Articles about using ePals for global collaboration

2007-2009

Oates, R. “ePals: Students Collaborating on Weather, Climate Change and More,”

Beyond Penguins and Polar Bears, Peoples of the Arctic - Issue 16, October 2009.
http://beyondpenguins.nsdl.org/issue/column.php?
date=October2009&departmentid=professional&columnid=professional!technology
What is it like to go to school in the dark, see the sun come up after 10 a.m., watch it
go down before 2 p.m., and go home in the dark? Do elementary students go outside
for recess in Arctic areas? Questions like these are fascinating to children, and the
answers won't be found in a textbook. Students need to communicate with other
children to find the answers. Teachers can bring so much richness into their
classrooms by collaborating with a distant class, but the challenge has been to find
someone else to connect with. That is easier than ever before, partly because of the
Internet and ePals.

Oates, R. “How to Learn in the 21st Century,” Educational Leadership (Sept. 2009).
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational_leadership/sept09/vol67/num01/How_t
o_Learn_in_the_21st_Century.aspx
Thanks to the Internet, students today can acquire and share knowledge in ways
teachers could not have dreamed of 50 years ago. Oates explains how teachers can
use online resources to give students learning opportunities that weren't available
years ago. For example, students can assess Wikipedia articles for accuracy and
completeness and make changes. They can increase their understanding of the world
by accessing up-to-date information through the online CIA Factbook. To add
richness to the data in the Factbook, students can interact with people who live in
these countries by, for example, connecting with current and former Peace Corps
volunteers or communicating with students their own age through a service like ePals.

Cornelius, C. and Vest, T. Spicing Up Spanish Class, Learning & Leading with
Technology, May 2009, p. 32-33 (www.iste.org)
Tells the story of a Spanish teacher and media specialist who worked together to
create powerful lessons through Spanish-speaking pen pals and ePals. The two won
an ISTE award for this work.
You must be an ISTE member to access this content

Demski, J. E-Palling Around, T.H.E. Journal (Nov. 2008):

http://thejournal.com/articles/2008/11/01/epalling-around.aspx
Journalist Demski provides information about a student-only e-mail service that is
providing academic benefits and opportunities for cultural exchange for kids from all
over the world, from grade 2 in Louisiana to high school French students in New
York.
DiScipio, T. Adapting Social Networking to Address 21st Century Skills, Multimedia &
Internet at School (Sept. 2008):
http://images.epals.com/press/ePals_MMIS_SeptOct08.pdf

Serim, F. et. Al. Reaching the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) with
ePals (June 2008): http://images.epals.com/nets_whitepaper.pdf
The revised NETS standards for teachers are examined against a background of using
ePals with students, to see how well the two support and reinforce each other.

Charron, N. “I learned that there’s a state called Victoria and he has six blue-tongued
lizards!” The Reading Teacher (May 2007):
Pen pal program via ePals encourages grade 4 students to write and gives them
the opportunity to communicate with others from around the world. The Internet
pen pal program facilitates communication through the use of authentic tasks and
teaches students about different cultures.
You must be an IRA member to access this content