Ameritech Enables Teachers to Navigate the Net Efficiently

For Immediate Release, April 1999
For comment, contact Brenda Buschbacher at (630) 907-5033


Internet "Toolkit" Takes Teachers from Information Literacy to Fluency

AURORA-- Ameritech and the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy® (IMSA) will team up to offer Chicagoland teachers an easier and more effective way to navigate the Internet. IMSA received a $25,000 Ameritech grant that will assist in training Illinois teachers to use IMSA’s Internet Toolkit.

The Toolkit includes interactive learning materials, tips on effective search strategies, as well as software tools such as a meta-search engine, an assessment database and tutorial construction tools designed to build proficiency in using the Internet for research. The Toolkit represents one dimension of IMSA’s On-Line Learning Programs, part of an ongoing commitment to the State of Illinois’ educational technology initiatives.

"The purpose of the Toolkit is to build the capacity of teachers and students to access, evaluate, analyze and use the wealth of information now available on the Internet to improve student learning," said Dr. David Barr, IMSA director of On-Line Learning Programs and Toolkit project director. "For example, a student searching for information about the erosion of Chicago’s lakefront might retrieve hundreds of documents from the Internet. The Internet Toolkit is designed to make it easier for students to target a smaller number of relevant documents, to search selectively for pictures to be incorporated into a report, and to learn how to evaluate the credibility of the documents retrieved," explained Barr.

"Ameritech’s support for the Math and Science Academy is another example of our commitment to further the excellence of teachers and students through applications of communications technology," said Douglas Whitley, president of Ameritech Illinois. "As a communications leader, we’re pleased to introduce the wonders of technology to today’s youth, while enabling them to explore more into the future. The IMSA Internet Toolkit will empower students and teachers with the resources they need to learn in the new millennium," added Whitley.

IMSA’s Internet Toolkit was designed specifically for educators by IMSA staff and students- including ’96 alum Mathew Brictson of Elgin and ’97 alum Angela Thelan of Palos Park.

In addition to supporting the development of the Internet Toolkit, the Ameritech grant has launched the Ameritech-IMSA Information Literacy Project. The project has created a network of five schools and 55 teachers that will be introduced to and trained in using the Toolkit in their classrooms. Lead teachers include:

"The Internet Toolkit enables teachers to help students make sense of the Web," said Rich Levine, one of the selected teachers. Levine, who participated in a two-year pilot testing phase of the project, said more teachers throughout the Elgin school district U46 now use the Toolkit. "After I gave a workshop on the use of the Internet Toolkit, teachers in other schools asked to have a link to the Toolkit put on their school’s browser," said Levine. "They see it as a quality one-stop source for having their students learn about, as well as use, the World Wide Web." Levine has also placed the Toolkit on his educational Web page so that his students can access it from their homes.

Ameritech (NYSE: AIT) has a strong tradition of giving back to the communities it serves. Last year, the company contributed nearly $27.2 million to over 3,800 nonprofit organizations, and Ameritech Pioneers—some 42,700 employees and retirees throughout the Midwest—volunteered 482,000 hours of community service by supporting health and human services, civic and community projects, and educational and arts programs. Ameritech provides a full range of communications services, serving millions of customers in 50 states and 40 countries.

For more information on the IMSA Toolkit, contact Dr. David Barr at barr@imsa.edu or (630) 907-5016. Future plans will offer Toolkit workshops online so they can be made available to educators throughout the state.

Located in Aurora, Illinois, the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy® (IMSA) is an internationally-recognized pioneering educational institution created by the State to develop talent and stimulate excellence in teaching and learning in mathematics, science and technology. IMSA's advanced residential college preparatory program enrolls 650 academically talented Illinois students in grades 10-12. More than 14,000 teachers and 20,000 students in Illinois and beyond have benefited from IMSA's professional development and enrichment programs. IMSA serves the people of Illinois through innovative instructional programs, public and private partnerships, policy leadership and action research.