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 Photo Paul Nyberg/Special To The Town Crier
Rambus/KCI jointly celebrate innovative teachers at the Nov. 4 reception. From left are KCI Executive Director Gay Krause, Ned and Jimmi Barnholt, Foothill College President Judy Miner, Rambus Senior Vice President Kevin Donnelly and Rambus Human Resources Program Manager Stephanie Webb. Krause Center for Innovation at Foothill College partnered with computer chip developer Rambus of Los Altos to recognize the achievements of forward-thinking teachers during a Nov. 4 Rambus/KCI Innovation Award 2009 reception. The awards committee adjudicated 24 submitted entries based on the number of people served, the significance of the potential to Silicon Valley, creativity and ease of use.
p>Ben Chun of the Galileo Academy of Science & Technology in San Francisco won the year’s top honor and $5,000 prize, presented by Kevin Donnelly of Los Altos, senior vice president (IP strategy) of Rambus. Chun headed the project “Educational Games,” which involved high school juniors and seniors designing educational video games for elementary school students. The project showed promise as a real-world application and demonstrated a cross grade-level connection. Other finalists included Corinne Takara of the Alum Rock School District in San Jose. Takara’s “Thinking Outside the Box” engaged fourth- and fifth-graders in developing creative ideas. Claudia Winkler’s five physics classes at Gunn High School in Palo Alto worked on “Tidbits of Energy,” designing and launching a Web site dedicated to energy information. Tom Sayer of Graham Middle School in Mountain View connects with teachers and students throughout the world with his “Tracing Tea: True International Collaboration.” Judy Estrin, author of “Closing the Innovation Gap – Reigniting the Spark of Creativity in a Global Economy” (McGraw-Hill, 2008), spoke at the event, addressing the need for continuing innovation. “Innovation requires a capacity to change (and) a passion to solve a problem,” said the former chief technology officer of Cisco Systems and co-founder of seven technology companies. “We do have a problem – we have an innovation deficit.” Estrin noted that the necessary core values start with encouraging children to ask questions. Risk – being willing to fail – along with patience and trust are other factors. “You can’t pick one,” Estrin said. “You need balance.” KCI is a professional development center for teaching and learning with innovative educational technology. The center’s objective is to prepare educators to improve student learning through integration of technologies in the classroom and school system. For more information, visit www.krauseinnovationcenter.org.
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