🚀 go-pugleaf

------------------ Message forwarded by NETTRAIN moderator ------------------

Date: Fri, 19 Feb 93 15:30 PDT
From: TENISON%catlin.BITNET@UBVM.cc.buffalo.edu

        We too have explored a variety of formats for internet training
at our school (k-12 private school).  The student classes run during a
regular 50 min. period 4 days/week.  The current faculty classes run one
day/week after school for 1 1/2 hours each.  Each one is a specific topic,
announced in advance, so faculty can take individual sessions or drop in
for sessions that are of particular interest.  We have a 16 station lab in
our library basement for training, so the drop in system has not been too
crowded, except on a couple of occassions.  The sequence is basically
similar to that described by Frada Mozenter (email, telnet, ftp) except
that we support both a vax/vms and a unix system so there is an
introductory session on commands for both systems and then the mail is
split into two sessions (vms mail and unix "Pine" mail).  The fourth
session gets into listservs, almanac, and other mail based internet
services.  The telnet session is an exploration of internet services.
Archie is introduced with the ftp session.  The final formal session is
gopher, wais, and www.  The final actual session is Q & A and exploration
of anything people can find in the various lists of services. (I have
compiled 3 ring binders of all of the various lists of services available
on the net that people can brouse.  I have 10 copies in the training room
as well as one in each faculty room and student lab.  I also have a copy of
Krol's "Whole Internet User's Guide and Catalog" in each room.)

A second method that we tried last spring also worked very well as an
intermediate level faculty course.  This was a two day workshop starting
after school on friday (3:00).  It was broken into three 3 hour segments
and there was a charge of $10.00 which covered meals and snacks.  The first
segment ran 3-6 and we broke for chinese dinner (brought it) and the second
ran 7-10 pm.  The third session ran 9 am to noon the next morning.  People
really liked the compact nature of the course but we decided that friday
evening needed to be shortened by about an hour so people were done by
9 pm.  People also liked that it did not wipe out the weekend (since they
were done at noon on sat.)  The command session and email sessions preceded
this workshop so it focused only on internet services, but that was the
only thing that made it "intermediate".  The advantage was that everyone
was present for the entire workshop.  The dinner in the middle of friday
evening helped break it up and provided relaxation, especially since we did
not have to leave the campus and ate together.  It worked well for people
with some experience.  I would worry about novice computer users being
saturated early on by too much to learn too fast.  The disadvantage is not
having as much time to cover material and there was not the opportunity to
explore individual topics between weekly sessions and come back with
questions.

Ron Tenison                     Internet:  tenison@catseq.catlin.edu
Catlin Gabel School             Bitnet:    tenison@catlin
(503)297-1894