Technology Integration Professional Development in Teacher Education:

Three Different Approaches

Greg Sherman, Ph. D.

Paul Alley

Michael Blocher, Ph. D.

Arizona K-12 Center/ Northern ArizonaUniversity

Abstract

This paper summarizes three different approaches to professional development designed to support the technology integration efforts of methods faculty in NorthernArizonaUniversity's College of Education during the 2002-2003 academic year. The different types of professional development models implemented included an action research approach, a project-based approach, and a direct instructional approach involving a series of technology-specific workshops. Successful individual technology integration projects are highlighted, as well as the overall conceptual technology integration model developed for the education program.

One of the primary goals of NorthernArizonaUniversity’s (NAU) Preparing Tomorrow’s Teacher to Use Technology (PT3) program has been the integration of technology-related content and teaching strategies into the College of Education’s undergraduate teaching methods classes. Until the past year, most of the specific education outcomes addressing the use of computers and other instructional media in the classroom were facilitated exclusively within a single undergraduate course titled “Technology in the Classroom.” This course, required by all elementary education majors, was designed to facilitate basic computer use skills while learning methods of integrating technology within the professional practice of teachers. The course has been able to successfully meet the basic computer needs of the pre-service elementary education students, but for the past few years many of the methods teachers have been increasingly interested in modeling technology integration strategies within their own practice, and those teacher education faculty members who have been trying to keep their course content aligned with national subject-area standards have witnessed an increase in the type and amount of outcomes addressing technology over the past few years.

To help meet the technology integration needs of individual methods faculty, the PT3 staff at NAU initiated a series of planning meetings during the summer of 2002 designed to identify some of the possible ways in which teacher education faculty members might be able to create lessons and projects designed to facilitate technology-related skills within their methods courses. After meeting with various education faculty members to identify their specific technology integration needs, three general approaches to professional development were identified to meet the specific needs of approximately 30 faculty members: an action research approach, a project based approach, and a direct instructional approach involving a series of technology-specific workshops.

The following is a summary of the manner in which each of these three approaches to technology integration professional development were designed and implemented. Specific examples of the types of outcomes accomplished by individual faculty members in NAU’s College of Education are also included:

Action Research Approach

Within the action research approach to professional developmentimplemented during the 2002-2003 academic year, the PT3 staff met with individual faculty members to conduct a simple needs assessment regarding the use of technology within their professional practice. Identified needs were categorized into two basic groups:

1) needs caused BY technology

2) needs may or may not be caused by technology, but solutions might be possible through the application of technology.

Examples of needs caused by technology included the managing increased numbers of e-mail communications due to teaching online courses, designing effective online course materials, and managing electronic communications within web-based courses (i.e. electronic bulletin board management). Some of the technology-related solutions identified for specific needs included developing web-based support material for problem-based learning (PBL) experiences, using computers to present multi-media content within specific classes, and using web-based resources to help build community between and among teams of learners.

Not all technology-related needs and solutions resulted in the development of action research agendas, but some did. For example, one faculty member decided to study the effects of developing and implementing a web-based PBL experience for students enrolled in her multicultural literacy course. Intended performance outcomes and expected attitude changes were identified, and appropriate measurement instruments were developed. Anecdotal data were recorded during the design and implementation of the PBL experience, and following the conclusion of the experience a research/evaluation paper was generated.

Project-Based Approach

The project-based approach to development was similar to the action research approach, with the exception that instructional needs were identified relative to the manner in which technology was integrated into the content of specific education courses (primarily undergraduate methods course). . PT3 staff met with College of Education faculty members to determine ways in which technology might be integrated effectively into their courses, and these faculty members were then immersed in a semester-long development experience where they worked with PT3 staff to create technology-supported material. Some of these projects included the development of an online simulated school environment for induction teachers, the creation of a variety of multimedia resources for specific methods classes, and the development of an electronic portfolio and presentation component to blocks of related methods courses.

Direct Instructional Approach [Technology-Specific Workshops]

The third and most comprehensive approach to technology integration involved the development of a menu of technology-related work sessions for education faculty. These specific work sessions involved helping faculty learn how to use specific technologies to accomplish specific tasks. In these three-hour weekly work sessions, faculty created such basic technology artifacts as personal websites, PowerPoint presentations, and digital graphics with a variety of uses. Figure 1 presents the different work session available within this “basic skills” category of professional development workshops. Additionally, Figure 1 presents descriptions of those work sessions designed to help faculty learn how to apply basic technology skills to the development of technology-enhanced instructional material.

Figure 1: “Direct Instruction”Professional Development Work Sessions

Category / Tools, Software & Media Development Sessions / Products
Basic Web Development / Basic Web Session #1 [individual]: Getting to know your NAU web account
Basic Web Session #2: Overviews of FrontPage, Dreamweaver and Composer while Creating a Personal Website
Basic Web Session #3: Completing Your Personal Website / Personal website including links to course material, content and professional resources, presentations/publication, and vita.
Creating and Working with Images / Imaging Session #1:
-Using Clipart Collections
-Cutting and Pasting from the Web
-Using a Scanner
-Using a Digital Camera
-Screen Captures
Imaging Session #2: Basic Photoshopping / Personal Image
“How to” Sheets
OCR-PDF Documents
Methods Clip-Art Collection
Creating and Using Digital Video / Video Session #1: Capturing video, embedding video with a webpage, using video in PowerPoint / Plan for potential web-delivered and/or PowerPoint video files
PowerPointing for Professionals / PowerPoint Session #1: PowerPoint Layout
PowerPoint Session #2: Advanced PowerPointing-Animation, hyperlinking, and more… / Class PowerPoint information presentations, examples, practice/feedback files, tutorials
Advanced Web Development / Advanced Web Session #1: Creating surveys, css options, advanced navigation features using DreamWeaver
Advanced Web Session #2: Continued advanced web development / Advanced personal/course website
Instructional Design and Support Sessions
The Different Roles of Technology in the Practice of Professional Educators / Instructional Design Session #1: Role of the Professional Educator in Teaching and Learning, & Role(s) of Technology in Teaching and Learning / Profile of Technology Uses in Method Area, plan for integrating technology into professional practice, plan for addressing technology in methods course(s)
Technology-Supported Instructional Strategies / Instructional Design Session #2: Worthwhile learning in the content area; technology-supported instructional contexts, components, & conditions; technology-supported scaffold development
Instructional Design #3: Concept-mapping with Inspiration
Instructional Design Session #4: Creating practice pages with Course Builder extensions
Instructional Design Session #5: “Using the Digital Camera in Methods Classes” and other technology-specific strategies / Profile of worthwhile content-area learning, concept-map of content-area methods, content-area technology-supported problem-based learning experience, instructional scaffolds for methods courses, interactive practice webpage, technology-specific strategies and approaches for methods classes [i.e. “using a digital camera in language arts”]
Technology-Supported Classroom Management Strategies / Instructional Design Session #6: Technology to support a learner-centered classroom; cooperative learning strategies; technology-supported communication strategies; electronic gradebooks / Blueprint for a technology-supported learner-centered classroom strategies, creating mediated communication strategies, cooperative learning management and tracking for methods classes, three different electronic gradebook options
Technology-Supported Continuous Improvement Strategies / Instructional Design #7: Expert reviews, one-to-one evaluations, and education software reviews; collecting evaluation data / Collecting and evaluating data with word forms, methods-specific educational software evaluations