Linda had arranged with Dawn Arno to meet on the 24th at 1. Dawn had first say that we would meet at TC, then moved the meeting to the Gordon Campus, then cancelled the meeting that morning. Through a series of miscommunications, we finally found ourselves at the GC at 1 where we met for an hour with Yaowen Chang (whom I recognized because she has worked for many years for George Schussler in Academic Computing)

As it came out during the meeting, Yaowen Chang recently got her Ed.D. in Instructional Technology working with John Black. She is now on the staff of the TC EdZone as “Instructional Technology and Research Specialist” (from the staff page of the TCEZ web site 2005-06).

I had arrived a little before 1 and found myself waiting with a construction worker for someone to come and open the door for us. Paola Heinke who is generally at a desk where she can see those who seek entry was absent, and noone answered the phone at the suggested extensions. Eventually someone who works for TC Innovations (the only other part of TC listed as having offices at GC) happened by, let us in and signaled our presence to YC. They seemed to be the only two persons on that floor.

During the first 20 minutes, I talked with her by myself and spent most of the time talking about our project, showing our web site, and explaining why we wanted to meet with Arno.

[I had the feeling that she did not know much about the project]

After realizing that Linda and Eckson were in fact standing at the door (again no way to signal their presence!), they joined us and most of the remainder of the meeting was YC telling us about the programs of the EdZone.

She started with Reading Buddies, a tutoring program bringing together students from TC (who get some sort of financial aid for doing this) and children from 3 schools (in 2007; it had been 4 schools last academic year). TC gives criteria about what children it wants to work with and the schools send children. One of the practical difficulty with this model is the matter of attrition in the TC students who find themselves overextended. Getting commitment for them is difficult. There are thus more tutors in the Fall than in the Spring. YC calculated that the program was serving around 72 children this spring 07, and that it had served up to 120 in the Fall.

TCEZ is starting formal evaluation of the program but the general impression of the TCEZ is that this model is working well and that the children and their parents are certified.

Then YC talked about Math Buddies which started this year and follows the same model but seeks students who are not “the bottom of the bottom.” She showed us a picture of one tutor and four kids sitting on the floor in a school, pointing out that they are using “manipulatives” in the “constructivist” mode.

She also mentioned some of the work the TCEZ is doing at the Bronx International High School, and mentioned TC faculty involved (including one “whose name make me think of James Bond” said YC). She talked about Bond’s involvement as having something to do with social studies.

[she did not seem to know much about this]

She spent some time on some of the Saturday programs that involve the families of the tutored children. This include geometry workshops [?], pottery and sculpture workshops (she showed us some of the art displayed in the offices). The approach is from “cognitive psychology, not surprising since I am a student of John Black’s!” There workshops in developing job skills, test preparation, introducing children to computers (to help break the “digital divide”). She linked this to her work in instructional technology.

The two schools she mentioned were
PS 123
CS 200

TCEZ has also done some work with churches, particularly through the contacts that Dawn Arno has with “the community.” YC mentioned the school at Riverside Church and Arno’s “good relationships with the community.”

TCEZ used to have a social work component but not anymore.

On a question about funding, YC mentioned the TC trustees putting up money.

[she did not mention the two large grants ($1,500,000 each) that are listed on the TC web site for grants received in 2005]