Global Interactive Learning

Why do children lack geography skills?  Ms. Teen USA’s South Carolina contestant things she knows the answer?  Watch below.

What an interesting email I received from My Wonderful World (www.mywonderfulworld.org).  They are asking people throughout the country to ”become a powerful voice for geographic illiteracy.  They are encouraging all constituents to contact their senators and representatives to urge them to support and cosponsor the Teaching Geography is Fundamental Act (TGIF).”  (No, this is not our college parties.)

 So, I decided to support them and send their letter to my senators and representatives.  Take a look at what the letter tells our senators.

“I am a constituent writing to urge you to help improve the status of geography education in our schools.

Kids will need to understand their world in order to compete for jobs in an increasingly global economy, to help the US meet international challenges from terrorism to avian flu, and simply to enjoy our diverse planet.

Geography provides the framework, as well as new technologies like GIS, for understanding our world. More than just maps, it addresses connections between people, places, cultures and environments.

But sadly, our kids don’t get it. Recent surveys show that Americans do poorly on even basic geography skills. Our kids must be prepared for success in the 21st century. It is time to put the world into a world-class education.

I hope you can help. You can address this issue as you speak to our fellow citizens, ask if our local schools are ready to teach geography and geography-related courses, and be directly supportive of geography education.

Thank you for all you do to help our schools. I hope that you can help put geography education back on the map. Please let me know how I can help you improve the status of geography for our kids.”

Does this sound familiar?  If so, send this letter to your congressperson and also, help me find investors.  This is absolutely ridiculous that I can’t get this idea funded!  Any help would be appreciated.  The need is evident!

Congratulations to Club Penguin (www.clubpenguin.com) for being acquired by Disney!  What an accomplishment,  and, for only $350,000,000 to start, with another $350,000,000 if they meet certain goals by 2009.  That’s fantastic!  (I love writing the 000′s – look at how much they earned by acting on an idea!)  There’s an entrepreneur for you!

 Club Penguin is a site that I often compare Family Mappers to because it is a website focusing on children.  They allow penguin’s to come alive.  The users dress them, keep a home for them and more.  They can also chat with others. 

Family Mappers, by comparison is focusing on the user’s life.  Where do they live, where do they travel, where does their family live, and where do current events occur in relationship to them.  But, it’s focus is children to start. 

 Hopefully Club Penguin’s success will wake up investors and let them know that this will work!  It’s been so frustrating waiting for people to understand the concept.  I have put four years of work into this.  It’s time to stop discussing and start doing.  Hopefully, it will happen soon and Global Interactive Learning will be celebrating a year and a half after it goes live.