Teachers Set Their Sites on Thinkport

MPT & JHU Launch Thinkport.org, March 20--A Destination for Teaching in the Digital Age

OWINGS MILLS, MD -- Ask teachers what they need to improve their students experiences in the classroom and youll find that time and online resources top their list of needs. However, despite best efforts, teachers find that combing the Web for relevant, quality resources can be burdensome and time consuming.

Beginning March 20, help will be readily available for Marylands K-12 education community and families, with the debut of a new Web super site called Thinkport, http://www.thinkport.org.

Developed through a partnership between Maryland Public Television (MPT) and the Johns Hopkins University Center for Technology in Education (CTE), Thinkport.org provides free multimedia resources for the classroom, online professional development, innovative technology tools and a place for educational exchange between educators and families. Its all conveniently presented to help teachers find, organize, use and share high quality, technology-enhanced learning resources.

The creation of this extensive digital platform is the product of two years of research and close collaboration between the partner organizations, key education groups and experts from across the state. In addition, CTE and MPT have worked closely with a statewide team of teachers and principals to develop and write instructionally sound content for the site and assess the effect of this instruction on student outcomes. This team of teachers and principals from eleven Maryland local school systems have provided valuable input to the development of Thinkport.

Jacqueline Nunn, Ed.D., Director of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Technology in Education, describes Thinkport as a rich resource that delivers what teachers have asked for: Teachers have told us that they would like a Web site that saves them time by offering instructional resources of consistently high quality that are engaging to students; lesson plans and projects that are aligned to state standards and tailored to grade level and content area; professional development focused on technology-integrated instruction, and finally teachers would appreciate a mechanism for communicating with parents easily. Its a tall order, but Thinkport meets all of those needs with one innovative Web site."

Thinkport will launch on Thursday, March 20 at MICCA 2003, an annual conference on teaching with technology to be held at the Baltimore Convention Center. Over 2,000 Maryland teachers, technology coordinators and administrators will be on hand to get a virtual tour highlighting the four main areas of the Thinkport site:

Think Classroom -- houses a rich collection of standards-based lesson plans, projects and student activities, video clips and online field trips.

Think Career -- offers continual professional development opportunities including online courses.

Think Technology -- keeps teachers up-to-date on the rapidly evolving world of educational technology through sharing what works".

Think Family & Community -- serves as a gateway between school and home, extending communication and learning.

Along with these distinguishing assets, Thinkport also provides a free set of innovative tools designed to enhance the sites value and usefulness to each registered user, including:

My Idea Box--a personal space on the site where users can save, access and share files from anywhere, at anytime.

Classroom Web Site Builder--a simple way to build a dynamic communication link between the classroom and home.

Activity, Lesson and Project Builders--a tool to create thorough instructional plans that are aligned with the Maryland Content Standards and incorporate interactive media with sound instructional practices.

Member Directory--an easy way to connect with other members of the Thinkport community including instant messaging.

Dr. Nancy S. Grasmick, State Superintendent of Schools will conduct the official ribbon cutting at a special launch ceremony, also to be held at the MICCA conference March 20.
"It is evident that with its online collection of rich resources, Thinkport will be of critical assistance to teachers and parents as Maryland moves forward to eliminate the achievement gap and reach new standards of excellence," stated Grasmick following a recent presentation of Thinkport to the Maryland State Board of Education.

Gail Porter Long, Vice President and Chief Education Officer, Maryland Public Television emphasizes that the resources found on Thinkport today are just the beginning. We have produced a cutting-edge Internet delivery platform that will grow with the evolving needs of education. We will continuously add and develop exciting, new multimedia resources to help students and their teachers thrive in todays digital classroom."

Thinkport is funded through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education Star Schools Program. Along with Thinkport.org, the initiative has also resulted in an Emmy Award winning public service campaign. This series of educational messages speaks to parents of school-age children and airs on Maryland Public Television. Other notable products of the grant include the creation of highly acclaimed online field trips and interactives - Pathways to Freedom: Maryland & the Underground Railroad, Knowing Poe, Sense and Dollars, Bay Trippers: An Online Field Trip to the Chesapeake Bay, and Exploring Marylands Roots.

Maryland Public Television is a not-for-profit, state-licensed public television station which serves the citizens and communities of Maryland and beyond through a variety of broadcast and nonbroadcast activities. Beyond broadcast, MPT creates instructional videos, develops trainings, and builds Internet sites that serve tens of thousands of students, teachers, and child care providers statewide. For more information on MPT and its on- and off-air programming, visit mpt.org.

The Johns Hopkins University Center for Technology in Education is a program of the Graduate Division of Education in the School of Professional Studies in Business and Education. CTEs mission is to improve the quality of life of children and youth, particularly those with special needs, through teaching, research, and leadership in the use of technology. This unique partnership combines the research and teaching resources of Johns Hopkins University and the leadership and policy support of the Maryland State Department of Education. For more information visit http://cte.jhu.edu.