Four Models of Technology Practice in Teacher Education

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Four Models of Technology Practice in Teacher
Education

• International Conference on Innovation in
• Higher Education
• Kiev, Ukraine, May 16-19, 2003
• Nancy Browne, Elizabeth Cooper,
• Mhairi (Vi) Maeers,
• University of Regina, Canada

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Campus /Prairie View
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Elementary Teacher Education at the University of
Regina

• Four year degree program
• Courses taught by faculty members and part-time
  people
• 500 urban and rural students
• Semester 5 6 professional year
• Semester 7 school placement for 13 weeks

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Session Overview

• Introduction
• Interactive Format Conversations
• The Questions
• Introduction to the Models
• Describing the Models
• From Kiev to Regina

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Regina in Spring
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Introduction

• Importance of context
• Technology is one resource in a multi-resource
  environment..
• How can technology enhance teaching and teacher
  education?
• In what ways can technology provide added value
  to what is learned?

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Interactive

• Conversation
• Invite all to participate in discussions
• Ask questions
• E-mail after today

• Collaboration
• Innovation is easier when we work in small
  groups, supporting and challenging each other.

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Questions

• What are schools/field doing with technology?
• What is the focus of technology instruction in
  teacher education?
• How is technology arranged in the program?
• Who teaches technology content?

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More Questions

• What is the infrastructure support for teaching
  with technology?
• What professional development is available for
  instructors?
• What are the rewards?

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The Four Models
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Skills Based Model

• Drill practice, word processing, games .
• Focus run programs
• 2-half day modules

• One faculty technology specialist
• Faculty attend the modules with the students
• Lab with 6 computers, later 15 computers

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Skills and Awareness

• Time added for Windows and more software.
• Other instructors include software in their
  courses

• Workshops on Gopher, Veronica, early Internet
  programs.
• New resource development causes invisible work
  for instructors

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Four Year Plan

• Received a request from a school division for
  computer capable graduates.
• K -12 Curriculum goes on-line
• Content designated for year 1 - 3. Include IT
  in seminar course. Increase time allotted
• Workshops for instructors

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Four Year Plan (cont)

• E-mail, Internet expansion
• Technology plan with content in each year of the
  program. Skills in Year 1 to pedagogy in Year 3
• Year 3 instructors expected to model appropriate
  use
• Instructors talk about integration
• Begin to research and write about IT

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Four Year Plan (cont)

• Faculty and University both identify IT as a
  growth area
• Committees to deal with IT, responsibilities
  overlap
• Decision-making is problematic as committees are
  without lateral lines of communication.
• Some progress, a fair amount of confusion.

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Faculty Infrastructure

• Faculty of Education forms a Technology committee
  to develop a vision and guide decision-making and
  purchases.
• Develops a computer classroom with 20 computers
  for Education courses and student use
• University-wide computer labs increased
  resources.

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Pedagogy Resource Selection

• Determine what resources are available for the
  content to be taught
• Evaluate these resources to ensure that they are
  suitable
• Discriminate which resource(s) to use
• Integrate these resources into a lesson/activity
  at the most appropriate place.

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Pedagogy Critical Thinking

• We discussed the need to have the students use
  questions to help them think critically as they
  encountered resources.
• How could I use this? When would this be
  appropriate? What learners might benefit most
  from this resource? How might this resource be
  supplemented to support learning?

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Pedagogical and Critical Thinking Model

• New teachers expected to be prepared for various
  configurations computer lab, mini-lab (4
  computers) in each class
• More attention to the learning potential for
  computers to support children at risk
• Instructors increase use of technology-related
  resources

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Pedagogical and Critical Thinking Model (cont)

• Course assignments require appropriate use of
  technology
• Requirement that technology be used during
  student teaching
• Instructors deliberately model teach technology
  integration
• Responsibility for teaching with technology is
  shared amongst instructors

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Pedagogical and Critical Thinking Model (cont)

• Infrastructure support and vision get sorted out
• Several high-tech classrooms are equipped across
  campus
• Grants to do course development to put courses
  on-line
• Campus plan to replace computers every four years

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Technology Integration

• Three sequential components of technology
  integration
• Hands-on experience using technology for their
  own learning
• Course assignments that use technology in peer
  teaching
• School-based teaching assignments to practice
  using technology for curricular learning

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Summary

• Questions and Answers Then and Now

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What are schools doing?

• 1980s, technology was a complement or extra,
  repeating what had been taught in another format
• Now, technology is an integral part of many
  in-class activities, a rich resource in many
  subjects

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Focus Technology Content or Pedagogy

• 1980s the focus was on teaching skills to
  students, and preparing them to teach skills to
  children
• Now the focus is on pedagogy and thinking
  critically. Skills are understood as a necessary
  step to using new media

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How is Technology Arranged in the Program?

• 1980s technology was isolated in one or two days
  of learning new skills
• Now, technology is integrated across the program
  with particular concentration in Year 3, the
  professional year
• Direct instruction experiential learning.

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Who Teaches Technology Content?

• 1980s--one computer specialist delivered the
  technology content
• Now-- all faculty are expected to involve
  technology in appropriate ways
• Computer specialists teach courses that focus on
  technology (option)

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What is the Infrastructure Support?

• 1980s -- one time or special funding to buy
  computers
• Now-- the University has policies and plans for
  updating and maintaining equipment
• The Faculty of Education has technical staff to
  support educational uses
• There are many supports for new initiatives that
  involve technology

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What Professional Development is available for
Instructors?

• 1980s -- Fee for service basis in the community
• Now--scheduled and drop-in tutorials on many
  applications
• Need for on-going workshops for instructors to
  experience new media and discuss their use.

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What are the Rewards?

• Now-
• Teaching - it takes extra work to teach with
  new resources
• Research- writing makes this work more visible
• Service- pilot new materials in inner city
  schools, where there is a concentration of
  children whose families live in poverty

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