John Ruskamp Discusses the Internet

John Ruskamp, executive assistant principal at Kelly High School in Chicago, Illinois, discusses how the Internet has made his students, who come from an inner-city environment, competitive for the job market and college entrance. Excerpted from Learning With Technology: Merging Onto the Information Highway, produced by NCREL in 1994.

"Certainly here at Kelly high school, the internet has made our students competitive in the job market and for college entrance. Where they come from an inner city environment, they are now able to compete equally with students from more privileged schools. The teachers and students that use the internet here at Kelly high school are more collegial. Often the teachers will come to the kids to find an answer, and conversely, the students are learning side by side with the teachers as they jointly explore a whole new medium. There's a lot of fellowship, a lot of friendship, a very easy-going inner-personal style that develops among the staff and students that breaks down the traditional formal roles, and I believe it enhances the learning environment."