The Teacher's Complete & Easy Guide to the Internet. Ann Heide and Linda Stilborne. Toronto: Trifolium Books Inc., 1996. 336 pp., paper, $29.95. ISBN 1-895579-85-6. Subject Headings: Teaching-Computer network resources. Education-Computer network resources. Internet (Computer network). Professional: K - 12. Review by Janice Foster. *** /4

excerpt:

We have designed The Teacher's Complete & Easy Guide to the Internet in a way that we think will make good sense to teachers.

      Many key issues about using the Internet as a learning tool for students are addressed. The book examines the Internet's impact on learning for project work in the early, middle and senior grades. It deals with issues such as: controversial material, connecting with other teachers, the World Wide Web, and finding curriculum-related information on the Internet. It also suggests strategies for bringing the Internet into the classroom and getting information on technological planning.

      The Teacher's Complete & Easy Guide to the Internet provides advice for Internet novices as well. In "Ten Tips for Internet Success" the authors suggest that newcomers find a learning partner and not try to master everything at once. With this advice in mind, the book could serve as a useful guide and resource book for teachers integrating Internet into their classroom.

      Schools and teachers that are not currently online are also included within the book's scope. Since numerous Canadian schools still have limited, if any access to the Internet, this book provides practical suggestions on how educators can get Internet brought into their schools. It also addresses the challenging question of how to provide time and training for teachers.

      The comprehensive coverage of topics pertinent to the classroom teacher recommends this guide. It is unfortunate, however, that in the first chapter, "The Role of the Internet in Today's Classroom," the authors seem to equate technology with the Internet. The Internet is only one aspect of information technology and only one example of many tools for learning. In a section called "New Models for Learning" the authors state that "resources for learning (textbooks, existing knowledge base) are replaced by an online link to the real world." This statement fails to address the importance of resource-based learning as a model which develops information literacy skills in students: skills that are essential for effective use of information technology like the Internet. Furthermore, while online information is a valuable asset to both the teaching and the learning process, Internet should be presented as one technological tool, not one that replaces or overrides other information resources.

      The format of the book is straightforward and helpful. It is arranged into eight informative chapters and includes a glossary of terms, an appendix with a sample of "An Acceptable Use Policy," an appendix with sixty-two pages of sites linked to curricular areas, a bibliography and an index. Special features such as "Teaching Tips," "Tech Talk" and "Project Ideas" give specific assistance with providing well-designed lesson plans on a variety of topics at different grade levels. The only thing that could be changed is that it might be easier for teachers to locate the various "Project Ideas" if they had been included in an appendix rather than interspersed throughout the book.

      As with any Internet resource, there is also the possibility the suggested sites might be no longer current by the time the book is published. However, the number of Canadian sites and the variety of curriculum-related resources is worthwhile even if some of them might no longer be on the Internet.

      The Teacher's Complete & Easy Guide to the Internet is a useful resource for Canadian teachers and is recommended for purchase for either a school's professional library or for personal use.

Recommended.

Janice Foster is currently a teacher-librarian/enrichment facilitator at Oakenwald School in the Fort Garry School Division in Winnipeg.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © 1996 the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.

Published by
The Manitoba Library Association
ISSN 1201-9364