III. Conlusions and References

Although technical delays kept teams from implementing their plans on schedule, most teams continued to meet on a regular basis and individuals continued to explore and find resources. As the first two years of CK:P ended, these were some of the outcomes of the CK:P staff professional development efforts:

  1. From a few guest Internet accounts in 1989 to approximately 700 accounts in 1994, Pittsburgh area educators are flocking to the Internet as both a professional development resource and as a curriculum resource.
  2. A number of teachers (estimated between 100 and 200) bought home computers and modems after being introduced to the Internet, so that they could have access from home. A teachers' union purchase plan helped considerably in this regard.
  3. Hundreds of educators took advantage of workshops to be introduced to the Internet or to gain advanced training, in most cases without being compensated for their time. Peer training activities increased throughout the first two years of the project.
  4. Educators shared professional development and curriculum resources with each other through email and several principals routinely disseminated daily bulletins via email.
  5. Expansion continues to take place within PPS schools. Educators are finding ways of acquiring equipment or getting access to equipment already in place, and are acquiring training however they can (mostly through colleagues or through CK:P workshops, as noted earlier).

Many educators remain adamantly opposed to K-12 WAN or, at best, indifferent. The question for school districts that want to provide access to WAN is whether and how to convince these educators of the educational value of the technology. That is a question CK:P has not yet grappled with but will confront as the activity expands throughout the district.

Author Note

The research reported here was funded by Contract No. RED-9253452 with the National Science Foundation. All opinions expressed herein are solely those of the authors and no endorsement of the conclusions by the National Science Foundation is implied or intended.

References

Carlitz, R., & Zinga, M. (1994). Creating Common Knowledge: School networking in an urban setting [On-line]. Available: URL: /projects/ckp/publications/articles/ckp.

CoSN-FARnet (1994). Building consensus/Building models: A networking strategy for change (COSN-FARNET Project on K-12 Networking, March, 1994) [On-line]. Available: COSN gopher (cosn.org), Path=1/COSN Activities/COSN-FARnet Project.

David, J.L. (1994). Realizing the promise of technology: A policy perspective. In B. Means (Ed.), Technology and education reform: The reality behind the promise. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Hiltz, S.R., & Turoff, M. (1993). The network nation: Human communication via computer (Rev. ed.). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

Hodas, S. (1993). Technology refusal and the organizational cultures of schools, v. 1.2 [On-line]. Available: ftp.u.washington.edu, directory /pub/user-supported/horsehorse, filename refuse_1.2.

Hunter, B. (1992). Linking for learning: Computer-and-communications network support for nationwide innovation in education. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 1, 23-34.

Newman, D. (1993). Getting the NII to school: A roadmap to universal participation (A position paper of the National School Network Testbed, October, 1993) [On-line]. Available: Bolt, Beranek & Newman gopher (copernicus.bbn.com), Path=0/testbed/Getting_the_NII_to_School.

Sheingold, K., & Hadley, M. (1990). Accomplished teachers: Integrating computers into classroom practice. New York: Bank Street College, Center for Technology in Education.

Wertheimer, R. (1994). Leveraging change in public schools: The RFP process [On-line]. Available: URL: /projects/ckp/publications/articles/rfp.

Author Affiliations and Addresses

Gail Clark Futoran is a Postdoctoral Research Assistant at the Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260 Phone 412 624-7480. e-mail: futoran@pps.pgh.pa.us.

Richard Wertheimer is the Education Project Manager of Common Knowledge: Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Public Schools, 501 Fortieth Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15224 Phone 412 622-5930. e-mail wertheim@pps.pgh.pa.us.

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