"It's pretty simple, really. If resources are not mapped to our state standards, teachers just won't use them... period," said a conscientious North Carolina teacher, folding her arms resolutely across her chest. "We just don't have time!" That was never a problem at the SAS inSchool Summer Institute held at SAS Institute and Cary Academy in Cary, NC.

North Carolina teachers are luckier than most. Courtesy of a two-year grant from the Bank of America Foundation, all public middle and high schools have access to Curriculum Pathways^® from SAS inSchool. In this three-way partnership, Bank of America worked with the NC Department of Public Instruction and SAS inSchool; the result is unprecedented state-wide access to SAS inSchool's award-winning digital resources.

Teachers needed time to learn how they might best use Curriculum Pathways to meet the varied needs of their students. So 100 teachers began planning for the coming year by exploring Curriculum Pathways and its wealth of teaching ideas, web sites, and other online student activities. Teachers were overwhelmingly positive about the resources, not only because they are mapped to state and national standards, but also because the design and format streamline the planning process.

Verna Motteler, social studies teacher at Washington High School, Beaufort County, NC, particularly liked the flexibility of Curriculum Pathways: "Our computer lab is always crowded, and many times we can't get our classes in there when we need to. SAS inSchool social studies resources are a great fit because they are flexible enough to be used with one computer or an entire lab."

Ed Hodges, a U.S. history teacher at Washington High School, uses a computer projector to introduce an activity to the whole class and then prints out the handouts as he needs them. "Students can do a whole lot without ever going to the computer," he said, "and it really saves time!"

Last year, Motteler used Curriculum Pathways to teach world history in a more interactive way. She set a goal to increase her use of technology as a way to enhance her teaching. The resources created so much excitement, however, that she ended up going far beyond that goal.

Instead of merely reading about World War I, students immersed themselves in "Letters From the Front" and learned through the experiences of soldiers who lived and died in the war. Then students put themselves in the role of a soldier and wrote letters of their own.

"They experienced history instead of reading about it," said Motteler.

Teachers were grouped into the core academic disciplines. A fifth group included instructional technology leaders from the state, district, and school levels. This arrangement allowed instructors to the focus on academic content or issues directly related to each participant's needs.

Sessions were led by SAS inSchool personnel, and each group planned instruction and incorporated digital resources that map to the NC Standard Course of Study. Many teachers brought their plan books and pacing guides. One group actually planned an entire year's work in the two-day session!

Attendees seemed delighted to have the luxury of planning time. One enthusiastic English teacher from West Carteret High School commented, "Now I just can't wait to get back to school and try this!"

To learn more about the U.S. history resources Verna used, explore this link:
http://www.sasinschool.com/products/us_history/

To read about other resources for Modern European history, explore this link:
http://www.sasinschool.com/products/european_history/