EDCI 5825: Enhancing Classroom Curriculum with Computers (TCPCG)

First Summer Session - June 3 – July 8, 2009 Wed. 9 am - 3pm - Library 403
Class web site: www.taskstream.com/ts/ceglie/Technology.html Password: TCPCG
Robert Ceglie - rceglie@gmail.com Office Hours: By arrangement

Course Description
Preservice teachers will be exposed to the major theories of technology integration, positive and negative
applications of technology, legal and ethical issues, educational technology for diverse learners, and successful
incorporation of various elements of technology for teaching and learning. Students will develop awareness and
familiarity of various technology applications and develop lessons based on meaningful integration of the tools
offered by this technology. Students will also produce various projects using multiple technology formats to be
posted in their Task Stream Portfolio. The goal of the course is for preservice teachers to achieve a greater
understanding of issues, tools, and techniques related to the integration of educational technology in educational
settings.

Course Purpose & Technology Standards

The purpose of this course is to instill within preservice secondary teachers a set of technological skills and
techniques which can be successfully transferred to their teaching methodology. The course encompasses
effectively identifying, locating, evaluating, designing, preparing, and efficiently using educational technology
as an instructional resource in the classroom as related to principles of learning and teaching. Effective teachers
can apply the National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS•S) as they design, implement,
and assess learning experiences to engage students and improve learning; enrich professional practice; and
provide positive models for students. All preservice teachers will address the following standards. Teachers will
begin to learn to:
• Facilitate and Inspire Student Learning and Creativity
• Design and Develop Digital-Age Learning Experiences and Assessment
• Model Digital-Age Work and Learning
• Promote and Model Digital Citizenship and Responsibility
• Engage in Professional Growth and Leadership

Course Objectives
The following statements describe the course objectives for this course. All students will:
1. Evaluate and select new information resources and instructional technology innovations based on their
appropriateness to specific education tasks.
2. Plan for the management of electronic instructional resources within a lesson design by identifying
potential challenges for diverse populations of students, including students with exceptionalities and
students needing assistive technology tools.
3. Apply current research about successful teaching strategies using online tools and information resources
to increase productivity, promote creativity, and facilitate academic learning.
4. Apply instructional strategies using a variety of media and formats to collaborate, publish and interact
with peers, experts, and other audiences.
5. Analyze the benefits of technology and online resources to maximize student learning and facilitate
higher order thinking skills.
6. Design and adapt technology-enriched learning activities that connect content standards with student
technology standards to meet the diverse needs of students.
7. Develop an understanding of the safe, legal, and ethical uses of digital information and technology,
including respect for copyright.
8. Explore, evaluate, and integrate technology resources including online applications (tutorials), video and
images (youtube, digital pictures, video editing), communication (discussion boards, email, podcasts),
information sharing networks (blogs, wikis), educational Web sites, and software.
9. Develop skill in the use of presentation technology for instructional purposes.

Summer 1 2009 Integrating Technology Ceglie

Course Accommodations
Students requiring accommodations due to a disability should register with the Center for Students with
Disabilities (www.csd.uconn.edu) or the University Program for College Students with Learning Disabilities
(www.upld.uconn.edu). Individuals cannot receive accommodations unless the faculty member receives
notification directly from the CSD or UPLD. Faculty cannot accept requests that come from other UConn
offices or agencies that are not UConn-affiliated.

Course Materials
The following resources are required for this course:
o Laptop Computer with Wireless Capabilities
o Assigned readings available online

Course Expectations
It is imperative for each person to be intellectually engaged and actively involved in our class sessions; being
reserved will interfere with your learning potential as well as compromising the experiences for everyone else.
You must be prepared for class and ready to participate. Grades at the end of the course will be calculated as
follows:
A = 94-100% A- = 90- 93.9 % B+ = 87-89.9 % B = 84-86.9 %
B- = 80-83.9 % C = 77-79.9 % F = < 77

Course Absence and Late Work:

An assignment turned in late will be assessed a 10% penalty for each day after the due date that it is received.
Because of the pace of the summer sessions and the entire program, no distinctions are made between excused
and unexcused absences or lateness. In the event you are unable to attend all or part of a class, you are to send
an email to the course instructor, the Program Director (michael.alfano@uconn.edu) and Monica Gat
(monica.gat@uconn.edu) explaining the circumstances. This is a professional courtesy and does not excuse the
absence or tardiness; rather it simply lets those who ought to know about your situation. Arrangements for
obtaining materials and information are entirely the student’s responsibility.

Conceptual Framework Connections:

This course culminates with each teacher candidate preparing a Technology Integration Project. This work is
presented on the Taskstream Portfolio and represents evidence of Theme 1: Learning, of the NSOE Conceptual
Framework. Student work provides evidence of Element 1 (professional knowledge base) as candidates
demonstrate an understanding of technology integration to foster learning in culturally and linguistically diverse
settings. In addition, students demonstrate evidence of Element 2 (evidence based practice), as their work
demonstrates academic expertise in the use of evidence-based professional practice.

Course Assignments
Each student’s performance in this course is based, in large part, by the quality of work on these tasks:

STUDENT PRODUCTS

1. Weekly Reflections (due by midnight of each class meeting)…. 5 weeks x 5 points each = 25 points
Somewhere between the end of class and midnight of the same day, you are to send an email to the instructor in
which you respond to the following questions:
a. What were the notable ideas you acquired today?
b. What additional information do you still desire at this stage?
c. What requests / suggestions can you have for subsequent meetings?

Summer 1 2009 Integrating Technology Ceglie

2. Weekly Discussion Thread (due by the next class meeting)…. 5 weeks x 10 points each = 50 points
Each week a question regarding instructional technology will be posted on Husky CT
(http://huskyct.uconn.edu/webct/entryPageIns.dowebct ). You are to respond to the question and post a reply
to one other person’s response.

3. Philosophy of Educational Technology…………………………………….Due June 17 = 20 points

In this assignment, you are to describe your current ideas for the use of technology in your classroom. As with
all philosophy statements, your ideas will change over the course of this class and over the course of your years
of teaching. The goal is to use your basic understandings of learning theory to discuss how you think about how
and why you will use technology in your classroom. Make sure you indicate your intended subject/grade level.
Using iLife (GarageBand, or an ipod) you will create a podcast of this philosophy statement. You are to upload
the podcast to taskstream, along with a copy of its text, and this will be one part of your e-portfolio. Some
ideas for you statement include:
• What theory/ies are guiding this philosophy?
• What purpose does the technology serve?
• When and why will technology be used?
• How do you ensure technology use for all students? You might think about classroom organization?
• How can/does technology support learning needs for diverse learners?
• Provide some examples of what you will use.
• How will you evaluate if the use is effective?

4. Electronic resources evaluation ……………………………………………Due June 24 = 25 points

All technological tools are not created equal. Many teachers begin to use technology because they are
pressured to do so by peers, supervisors, and parents. Using a critical lens, investigate five instructional
technology “tools.” Your evaluation will be in two forms: a) a written evaluation of each of the 5 resources, b) a
technology evaluation rubric which rates each of the five tools.
In doing so, please address the following ideas:
• What is this tool replacing? Is it an advantage?
• Does the technology: align with technology standards, content standards, and the current curriculum?
• Does the technology: facilitate learning, reach a diverse population, and address differing ways of
learning?
• Is the technology: easy to use, age appropriate, level appropriate, provide guidance, offer levels of
instruction, and provide feedback for the users?
• Does the technology: seem to have a sound theoretical or research basis?
• Evaluate the cost, usability (training), ease of use, and required hardware/software.

For the rubric portion, use Rubistar, rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php . Cut and paste the created rubrics into the
written evaluation (part a). This project will be uploaded to taskstream as a part of your e-portfolio.

5. Teaching lesson using technology ……………………………………...Due July 1 = 30 points

During your general methods course, you will have begun to create lessons. For this assignment, you may use
something created in that course (or something original) and enrich the lesson using technology. Ideally, this
would be a part of a lesson that leads to a more substantial lesson included in your Unit Plan that you complete
as a part of the TCPCG program.
The way you enrich your lesson is up to you. You may create the lesson around technology or have technology
as an element of the lesson. At least one technology tool should be used (other than Powerpoint), although
depending on your comfort and topic, it may be appropriate to touch on a few technology tools. The lesson will
be presented to the class as a part of a brief (5-10 minute) mini-lesson. The underlying goal is to integrate
technology into a lesson in your content AND use Powerpoint as your tool of instruction. You will email the
final product to the instructor.

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6. Technology Integration Final Project ………………Draft due July 6, final edits July 8 = 100 points
The objective of the final project is to create an online educational blog. This is intended to be a practical
application of the lessons acquired in this class. Ideally this blog would be something that could be updated and
used during your future teaching experiences. Using the www.blogger.com site, or www.edublog.org , create an
educational blog for your future classroom. Although this may be the template for something that is modified
over time, its use for a class in the fall would be a desired goal.

This task is intended to correspond with the various objectives of this course. To that end, it is expected that
each student will be working on this each week. The final presentation of the projects will take place in our final
class.

Each blog site should contain 10 of the 14 tools below. The ones with the * are required by all.

1. RSS feed links* o One page or site devoted to

2. Embedded Video (youtube) * support diverse student
3. Images * populations
4. A worksheet for a Podcast o Online netiquette and safety
5. A worksheet for a simulation activity 10.3 documents * (one should be your tech.
6. Online assessment (quiz/test)* philosophy, at least one should be shared
7. 5 Blog entries* on google docs)
8. A parent portion of the site 11.A skeleton of a relevant webquest
9. A section or tab devoted to: * 12.Contact information and about you *
o An online calendar 13.A link to a baseball site – just seeing if
o An online scientific calculator you are reading 
o A web dictionary 14. A worksheet for an educational game
o A language converter (jeopardy)
o An online textbook or trade 15. Anything else cool and educative
book (?Google Books)

In addition to emailing me the link for your site, students will also email the instructor a short reflection
(written, videotape or audio podcast) that addresses the following:
• Discussion of how your view of instruction technology have or have not changed over the
semester.
• Discuss the quality and appropriateness of what you have learned and created this semester.
• Evaluation of you comfort moving forward with technology.

Summer 1 2009 Integrating Technology Ceglie