St. Louis WizKids - Advisory Council

Wireless Broadband: A Silver Bullet for Poverty

This is a useful report for our project despite its misguided title.  Written by Matt Stone of Civitium (LLC) as a digital divide case study for the People's Emergency Center in Philadelphia, the report describes with clarity the benefits and the pitfalls of deploying wireless broadband or any home-based technology.  Mr. Stone addresses the barriers related to technical support and the need for strong, compassionate leadership.  He also describes the magic that happens when neighborhood residents have the training and organizational support to maintain their own computers and those of their neighbors.    We will be employing many if the ideas and approaches presented in this report.  For our families without consistent electricity or heat, the St. Louis WizKids wireless network will be no silver bullet.   Thank you, Ana for passing along this report.  Wireless Broadband: A Silver Bullet for Poverty (PDF)

ESLARP: East St. Louis Action Research Project

Take a look at the "outreach weekends" being planned by ESLARP: East St. Louis Action Research Project.

The Evaluation Exchange Tenth-Year Anniversary Issue: Reflecting on the Past and Future of Evaluation - at the Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP)

The Evaluation Exchange Tenth-Year Anniversary Issue: Reflecting on the Past and Future of Evaluation - at the Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP) includes a series of articles and interviews of interest to nonprofits and anyone committed to a candid look at evaluation practices, issues, and trends. Of particular interest to WizKids may be the Q&A with Ricardo Millett on diversity and evaluation issues.

Geowiki

I don't really know anything about GIS or GPS but I'm currently intrigued with maps. I found Geowiki this morning. I like their the tagline "virtual psychogeography."I suppose that's what online map-making or sharing is after all. More importantly, perhaps the folks that are working on Geowiki could be a resource to WizKids.

YMDi (Youth Media Distribution)

Found this on Creative Commons today.

YMDi (Youth Media Distribution), an offshoot of MediaRights.org , is:

"a project that aims to improve the distribution of independent youth created film, video, radio and new media. They offer a variety of tools for young people making films, including hosting on their site and promotion through film festivals. Recently they've added the option of choosing a Creative Commons license when uploading a film. They've even created a special page listing all the entries released under a license."

Looks like good resources for the WizKids to learn from and maybe even contribute.

Tell It Like It Is 2004

TELL IT LIKE IT IS 2004: TARGET HOLLYWOOD
National Youth Media Justice Training Camp

This sounds like a fantastic opportunity for young people in the project to have a chance to learn great skils and meet others of like mind. There are scholarships available!

____________________________

The Sistas of Third World Majority are putting out a call for our 2nd National Youth Digital Storytelling Workshop and Festival--Tell It Like It Is 2004: Target Hollywood. This national digital storytelling workshop will be held in Los Angeles, CA during the week of December 8-12, 2004. more...

_________

New Web Site

The new St. Louis WizKids website is ready for a full review by our brilliant Advisory Council members. Please check it out and comment here by Oct 18. Thank you in advance! www.stlwizkids.org

Seeking New Evaluator

We are seeking a new evaluator for St. Louis WizKids. Please refer all interested and qualified folks. Download the detailed announcement (PDF).

Thomas Day Education Project Main Page

The Thomas Day Education Project Main Page offers educational materials and teacher resources for teaching African-American history and culture for K-12. The prices seem pretty reasonable and are also available to public libraries.

Further Thoughts.......Requests Please

I have thought a lot about Group I and its' strengths and weaknesses. Taking the lessons from Group I, Sue and I are attempting to formulate a plan for the Fall session. Based on current literature, it appears that there are basically four theories around educational computing: The play-based model, the content-focused model, the product model and the instructional model. The instructional model is not an option for WizKids due to the classroom nature of it. Without attempting to follow a particular theory or model, the activities of the first group did fall into the product model where students led the project and created something tangible. The summer session will use a play-based model where the WizKids will use self-directed play, using the computer as a tool. Although theories are interesting and form a framework for a particular discipline or area, our goal is to help the children have fun while learning. If these theories, or a combination of them help, it will only strengthen our project. If anyone has any thoughts, ideas, or suggestions about what they think will work best, or what they have experienced, please let us know. In addition to your ideas, we will learn from Group I and II to formulate plans for the Fall.