This link has been bookmarked by 6 people . It was first bookmarked on 25 Mar 2008, by someone privately.
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10 Jan 11
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10 Apr 08
Hugh HughesProfessional Development in Technology, 2008
Jim Gates is fond of quoting from Camelot: "If you want to be happy, learn something." As a technology trainer for Pennsylvania's Capitol Area Intermediate Unit, Gates spends much of his time trying to help teachers learn a very specific thing: using technology to improve curriculum.
Many of the professional development strategies that Jim Gates uses— incorporating technology into curricula, bringing teachers together at conferences, providing mentors so that technical assistance is always available— are espoused by CDW Government, Inc. (CDW-G), which monitors the state of educational technology, offers technological advice, presents a vast array of hardware and software products, and provides customer support.
Chris Rother is CDW-G's vice president of education. She sees some recent major shifts in the types of training in technology that currently exist for K-12 teachers and staff:
The biggest shift has been away from regularly scheduled professional development sessions to a just-in-time approach to professional development. With this new approach, teachers regularly communicate with an on-site instructional technology specialist, enabling them to quickly and efficiently address any questions or issues. This is the most effective method to ensure that teachers are constantly engaging and integrating technology. The instructional technology specialist's ongoing assistance and support encourages teachers to try new teaching methods and reinforces material taught during more formal professional development sessions.
This shift to accessible professional development can't be emphasized enough. It's no longer sufficient for teachers to attend a workshop, learn a slew of computer applications, and then be expected to use those applications when they return to their classrooms. Educators like Gates are continually making the point that professional development needs to be always accessible and always relevant: The technology is a way to make the instruction more engagi -
08 Apr 08
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from Camelot: "If you want to be happy, learn something."
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The biggest shift has been away from regularly scheduled professional development sessions to a just-in-time approach to professional development. With this new approach, teachers regularly communicate with an on-site instructional technology specialist, enabling them to quickly and efficiently address any questions or issues. This is the most effective method to ensure that teachers are constantly engaging and integrating technology. The instructional technology specialist's ongoing assistance and support encourages teachers to try new teaching methods and reinforces material taught during more formal professional development sessions.
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This shift to accessible professional development can't be emphasized enough.
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development needs to be always accessible and always relevant: The technology is a way to make the instruction more engaging; it's not an end in and of itself.
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"As teachers become more tech-savvy, professional development focuses on the seamless integration of technology into the daily curriculum, rather than on merely how to use technology."
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more needs to be done. Once the importance of professional development in technology is acknowledged, funded, and implemented, there's no end to the potential of really meaningful instruction.
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25 Mar 08
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14 Mar 08
Caroline Bucky-BeaverArticle - focus on accessible professional development, just in time
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