PRESS RELEASE

Of interest to editors and journalists covering: 
Education, Children/Parenting, e-Learning, Internet, Women's Interests

						 
ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading, English, and Communication Announces
'Reading for Information' - Free online course for teachers and parents

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - Dec. 1, 2003 /Send2Press Newswire/ -- Besides reading
exciting fiction, children and adults increasingly must read for
information.  Since reading for information requires different mental
skills from fiction, the National Geographic Society, the Indiana
Department of Education, and the ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading,
English, and Communication have just released an online course for
teachers and parents who guide students in these skills.

Reading for Information, a nine-unit interactive course, is now
available free of charge at http://ericreading.indiana.edu under online
courses.

Using the vivid photographs and text from two non-fiction reading series
from National Geographic School Publishing Windows on Literacy and 
Reading Expeditions and the new elementary books of the National
Geographic School Publishing, the course illustrates the differences
between reading fiction and non-fiction.

Course participants learn the techniques for reading and remembering a
wide range of non-fiction material: 
 
	* Descriptions and procedures 
	* News reporting 
	* Two-part text structures, e.g., cause and effect 
	* Arguments and opinions 
	* Biography and non-fiction narratives 
 
 
Professional development credit for teachers

Course participants may achieve professional development credit or
university credit to update teaching licenses, or they may register free
of charge simply to gain the information provided in the course.

Those who register for credit must participate in online discussions and
pass a quiz at the end of each of the nine units.  The Indiana
Department of Education offers professional development credit, and
teachers may receive a completion certificate from the National
Geographic Society as evidence of their participation in an in-service
course that reflects the techniques and strategies used in National
Geographic books.

Reading for Information, an online course, was developed by the ERIC
Clearinghouse on Reading, English, and Communication at Indiana
University in conjunction with the Indiana Department of Public
Instruction and the National Geographic Society.

 
	MEDIA CONTACT:   
		Kristy Miller Calo
		+1-202-857-7618
		of the National Geographic Society
		kmiller@ngs.org 
 


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[ source of news = ERIC Clearinghouse on Reading, English, and Communication ]
ref: http://www.send2press.com/2archive/2003/pr_03_1201-eric.txt 
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