Richard “Dick” Stufflebeem is the Regional Telecommunications Council (RTC) technician assigned to oversee the operation and maintenance of ICN classrooms. The state legislature provides funding through Des Moines Area Community College for his services to your classroom. Area 11 is the largest of the ICN areas in the state, and Stufflebeem is responsible for approximately 72 school and library classroom sites in the area. Although the schools own and are responsible for the majority of the equipment in their classrooms, the ICN does provide equipment service through Stufflebeem. His main responsibility is to fix any problem that should arise in an ICN classroom. If a student microphone or a camera is not working, he will come to the school’s ICN room and repair it. While the service is at no charge to the school, the cost of repairing the camera, microphone or any of the electronic equipment in the room is the school’s responsibility. Replacement of TVs, tables, chairs and/ or any other items in the room is also the school’s responsibility.
Stufflebeem’s additional responsibilities include providing assistance and advice concerning equipment purchases for ICN classrooms. For example, he is currently assisting many schools as they replace existing television sets. The original televisions purchased for the ICN rooms were the analog CRT picture tube type, and these televisions are rapidly becoming obsolete. Schools are now upgrading to new flat screen televisions, but not all of these televisions work well in an ICN room. Stufflebeem works with vendors to review flat screen television specifications and find schools the right television for the best price. He is also working closely with many schools as they upgrade their classroom controller unit. The controller unit configures an ICN classroom as an origination or remote site and is responsible for the switching of the cameras. This unit has been discontinued, and thus if it should fail and no used cards are available to repair it, the classroom will no longer function. Stufflebeem can assist in the installation of the upgrade unit to prevent this problem.
If teachers are having problems in their ICN classroom, they can contact the ICN for help by using the telephone located on the side of the equipment rack in the ICN room. Calling the phone number located on the telephone will connect individuals with the help desk at the ICN control/test room. Callers can describe the problem to help desk personnel, and they will assist in fixing the problem if possible. If the problem cannot be solved, the ICN will open a repair ticket, which will then be e-mailed to Stufflebeem to bring his attention to the problem. He will respond to the ticket by coming to the site and checking out the problem, at no charge to the school. If teachers or administrators would like to speak with Stufflebeem to personally answer questions concerning the operation of the room or to talk about the controller upgrade, please call him at (515) 964-6831 (office) or (515) 210-8043 (cell phone) or e-mail him at rlstufflebeem@dmacc.edu.
Stufflebeem’s vision of the future of the ICN is built upon his perspective as the RTC technician and his past work experiences. He has been around this system since its conception. For 28 years he was the Assistant Director of Engineering at Iowa Public Television, and his engineering group was responsible for the design and implementation of the 700+ ICN classrooms. Upon retirement from IPTV six years ago, he came to DMACC to help with the college’s rooms. He has seen this $185,000,000 system work in colleges, high schools and libraries all over the state. In addition, he has traveled all over the United States to visit other distant learning classroom systems and he has never seen a system comparable to what we have in Iowa. He feels that there is not a system like ours anywhere in the world.
Two major factors make the Iowa system very different from the others. In other systems Stufflebeem has studied, the origination classroom is located on a central campus and the remote sites are located in other buildings or in a different town. The origination point is always the classroom on the central campus. In the Iowa system, any ICN classroom can be configured as an origination or a remote site. At any given hour, an instructor can come into an ICN classroom and teach from that room as the origination site to as many classrooms as desired. Students can come into that same room the next hour and receive a class as a remote site with the instructor in a distant origination site. The huge advantage of this type of system, unique to Iowa, is that it gives every school district the opportunity to originate programming from any of its schools. The ICN is also not limited to a certain number of remote classrooms connected to an origination site. In other systems, as many as four or even five rooms may be connected at one time with monitors across the back of the room. Due of the distant proximity, the figures on the screen are so small and so far away that students and teachers cannot clearly discern which individual they are speaking with. In the ICN, participants have one monitor to look at and the video on that monitor is always focused clearly on the site that is currently communicating.
Stufflebeem feels strongly that the ICN is still very relevant in today’s world and is dismayed by the underutilization of this valuable Iowa educational tool. He finds that ICN classrooms are used for many things other than distant learning. His question to the education community is, “Why are we not using this great system more?” Although he realizes that Video over IPs popularity is rising, he feels that this new technology has “a long ways to go before it can come close to matching the quality and dependability of the ICN classroom.” No other current technology will allow teachers to go into a classroom, (not a conference room or office, but a classroom), turn on the equipment with a switch and teach day in and day out. Video over IP currently requires a technician to set up and program the equipment for each meeting. In addition, if the speed of the session is slow, the video is poor quality and the audio fades in and out. Alternatively, teachers and students can walk into an ICN room, turn on the system and teach or participate with full motion video and full duplex audio. For those wishing to communicate with people outside of Iowa, the new Video over IP technology can be incorporated right into the ICN classroom. Stufflebeem feels we should “add new technology to the working existing technology instead of throwing away what works.” He feels that Iowa currently has the greatest system in the world and that we should continue to refine it and to find more ways to use it.
Stufflebeem feels that any decline in ICN use can be attributed to a lack of understanding concerning appropriate content and specific effective uses for the system. The ICN is not a content provider, but it is a transport provider. The role of the ICN is to get information, like a phone company, from one point to another. According to Stufflebeem, leadership in providing appropriate content to be used on the system is the most important factor toward continued effective use of the ICN. Teachers and administrators need to become aware of reasons they should use their ICN classrooms. They must realize the value and benefits of using their ICN classrooms now and as future technologies develop.
As the Area XI ICN Scheduler, Janelle Archer provides support to educational institution personnel concerning video classroom scheduling procedures. She processes requests and alerts personnel of scheduling deadlines, confirmations and conflicts. She also works with fellow schedulers across the state and trains local site contacts in working with the daily schedule and submitting reservations. Archer is available to visit ICN classroom sites and to discuss scheduling questions.
Prior to her current position at the ICN, Archer worked at Pioneer Hi-Bred as a receptionist, administrative assistant and distribution assistant. This background, which included scheduling work and deadlines, prepared her well for the demands of her current position. She has been the Area XI ICN Scheduler for five years.
Like Stufflebeem and Casper, Archer would love to see schools use their ICN classrooms more. She feels that although many classes are shifting to online formats, the ICN provides, “a ‘face-to-face’ meeting from a distance to connect with the students.” The ICN provides a way to share instructors in this more personal manner without the cost and time of driving to another location.
For teachers using the ICN for the first time, she suggests scheduling a training session and allowing time to practice before the session. If they have any questions, she would be happy to help them out. She also recommends keeping presentations and appearance simple. Too much flash can take away from the content and distract the students. If teachers have any questions or concerns or would like Archer to visit them, they can contact her at jjarcher@dmacc.edu or 515-964-6856.
This summer, the Consortium of Iowa Community Colleges, Iowa Public Television and the Iowa Communications Network are sponsoring a new school food service program for K-12 school food service personnel. This three-day, 20-hour program will provide current information for all school food service personnel and encompass two School Nutrition Association (SNA) approved classes. The first class, Food Safety and Sanitation, uses the curriculum Serving It Safe and is designed specifically for school food service personnel to learn about methods of safe food handling, sanitation, and safety in all areas. The second class, School Food Service Nutrition 101, includes the most current information on nutrition needs, program requirements and practical how-to’s on implementing good nutrition practices. Together, these classes meet the Nutrition Education and Sanitation and Safety components of the new Level I Certification requirements with SNA.
The presenter for both classes is Ann Feilmann, a SNA Certified Trainer. Interested individuals can attend the program at various ICN locations throughout the state of Iowa. Online registration for the program includes selection of a preferred ICN room. Food Safety and Sanitation will meet on June 16 from 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. and on June 17 from 8:00-11:45 a.m. School Food Service Nutrition 101 will meet on June 17 from 1:00-4:30 p.m. and on June 18 from 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. Cost for the entire course (two sessions, three days) is $180 which includes presenter fees, materials and CEUs. Sessions priced individually are $90 each. Please check with your school district to see if it will cover the class costs or if you will need to pay them yourself. If you are paying personally, an Iowa Community College representative will contact you regarding payment. Registration for both courses ends on June 2, 2009.
For questions regarding the program, please contact Cheryl Little, Director Health Education, Cheryl.Little@iavalley.edu, 641-844-5623 with program content questions or contact Marcia Wych at Iowa Public Television, marcia@iptv.org, 800-532-1290 with registration questions.
As part of the Raising Readers initiative highlighted in the March ICN News blog, IPTV and K-12 Connections are offering two sessions in May based upon Raising Readers programming. The first session, PBS KIDS Island, will focus on the exciting new PBS KIDS Island website where kids can play and read with their parents, teachers, and caregivers. Students can play reading games with favorite PBS KIDS characters, earn tickets and win prizes. Parents or teachers can track their progress and find fun reading activities to do every day. Bring your students to this ICN session to learn how to register for free and build their own island carnival. In this session, the facilitator and participants will take a tour of PBS KIDS Island, preview PBS KIDS Island Games, learn how to customize their own tree house, check out the Child Progress Tracker and learn about other Raising Readers resources.
The PBS KIDS Island session is offered on May 11th at several times throughout the day. Confirmed registrants for the session will receive a pack of Raising Readers materials including a DVD containing episodes of WordWorld and Super Why! programs, a Martha Speaks book, and other educational materials by mail. As always, sessions are provided at no cost to PK-12 students and the adults working with or on behalf of PK-12 students in Iowa. Please call Trista Peitzman or Marcia Wych at (800) 532-1290 or (515) 242-6663 or (515) 242-4187 or e-mail at trista@iptv.org with any questions.
The second session, The NEW Electric Company!, will focus on the new series by PBS that is broadcast on IPTV. That’s right, The Electric Company is back and better than ever! In the 2009 version of the popular show, the power of the original show is surging back with a cool cast of characters, amazing literacy superpowers, side-splitting cartoons, and songs that will make you dance. The Electric Company aims to entertain children between the ages of 6 and 9 while simultaneously teaching four crucial areas of literacy that are challenging for struggling readers: decoding, vocabulary, comprehension of connected text and motivation. Like the original series, the new show filters these educational goals through pop culture — music, comedy, technology, and celebrities — to create a playful, hip, multimedia experience. Unlike the original series, each new episode of The Electric Company includes a narrative with regular characters and three "curriculum commercial breaks" that consist of a variety of short-form segments: sketches, animations and songs. In this ICN session, Trista Peitzman will show video clips from the program, view games online, and engage your students in a learning activity.
The Electric Company session is offered on May 21st at several times throughout the day. Confirmed registrants receive the book The Kit: Educator's Guide for The Electric Company by mail after the session. Please contact Trista Peitzman or Marcia Wych at the numbers listed above with any questions about this new Raising Readers session.
This summer, Iowa Public Television and the State Library of Iowa are once again sponsoring a FREE series of Stories and More ICN events to libraries, childcare programs and schools. The overall theme for the 2009 Stories & More series is Be Creative at Your Library, tying into the summer reading programs being conducted by many local libraries across Iowa. Registration deadlines for sessions are approximately 10 days prior to the session dates. Each 50-minute session, aimed at students entering grades K-5, will be offered on two different days at both 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. The session dates and topics are listed below:
June 16 and June 18
I’ve Got Rhythm
The guest presenter for these sessions enjoys music in all aspects of her life. Professionally, she is the Music Coordinator for Des Moines Schools, and personally, she is a member of the Des Moines Choral Society.
June 23 and June 25
Ham it Up!
These sessions are all about drama and storytelling. Kids will enjoying exploring the many places you can go and faces you can wear when you jump into character and put on a performance!
June 30 and July 2
Now You See It
Talk about different kinds of art and create some of your own. These sessions are all about the visual arts. Our special guest is a middle school art teacher with a creative eye and some insight to creating your own masterpiece!
July 7 and July 9
Dance and Move
They call her the "Dancing Queen" because she has all the moves to some of our favorite dances both classic and modern. Our special guest presenter is Urbandale's 2005 Teacher of the Year. Make sure you wear clothes to move in and have plenty of space for dancing!
July 14 and July 16
Free Play
Our final sessions allow the imagination to roam free! Our special guest, Michele Beschen, is the host of television shows "B. Original," "Courage to Create," and "B. Organic." According to Michele's website, “There's nothing more exciting than discovering new ways of doing things, unleashing the crazy thoughts, and observations that naturally come when you start looking at things through the eyes of possibility.”
For my tip this month, I have chosen to address two questions regarding ICN session recording. The first question is, “When my room is configured as a remote site, why I am unable to record all of the audio when I record a session?” The second question is, “Why do some ICN Classrooms have two recorders/players in them?” Answers to both of these frequently asked questions can be found below.
For the first question, some appropriate background information is necessary to fully provide the answer. When the ICN was first developed, some of the high school and university instructors did not want students to have the ability to record a class at the remote site. Some instructors were concerned that their material could be recorded and distributed outside of the classroom. Other instructors were concerned that students might choose to watch recordings of the classes rather than come to the actual classes. For these reasons, only origination sites, and not remote sites, were initially set up with the capability to record.
As the ICN grew, however, requests to record sessions from remote sites became more numerous. Schools and teachers wanted students to have a way to access prior sessions due to illness or other legitimate reasons for missing a class. During this time, several schools also inquired about ways to view classroom programming in an auditorium to accommodate overflow crowds. In response to these requests, the ICN technical staff designed an electronic circuit that could be added to the ICN equipment and allow recording of a session at a remote site. This classroom option is called the “Overflow Option.” It allows recording at a remote site and also provides a means for accommodating larger crowds.
By adding the “Overflow Option” to their ICN equipment, schools can connect their auditoriums to the ICN Classroom and allow the extra people to watch the session. This “Overflow Option” is for viewing sessions only. The people in the overflow area will not have the ability to talk back to the origination site. Only participants in the classroom can talk back to the origination site. If a school would like to record sessions in the ICN classroom when it is configured as a remote site or would like the ability to view the classroom in an overflow location, the “Overflow Option” must be installed. This “Overflow Option” only concerns recording sessions in another location, not classes that occur in the ICN classroom. Teachers can always walk into an ICN room, use the recorder provided to record their class and then play back the information for students at a later time. If your school does not have the “Overflow Option” and would like to have it installed, please contact me, Dick Stufflebeem at (515) 964-6831 (office) or (515) 210-8043 (cell). My cell number is the best way to find me right away. You can also reach me via e-mail at rlstufflebeem@dmacc.edu.
The second question is, “Why are there two recorder/player machines in some of the classrooms?” To explain the answer to this question, I must also provide some background information. While at IPTV several years ago, I assisted a group in an ICN Session. The presenter asked me if we could record the session to be reviewed at a later date. As the site was an origination site, I said, “yes.” The session started and I began recording the session. About ten minutes into the session the presenter asked me if we could also play a VHS videotape during the session. I initially said, “No, we are using the machine to record,” but after a few minutes, I thought about the predicament and searched the studio for a second recorder/player.
I connected the second machine to the outgoing video/audio circuit and told the presenter that he could now record and playback at the same time. Following this experience, the ICN technology department and I concluded that a second machine would benefit many schools. Thus, we sent out a notice to the schools and encouraged them to add the second machine. As technology has changed over the past few years, we have encouraged schools to change out the machine that is being used as the playback to new VHS/DVD combination units. With the increasing use of DVD’s, the combination unit will accommodate both formats. If you are interested in more information concerning the VHS/DVD players or have any questions, please contact me at the numbers listed above.
IPTV educators are presenting a series of sessions based on the Biz Kid$ public TV series during April and May. This series features kids teaching other kids about money and business. During the sessions, recommended for grades 4-8, students watch a video from the BizKid$ series and complete activities with session facilitators that relate to each week’s topic. Participating schools also receive great resource materials to use in their classrooms. For more information on this, check out the Biz Kid$ Web site at http://www.bizkids.com.
Production and educational outreach funding for Biz Kid$ is generously provided to Biz Kid$ by a coalition of America’s Credit Unions. Descriptions and information for the May Biz Kid$ sessions are listed below. Click on the session links to learn more about the educational objectives and student concepts covered in each session.
You Can't Manage What You Don't Know – May 11, 2009
The Biz Kids learn the first rule of money management: You can’t spend what you don’t know. Join the kids and you’ll look at spending and expenses and examine several proven methods on how to gain control of both.
Income and Expenses – May 18, 2009
Go with the cash flow. The Biz Kids watch the ebb and flow of income and expenses. Join them and you’ll learn proven methods for getting expenses under control while growing income with new ideas, smarter work habits, and innovation. Meet some entrepreneurs who have seen success with cash flow and more!
