Nancy Gardner, Albert Garnache and Elizabeth Schaufus from Kennedy Middle School in Waltham, MA were among 36 educators attending the National Gallery's technology initiative, 2001: A Cyberspace Odyssey, held in Washington, DC, last July and August 2001.

The two six-day seminars brought together teams of teachers from across the country to develop web resources that integrate K - 12 curriculum content, learning theories, and the visual arts resources of the Gallery.

The three-person teams were selected through a rigorous application porcess that required experience with computer and Internet technologies and a commitment to teaching with these tools in the classroom. The three teachers in each team were to have different areas of expertise that related to the topic of their online curriculum project.

Prior to their arrival in Washington, teachers completed assigned readings and researched selected web sites to assess the strengths and weaknesses of their features for K-12 educators. This preliminary research allowed teams to formulate ideas and establish parameters for their own online projects.

During the past school year teams refined and field-tested their projects in the classroom, submitting final products to the Gallery in April 2002. Teachers were provided with the software necessary for building their educational model.

The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation provided major funding for this program. Additional support was given by the William Randolph Hearst Endowed Fund for the Teacher Institute; the GE Fund; Paine Webber, Inc.; and the Sara Shallenberger Brown Foundation.

About the National Gallery of Art's Teacher Institute

For 12 years, the Teacher Institute has offered teachers the opportunity for intellectual renewal and professional exchange with colleagues in a museum setting. To date, nearly 2000 teachers have participated in the program.

The Teacher Institute works together with the National Gallery of Art's department of education resources, which produces and distributes instructional materials on a free-loan basis to schools throughout the nation.

To learn more about the Teacher Institute and other educational resourcesof the National Gallery of Art, visit the Gallery's web site: www.nga.gov.