CoSN's Town Hall Debate Goes Wireless

February 25, 2002-Washington, DC-At CoSN's K-12 Annual Conference, Leadership for the Digital School: Challenges, Implications and Opportunities, February 27-28, attendees will have the opportunity to experience the true potential of hand held computing devices and wireless local area networking.

The sponsors of CoSN's Banquet and Town Hall Debate on Wednesday, February 27, LearnStar L.P., Palm, Inc. and Intel Corporation, have joined together to offer this exciting opportunity.

As the conference attendees participate in the debate "Collecting Student Data: What's Appropriate? What's not? Where do we draw the line?," they will be able to use wireless technology to interact with the speakers. At various points, attendees will pick up the Palms and enter their opinions. The result of the poll will be projected to the audience, providing immediate feedback.

"This event is an excellent example of how handheld devices can be used in dynamic learning situations. What better way to see technology than to use it," stated Keith Krueger, Executive Director of CoSN.

This is the first time that a demonstration of this magnitude has ever been attempted. Over 150 Palm m500 handhelds will be networked using Xircom Wireless LAN modules and Intel Corporation's wireless network access points. The Palm handhelds instantly transmit the selected responses via Xircom LAN adapters, to the Intel Access Points - then directly to a laptop. The entire interactive experience is made possible using the LearnStar software.

"This real-time demonstration of the power of wireless technology emphasizes the effectiveness and viability of transforming classrooms into truly interactive environments," said Jim Hirsch, CoSN Board of Directors.

The speaker panel for the debate includes: Mark Bohannon, Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA); Arnold Fege, Public Advocate for Kids; and, Margaret-Ann Howie, Baltimore County Public Schools. The moderator is Tom Haynes, an anchor from CNN QUICKCAST.

The CoSN K-12 School Networking Conference is the leading policy and practice conference in the education technology arena. Held annually in or around Washington, DC, the conference attracts school district, state and national leaders, as well as members of the corporate community, who want the best and most up-to-date information on emerging issues in technology. For more information, visit www.k12schoolnetworking.org.

The Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) is the premier national education technology association whose mission is to promote use of the Internet and telecommunications to improve K-12 learning. CoSN's members represent school districts, state and local education agencies, nonprofits, companies and individuals who share our vision. Learn more about CoSN's initiatives, policy work and membership opportunities at www.cosn.org.

LearnStar is the interactive, collaborative software solution for the classroom. Leveraging the reach of handheld devices and wireless networking, its competition format and real-time group interactivity ensures 100% participation. All while the teacher remains in complete control. A question is presented and the challenge begins. The faster the students solve the question, the more points they earn. Confidence soars and performance increases. With thousands of pre-packaged activities available and an easy-to-use authoring tool, LearnStar truly wraps around teachers' objectives and connects with each and every student. For more information on LearnStar, visit www.learnstar.com/exp_learnstar.html.

Palm handhelds offer simple, quick, fun and smart ways to communicate, teach and learn wherever you go. With a Palm handheld, a teacher, student or administrator can do amazing things: access the Internet wirelessly, take notes, calculate, sketch ideas, collect data, access resources, manage activities and courses and instantly beam information to others. As the next generation of our popular V series handhelds, the Palm™ m500 handheld comes from a long line of great design and includes lots of new functionality. Two expansion technologies maximize customization opportunities. The Expansion Cards and the Universal Connector let you add content, storage capacity and data backup solutions as well as wireless modems, GPS receivers, digital cameras and more. The Palm OS 4.0 features enhanced security options, the ability to set silent or vibrating alarms and more. A new USB Hot Sync® cradle and software for both Mac and PC give you everything you need for faster data synchronizations then ever before. Bonus Software lets you edit Excel spreadsheets and Word documents on your handheld, read eBooks, view video clips and photos, and browse Web content offline. For more information on the Palm™ m500 handheld visit www.palm.com/products/palmm500/

Intel PRO/Wireless LAN solutions quickly and affordably network your classrooms, portable buildings, cafeterias, hallways - the entire school. You're investing in much more than a flexible network. You're buying the ability to open doors, individualize instruction, create new learning environments, and connect with students' natural curiosity and creativity. The Xircom Wireless LAN Module (PWE1130) works with your Palm m500, m505, or m125 handheld to provide fast and continuous wireless access to the Internet, email, and network resources. Roam about your school or campus and access information securely on your 802.11b Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). Xircom is an Intel company. The Intel® PRO/Wireless 2011B LAN Access Point provides a robust, stable solution for extending the reach of networks into locations where traditional cabling isn't a viable choice. (This product is Wi-Fi* certified.) For more information on Intel's wireless LAN solutions, visit www.intel.com/network/connectivity.