Moving from Acquisition to Integration: Refocusing the Lens on Technology in Teacher Education E-Learn World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government,

Moving from Acquisition to Integration:

Refocusing the Lens on Technology in Teacher Education

E-Learn World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Health Care and Higher Education

Honolulu, HawaiiOctober 16, 2006

presented bySuzanne M. Rose

Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania

How ready are teacher candidates?

In 2002-2003,

36% of public school districts

had some students in the district enrolled

in distance education courses.

Urban, rural, suburban areas

all were represented.

The number of students

enrolled in online courses grows every year.(U.S. DOE, 2005)

What are “millennials?”Students born after 1982

who are technology-savvy

and accustomed to utilizing technology

from birth


In the last 10 years, 99% of our schools have been connected to the Internet, with a 5:1 student to

computer ratio.

90% of students age 5-17 use computers

94% of online teens use the Internet for school-related research

24% of teens have created their own web pages(U.S. DOE, 2005)


The largest group new Internet users from 2000-2002 were 2-5 year olds!

Almost 100% of students ages 12-18 use the Internet.

72% of all first graders used a home computer on a weekly basis during the summer

Over 97% of Kindergarten students have access to a computer at home or at school

(U.S. DOE, 2005)

How “millennial” are teacher candidates?

Scenario: Eighth grade students in a Pennsylvania middle school take field trips to various sites around their school. They use their PDAs (personal digital assistants) to photograph gravesites and other locations that were integral in the Underground Railroad in their county, recording their comments and verbal notes on iPods and PDAs as they do so. Some students utilize digital video recorders to document the process. The students then use the Internet to access Civil War-era newspapers and the National Archives website to obtain primary source documents related to the Underground Railroad, using video clips and sound files they have recorded themselves and those which they have learned to legally download from the web. They distribute their podcast via the Internet to those who have subscribed to their RSS feed.

Are today’s teacher candidates prepared to do these things?

Are they prepared to teach K-12 students who can do these things?

An example online classGrade 8 Advanced English Language Arts

Hybrid synchronous/asynchronous instruction

15 students

An example online classSynchronous Instruction

via iLinc platform (www.ilink.com)

•live video (webcams)

•shared whiteboard

•shared applications

•synchronized web browser

•desktop view for instructor

http://www.ilink.com/

An example online classAsynchronous Instruction

via BlackBoard (www.blackboard.com)

* announcements * writing e-journals

* external links * parent section

* independent work * e-mail

* live class file * online literature circles

* discussion board * tools (gradebook, etc.)

* work portfolios

http://www.blackboard.com/

The innovation . . .Online 8th grade class

connects with

teacher candidates…

What do teacher candidates say about online instruction?

“I would love to participate in a class like this or teach a class like this. I cannot even imagine how much work goes into setting

this class up. I am sure it is not an easy task, but the way it is set up, you make it seem so

easy. As a student today, I think this is a great class. They are able to use the

computer and be online, and they are able to see that they can use all of these things to learn and not just fool around. They are able to chat with each other, which I am sure is a high point, but they are chatting

about things that they have read and their own ideas. I think the class is awesome!”


“I would love to participate in this kind of a class. The students appear to be getting a lot out of their reading. Their participation in the literature circle, from what I have seen, seems to be respectful of the others and thought-provoking for the whole group. I also think that the intimate conversations (though electronic) about the texts allows these students to form an intellectual bond that they might not otherwise (form) if they were discussing the book in a whole-class group or simply reading, answering questions, and taking tests.”


“I think this class is awesome. I have never seen anything like it. I cannot believe the level that these students are achieving. I could not imagine having a class like this when I was their age. I think that this course is truly meeting the needs and learning styles of these students. This interests them, and allows them to interact in a way that is comfortable for them.”

What skills are necessary for online teaching?

Successful online teaching requires

that instructors learn

to go beyond the traditional pedagogies

with which they are comfortable

to embrace more facilitative approaches. . .

“Faculty cannot be expected to know intuitively

how to design and deliver an online course”

(Palloff and Pratt, 2001, p. 23)


Weigel (2000),

stressed the importance of using the Internet

to produce instruction

that capitalizes on the “richness” of the medium,

rather than simply using it

as an alternative delivery system

for traditionally structured lessons.


Candidates need to:

Critically analyze available software and computer-based programs

and learn how to effectively integrate these resources into instruction


Candidates need to:

Experience online instruction as a student and utilize a variety of technological tools

during their own courses.

According to Lundeberg, Bergland & Klyczek (2003)

“. . .personal experience and experiences with schooling may affect the development of

beliefs more than formal pedagogical knowledge gained from courses.”


Candidates need:

Opportunities to develop lessons and units for online instruction.

“. . .It is not the technology itself,

but rather the way in which future teachers use the technology

that has the potential to change education.”

(Carr, Jonassen, Litzinger & Marra, 1998)


Candidates need:

Opportunities to complete “field experiences” with K-12 students in online classes

To understand the concepts of “multiple literacies” and non-linear thinking; and to be able to plan

instruction that incorporates these concepts

Benefits of online instructionEnhanced opportunities for individualization to differentiate instruction

Opportunities for students in remote areas (or with health problems, behavior problems, etc.) to participate in appropriate instruction in a variety of settings

(home, hospital, institution, other schools)

Enhanced motivation for millennial students who are accustomed to using technology on a daily basis

Opportunities to offer courses not otherwise available at the school (i.e. Japanese, advanced mathematics), AP or college-level courses as well as

opportunities for students to retake failed classes as needed

Ability to utilize links to support materials (definitions, pronunciations, explanations, background information) as students need the information while

they are working on a reading assignment or project (information “on demand”

Benefits of online instructionEnhanced opportunities to utilize multimedia (sound, video, photos, paintings) and

source documents (vintage newspaper articles, manuscripts, etc.) to support and extend instruction

Opportunities for students to develop more advanced technology skills in context (word processing, file manipulation (documents, graphics, photos), software

packages (PowerPoint, Word, Excel), Internet searching, etc.)

Opportunities for development of critical literacy skills (assessing the validity of sources, quality of information, bias, intent, etc.)

Enhanced opportunities for global thinking and learning

Access to current content that is not reflected in textbooks or the library and to content that cannot be “packaged” in a text (i.e. live video feeds, simulations)

Allows school to address problems with limited space, overcrowding, faculty expertise, small class sizes

References & ResourcesBruce, B. (1998). New literacies. Journal of Adult & Adolescent Literacy, 42(1), 46-49. Carr, A., Jonassen, D., Litzinger, M.E. & Marra, R. (1998). Good ideas to foment educational revolution: The role of

systematic change in advancing situated learning, constructivism, and feminist pedagogy. Educational Technology, 38(1), 5-15.

Durant, C. & Green, B. (2000). Literacy and the new technologies in school education: Meeting the l(IT)eracy challenge. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, 23.

ISTE. (2000). NETS: National Educational Technology Standards for Students. International Society for Technology in Education. (www.iste.org)

Lundeberg, M., Bergland, M. & Klyczek, K. (2003). Using action research to develop Preservice teachers’ confidence, knowledge and beliefs about technology. The Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 1(4).

Palloff, R.M. & Pratt, K. (2001). Lessons from the cyberspace classroom: The realities of online teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Smith, T.C. (2005). Fifty-one Competencies for Online Instruction. Journal of Online Educators, 2 (2), 1-18.United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Fast Response Survey System (FRSS).

(2005). Distance Education Courses for Public Elementary & Secondary School Students 2002-2003 . Washington, DC: U.S. Dept. of Education.

United States Department of Education, Office of Educational Technology. (2004). Toward A New Golden Age in American Education: How the Internet, the law and today’s students are revolutionizing expectations. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Dept. of Education.

Unsworth, L. (2002). Changing dimensions of school literacies. Australian Journal of Language and Literacy, 25.Weigel, V. (2000). E-learning and the tradeoff between richness and reach in higher education. Change, 33 (5), 10-15.

Documents

Moving from Acquisition to Integration: Refocusing the Lens on Technology in Teacher Education E-Learn World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government,