My Story
My name is Leigh Cassell and I am an elementary teacher at Stephen Central Public School, Avon Maitland District School Board (AMDSB), in Ontario Canada. For the past 8 years I have taught students in the intermediate and primary grades,
with a focus on using new innovative technologies effectively to increase student engagement, improve student achievement, and prepare students to succeed in the 21st century. Today I am asking for your support to help fund the development of my free educational
website, the Digital Human Library.
What is the Digital Human Library?
The Digital Human Library is a free educational resource that connects teachers and students with organizations and experts from all over the world. K-12 teachers
can browse the library's searchable database and engage students with real experts interested in video conferencing with their classes.
Organizations registered with the dHL, like the Art Gallery of Ontario, Royal Botanical Gardens, and Canadian Aviation and Space Museum, have experts in a variety of areas who are interested in sharing their knowledge and experiences with students to help
enrich our classroom programs and provide support for teachers. Field trips and guest speakers are expensive, and in many cases the distances are far too great for students to travel. As a result, teachers can offer only a few of these exciting opportunities
for learning over the course of the school year. The Digital Human Library is a resource that provides teachers and students with unlimited access to these unique learning opportunities, not otherwise available from any other type of classroom resource.
Videoconferencing makes it easy and affordable for teachers to bring the field trip experience into the classroom. Imagine your child sharing stories of adventures to museums, archaeological digs, art galleries, and festivals, or explaining what the class
learned from an optometrist, farmer, and musician! The possibilities are endless . . .
By supporting the Digital Human Library, you are helping to provide students with 21st century learning opportunities that integrate information and communication technology (ICT) into our classroom programs to improve educational achievement, enrich curriculum
experiences, stimulate student interest and curiosity, and increase student engagement and participation. What’s more, when dHL members engage with students in our classrooms, they help students make connections across all areas of the curriculum and to the
world beyond the school, with a focus on how this knowledge will affect their lives in the future, which strengthens the relationships between our communities and schools.
Leigh Cassell
http://digitalhumanlibrary.com
Follow me on Twitter @dhumanlibrary
You can find more info on my Venture page.
