Learn about the latest discussions, trends, and current happenings within the NSDL community by following the NSDL Annual Meeting in Washington DC, November 16-19, on Twitter. Sessions include a panel focused on cyberlearning, updates on NSDL projects, as well as showcasing new NSDL Pathways such as SMILE (informal science education) and ENSEMBLE (computing education).

Last month, SimSE was awarded one of the 2009 Premier Awards for Excellence in Engineering Education Courseware. SimSE is a game-based educational software engineering simulation environment that allows students to practice “virtual” software engineering processes in a graphical, interactive and fun setting. The direct, graphical feedback enables students to learn the complex cause and effect relationships underlying software engineering processes. During the game, the student takes on the role of the project manager and directs engineers to perform typical process tasks. SimSE helps bridge the gap between the conceptual knowledge about software engineering that is presented in lecture but that often times is not fully explored or practiced in assignments or projects. CATME/Team-Maker, a peer evaluation instrument, was also recognized in this year’s Premier Awards.

Spark your students’ curiosity and hone their inquiry skills with free DragonflyTV Nano educational resources. Sign up for this free NSDL/NSTA Web Seminar, Thursday, November 11th at 6:30pm Eastern Time to learn more about nanotechnology and how to incorporate related online materials into your teaching. Dragonfly TV features six half-hour episodes dedicated entirely to nanoscale science and technology. These videos feature captivating scientist profiles, nanoscale zooms into common objects, and real kids doing inquiry-based investigations at science centers and universities nationwide.

The Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network (CLEAN) Pathway will steward a broad collection of educational resources that facilitate students, teachers, and citizens becoming climate literate and informed about “the climate’s influence on you and society and your influence on climate.” The CLEAN Pathway will integrate the effective use of the resources across all educational levels – with a particular focus on the middle-school through undergraduate levels (grades 6-16) as well as to citizens through formal and informal education venues and communities. Learn more about the plans for this new NSDL Pathway.

Applications for next year’s Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Program are now available online. Spend a year in Washington D.C. working in a professional staff position for congress or within a federal agency. You can view the current list of Einstein Fellows on the Triangle Coalition for Science and Technology Education website.

Charles K. Kao, Willard S. Boyle, George E. Smith - Nobel prize winners in Physics for 2009. This week’s announcement by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences honors these scientists for their foundational work in areas that have revolutionized modern life: information technology, and digital photography. It’s a great opportunity to utilize NSDL’s ComPADRE Physics & Astronomy digital library to locate resources from multiple collections in the areas of fiber optics, lasers, and photoelectric effect, including Physics Classroom (tutorials for students), Physical Sciences Resource Center (PSRC), Physics Source introductory physics course materials, Physics to Go (self exploration of physics topics) and many more.