Course Syllabus

Texts & Materials

Description

Instructional (sometimes called educational) technology is becoming an increasingly important part of K-12 education. New and emerging technologies are what your students will be using to learn and complete homework, and it will be what they will use to succeed as professionals in the workforce. It can also be how you enhance learning, improve motivation and engagement, increase accessibility, individualize instruction, and improve communication with parents and stakeholders. In this course, we will learn ideas and skills for integrating technology effectively into your teaching. Specifically, I hope that by the end of the semester, you will be able to:

1. Understand how technologies can enhance their teaching, professional work and communication, and personal professional development.
2. Design technology-enhanced activities and resources.
3. Identify resources to assist you in learning how to integrate technologies in the future.
4. Be motivated and confident in your abilities to learn how to use new technologies in their teaching.

ISTE Technology Standards
My goals for this course and inspiration for the activities are based in part on the National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers from the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE). These are the technology standards most often cited for teachers. A short description of the standards can be downloaded from ISTE. There are also technology standards for your students.

Course Policies
Course policies and assignments are subject to change as we move through the course because, like technologies, technology-enhanced instruction is constantly evolving! I will always give adequate notice of any changes to the policies or calendar.

Required Equipment
There is no textbook required for this course. Instead, you are required to have a flash key drive for backing up your work and access to high-speed Internet and a webcam so you can participate in the online portions of the class. If you do not have this at home, then you need to schedule time to use a computer lab—the one in the MCKB is excellent and they have headsets available for you to participate in online video discussions. Other equipment (i.e. cameras) are available in the TEC lab in the McKay lab as well. For our reading assignments, you will be asked to read the material I present in online discussions, and participate actively every week.  

Important Websites

We use a few different websites for specific purposes in our class. Here they are for reference. 

Course materials, assignments, online discussion, grades, and important information will be available through our Canvas site: https://canvas.instructure.com/

The tutorials, rubrics, and information on acquiring technology badges is at http://iptedtec.org/

Prerequisites

The 276 course for your major (e.g. ScEd 276r for science education) is a PREREQUISITE for IP&T 286. In particular, the Technology Skills Assessment that you complete as part of 276 is a PREREQUISITE for our course. Here is the website for the TSA: http://education.byu.edu/technology/tsa.html

Because of the nature of the course (part online), you must be able to:

• have regular access to high-speed Internet and a webcam
• be able to teach yourself new technologies from tutorials
• be able to self-regulate your learning and stay on task by yourself.

Attendance Policy

You are expected to attend and actively participate in class each week, either in person or through the Canvas site as directed in the syllabus. The following explains the different kinds of class periods listed on the syllabus.

IN CLASS - On these days come to class in our classroom, ready to participate! 

OPEN LAB - On these weeks, participate in the online discussions and activities on Canvas. Participating is more than just leaving a comment once--it's participating in the discussion, typically by commenting and then responding to peers' comments. During these online weeks, there will be an open lab. You do not need to attend the labs, which are held in our classroom during class time. However, you can come if you want to receive help on a project. In addition, you can attend the labs of the other IPT286 sections (held on Tuesday at 4pm and Wednesday at 8am of the same weeks in room 185), if that is more convenient.

WORKSHOPS - These are held in our classroom, on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday during our regular class time (4-5 p.m.). Each workshop will teach a different technology. You must attend at least two 1-hour workshops. We'll talk more about this when we get to the Personal Technology Project.

Participation Policy

This class is heavily based on class discussion, particularly with other students who are in your same subject area so you can share ideas about how to apply the technologies you learn to your own teaching. Thus, part of your grade will be weekly participation both in "class" when we meet together, and in commenting on discussion posts from me and your peers online in Canvas when we have online discussions. Canvas is like Blackboard, Learning Suite, or some other social networking site except that I feel it has features to enable better the kinds of learning we do in our class. In addition, it is free, so you can access the class even after the semester ends and could, potentially, use Canvas yourself as a teacher. In general, I will try to use and model technologies that are free or cheap so you can use them yourselves as teachers, so if you are interested in any of the technologies I am using, just ask! 

Expectations for participation in class when we meet together in person is that you are attentive, engage in the discussion, offer ideas, and come with questions you might have about the technology for your own teaching. Also, please do not use technologies (your own or the ones we bring to class) to distract you or others. Please save email, Facebook, and personal matters until after class and use the technologies in class only for enhancing class discussion.

Expectations for participation online is that you check each week to see what is expected. Typically you will be asked to view a short presentation(s) and then participate in a discussion(s) with your peers. To get full points, you should make a thoughtful and reflective post about the question asked, and then respond to at least one of your peers with something more than a "drive-by posting" (e.g. "thanks!" or "good idea" or "me too"). You should do this for every discussion presented in Canvas that isn't marked as optional.

Grading Policies

You must complete ALL assignments to get a passing grade. You must honestly complete all the work yourself, but you may share ideas with each other.

Late & Makeup Work

Due dates for assignments are listed on the calendar. A minimum 10% late penalty will be assessed for work submitted after the assignment deadline unless I have previously approved a later deadline due to extenuating circumstances. Work that is submitted over a week late will receive an additional 10% penalty for each week late. No late work is accepted after the final day of the regular semester, before reading days and final exams begin.

Assignments can be resubmitted until you achieve the grade you desire up to 90% of the total points IF YOU HAVE TURNED IN THE ASSIGNMENT ON TIME. You also have TWO WEEKS from the time you receive feedback from me to turn in this revised work.

I allow revision of your work because this is the way we learn new technologies: We keep trying and retrying! Note that this benefit of revising your work is only possible if you turned the assignment in on time. 

Gradebook

We will not be using Learning Suite. Instead information will be on Canvas.

Study Habits

In this class, it is very easy to fall behind, particularly if you are unfamiliar with new technologies. Because of this, I have structured all of the major assignments so there is usually part of the assignment due each week, so that it stays manageable. Your responsibility is to know what is due each week. It is best to be in the habit of checking in with the class each week, and expecting that something is due each week.

One of my goals for the class is that you learn how to learn new technologies—because there will always be new technologies to learn! Here are some strategies to help you when learning something new in class:

1. First, check the module in Canvas that I have created for each assignment. I try to explain the assignment thoroughly and answer questions that I have been asked in the past. We have also created rubrics and tutorials for you on most of the technologies being taught at http://iptedtec.org
2. If my tutorials and materials do not help, you can look for more tutorials on Google and Youtube. I can usually find tutorials for almost any technology I want to learn there.
3. You are welcome to attend class any week that you wish to receive hands-on help. When we aren't having a required attendance day or workshop, then we are having open labs where you can come in and get personalized help on your assignments. You may also attend the open "lab hours" of other sections of IPT286, as described in the TA info section of this syllabus.
4. If none of these things helps you, you are welcome to email me or visit me during office hours. I usually respond to email within 24 hours except on the weekends and when I am out of town.

Grading Scale

Learning Outcomes

• technology instruction

  Students will design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessment incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context and to develop the knowledge, skills, and attitudes identified in the NETS•S.