Meddie
Q What are we supposed to do for the 20 hours inservice?
A I suggest you discuss this within your institutes and on email among
the institutes. Some people have their inservice program in mind and can
share it with you giving you ideas for yours. You could also brainstorm.
Your directors will have ideas and I'd be happy to meet with your groups
to talk about possibilities.
Q What is the difference between TORCH & TORCH Online?
A TORCH exists. We have around 20 teams of former participants who teach
other teachers about what they learned during their CORE institute.
TORCH Online doesn't exist. It's a new proposal to use
telecommunications/ the Web/ the Net to spread the learning of future
CORE institutes.
Q Why 10 hours for Bio and 20 for ES?
A 20 hours was written into the ES grant. It's a good idea and we are
breaking Bio in gently since it wasn't written into their grant but we
are free to make the Bio program better.
Q Is the free use of a building in-kind support?
A Yes
Q I'm not sure what the TORCH institute would contain. How would it be
beneficial to teachers? What would they gain from participation?
A The idea of TORCH, teachers teaching teachers, is for you to glean
what's most useful to teachers in your CORE institute and translate it
into a one or 2-week institute. The design is up to you -- with lots of
help through collaboration with your peers and lots of understanding of
your school/ district/ region's unique needs.
Q Can we use the lessons we received through the teacher presentations
for the commitment? When could this be held? Is the implementation up to
me?
A Yes. Whenever teachers in your area could attend. Yes.
Q How do you form a team when no one is near one's area?
A You could work alone or you could find someone is your region of the
US: NE, NW, SE, SW.
Q It may not be my choice as to whether I get involved in curriculum and
standards.
A Your "supervisor" signed the commitment statement saying that you
would be involved because of your participation in this institute.
Q TORCH Online: I doubt that I would be interested in this if no
specifics are given ...
A TORCH Online is still just a concept. The meetings, for instance,
Sunday 19 July, are for fleshing out the concept. There may be some kind
of pilot but only for risk-takers at this point.
Q How will the 20 hours be monitored? ...
A You made the commitment and will document with the signature of your
supervisor. It will not be monitored; it will be a matter of fulfilling
a commitment, a matter of your and your supervisor's word.
Q Does active involvement in my district's curriculum & standards
committee translate into the 20 hours?
A If you think it's a valid fulfillment of your written commitment, YES.
Q ... I have some reservations about spending hours and hours on a
proposal and possibly being told the funding has been cut ...
A NSF funded TORCH 98. Please don't spend too much time. The Request for
Proposals is supposed to be user-friendly. Of course, it takes time to
dream up a one or 2-week institutes. But it's voluntary.
Q I don't feel I have received enough info on TORCH Online
A TORCH Online is under construction. We're asking you to help us design
it. There isn't "enough" information.
Q What does the TORCH application look like? Who will help fill it out?
A There are meetings Wednesday evening for Rutgers (7:00 pm Chang
Library) and Thursday morning for Princeton (7am Wu) for committees to
assist in designing the TORCH app. Everyone is invited to be a member of
the committee, but it is not necessary to be on the committee. Everyone
will receive the application (RFP) before s/he leaves the institute.
Q How is the 100 hours organized?
A By your design. Designing it is voluntary.
Q How is the 100 hours regulated?
A There is a process: 1 Proposal by you, 2 Selection by a committee of
your peers, 3 Memorandum of Understanding between you and WWNFF, 4
reporting documents.
Q Is the computer content going to be issued to us?
A The computer content is integrated into the 2-week institute and is
your design of how to use what WWNFF provides.
Q If you are the only person from your region, is it okay to team with
someone else from another region and split the one week requirement?
A Yes if you mean a region close to your quarter of the US. No, if you
mean from another United States region: NE, NW, SE, SW.