MSPnet III

An Online Professional Learning Network

Lead Staff:
Joni Falk
Project Staff:
Kim Descoteaux
Kathryn Hobbs
Quang Le

Summary

MSPnet.org is an online professional learning network created to serve NSF’s MSP (Math and Science Partnership) program. It facilitates the sharing of strategies, challenges, resources, and expertise within and across MSP projects. It also helps share lessons learned by MSP projects with the U.S. Department of Education’s MSP program, as well as with researchers, practitioners, and the public at large. Finally, it provides an innovative model of inter-linking e-communities of practice to others interested in developing online learning communities.

This online network offers interactive online poster sessions, interactive panels and webinars, cross-project dialogue, quick find resource search capabilities, and synthesis and research briefs of MSP-authored research.

Current work is being done to include new features and functionalities to ensure that the network stays innovative and up-to-date with rapidly changing technology.

Impact

MSPnet, which was first launched in January 2004 with 351 pre-registered members, now serves over 7,200 members who are affiliated with current or past MSP projects. It has successfully attracted a large public user-base of over 1.5 million unique visitors, who have accessed over 7.4 million page-views. MSPnet’s professional learning network facilitates cross-project dialogue while also providing each NSF MSP project with its own project space, including interactive tools to enhance collaboration between partners.