Search All of the Math Forum:
Views expressed in these public forums are not endorsed by
Drexel University or The Math Forum.
|
|
|
|
Alternate Routes
Posted:
Mar 30, 1995 1:38 AM
|
|
On Wed, 29 Mar 1995, Laura Petersen wrote:
> On a related topic, when the NCTM list came back up, reference was made
> to news groups on math ed. We don't have the capability to access news
> groups. Annie mentioned that there might be a way we could access these
> lists through an alternative route. Any ideas on this?
>
There are numerous networks you can access with a modem that have nothing
to do with the Internet. Long before educators in Texas were given Internet
access, some of us were using the Educator Echo (an international newsgroup)
of Fidonet to communicate. After several years, some of us decided it would
be nice to start our own network for teachers and students--we started the
K12 Network in 1990. The K12 Network is available through Fidonet nodes.
Since approximately 35,000 Fidonet nodes exist worldwide, there is a good
chance there is one near you.
A lot of people using the Internet today have less than two years experience
using modems and telecommunications. Some of us "old timers" have been doing
computer modem communications for 10 to 15 years. Generally, we grew up on
smaller systems and networks that are not considered part of the "Information
Super Highway." The populist networks are more like "Information Streets,
Avenues, Roads, and Alleys." Yet, these little networks provide a very
viable niche for a lot of people--particularly for educators on small
budgets. And, recently, some of the newsgroups from the K12 Network, such
as the mathematics echo (K12.Math), have begun to be gated into the Internet
in order to extend their reach. This may be the newsgroup to which you
referred. There are teachers (professors) participating in the K12 Math
echo that would really love to be here in the NCTM list, but who don't
have Internet access, and there are folks here in the NCTM list that have
excellent contributions that would be welcome in the K12 Math forum.
Many novice modem users are unfamiliar with all the different sizes,
specialties, and "flavors" that exist in cyberspace--not to mention all
the people out there that are so close, and yet so far away.
I surf and lurk on a lot of different nets and usually pop in when I
think the words may be beneficial to the discussion or the general
edification of the cyber citizens. So, to answer your query, there are
lots of alternatives and it's probably worth the time and effort to
explore outside the Super Highway. Take an off-ramp and check out some
of the smaller nets on the cyber-side-streets. You might even find some
children who want to talk about counting, calculators, patterns, or who
knows what!
Ken Blystone, Educational Technologist
Ysleta Independent School District
9600 Sims
El Paso, Texas 79925
Voice: 915-595-5676
Fax: 915-595-5930
Data1: 915-590-5476 (The CyberSchool System)
Data2: 915-598-1987 (The K12 Network/Internet Link)
Data3: 915-595-6806 (Ysleta Educational Telecommunications)
|
|
|
|
