Friday, May 24, 2002

An Online Course Teaches Educators to Use Technology in the Classroom By BROCK READ Most teachers are eager to incorporate technology into their courses, but fewer know how to use it "to enhance their learners' understanding, rather than as a goal in and of itself," "Teaching to Standards With New Technologies" Institution: Harvard University Instructor: Martha Stone Wiske, co-director of the Educational Technology Center at Harvard's Graduate School of Education When offered: Fall and spring sessions Cost: The course, which is not available for credit, costs $495 for students who enroll early and $595 for others. Enrollment: About 30 students have enrolled in each course session. URL: Information about the course is available here. says Martha Stone Wiske, co-director of the Educational Technology Center at Harvard University's Graduate School of Education. In an online course she developed, Ms. Wiske hopes to train educators to use a wide range of technologies, but to do so with curricular goals in mind. The course, "Teaching to Standards With New Technologies," defines its students and its subject matter broadly. Ms. Wiske estimates that elementary- and secondary-school educators make up about half of an average class, but postsecondary teachers, corporate trainers, and software designers also enroll. And while computers and the Internet are focuses of the course, Ms. Wiske says she welcomes discussion on "whatever technologies they consider to be new to them" -- including video presentations and graphing calculators. The 14-week course is divided into eight sections in which students complete reading assignments (some online, some in a workbook they purchase). Ms. Wiske posts a summary of key concepts at the beginning of each section, and students then interact on a discussion board and work on assignments. Most assignments ask the students to contribute to their main project: the development of a lesson or course plan they can use in the classroom. Over the course of "Teaching to Standards," participants identify a concept they want to teach, list activities using technology, and assess their own plans and those of their colleagues. Students can develop their course plans individually or in groups; either way, they are paired with other designers whose work they critique. Ms. Wiske also groups students into study teams, which are coached by her assistants -- usually teachers who have already completed the course. The give and take among her students is the course's greatest asset, according to Ms. Wiske. "The real power of the Internet is that it fosters interaction and peer-to-peer learning," she says. Ms. Wiske also hopes that students benefit from the course's focus on hands-on learning: "Our notion is that understanding is not something you get in your head," she says. "It's a capacity to apply your knowledge creatively and reflexively to practice." "Teaching to Standards With New Technologies" is one of a set of professional-development courses for educators that the graduate school provides online. Ms. Wiske has taught the course for four years. Easy-to-print version E-mail this article

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