April 2003 — Seeds of Innovation
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Teacher Models of Technology Integration
{\rtf1\ansi\deff0{\fonttbl{\f0\fnil MS Sans Serif;}} \viewkind4\uc1\pard\ri5500\lang1033\f0\fs16\par Since 1995, 100 technology projects nationwide, consisting of partnerships among local school districts, universities and businesses, have been engaged in implementing five-year projects funded through the U.S. Department of Education's (ED) highly competitive Technology Innovation Challenge Grant (TICG) program. The program requires awardees to develop "innovative applications of technology and plans for fully integrating technology into schools."
\par\par Abstracts, on ED's Web site, of the TICG projects awarded between 1995 and 2000 reveal that 34 projects specifically described technology integration as a focus of the project and another 12 referred to "technology-rich" curriculum, "technology infusion" or "embedding technology" into the teaching and learning process. As a result, the work done by these grantees is important in identifying models for teacher integration of technology, which may be shared or replicated by other districts in addressing No Child Left Behind's technology goals.
\par\par This article, the first in a series of articles on the impact of TICG programs organized around major themes, will provide examples of best practices in technology integration from five TICG projects, representing school districts in 15 states.
\par\par Professional Development
\par\par According to Yepes-Baraya (2002), "Integrated technology is technology that supports and enhances the achievement of specific teaching and learning goals." In order to assist teachers in developing fluency in using technology in support of the teaching and learning process, most TICG projects engage in ongoing professional development activities. Two of these projects are AMERICA 2000 in Louisiana and the Regional Educational Technology Assistance (RETA) program in New Mexico.
\par\par AMERICA 2000 employs a professional development model that targets training to ongoing needs assessments, as well as provides support for teachers as they develop fluency in integrating technology for project-based learning and real-world applications. Along with face-to-face workshops, the project delivers classroom-embedded online professional development workshops - focused on student-centered constructivist learning - that are delivered over a six to eight week period to provide training and support as teachers are applying new skills in their own classrooms. As a result, 94% of teachers surveyed said that the project has provided them with improved skills in the use of technology (Weston 2002).
\par\par To evaluate the classroom impact of training, AMERICA 2000 employs a protocol during classroom observations to determine the degree of technology integration. This is based on students' and teachers' levels of skill and comfort in using technology to carry out instructional tasks. A recent project evaluation report states: "During year five observations, 92% of computer-using classes were observed to be proficient in their use of ... technology to a developmentally appropriate level. Classes also exhibited proficiency in the hands-on use of other project-pro-vided technologies, such as digital cameras, video cameras and graphing calculators" (Weston 2003).
