National Captioning Institute to provide captioning for electronic field trip

From: BSU - Mar 9, 2005

Live broadcasts from the National Museum of the American Indian are expected to reach more than 15 million viewers in 49 states and will include captioning funded through a National Captioning Institute federal grant.

Newly opened Native American Museum featured in Electronic Field Trip

MUNCIE, Ind. – Students across the country will be some of the first visitors to the recently opened National Museum of the American Indian during Ball State University's next Electronic Field Trip March 22.

Viewers will be guided through the broadcast by the museum's cultural interpreters — who represent a variety of Native American communities — and students from Irving Middle School in Norman, Okla., and Indian Community School in Milwaukee.

The broadcast will be the first distance-learning event from the Smithsonian's newest museum. The hosts of the show will share stories from their own communities, said Mark Kornmann, director of Teachers College outreach services.

"Families everywhere collect and pass on stories to preserve their traditions. For many Native American communities these stories represent a unique perspective on history and culture," he said. "Through these stories, students will experience the diverse cultures among Native Americans and have a better understanding of how many indigenous people preserve, share and practice their traditions today."

The live, interactive field trip, sponsored by Best Buy Children's Foundation, will air at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. EST. The 90-minute broadcasts are expected to reach more than 15 million viewers in 49 states and will include captioning funded through a National Captioning Institute federal grant.

Throughout the broadcast, viewers are encouraged to call in with questions or submit them online in a live discussion forum. Videotaped questions can also be submitted and will be aired during the broadcast — see the Web site (www.bsu.edu/eft) for details. Viewers can register to receive the Internet broadcast from the site or check local cable and PBS listings.

"The Web site is also an integral part of the field trip," Kornmann said. "Before the broadcast, teachers can find lesson plans that focus on how a native place is defined and how traditions carry Native American culture. They'll also be able to preview the museum's exhibits."

The remainder of the E3 2004-05 season includes:
• "Discovering Our American Spirit: Finding Common Ground in the National Pastime," April 26, from the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Cooperstown, N.Y., featuring Ozzie Smith, Hall of Fame shortstop.
• "Biological Invasion: The Introduction of Nonnative Species," May 10, from San Francisco Bay

E3 Electronic Field Trip partners include the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum; Space Center Houston/NASA; the National Park Foundation; Garfield and PAWS Inc.; the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum; and four Smithsonian entities ─ The Environmental Research Center, National Museum of the American Indian, National American History Museum and National Air and Space Museum.

-30-

Layne Cameron
Media Relations Manager
Ball State University
(765) 285-5953