community itself.   The Webcentric Community at Frostburg State University was founded to explore, develop, and enhance the potential of technology not only to build better home and school relations but also to push the limits of technology to build a better life for the citizens of Allegany County. Therefore, the Webcentric Community is a larger entity than the family-community connections and encompasses initiatives not discussed here. The family-community component is a "neighborhood" within this larger community. Surfing the Possibilities in Family- Community Connections In a review of the literature on the role the family-community might play in a Webcentric Community, the following connections emerged: Home and school connections Informational Linkages. These connections are characterized by interactions centered on the transmittal of information. In this neighborhood, families have access to factors such as grades, assignments, and attendance that affect the achievement and well being of their children. They also have access to school information such as P.T.A. meetings, School Improvement Team meetings, and school journals that allow students to write about what is happening in their classrooms (Hendricks 2001). Curriculum Linkages. Schools will make available to families the web-based curriculum that it chooses to enhance its traditional curriculum. Family-to-family connections In all communities, but especially in rural ones, communication between families that are facing similar educational challenges is problematic. It is critical to bring these families together to support each other and to assure that everyone is receiving the needed assistance. Family assistance connections There are many sites that provide links for families with gifted students, artistically gifted students, underachieving students, etc. Here, the emphasis is not about connecting families with common interests but about linking families to professional sites that can inform and assist them. Expert connections The science and technology communities are leading the way in reaching out to connect experts with families, but many different organizations and associations can replicate their efforts. Examples of the possibilities for community outreach include the project developed by the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission in Minneapolis, which brought community leaders and educators together to revitalize science programs. What they found was that many groups had developed inservice activities, curriculum supplements, field trips, or museum exhibits that were not reaching the audiences that the groups wanted. When they joined together to discuss how to fund programs that are consistent with teacher needs, they found that together they could maximize impact. Page 1 2     Next Copyright 2001 © MARTEC