Thinkquest Overview

What is ThinkQuest?ThinkQuest is a protected, online learning platform that enables teachers to integrate learning projects into their classroom curriculum and students to develop 21st century skills.

What is the Oracle Education Foundation?

What is the Oracle Education Foundation?A nonprofit organization funded by Oracle, the foundation delivers ThinkQuest - a widely acclaimed education technology program - to K-12 schools globally. ThinkQuest is a protected, online learning platform that enables teachers to integrate learning projects into their classroom curriculum and students to develop critical 21st century skills. For more information, visit http://oraclefoundation.org.

The Foundation is a nonprofit corporation. Oracle Corporation funds and houses the Foundation, and donates the services of its worldwide staff, at a value of over $13 million annually. In addition, Oracle provides the Foundation with free, unlimited use of its technology, which we leverage to bring you ThinkQuest.

The Oracle Education Foundation is a type of nonprofit called a "supporting organization." All of our activities support educational institutions, schools, other nonprofits and NGOs that provide education services to the public. As a supporting organization, a majority of our Board of Directors must come from the educational community we serve. The majority directors are appointed by Stanford University, which serves as our "appointing authority." The minority directors are appointed by Oracle.

Some of the main parts of this platform include:

ThinkQuest Projects (formerly Think.com): A project environment where teachers and students engage in collaborative learning

Every student and teacher has their own homepage

Every teacher can start a project and invite their students to join it

* ThinkQuest Competition: A competition space where students participate in technology contests

Currently on hold

* ThinkQuest Library: The world's largest online repository of student-developed learning projects, visited by millions of web learners each month

Why I like this platform ...

Benefits of ThinkQuest Projects include:

Protected


* Protected: Schools must go through an application and verification process in order to join. Member accounts are password-protected, and content is only visible to members. In addition, the environment is kept virus-free thanks to a partnership with Symantec Corporation.

Easy as ...


* Easy to Use: The tools are designed with a technology novice in mind. Teachers can easily create projects within minutes.

Versatile


* Versatile: Members can upload a variety of different file types, including photos, documents, presentations, and audio and video files.

Supports Accountability


* Supports Accountability: All content is attributable to its author (no anonymous content). Students are identified by first name and last initial, and it's easy to contact any student's school if problems arise.

Teacher-Mediated


* Teacher-Mediated: Teachers can see all content created by students. In addition, any teacher can "flag" the content of any student if it is deemed inappropriate. Flagging a content item makes it invisible to students and notifies the offending student's school.

Authentic Global Audience


* Authentic Global Audience: Participating in ThinkQuest Projects gives students an authentic global audience, motivating them to do their best work.

Web-based


* Web-based: Members can log in from any computer with internet access. Internet-connected schools do not need to purchase any special software or equipment.

Focused on 21st Century Skills


* Focused on 21st Century Skills: Life and work in the 21st century demand that students learn how to use technology, clearly communicate their ideas, and interact effectively with people from different cultures. Via their participation in ThinkQuest Projects, students will hone each of these important skills. Learn more about 21st century skills

LETS GO INSIDE --->

Talk about all the different formatting options available

Nanaimoites are Global Citizens Project

Should I give a brief overview here?

Take screenshots from actual Think.com Project and then at end show how I was able to download it.

Might be helpful to make a list of the tools on whiteboard as I introduce them and then refer back to them as I go through the project.

Project Organisation

Student Project Pages

ThinkQuest supports 405,000 participants in 43 countries and is free for primary and secondary schools around the world.

www.thinkquesthelp.wikispaces.com

Go to wiki and show them examples of projects being used as student portfolios of work.