Announcements

Distance Learning Project Gives A New Twist on The Bard

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Qwest Communications & Jones Knowledge help Denver Public Schools prepare teachers for 18th annual Shakespeare Festival

February 28, 2002 -- DENVER, CO - Beginning Thursday, February 28, Denver Public Schools (DPS) teachers will be able to participate in a newly-developed distance learning program designed to prepare them for the DPS Shakespeare Festival, which is scheduled for Friday, May 10. The program is the result of a collaboration between The Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA), Qwest Communications International, Jones Knowledge™, Inc. and the DPS.

The distance learning project involves videotaping teacher-training sessions and building an online classroom where the taped sessions, interactive resources, support materials, and Shakespeare Festival information and forms are made available to DPS teachers. The online classroom is intended to offer immediate support to new schools participating in the Festival, enhance the current activities of the Festival and reach all teachers of all curricula, providing them with an accessible approach to Shakespeare.

HISTORY
For the past four years, the Denver Center Theatre Academy has offered teacher-training sessions prior to each Shakespeare Festival. The sessions were designed to deepen an understanding of Shakespeare and Shakespearean language, as well as to expand teachers' choices in selecting appropriate Shakespearean text for their students to perform. They also included basic acting techniques; proper use of voice and speech, including projection outdoors; movement, including blocking and staging on a large stage, and choral presentation. To make this training more accessible, the Academy and the DPS embarked on the distance learning project entitled "eShakespeare."

eSHAKESPEARE: THE ONLINE CLASSROOM
The eShakespeare online classroom features one- to five-minute teacher-training sessions, frequently asked questions about the Shakespeare Festival, a forum for teachers to participate in a threaded discussion and downloadable support materials. Topics and their application in the Jones e-education software showcase how technology furthers learning.

THE PROJECT
The distance learning project is the result of several steps:

• Qwest Communications International, through the Qwest Foundation, awarded the project a $25,000 grant for education about, content development for and production of the online classroom.
  
• Eight Denver Center Theatre Academy teachers held training sessions on February 8 and 9, which involved 20 DPS students and several DPS teachers.
  
• The sessions were videotaped by the DCPA's Denver Center Media, a full-service film, television, audio department.
  
• Denver Center Media edited the taped sessions into 19 segments ranging in length from one to five minutes each and compressed and encoded the segments in preparation for online use.
  
• Jones Knowledge assisted in the development of the course for online delivery through its e-education online learning platform.
  
• Jones Knowledge hosted and delivered the course to teachers.
  
• DPS linked to the online classroom from its Shakespeare Festival page.
  

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts presents and produces live theatre through touring shows and a Tony Award-winning theatre company; houses a television, video and recording production facility; offers educational classes for amateur and professional actors, and conducts research with the world's only voice laboratory associated with a performing arts center.

• The Denver Center Theatre Academy is an educational department of the DCPA's Denver Center Theatre Company that provides acting classes to persons two and older and provides professional development programs for teachers.
  
• Denver Center Media is an international and Emmy award-winning full-service video and film production studio that produces arts, cultural and entertainment programming for broadcast and cablecast audiences worldwide. DCM's television productions have been seen on Bravo, Discovery, PBS, BBC, A&E and Starz Encore.

Jones Knowledge™, Inc. is a leader in the development and deployment of online learning solutions. The company's businesses include Jones e-education™, Inc., a learning course management and delivery platform; Jones International University®, Ltd., the first fully online accredited university, offering undergraduate and graduate degrees and executive and professional certificate programs; Jones e-global library®, Inc., a comprehensive suite of online library research tools; and Knowledge Store®, Inc., a comprehensive collection of licensable, high-quality education and training content.

Qwest Communications International Inc. is a leader in reliable, scalable and secure broadband data, voice and image communications for businesses and consumers. The Qwest Macro Capacity(r) Fiber Network, designed with the newest optical networking equipment for speed and efficiency, spans more than 190,000 miles globally.

For an online demonstration, please contact Kelly Gehrke at
303/784-8232 or kgehrke@jonesknowledge.com