How do students learn when they all have a computer?

We are finishing up the second Students' LIVE working session and we are blown away by how learning has changed now that they have access to information (i.e. they all have computers!).

We had a guest speaker from the Vancouver Sun, Steve Ewen; before he started speaking students sitting in front of us googled his name. They already knew who he was, what he was writing, and how to find out more information about him.

We wanted to learn how to connect to potential readers. We gave the students a challenge; within a very short time, we had 600 members on our facebook page.

We have a student from the Kootenays. Her friend, also a Students Live reporter that couldn't make today was using chat and web cameras to try and participate in the session.

Finally, the students don't always seem to be paying attention. They are typing, reading, talking, interacting. We realized that within 2 short sessions, these students have written and read a significant amount of work. Interestingly, we also realized that without these face to face meetings, this type of learning couldn't occur. The students all need to see exemplars from one another; they need some accountability on the work they are challenged with; and they need clear projects.

Catch Up on Student's Blogs

One of the interesting aspects of the Student's LIVE program is to see how the students begin to "own" their work. Even during the Christmas break, you can start to see how some of the young reporters are figuring out their "voice" and their perspective on the 2010 games.

You can take a look at the collated blogs by going to http://www.netvibes.com/studentslive#Student_Blogs

Orientation Meeting Completed

Congratulations to all of the students who survived their first day of orientation. The student reporters were challenged to think about how to report the Winter Games from their perspective, while using the tools that they are most comfortable with.

There was quite the debate about facebook vs blogging vs twitter. In the end, our reporters will be choosing the medium that best suits the situation. Their knowledge of how to connect with others and who to connect with added to their creativity and fresh perspective will proove to be a very interesting project.

You can find their aggregated work at www.studentslive.ca

Students LIVE

We are beginning!

The students live reporters have been chosen from across the lower mainland and as we speek, they are meeting in downtown Vancouver to start to think about how best to report on the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

We would like to congratulate the following students who will be representing the student point of view for the upcoming games. Please be sure to bookmark http://www.studentslive.ca/ and you can follow along as the students blog, twitter, facebook, and flickr their perspective of the games.


2010 Olympic Games
Adeleine Esstrada Vancouver
Cheyenne Smith Squamish
Dezmond Mok Richmond
Emily Chan Port Coquitlam
Genny Nugent Vancouver
Hannah Lin Vancouver
Jasmine Dhaliwal Vancouver
Mia Guirato
Richelle Zheng Vancouver
Samah Jaffer Richmond
Stergoi Darntanis Vancouver
George Zhang Vancouver

2010 Paralympic Games
Benjamin Pan Vancouver
Emma Djwa Vancouver
Evelyn Dias Vancouver
Grace Brulotte Windermere
Tanya Shum Vancouver
James Nugent Vancouver
Jackson Safrata West Vancouver
Kate Gibbs Windermere
Lauren Byrne Vancouver
Lisa Odland North Vancouver
Lorie Leung Richmond
Riley Chow Vancouver
Veronika Bondarenko Richmond

Students LIVE - Background

PREMISE

Students LIVE! is a program that will allow twenty-four students from Olympic host communities and other areas across British Columbia to cover the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games (12 students for each of the games) from a student perspective.

These students will participate in a range of traditional media activities, include filing articles for newspapers, capturing videos and conducting interviews with young people before, during and after events. They will also host an interactive web space, applying a variety of social networking tools that allow them to share their experiences and help create the foundation for an online student community. Students from across BC, Canada and the world will also be able to contribute to the site.

Students will report in both English and French.


BACKGROUND

Students across British Columbia and beyond are looking for ways to be connected to the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. Having students cover the Games, being an eye-witness to history, and connecting to the many students, classes and schools interested in the Games, creates a rich learning opportunity.

While many traditional news organizations will be covering the Games, this project allows students to connect with their peers through many of the web 2.0 tools that have become a very key part of their lives, and of the myriad school programs connected to the Games.

The Students LIVE! program will create a community of young people, from those attending the Games, to those in classrooms, and beyond, sharing stories, insights and experiences surrounding the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Students will apply in the early fall to participate in the program and those selected will receive training in December of 2009.

The Students LIVE! program will be a key element of school games-time programming and specific lessons will be created for schools to connect to this project.


PROGRAM SPONSORSHIP

Students LIVE! is a being sponsored by the West Vancouver School District in partnership with the BC Educational Leadership Council. It is also supported by the VANOC Educational Programs and the B.C. Ministry of Education.

For additional information please contact Chris Kennedy at ckennedy@sd45.bc.ca or 604-981-1031 or Audrey-Hobbs Johnson at audrey.hobbs-johnson@bcelc.ca or 604-608-6769.