Volume 4, Number 1 1996
Developing Teachers and Their Institutions for IT in Education: An Integrated Approach
Niki Davis, Colin Kirkman, Penni Tearle, Chris Taylor, and Bruce Wright 3
The Development of Integrated Media Cases for Use in Elementary Science Teacher Education
Katherine S. Cennamo, Sandra K. Abell, Edwin J. George,
and Mi-Lee Chung 19
National Developments and Possible Impact of Inservice Professional Development: "Sit and Git" Technology Inservice Alternatives
Cathy Gunn 37
Computer Conferencing and Moral Discourse
Helen L. Harrington and Kathleen Quinn-Leering 49
Relevant Social Studies Education:Technology and Constructivism
Cameron White 69
Developing Teachers and Their Institutions for IT in Education: An Integrated Approach
Niki Davis, Colin Kirkman, Penni Tearle, Chris Taylor, and Bruce Wright
University of Exeter School of Education
Exeter EX1 2LU, Devon, UK
The development of Information Technology in teachers' professional work and its development within organisations appears to occur in phases, rather than one smooth transition. While the final ideal state where IT is infused and used naturally throughout education will remain unattainable, given the rapid development of the technology, this paper describes strategies to move towards it, including preparation of student teachers to use IT during their initial training. This paper draws some lessons from those on this development trail in universities and schools who have been reflecting on the range of strategies appropriate and the related models of professional development. This included a national project in the UK to improve IT in teacher education called Project INTENT. The paper considers strategies for individual development, additional issues arising for the development of practice across a group, and the necessary development for organization as a whole and strategies which assist the development of this infrastructure. Undoubtedly, new strategies will be required in the future, but the aim will remain the same: To improve the quality of teaching and learning. The process will also be the same: Agents and those undergoing professional and institutional development are learners constructing new practice in both personal and social contexts.
The Development of Integrated Media Cases for Use in Elementary Science Teacher Education
Katherine S. Cennamo, Sandra K. Abell, Edwin J. George, and Mi-Lee Chung
Purdue University
LAEB 1442, West Lafayette, IN 47904, USA
This paper discusses the design of a series of case-based interactive videodiscs used for coaching preservice science teachers to become reflective practitioners. In this paper, we describe the development of the videodiscs, the HyperCard stacks, and the formative evaluation process. Next, we describe the resulting integrated media cases. And finally, we identify design features present in our materials that may be appropriate for materials developed in other content areas or with other technical platforms. We feel that the lessons we have learned can be of value to materials developers, instructional designers, and teacher educators interested in developing similar integrated media materials in other content areas.
National Developments and Possible Impact on Inservice Professional Development: "Sit and Git" Technology Inservice Alternatives
Cathy Gunn
Center for Excellence in Education, Northern Arizona University
P.O. Box 5774, Flagstaff, AZ 86011-5774, USA
This paper is based on reaction to a recent Board of Director's report by the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) that calls for college of education faculty to pro-actively meet the challenge of new forms of professional development to address national political concerns in the United States as it effects K-12 school reform, teacher education and universities. The article describes a Northern Arizona University telecommunications, multimedia and environmental education professional development project and discusses innovation efforts to address AACTE challenges.
Computer Conferencing and Moral Discourse
Helen L. Harrington and Kathleen Quinn-Leering
4216A SEB
The University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1259, USA
Responsibility is at the heart of professional morality. Various models of moral reasoning and development suggest that moral meaning making is illuminated in how inclusively obligations to others are considered. Finding ways to help prospective teachers develop a more inclusive understanding of their professional obligations is a goal of many educators. In this paper we discuss the potential that computer conferencing activities have for providing opportunities for moral discourse and, in turn, expanding prospective teachers understanding of their professional responsibilities. Our analysis clearly indicates that computer conferencing activities provide students with the opportunity to engage in moral discourse and to attend to the consequences of actions as they discuss educational policies and practices. Both the form and the content of the discussions illuminate students' moral meaning making and have the potential to influence patterns of thinking and behavior.
Relevant Social Studies Education: Integrating Technology and Constructivism
Cameron White
College of Education, CUIN 5872, University of Houston
4800 Calhoun Street
Houston, TX 77204-5872, USA
Social studies teacher education desperately needs a shot of innovation. It is not because social studies in schools today is "good" but could be better; it is much more basic than that. Today the relevance of social studies is in question. Changing that perspective calls for a radical reform of social studies education, and that begins with the way we prepare social studies teachers. Many college students enter teacher education programs thinking that imparting knowledge is the fundamental goal of teaching. If you define "fundamental goal" by looking at what most teachers do, it probably is, particularly in social studies. Instruction in schools today is defined and practiced as the transmission of knowledge rather than a process of interaction and construction of knowledge (Brazee & Kristo, 1986; Shor & Friere, 1987).