Dataseam Undergratuate Student Fellow Presents at Kentucky State Capitol Event

Amanda Faust, the Dataseam Undergraduate Research Fellow for the 21st Century Education Enterprise, presented at the annual Posters-at-the-Capitol event on Thursday, January 28th.   Teachers and Computers in Eastern Kentukcy Schools: What Makes a Techno-Teacher?, focused on the correlation between teacher demographics and the number of lessons teachers integrated technology weekly.   Her data was collected through surveys among K-12 Dataseam schools. 

Space Movie Project   takes off

 On January 14-15, faculty and staff from the MSU College of Education, College of Science, and Space Science Center, in cooperation with the Kentucky Dataseam Initiative, facilitated a two-day workshop for 18 teachers and 74 students from nine school districts in our regional service area. Through the use of cutting edge technology, in both desktop movie making and space research, high school science and technology teachers and students were given an opportunity to work with Science Education professors, Space Science engineers and educational technology specialists to teach their students to research and record digital documentaries that they will later show on the “larger than life” ceiling of The Digital Star Theatre, a 100 seat, multi-function, state-of-the-art, digital classroom.

The high schools selected for this project are partners in the Dataseam Initiative, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to advancing research and promoting education to support economic growth throughout the Commonwealth. Kentucky Dataseam deploys more than 10,000 Macintosh computers in Kentucky public schools. These schools have received Apple iMacs for their students as part of this initiative, and their teachers have all received training in multimedia design using the iLife suite.

The students and teachers established measurable goals, objectives and guidelines in creating their movies. Students were encouraged to express themselves creatively; however, documentaries must show in-depth research and scientific knowledge. Their graphics must accurately represent their subject area and demonstrate a depth of knowledge that imitates the characteristics of the Emmy Award-winning NASA eClips. They are encouraged to use the Do-It-Yourself Podcast site that allows the public to download video clips and images to create podcasts. All videos will be compiled and published as podcasts.

In addition, students and teachers enjoyed watching the new Star Trek movie in the Space Science Center and an MSU basketball game. Every teacher and student received a jump-drive bracelet and t-shirt, and each school received a new digital video camera, camera bag, and tripod.

View a 5-minute video from the event at Dataseam Studio.

The 21st Century Education Enterprise is a not-for-profit organization operated by the Morehead State University College of Education to promote community engagement partnerships through educational leadership, professional development, and classroom technology innovations in Kentucky schools.

Krista Pack Barton, Director

Rebecca Roach, Professional Development Associate

• TAKE ONE! National Boards Initiative: Regional teachers are eligible for mentorship and fee waivers for this program.  

• Space Movie Project: Dataseam schools eligible for a teacher-student workshop involving the new Space Science Center and movie making.
•  IEQ Reading Project:  Increasing College Readiness through Assessment Led Instruction in Middle and High School Classrooms- Working with teachers from every subject area in middle and high schools, this project proposes to increase overall achievement of middle and high school students through the integration of scientifically researched reading strategies.