Hip Deep Creek Project   School:Carmichael Middle School Location: Richland, Washington, United States Name: Laurie Eaton

"They can look at what other students around the world are doing and we have been able to find educators around the world and we are looking at what we can do to broaden our students’ horizons and raise cultural awareness."

	Class Chat
	Creek
	Skill Development
	Uses of TIG
	TIGed in Class

Laurie Eaton is an advocate of teaching with technology because of the technological skills that will be expected of her students in the future. During her nineteen years in the classroom, technology has made it increasingly easier for students to learn from wherever they are; Laurie says having an online classroom on TIGed has helped to facilitate class even when students are not in school: “having TakingITGlobal has been awesome because I can upload an assignment and they can upload their work even if they are home. If they are sick they can get online and look at the assignment and I can get it that night.” Laurie has used several TIG resources and TIGed tools to engage her students beyond the confines of the school day.

Laurie’s class embraced TakingITGlobal’s mission of becoming informed and empowered to take action when they learned that a local creek was going to be turned into a parking lot. Students conducted online research to learn what others around the world have done to improve their environment and find ways to get involved. They wrote an environmental impact statement, which they presented to city officials. Their hard work paid off as plans for the parking lot were halted and the city is now working with the students to improve the park. Laurie talks about the success of the program and further steps as the students move onto high school. This example of civic engagement – informed youth using inquiry, research, and data to create change in their local community – easily integrated social issues across the curriculum as students developed skills and knowledge in science, language arts, social studies/civics and math in order to ensure the success of this project.

Laurie has had great success using Class Chat to engage all students in meaningful discussion. Go online to hear Laurie discuss these strategies, as well as interesting ways she had incorporated additional site features, such as Panorama, TIG’s online magazine. Submitting their poems to Panorama has helped Laurie’s students to further develop technology literacy. Sharing their work with others in this forum not only provides them with the opportunity to receive feedback on their work, it also presents them with the ability to have their work published for a global audience.

Washington’s Teacher Leadership Project

Laurie Eaton joined TIGed as part of a workshop offered in partnership with The Teacher Leadership Project (TLP). She had previously participated in TLP’s nationally recognized professional development program, which trains teachers in technology integration through intensive face-to-face summer institutes and online mentorships, all designed for teachers and by teachers. For more information on the Teacher Leadership Project visit, http://www.tlp2.org

Best Practice:
- Effective professional development trains teachers to use technology as a tool, and provides a sustained learning community.
- Local connections make global issues tangible and real for students.