Student Orientation Guide American Bar Association Division for Public Education

2 Welcome The American Bar Association (ABA) Division for Public Education is pleased to welcome you as a participant in the 2011 National Online Youth Summit (NOYS). We trust this year’s (NOYS) topic, “It’s the Law: Guarding the Nation’s Health” will be of interest to you and engage you in vigorous debate with your peers.

3 What is NOYS? A national, web-based civic engagement program designed by the ABA Division for Public Education The opportunity to learn about and critically evaluate a different timely, law-related topic with a virtual community of your peers The 2011 topic will provide the opportunity to study, research, and analyze health-related issues, and engage in civil online discourse An ongoing, online discussion with students in your class as well as with students from around the country

NOYS Participants This year’s NOYS: –12 schools –9 states Participants hail from Pennsylvania, Michigan, California, West Virginia, Connecticut, Alabama, Illinois, Texas, and the state of Washington.

5 Orientation Overview The Student Orientation will assist you in becoming familiar with NOYS, specifically: NOYS Terms Effective Communication Online Conduct Student Responsibilities

6 NOYS Terms Asynchronous –Asynchronous means “happening at different times.” Classroom discussion is “synchronous” discussion, occurring at the same time. –With asynchronous discussion, participants contribute to the discussion over periods of hours, days, or weeks, at different times. FuseTalk –FuseTalk is the web conferencing software. –Registered users are able to enter a FuseTalk discussion board only with assigned login names and passwords. –Users are then able to read messages posted by other registered users and respond to the messages. Discussion Board –Student participants will communicate with one another via an online Student Discussion Board.

7 Posting Instructions It is very important to post as instructed by your teacher. Doing so ensures that: Your message appears as part of the appropriate discussion thread. Your teacher and other students can find your message and reply to it.

8 10 Tips for Effective Communication 1.Follow directions for NOYS activities –Discussions will center on a particular activity with a prescribed beginning and end. –Your teacher will provide you with activity instructions and homework due dates. 2.Stay on topic. 3.Construct well thought-out statements. 4.Include facts to support your opinions.

9 5.Paragraphs should be short: no more than 3-4 sentences per paragraph related to an idea. 6.Use a new paragraph to express each idea. 7.The discussion board is a civil discussion forum. Do not use all CAPS when typing. 8.Insert double-spaces between paragraphs for the ease of the reader. 10 Tips for Effective Communication

9.Prior to posting a message, complete your work in a word processing program to perfect your draft, correct your spelling, and check for complete sentences. When you have a final draft, cut and paste your post into a Message and post it into the appropriate Topic. Your teacher may require you to print out your posts to keep in a portfolio to hand in upon request. 10.Be respectful of others, their points of view, and their skills. 10

11 Who’s Who on the Board? Three distinct signatures: Teachers Example: John Smith (T) Brentwood High School Students Example: Mark K. Middletown High School *Again, for security reasons students are to use only the first initial of their last name when posting a message. ABA Staff Example: Atticus Finch, ABA staff

12 Online Conduct and Responsibilities The ABA FuseTalk forum site is a private site. ONLY individuals who have been issued login names and passwords may access it. The rules and reminders that follow are for your safety!

13 Reminders The discussion board is an educational environment. Participation in this program is a privilege. Do not share your FuseTalk password with anyone other than your teacher. No personal information is to be exchanged in an online discussion. Participate in your assigned Categories. Your teacher will know the names of your assigned Category. Photographs of you or other students are not to be transmitted through the discussion board. Rules and behavior that apply to your conduct when you are in your classrooms in school also apply to you when you are in a discussion board.

14 Conclusion Welcome to the National Online Youth Summit!