Michigan LearnPort® is the statewide professional development portal developed through a partnership between Michigan Virtual University® (MVU®) and the Michigan Department of Education (MDE).  To encourage teachers, administrators and other instructional personnel to experience the value and effective nature of online learning first-hand, Michigan Virtual University is offering $150 stipends for enrolling in and completing selected curriculum content courses and requirements through Michigan LearnPort.

Enrollment is now open and limited to the first 30 participants for each section. The goal is to meet the needs of ISDs and their constituent districts, professional organizations and individual educators through expanding the use of Michigan LearnPort.

The courses for which stipends will be provided are the following:

MMC Algebra 1 for Teachers
MMC Algebra 2 for Teachers
MMC Geometry for Teachers
MMC English Language Arts for Teachers
MMC Biology for Teachers
MMC Chemistry for Teachers
MMC Physics for Teachers
MMC World History and Geography for Teachers
MMC U.S. History and Geography for Teachers

These courses are instructor-led and provide teachers with resources and strategies to meet the needs of the diverse students required to meet the Michigan Merit Curriculum. Upon completion, participants will earn between 1 – 3.5 State Board Continuing Education Units (SB-CEU).

Eligibility for the stipend requires completion of the course and the submission of one lesson plan using one or more of the strategies or activities described in the course. This lesson plan must be accepted by the course instructor as part of the course completion requirements. This lesson plan may become a resource for Michigan teachers through Michigan LearnPort.

Teachers must apply for the stipend after completion of the course on the course form provided by the instructor or downloadable from the course community room. This stipend is paid from and governed by requirements of and provided through ESEA Title II, Part (A) funds. Payment will only be made for full course completion and submission of an accepted lesson plan. A course session will be offered beginning August 1, 2009. An individual may only take one course under the stipend program each session.

Interested educators who wish to enroll in one of the online courses should log into Michigan LearnPort®, http://www.learnport.org , and search for the keyword “MMC” in the Courses Catalog. Specific course content details are available in a syllabus embedded in each course, accessible by clicking on a course’s information icon in the Catalog. For more information about the Michigan LearnPort 2009 Online Stipend Program, please contacteelliott@mivu.org.

• Lab Safety
• Newton’s Laws
• Spacesuits
• Sports (in space) Demo

All media can be previewed online. Audio clips are mp3 files. Videos are downloaded in a zipped folder containing mp4 video, Windows Media Video, and a transcript in MS Word.

A stipend of $1000.00 and a free registration to the 2010 MACUL Conference, March 10-12, 2010 will be awarded to 10 selected educators to produce high-quality enhanced or video podcasts in one subject area to be posted at MI Learning on iTunes U. Visit www.macul.org > MI Learning on iTunes U > MI Learning Information for application details. Application window: April 1 – May 26, 2009.

Read a related article about iTunes U on eSchoolNews

For more info browse to: http://crm.nettrekker.com/necc09/

LISD TECH Center Principal’s Blog, Lenawee ISD

Mr. Musolf’s Mathematics Blog, Britton-Macon Area School

Mrs. Spohn – Third Grade, Onsted Elementary

Room 14 Third Graders, Adrian Michener Elementary

TMS News, Tecumseh Middle School

The list above is not exhaustive. Please send links or leave a comment pointing to other blogs from Lenawee schools.

We believe that online social networking is a powerful tool for learning and positive action worldwide. A platform that is both self-guided and collaborative, both easily accessible and inherently complex, online social networking, in theory, enables action along a wide spectrum of skills and engagement. Empowered by technology to create, share, and connect online, individuals who have collaborated to take action via social networking have produced significant, unexpected achievements in political, social, and cultural spheres—from uncovering inaccuracies in network news reporting to coordinating humanitarian assistance in response to events such as the Indian Ocean tsunami and Hurricane Katrina.

And yet, social networking has come under fire from parents, schools, and authorities, who aim to limit young people’s access to these tools. Although these are valid claims in some cases, social networking and other forms of digital media engagement have the potential to enable new kinds of learning, empowering youth to become a driving force in creating and shaping a shared future in an increasingly interconnected world. By keeping the spirit of ymex.org focused on positive social change and cross-cultural exchange, we envision ymex.org to be a space where this can happen.

It is important for researchers, practitioners, parents, educators, and policy-makers to understand how young people around the world are currently using and thinking about social networking and digital media, as well as how social networking and digital media can best be used as an instrument for education and social engagement on a global scale. This is a long-term, overarching goal for the field of digital media & learning at-large, but we hope ymex.org can contribute in substantial ways.

The site includes embedded video and audio, external links to media, digital photos, comments, discussion boards, online groups and more. One point of care/concern is proper citation or copyright of media that has not be created by users. Read the guidelines for using the site.