[squeakland] Re: How do you measure Etoys success?

teefal timothy at squeakland.org
Wed Jul 8 14:03:16 EDT 2009


In my opinion ...

** Etoys has been extremely successful.  There are many, many examples of inspiring work around the world.

I came to VPRI's attention because of my work at Waveplace, where last year we trained many teachers and kids in some difficult places, like Haiti and Nicaragua.  I've lived and breathed Etoys, teaching adults & kids, experiencing first hand what it's like to have a whole room hitting the same stumbling block at the same time.  But here's the thing ... with the right mentoring they *get through* the stumbling blocks and reach the "light bulb" moment when they experience mastery and become hooked.

Our first-hand experience has been overwhelmingly positive.  But never mind words ... what's missing from this talk are the children themselves:

Have a look here:  http://waveplace.com/locations/nicaragua/movie.jsp?id=80   (six minutes)

or here:  http://waveplace.com/locations/nicaragua/movie.jsp?id=94  (thirty seconds)

The look on the girl's face in the longer video (around 5:32) really tells the whole story for me.  Transformation.


** Etoys is more than visual programming for kids.   Squeakland's focus is to teach *with* Etoys.

Towards that end we've begun work on a full-spectrum course that uses Etoys to help teach what teachers already need to teach:  language arts, social studies, science, math, etc.  We want to help the whole school, not just the computer lab.

More here:  http://confluence.immuexa.com/display/sq/Squeakland+Courseware

and here:  http://www.etoysillinois.org/library.php


** Etoys is very effective for younger children (6 to 12 years old)

Our recent focus has been largely for this age range, as we believe Etoys has benefits over Alice and Scratch.  It's also the age when the most profound transformations can occur, when creative problem solving can be reinforced in ways that last through a child's whole education.


What do you think?




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(from forum)
http://squeakland.org/forums/viewtopic.php?p=60#60

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