Contact: Maridith Geuder
A virtual tour of a national insect zoo, learning activities for K-12 students and resources for teachers make up the award-winning recipe for a Mississippi State University web site.
Designed in 1996 by MSU's Center for Educational and Training Technology, the O. Orkin Insect Zoo curriculum module recently took first-place among academic entries in the state's EdTech '98 web site competition. The module's web address is www.naturalpartners.org/InsectZoo/.
Sponsored for the second year by the Mississippi Educational Network, the competition drew more than 60 entries. Awards also were presented to K-12, business and professional, and individual web sites.
"Our site has been designed to help bring the resources of the Smithsonian to teachers and students," said MSU center director R. Dan Brook. "It provides resources to support the teaching of natural sciences, especially to middle school students."
The judges agreed, with one calling the design "a model for our school districts to follow."
The actual Orkin Insect Zoo is a part of the National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.
Funded by the BellSouth Foundation, the Natural Partners Program is a collaborative effort between Mississippi State and the natural history museum.
"The Natural Partners Program uses web-based information and two-way video technology to create a 'museum without walls,'" Brook said, adding that the Insect Zoo is the first in a planned series of curriculum modules.
Curriculum designer Cheryl M. Whitfield and instructional technologist Connie Templeton worked with Mississippi State entomologists and local teachers to design activities such as a cricket-jumping contest. Students also learn about the insect and its habitat and explore related activities such as creative writing and reading.
The site contains extensive resource listings for teachers and students, as well as links to other resources on the World Wide Web. It also provides comments regarding each component's adherence to the National Science Education Standards.
The next curriculum module planned is "In Search of Giant Squid," featuring the work of Smithsonian researcher Clyde Roper.
For more information about the Insect Zoo web site, telephone the Center for Educational and Training Technology at (601) 325-5009.