Many of the examples in this article illustrate the use of technology in connecting beyond the classroom walls, but most of the examples are of a single class working on a specific project that is then shared with a limited audience. Other experiences and technological applications have engaged our students well beyond these limits, and because these other experiences are generally conducted in English, students are able to further develop their bilingual oral and literacy skills.

Kaho'olawe Soil Testing

In a previous year, sixth-grade students worked on a science project that took them to the uninhabited island of Kaho'olawe, which until recently was used by the U.S. Navy as bombing target range. Due to the heavy bombing over several decades and grazing by feral goats, Kaho'olawe suffers from severe erosion and soil depletion. Students had already made observations, measurements, and comparisons of soil erosion on various sites on the island of Hawai'i. Toward the end of the school year, students took a multiday excursion to Kaho'olawe, made additional observations and measurements, and made comparisons of data from Kaho'olawe sites with those previously done on the Big Island. To reach the island, students and leaders had to be dropped off by boat some distance from the shore, carrying any belongings in waterproof containers, and then had to swim the remaining distance to the shore. Upon their return, the students analyzed their data, checked to see if their hypotheses were supported by the data they gathered, and made generalizations based on their new learning. Because the äina (land), in general, and Kaho'olawe, in particular, have so much cultural significance, this project provided multiple opportunities for language and cultural development beyond the scientific study of soil and erosion.

24 Hours in Cyberspace

In February 1996, our fifth-grade kaiapuni (immersion) students participated in the international 24 Hours in Cyberspace project created by Rick Smolan and the team that produced the photo essay book A Day in the Life of America. More than 100 of the world's top photojournalists participated in the project, documenting different cyberspace activities and projects at sites throughout the world. The program at Keaukaha was specifically selected because of the use of technology in a language revival effort, particularly in connecting with other language immersion sites. This particular project at Keaukaha was paired with another immersion program on the island of Maui. The images and reports from all of the featured sites were transmitted digitally back to the project's headquarters in San Francisco, California, where they were assembled and displayed on a Web site with updates added throughout the day and weeks following. A permanent Web site was established, and a 24 Hours in Cyberspace book and CD-ROM were published. Portions of the project were also featured on national newscasts. According to Eastman Kodak, one of the sponsors of the project, the Web site was the first one added to the Smithsonian Institute's permanennt Web site.

The photojournalist sent to Keaukaha accompanied and photographed the children working on a project called Nä Wahi Pana o Keaukaha (the sites of cultural importance in Keaukaha). On this day, elders and members of the community accompanied the fifth graders on a walking tour around the Keaukaha area and shared information with the children about each of these culturally significant sites. At one such site, Puhi Bay, the double meaning of puhi (eel and spouting water) was discussed with students. Students took digital photos of each site and later created accompanying written texts using Claris Works software. These electronic images and texts were printed and bound into a book for use within their class and a digital copy also was recently incorporated into Keaukaha Elementary's Web site. Text and pictures also were sent as e-mail attachments to another immersion site on the island of Maui as part of the 24 Hours in Cyberspace experience. The students on Maui also developed a similar project in their own local area and transmitted copies of their information for our students to use within their geography studies. Information from both sites eventually will be made available on the Internet to all other immersion sites and Hawaiian readers, with the hope that all immersion sites will create similar geographic and cultural electronic archives.

I Have a Dream

In anticipation of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s, birthday, we initiated a school project to develop poems by individuals and classrooms describing dreams that we have. This was preceded by units of study on justice, discrimination, and civil rights. We established a schedule for when each poem was to be completed, and the poems were sent cumulatively throughout the school campus local area network via e-mail. As each class received the electronic message and attached poems, they added their own poem and forwarded the entire message to the next class. The project eventually became an international project when it was posted to a listserv. Contributions were received from as far away as England, Germany, and Japan. The entire collection of poems will become part of the Keaukaha Elementary's Web site.

Other Online Activities

Immersion students throughout the state of Hawai'i are encouraged to submit stories and artwork for publication in the immersion newspaper. Submissions can be made either electronically or by mail, and the newspaper is available in both electronic and paper versions. This issue features photographs and a description of the garden-planting activities of a kindergarten class and a letter sent in by a fourth grader. The handwritten letter was scanned and loaded into the digital newspaper.

E-mail has also been an important application for students because it provides them with authentic opportunities to use their Hawaiian written language skills with peers of about the same competence level. Attachments of audio files also can be sent along with the e-mail messages, which provides another mode of communicating with Hawaiian speakers. Each of these message exchanges also provides for meaningful opportunities to rehearse, revise, and edit. The fourth-grade class corresponded with "keypals" from another immersion program on Oahu using Leokï. Their first messages were Kid Pix software-created self-portraits with unscripted impromptu audio recordings to introduce themselves to their partners. One student, Ikaika, stated that he likes physical education class and described where he lives. Another student, Kemomi, told her keypal that she is 9 years old, described where she lives and goes to school, and wished her partner a happy new year. (Due to the size of this file and the long download time, it is not included here.)

This same class used Leoki to conduct balloting to select a favorite song. When a song was suggested that students at Keaukaha were unfamiliar with, the other class created a Kid Pix picture, recorded the rap song "Bulaia," and sent it as an attachment to e-mail.

Other Technology

In addition to the computer software, hardware, and telecommunications capability, cable television is another avenue our students use to connect with the outside world. Using distance-learning programming originating from O'ahu, our students were able to learn about Polynesian voyaging, an ancient art and science mastered by their ancestors that is still alive today. They were able to track and talk with the Polynesian voyagers in February 1995 as three large double-hulled Hawaiian canoes set sail to Tahiti using traditional navigational techniques. These noninstrument techniques include careful observation of ocean currents, bird migration patterns, cloud-mass movements, prevailing winds, and extensive knowledge of the stars. Students again tracked the voyagers in April and May 1995 when the canoes completed their journey on the return trip. The students' connections with the voyagers were made even more personal because they had participated in chants at the departure blessing ceremonies from Hilo Bay. Students compiled electronic scrapbooks using digital cameras to capture images of the canoes and crew members during the ceremonies.

The canoes carried radio systems tracked by a special system on board the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration polar-orbiting satellites; the data were processed in parallel by Service Argos in Maryland and by the University of Hawai'i satellite oceanography laboratory. The real-time location coordinates were listed on an Internet site, which were downloaded daily by the children. The combination of distance-learning programming on cable TV, Internet access, the personal contact with the voyaging canoes and crews, and hands-on experiments in class enhanced the students' knowledge of Polynesian voyaging. More importantly, these varied experiences gave the children a deep sense of self-worth by learning from the past and gave them self-pride for being able to use the cutting-edge technology of today.

CNN Newsroom, a daily national cable television news program, keeps our students connected to the national and world community. Students in fourth through sixth grade watch the programming daily. Teachers particularly like the daily lesson plan, available online, which suggests classroom discussion topics and provide numerous related activities. Although the programming is in English, discussions and follow-up activities are conducted in Hawaiian by the classroom teachers, which makes programs such as this ideal for bilingual language development.