THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 1, 1995 TAG: 9412300232
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 16 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY HOLLY WESTER, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Long : 103 lines
WHEN IT COMES to forgotten homework assignments, ``My dog ate it'' no longer works for students. Or any other excuse.
Because of the Classroom Connection, an Infoline service offered through The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star, homework retrieval is just a phone call away.
The connection between school and family offers a quick and simple way for students to find out what they missed or to check what they have written down by listening to recorded messages left by their teachers. Parents also are invited to call up and hear homework assignments directly from a teacher.
``It brings the parental participation home,'' said Alison Schoew, program director of Infoline and manager of the Classroom Connection. ``Parents can know in the privacy of their own home what's going on in their child's school.
``Also, kids don't have any excuses anymore,'' she added. ``The teachers love it.''
Classroom Connection started three years ago at Lynnhaven Middle School as a test program. Principal Victor Gregor liked the system so much, he spread the word to other principals and talked ``almost all of the middle schools into getting on line,'' Schoew said.
This year, the school system picked up the tab, so all middle school students and teachers use the service for free.
Middle schools aren't the only ones using Classroom Connection. Five elementary schools in the city are now on line. Of the 20 schools plugged in - 19 are in Virginia Beach.
Alanton Elementary got involved in the service this year after one of the parents told Principal Linda Tanner about it. The idea was presented to the school's faculty council and according to Tanner, ``The entire staff wanted it.''
At Alanton, different grade levels use the line for different purposes. While kindergarten teachers may leave a message once every two weeks, fifth-grade teachers may record new messages daily. Whatever the frequency, Tanner said the response has been ``outstanding.''
With so few elementary schools involved locally, Tanner said more should get on line. ``It's probably one of the most unique communication tools that I have seen,'' she said. ``The parents have contact with the teachers every night if they want it. It has been most successful.''
Schools, both private and public, throughout South Hampton Roads can join Classroom Connection at a cost of $1 per student. The cost can be picked up by the school's Adopt-A-School partner, PTA or as one school discovered, in-house fund-raisers manned by teachers.
Although advertisers are an option, no school has yet used sponsors. If a school does get a local business to fund it, Infoline will add a 10-second advertisement before the teachers' messages.
``It would be a great place for the local pizza place - talk about target marketing,'' Schoew said.
Classroom Connection definitely is used by students. The service has logged more than 620,000 calls this school year alone.
``I'm thrilled,'' Schoew said. ``It's clear to me that it's an overwhelming success. We just need to get more schools involved.''
When a school signs up to participate in Classroom Connection, each teaching team is offered a voice mailbox with a special four- or five-digit code to record a homework message up to 90 seconds long.
The teachers call in their messages, many from home, and students and parents call each night. The lines are open 24 hours a day.
Besides assignments, teachers often leave last-minute reminders. Some add extra vocabulary words, which appear as extra credit questions on tests.
Many teachers, such as Talmage Dunn at Lynnhaven Middle School, make Classroom Connection fun for their students. He changes his voice to become characters like Crocodile Dundee and Speedy Gonzales.
Parents are equally excited about the service and don't mind that their children are on the phone.
``I think it's a great idea,'' said Robin Patrick, a kindergarten teacher at Seatack Elementary School. ``It's another way for parents to know what's going on in the school.''
Since Patrick's 11-year-old daughter, Kelly, a sixth-grader at Virginia Beach Middle School, is involved in activities outside of school, the Classroom Connection is convenient when she has a question about something. ``Sometimes she only has an hour to do her homework, so we don't want to spend half of that time trying to get her assignments,'' Patrick said. ``It is a way to find out very quickly what's expected.''
Patrick, who uses the line to remind parents at her school about field trips and progress reports, added, ``It's particularly beneficial for children who are out of school and do not have friends' numbers to call, for parents who want to double-check to verify their child's homework or for young children, who sometimes get their assignments confused.''
Schoew expects Classroom Connection to grow to other schools and cities in the area.
``We now have the `brain power' in our computer to expand and include more schools,'' she said. ``We're looking forward to linking more parents and teachers.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by CHARLIE MEADS
Robin Patrick, a kindergarten teacher at Seatack Elementary, and her
11-year-old daughter, Kelly, a sixth-grader at Virginia Beach Middle
School, both use Infoline's Classroom Connection. ``It's another way
for parents to know what's going on in the school,'' Robin Patrick
said.
by CNB