FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 

World’s Greatest Global Teachers Win $10,000!

Global SchoolNet Announces 2003 Online Shared Learning Champions

[San Diego, April 13, 2003] In a connected world, students need a global perspective.  Global SchoolNet’s Online Shared Learning Award recognizes classroom teachers, media specialists, and other school-based educators, worldwide, who have distinguished themselves in the area of global collaborative learning. This year’s top winner is Dalia Naujokaitis, from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. She will receive a $7,500 cash award and a trip to the National Education Computing Conference in Seattle, Washington. Eleven finalists from five countries will each receive $250 and a special award plaque.

Online collaboration supports active learners, who construct knowledge, rather than passively absorb it, while preparing students to become literate and responsible global citizens. Under the stewardship of these champion educators, students around the globe can interact with one another in meaningful educational, cultural, and scientific projects - ranging from sharing local folk tales, exploring world leadership, recording historical events on the day they were born, discussing solutions to save endangered animals, smoking prevention, to learning math by stacking Oreos. “I want to stress the utmost importance of global collaborative learning experiences for a safe and peaceful world. It is vital to engage students in activities in which they apply learning to real world problems and their solutions, in order to progress towards peaceful international relationships worldwide,” said Yvonne Marie Andres, President, Global SchoolNet Foundation.“

It is no wonder Dalia has been a leader in online collaborative learning. According to Naujokaitis, in her native Lithuania, Naujokaitis means pioneer and Dalia means destiny or fate. “I was always looking ahead to see what was around the next corner, seeking new ways of doing things, always a bit ahead of the pack, a risk taker.”  Engaging students in research about consumer responsibility, the social impact of television watching, and landmine awareness and action are a few examples of global online projects in which youth are learning and working together to improve world conditions. Naujokaitis, who is now in her 34th year of teaching, says she is “still loving it with as much passion and enthusiasm as a new teacher.”

This annual competition saw 98 nominations from 20 countries including candidates from Bulgaria, Chile, Lebanon, Pakistan, and Taiwan. The entire award process is paperless, and managed by GSN’s innovative Web-based system that solicits nominations, obtains candidate information, collects testimonials, and allows rubric-based judging.

The GSN Online Shared Learning champions in alphabetical order are:

·         Janet Barnstable, Addison, Illinois, USA

·         Catherine Campanella, Metairie, Louisiana, USA

·         Barbara Dieu, Sao Paulo, Brazil

·         Brenda Dyck, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

·         Joan Goble, Tell City, Indiana, USA

·         Farah Kamal, Karachi, Pakistan

·         Barry Kramer, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA

·         Dalia Naujokaitis, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

·         Rosemary Shaw, Sanford, Florida, USA

·         Michelle Speight, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

·         Mika Vanhanen, Lehmo, Finland

·         Jennifer Wagner, Corona, California, USA

You can learn more about Dalia's outstanding accomplishments, as well as those of the eleven Online Shared Learning finalists at www.globalschoolnet.org

About Global SchoolNet

Global SchoolNet combines smart teaching ideas with web publishing, video conferencing and other online tools that bridge geographic gaps, allowing young people around the world to learn together. Global SchoolNet is a growing international network of 70,000+ educators, who engage in online project-based learning activities. Since its inception, Global SchoolNet has reached more than a million students from 25,000 schools across 100 countries.  GSN seeks opportunities to partner with schools, universities, communities, businesses and other organizations to co-develop free or low cost programs to help students become literate and responsible global citizens, and to prepare them for the workforce. Global SchoolNet is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit education organization.

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