IP: ThinkQuestSM -- A New Way to Learn Via the Internet

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

 For Immediate Release =09


                        =09
 Contact:  Robin Goodman or Karen Haines at 212-508-9600








                   ThinkQuestSM -- A New Way to Learn Via the Internet


                           http://www.advanced.org/ThinkQuest=20


A Contest for Grades 7-12 Offers Scholarships and Awards that can Total Over
$1 Million=20




Picture students across town, and across the country, collaborating to help
each other learn about their favorite subjects -- and also learning how to
tap into the vast information resources of the Internet.


And picture that these same students, along with their teachers and schools,
will be rewarded not only with increased knowledge, but with total
scholarships and other awards that can exceed $1 million.  Top awards are
$25,000 individual scholarships.


This is the vision of ThinkQuest -- a new, annual contest created by
Advanced Network & Services, Inc. for students in grades 7-12.  ThinkQuest
challenges students to work in teams with their teachers to build
educational tools and materials for the Internet that can be shared with
fellow students. =20


"ThinkQuest will lead students to experience the Internet as a compelling
new communications medium that can change how they learn today and will live
in the future," said Allan H. Weis, President and CEO of Advanced Network &
Services.  "Our goal is to significantly expand the number of high-quality
educational tools and materials that are available on the Internet and
exploit the Internet style of learning."


"The 'Internet Style' of learning encourages students to explore,
collaborate with one another, and tap the Internet's enormous reservoir of
information," said Larry Landweber,  President of the Internet Society. "We
support the creation of ThinkQuest and its goals as a call to action for
teachers, students and the business community to improve their understanding
of new technologies," he added.  The Internet Society is a non-governmental
International organization for global cooperation and coordination for the
Internet and its internetworking technologies and applications.




About ThinkQuest


The contest will create collaboration among students in different grades,
from dissimilar schools, and with different levels of knowledge about using
computers and communications.  "ThinkQuest is intended to help improve the
quality and diversity of educational tools and materials now available on
the Internet," said Yvonne Marie Andres, President of The Global SchoolNet
Foundation (GSN), a leader in instructional applications of
telecommunications and a major contributor to educational networking on the
Internet and in the classroom.  "The best of these tools will exploit the
Internet's unique interactive nature to communicate excitement, share
information and build relationships."=20


Each team entering ThinkQuest will consist of two or three eligible students
from one, two or three different schools, and one teacher from each school
to guide and assist the team.  The students will be asked to create World
Wide Web pages that are learning tools or educational materials that can be
used by other students.


"Learning on the Internet is new and very open to fresh ideas," said Linda
Roberts, Director of the Office of Educational Technology of the U.S.
Department of Education.  "ThinkQuest encourages students to explore new
pathways for learning, seek out experts, and create innovative and powerful
applications."




What is an Educational Tool?


Examples of the types of entries that will be considered include:


Scientific and Mathematical Phenomena in Sports.  A team could create a
"growing library" that analyzes the science and mathematics behind different
sports phenomena, like the curve ball and sailing.  The library would grow
over time as fans across the country submitted analyses of their favorite
sporting skills.


National Environment Survey.  A team could raise awareness about
environmental issues by tracking key data on a national scale.  For example,
a team could track the decline of the U.S. frog population by creating a
base survey that is made available to students across the country. They
could collect all the data and create a national map of the results.


History Through Song.  A team could encourage students to use two important
resources to learn: the elderly and music.  The team could interview
grandparents and neighbors to learn old songs that tell historical stories.
They could sing and record the songs; present the score, text and
interpretation; provide the songs' origins and create a structure for other
students to do the same and add to this historical database.
 =20


ThinkQuest Awards=20


To help students continue their education beyond high school, Advanced
Network & Services, Inc. is sponsoring scholarship awards for students and
cash awards for the teachers and their schools. Each of the five categories:
science and mathematics; arts and literature; social sciences; sports; and
interdisciplinary, will have five awards:=20


First Place Award:      $15,000 per Student,  $2,500 per Teacher, and $2,500 per
School
Second Place Award:     $12,000 per Student,  $2,000 per Teacher, and $2,000 per
School
Third Place Award:      $ 9,000 per Student,  $1,500 per Teacher, and $1,500 per
School
Fourth Place Award:     $ 6,000 per Student,  $1,000 per Teacher, and $1,000 per
School
Fifth Place Award:        3,000 per Student,  $  500 per Teacher, and $  500 per
School


And, one team will win "Best Entry in the Contest, " with an award of
$25,000 per Student,  $5,000 per Teacher, and $5,000 per School.* =20


=20
How To Enter


Each team must submit a written proposal for its Web pages by April 15,
1996.**  If the proposal is approved, the team will develop its entry which
must be submitted between June 15 and August 15, 1996.**   If the entry
complies with the rules and has educational merit it will be placed on the
ThinkQuest Server and made available to the Internet community.  The entries
will then be judged by The Internet Society and the finalists will be
determined. Final judging will take place at an awards event in November of
1996.**


Contest information and complete instructions will be sent to schools in
January.  Students and teachers can find out more about ThinkQuest via the
ThinkQuest server at http://www.advanced.org/ThinkQuest. There, they may
receive help in choosing collaborators, finding a list of frequently asked
questions (FAQs), finding helpful hints on how to build entries, as well as
tips and pointers to software tools to help them build their educational Web
pages. Beginning in February 1996, regional workshops will be held for
teachers to help them support contestants.  Details will be available on the
ThinkQuest server.


"The Internet is going to have a profound impact on our lives," Weis
concludes.  "We hope ThinkQuest will energize students to take the lead in
creating and mastering this new communications medium."


Advanced Network & Services, Inc., the sponsor of ThinkQuest, is dedicated
to advancing education and science through the promotion, use and diffusion
of computer networking technology. ThinkQuest is one of the programs it has
selected to help carry out that purpose. The organization is a nonprofit
corporation that was formed in 1990. Between 1990 and 1995, Advanced Network
& Services provided the NSFnet Backbone Service and other Internet services
that resulted in 12,000 miles of 45 Mbps circuits serving the U.S. from New
England to Hawaii.=20






*    No team can win more than one award
**  Actual deadlines will be announced in the official rules and guidelines,
to be issued in January=20
     1996.


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                                                Backgrounder




                            THE INTERNET STYLE OF LEARNING




=B7 In Hawaii, students use the Internet to pilot a virtual robotic=
 submarine
as it explores sea life along the Antarctic coast line.


=B7 Across the country, children in different grades have created the=
 nation's
premier database on water acidity and have created the best acid rain
database in the country by measuring local water bodies and compiling the
information over the Internet.=20


=B7 In Tucson, Arizona, the National Solar Observatory sends images of the
Shoemaker-Levy comet over the World Wide Web as astronomers answer student
questions.=20


=B7 In Southern California and Kobe, Japan, students learn about earthquake
preparedness by sharing experiences through Internet video conferencing.


=B7 In cities and small towns around the world, high school students=
 received
first-hand accounts of life in a besieged Bosnian town and anxiously hoped
for peace.=20


All over the United States, students and schools are using the Internet and
World Wide Web to create a unique style of learning that emphasizes
resources, relationships, and exploration.


=20
The Five Rs


By going on line, students can delve into special libraries, develop
relationships that dissolve the barriers of age and distance, and share the
enthusiasm of experts who love their careers.  Over the Internet, pupils
from different schools and backgrounds work together on projects and publish
their results for thousands to view.  Together, they are opening a window
onto a vital world that might otherwise exist only as a flickering
two-dimensional image on a television screen.  As a result, many educators
are rethinking the three traditional "Rs" and adding resources and
relationships to reading, writing, and 'rithmetic.




A Wealth of Resources


Internet resources range from libraries and scholarly papers to Web sites
where students can dissect a virtual frog, view the history of the Berlin
Wall, or simply watch a live broadcast of people walking down Hollywood
Boulevard.   They also include forums for exchanging information and even
shopping malls.


Many organizations, from NASA to the American Heart Association have set up
home pages.  These sites often serve as clearinghouses for specialized
information.   On the home page of the Global SchoolNet Foundation (GSN),
for example, teachers can review hundreds of collaborative projects between
schools from around the world.   Students who visit this page can talk with
geologists, learn about geography from a family roaming the globe, or find
out what students in other countries eat for dinner.=20
Because the Web is so easy to navigate, students can follow an idea wherever
it may lead.   By clicking on highlighted icons or words (hot links),
students can jump to related sites.  For example, a class studying
Renaissance paintings might start with the collection in the Louvre, then
follow links to sites that specialize in individual painters or discuss the
types of paints available to artists of the time. Other links might lead to
a description of Italian politics or a catalog of architectural treasures of
the period.=20


These examples are among tens of thousands of Web sites.  (The Web, which is
the most easily accessible part of the Internet, is growing at about 15
percent per month.)  Yet the Web  is only a limited part of the Internet,
which is estimated to have 30 to 40 million users around the world.=20
 =20


Building Relationships


The new dimension of relationships that the Internet brings multiplies the
value of the resources on the Net.  Unlike reading a book, watching TV, or
looking at a CD-ROM, the Internet is a participatory experience where
collaborative learning can have extraordinary power.  And, each interaction
enhances the quality and value of the information exchanged.


At Philadelphia's Franklin Institute, for example, six classes in grades two
through six, all from different schools, collaborated on a project about
wind. Each class evolved a different approach to building windmills and
fans. By sharing their individual approaches over the Web, classes were able
to build on one another's work, creating sophisticated experiments to define
the shape of the best windmill blades for various conditions.


Other schools have worked with students from other countries. For example,
in the Virgin Islands, middle school students collaborated with eight
classes on four continents. The classes exchanged reports on local geography
and unique aspects of their culture. According to the class teacher, the
project motivated and engaged his students. It also spurred students to
improve their grammar and writing skills so they could help overseas
correspondents who spoke English as a second language.


Some students have corresponded with scientists at universities and research
institutes, who use the Internet for communications and collaborations of
their own. Through the Net, others have followed the fall of the Iron
Curtain, the growth of China's democracy movement, and the war in Bosnia --
making the world part of their curriculum.


=20
ThinkQuest:  Turning Promise to Opportunity


These projects, however, represent only the promise of what the Internet can
hold for students.   Although the opportunities are enormous, there is much
to be done to realize the Internet's potential as a medium for advancing
education -- to create a whole new set of educational tools to take
advantage of the "Five Rs" and give teachers and students the access and
skills to benefit from them.   But, like many new technologies, this medium
also has the potential to further widen the gap between students from more
technologically advanced schools and students from schools that aren't as
high on the information age ladder.


The ThinkQuest program begins to tackle these issues.  It creates a
structure, and a dynamic within that structure, where students and teachers
are motivated to form teams from dissimilar schools and build high quality
educational tools and materials that foster the Internet style of learning.=
=20


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                           Outline of ThinkQuest  Rules




Eligibility


Any student in good standing in grades 7 through 12 at any public, private
or parochial school in the 50 states of the United States may participate on
a Team.


A student can participate in only one Team.




Forming Teams & Submitting Proposals & Entries


Two or three students are required for a Team.  They may be from one, two or
three schools.  The formation of teams of students from dissimilar schools
is strongly encouraged.


A teacher is required from each school of a student team member.




Any potential team participant may register on the ThinkQuest server to
receive future information and to participate in the ThinkQuest Meeting
Place to form a Team.  The ThinkQuest server is at
http://www.advanced.org/ThinkQuest.




Proposals must be submitted via the ThinkQuest server, using the Proposal
Form on that server, on or before April 15, 1996.*  The Proposal Form must
be completed.


A Team whose Proposal is approved may create an Entry and submit it via the
ThinkQuest server between June 15 and August 15, 1996.*




Completed Entry Forms must be signed and submitted at the time the Entry is
submitted.  All Proposals, Entries and Entry Forms must comply with all of
the ThinkQuest rules.  These rules are available on the ThinkQuest server.




Teachers, parents and others may guide and coach students, but the students
must do their own work and must not copy from others, except as is permitted
under the ThinkQuest rules.


*Actual deadlines will be announced in the official rules and guidelines, to
be issued in January 1996.


=20
Use of Entry


Complying entries will be placed on the ThinkQuest server for use by
students and others.  The frequency and nature of the use of an entry will
be a factor for the Judges to consider.  Teams may submit comments stating
why the usage of their entry demonstrates that it is exciting and
educationally valuable.




Judging Guidelines and Criteria


The Judging Guidelines and Criteria are contained in the ThinkQuest rules.
In general: (a) 10% weight will be placed on the extent to which (i) the
students on a Team cooperated effectively between or among dissimilar
schools, and (ii) the Entry creates collaboration among other students at
different locations. (b) 30% weight will be placed on the extent that the
Entry is an exciting and innovative tool or material for learning in the
Internet style. (c) 30% weight will be placed on the educational value and
merit of an Entry indicated by the frequency and nature of the use of an
Entry and the nature of the users. (d) 30% weight will be placed on the
technical quality of an Entry.  All decisions of the Judges will be final.




Award Categories and Awards


There are five award categories: Science & Mathematics; Arts & Literature;
Social Sciences; Sports; and Interdisciplinary (this can involve multiple
disciplines -- students can use their imagination).  In each category, there
will be these awards:


Place=
                -------------------------------Awards----------------------------------


First:          $15,000 per Student,  $2,500 per Teacher & $2,500 per School
Second:         $12,000 per Student,  $2,000 per Teacher & $2,000 per School
Third:          $  9,000 per Student, $1,500 per Teacher & $1,500 per School
Fourth:         $  6,000 per Student, $1,000 per Teacher & $1,000 per School
Fifth:          $  3,000 per Student  $  500 per Teacher & $  500 per School


The Best of Contest Entry will have a $25,000 Award per Student, $5,000 per
Teacher, and $5,000 per School.  No Entry can win more than one award.


Awards for students will be in the form of scholarships to a college or
university.  Awards for teachers and schools will be paid in cash.


=20
Awards Ceremony


About 36 teams will be invited to an Awards Ceremony scheduled for November
1996.  Transportation and accommodations will be provided for the students
and teachers associated with these Teams.




Frequently Asked Questions


Students and teachers are encouraged to read the Frequently Asked Questions
and the answers that will be available on the ThinkQuest server, and are
invited to submit questions about, and suggestions for, the ThinkQuest=
 contest.




The Sponsor


Advanced Network & Services, Inc., the sponsor of ThinkQuest is dedicated to
advancing education and science through the promotion, use and diffusion of
computer networking technology.  ThinkQuest is one of the programs it has
selected to help carry out that purpose.


Advanced Network & Services, Inc. is located at 200 Business Park Drive,
Armonk, NY 10504.  Between 1990 and 1995, Advanced Network & Services
provided the NSFnet Backbone Service and other Internet services that
resulted in 12,000 miles of 45Mbps circuits serving the U.S. from New
England to Hawaii.




The ThinkQuest Rules


The full set of ThinkQuest rules will be made available on the ThinkQuest
server.  The outline of the rules provided above is not complete and thus
may not be relied upon.  Other helpful information is available to students
and teachers on that server.


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                                                                           B
ackgrounder




                          Advanced Network & Services, Inc.




Advanced Network & Services, Inc. was formed in September of 1990.  It is a
nonprofit corporation dedicated to advancing education and science through
the promotion, use and diffusion of computer networking technology.  It is
recognized by the IRS as being qualified under IRC 501(c)(3).


Shortly after formation, Advanced Network & Services, with the help of IBM,
MCI, Merit, Northern Telecom, and many others, built the largest and fastest
part of the Internet.  Between 1990 and 1995, Advanced Network & Services
provided the NSFnet Backbone Service interconnecting the research and
education regional networks in the United States and raised the network
speed from 1.5Mbps to 45 Mbps.


Much of the underlying technology that allowed the dramatic growth of the
Internet during that period was developed by Advanced Network & Services.
Its network operated at 45 Mbps and spanned 12,000 miles, serving the U.S.
> From New England to Hawaii.  It also provided other services to government,
universities and business including the first secure gateway which enabled
the rapid growth of the commercial Internet.


In February of 1995, Advanced Network & Services sold substantially all of
its assets and operations to America Online.  With the proceeds of that
sale, Advanced Network & Services initiated several new programs in support
of education and science.  ThinkQuest is one of those programs.


Advanced Network & Services is located at 200 Business Park Drive in Armonk,
New York, 10504, 914-273-1700.


# # #