STUDENTS MAKE HISTORY
ENTERING RACE AROUND THE WORLD
21ST Century Schools Enters Only Student Race Team
in The Great Race 2008 – New York City to Paris!
Feb. 12, 2008, New York, NY. - 21st Century Schools and their
project partners, the Educational Information Research Center (EIRC), John
Marshall High School and the Automotive High School, are organizing and
entering the only student team to enter The Great Race 2008 – New York City
to Paris! This race team is one part of a global collaborative classrooms
project based on The Great Race 2008 which will begin March 1 and continue
through December 31, 2008.
Greg Riggs and Eddie Peters, students at John Marshall High School in Glen
Dale, West Virginia are the first two members of this one-of-a-kind race
team. Their teacher, Mark Swiger, is a Project Coordinator, and represents
the project partner, John Marshall High School. The only student team in
this race, these students will be making history as they travel the race
route across 3 continents, 13 countries and 180 cities from New York City to
Paris.
Representing the Automotive High School, the official start line school and
project partner for this student project, are students Jeremy Zamora and
Juan Gonzalez, their teacher, Tommy Cassino and professional staff
developer, Joe Ferrari.
Joe Ferrari announced the formation and entry of the 21st Century
Schools student race team and the launching of the global collaborative
classroom project at a press conference at Tavern on the Green in New York
City on February 12. Students at Automotive High School in Brooklyn will be
21st Century Schools’ official “start line” ambassadors, and will
take a leading part in the worldwide student project. These students and
teachers are already known for their pioneering work in 21st
century curriculum by their Grease Car project, in which students convert
diesel vehicles to run on used vegetable oil.
Anne Shaw, the Director of 21st Century Schools, states “This is
an incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity not only for the students
actually making the trek from New York City to Paris, but for all teachers
and students worldwide who will be participating in this project. It stands
to make history itself as the largest, most relevant, and rigorous global
collaborative classroom project to date.” She explains that she happened to
learn about The Great Race of 2008 after watching the 1965 movie, The
Great Race. Brief research on the making of the movie revealed that it
was based upon an actual event, The Great Race of 1908. She discovered that
a centennial race would take place this year and immediately realized the
educational potential. She quickly organized an advisory board to help plan
the curriculum, and sought the assistance and endorsement of Great Race
Sports. Not only did they say yes, they asked if 21st Century
Schools wanted to field a student race team!
21st
Century Schools is encouraging schools worldwide to join this collaborative
classrooms project. They also invite applications for additional student
race team members. 21st Century Schools is also inviting
students to submit original music videos of songs they write based on The
Great Race, and encouraging students to begin planning for the production of
student-made films based on The Great Race. Contact 21st Century
Schools at
Director@21stCenturySchools.com for more information.
The advisory board asks that individuals, corporations and organizations who
would like to support this student race team and this global collaborative
classrooms project to contact them. Having learned of this race very
recently, and just invited to enter the race on January 11, there is still a
need for support and assistance. Please contact Jerry Self or Anne Shaw at
21st Century Schools if you would like to participate in this
unique, one-of-a-kind event with our students!
Students, teachers and experts from many fields will be collaborating in a
free virtual classroom and on The Great Race Wiki as they conduct research
related to everything from automotive design, the environment, global
issues, government and law, cultural studies, technologies and multimedia.
Final student products will include research papers, original literature,
service learning projects, environmental studies, photo essays, oral
histories, historical and scientific documentaries, student-produced films
and more. Final student products will be organized into an archive and
donated to the American Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution and
similar archives around the world.
Collaborating with 21st Century Schools in designing this project
is the Educational Information and Research Center (EIRC). John Henry,
the Project Director of the EIRC's Challenger Learning Center,
serves on the advisory board for The Great Race Project. Facilities for
this new center are being designed and built 100% “green”.
Additional advisory board members include a host of award-winning and
distinguished educators: Dr. Scott McLeod, director of the Center for the
Advanced Study for Technology Leadership in Education at Iowa State
University; Dr. Yong Zhao, Director of the US-China Center for Research on
Educational Excellence at Michigan State University; Bill Burrall, Director
of Instructional Technology Programs at Marshall County Schools in West
Virginia;
Gary Popiolkowski (Gary Pop), teacher at Chartiers High School in Houston,
PA; and Dr. Pete Border, professor of physics, and an expert in physics, art
and video game design.
Press
Release - Feb. 12, 2008
