Educators and Others Can Take Part April 10-30
ALEXANDRIA, VA., April 10, 2000 -- PBS.org today debuts "NEW AMERICANS" (http://pbs.org/newamericans), a companion Web site to the documentary miniseries of the same name by Kartemquin Films -- the award-winning makers of "Hoop Dreams." The television program is slated to air on PBS stations in 2002.
Visitors coming to the Web site April 10-30 can participate in a live learning adventure -- while the documentary is being filmed -- by following three of its subjects, Barine Wiwa-Lawani, a Nigerian now living in Chicago, and Ricardo Rodriguez and Jose Garcia, Los Angeles Dodgers recruits from the Dominican Republic taking part in spring training.
Educators, especially, are invited to log on and follow Barine and Ricardo's regular dispatches, take part in a real-time Q&A, and the chance to learn more about the immigrant experience -- first-hand.
The PBS.org NEW AMERICANS Web site will feature:
Join the Adventure
Starting with background information on the immigrants and their native countries, this section offers regular dispatches from the two correspondents on location, plus video diaries, and a bulletin board for users to discuss the experience as the stories unfold.
Immigration: America's Story
Offering an interactive timeline that uses audio, video and still images, this section allows users to trace the history of immigration in the United States from 1492 through 2000.
Perceptions & Misconceptions
Exploring the many factors that shape our ideas about immigrants, this section features interactive U.S. citizenship tests, a study of films portraying the immigrant experience and a list of famous and notable people who have come to America from other lands.
Immigration - Close To Home
Providing visitors the opportunity to trace their own heritage, this section includes links to genealogy tools, a place for site users to submit their country of origin, and ideas for ways to study immigration in your community.
Teacher Guide
Designed specifically for educators, this section suggests a path for teacher exploration of the site and features a special bulletin board for teachers, lesson plans, essay and debate questions and project ideas that help students examine the effect of immigration on the settlement of a nation.
The NEW AMERICANS Web site is a production of KCET, in collaboration with PBS Online and Kartemquin Films, with funding provided by the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations.
PBS.org, PBS' award-winning site on the World Wide Web, produces high-quality Web programming as it pioneers the convergence of television and the Internet. PBS Online features more than 85,000 pages of content, as well as companion Web sites for more than 400 PBS programs and specials. PBS ONLINE has won the prestigious Webby Award for best TV Web site in 1998 and 1999. In January 2000, Yahoo! put PBS.org at the top of its list of the best Web sites of all time.
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