9454766 Billings The Community of Learners is the joint proposal of two Maine public school districts and Bowdoin College that have already worked together successfully to obtain and implement the Beacon School Project, largely funded by the National Science Foundation and part of its State Systemic Initiative. This proposal has five major objectives that have far-reaching educational significance: 1) To accelerate and enrich the intellectual dialogue within the region through the development of an information network. 2) To reach out to the community and share developments in science, mathematics, and technology. 3) To empower students intellectually through the use of technology. 4) To provide teachers with access to current information so that they can develop new approaches to curriculum and learning. 5) To provide a level playing field for all students in order to eliminate distinctions based on gender and socio-economic class. The proposal depends on four related strategies. They are: 1) To develop a data network that connects public schools, local libraries, and community centers, to households, to the Internet, and to a regional voice/data interactive video system. 2) To establish a broad-based program for the education and training of a Community of Learners that includes students, teachers, citizens, and businesses. 3) To construct a model for teaching that focuses on problem- finding and problem-solving. 4) To disseminate practices and findings both regionally and nationally to encourage other districts to develop Communities of Learners of their own.
