Malaysian Official Visits Campus on Net

A Port Hueneme school that has garnered national recognition for being a pioneer in the use of the Internet received international attention Monday.

Charles F. Blackstock Middle School, which was recently named a National Blue Ribbon School, was visited by Malaysia’s top education official.

Blackstock Principal Robin Freeman showcased her school’s high-tech environment to Tan Sri Datuk Wan Mohd Zahid, director general of Malaysia’s Ministry of Education.

“He toured several of our classes and observed students using mathematical software,” Freeman said.

Zahid read about Blackstock’s high-tech infrastructure--which includes a high-speed Internet connection and a local fiber-optic network--in an Internet newsletter, Freeman said.

She said Zahid is interested in installing such infrastructure in Malaysian schools.

Zahid is in the United States to attend an education conference at Harvard University and decided to stop at Blackstock for the tour, Freeman said.

“He was very impressed,” she said. “He didn’t want to leave.”