Technology for Educational Adminstration - TEC 933
|
Instructor: John Forbes |
CONTENTS Course Description |
This course is for administrators who desire to use technology to help 1) better manage their schools, 2) to make informed decisions regarding the use of technology to support student learning, 3) to assist teachers in the use of instructional technology to meet their student learning expectations, and 4) accept their role as change agents. The course topics include the use of applications to better manage data needs and a look at issues related to the use of technology in schools. Participants should gain a greater understanding of how technology can be used to increase achievement, improve student and parent involvement, manage campus' more effectively and efficiently, and develop a vision for the future of education. This class is appropriate for all levels of administration, both site and district.
Instructional technology touches on two sets of standards; those technology standards that are part of the ISTE National Technology Standards, which identify standards related to the use of technology, and all other subject area standards where technology is included. This course touches on both, basic technology skills and on how technology can be used in the instructional program to increase achievement toward all subject area standards.
Support is provided via email or phone. Projects and activities are returned on disk or attached to emails for evaluation. Evidence of learning is tied directly to the stated objectives and is assessed via reflective journal entries, response to readings, and required projects in a curricular area.
Education, as we know it today, is an institution that was created for a world that no longer exists. Our Industrial Age schooling model is beginning to break down as we enter the 21st Century and the Information Age. This new vision for schools requires a new type of school, new teaching methods, new learning alternatives, and most importantly, a new way of thinking. Who will be there to lead this change? This course is about that change, of looking at new ways of doing things, of breaking out of our status quo practices and collectively finding a better way, one that results in better managed schools, improved achievement, and happier constituents.
Not only does this course meet all of the ISTE National Technology Standards, it impacts all aspects of school management and leadership. Site and district administration are expected to be curriculum leaders, able to direct resources and programs in such a way that increases learning. Technology will play an ever increasing role in the transformation of education and administrators must be on the cutting edge of that change, must guide and focus that change, and be ready to lead the schools in a new age.
This course is based on the research and writings of a number of futuristic thinkers including: Alvin Toffler (Future Shock, The Third Wave, PowerShifts) John Naisbatt (MegaTrends and Megatrends 2000), and Dr. Howard Mehlinger (School Reform in the Information Age). This course brings into play long standing learning theory regarding feedback, learner centered activities, learner controlled learning, mastery learning, constructivism, and authentic assessment.
Relevant: We live in a different age and our schools are failing because we have not figured it out. This course is to help change the course of education.
Applicable: School administration needs help. They are drowning in work, overloaded with new issues to deal with, and must learn to use technology to help them survive.
Practical: This course deals with situations and applications that every administrator must address including budget preparation, communication with stakeholders, positive school image, increased test scores, and more.
The foundation of this course is based on a book my Dr. Howard Mehlinger, Director of the Indiana University Center for Excellence in Education. This book, School Reform in the Information Age, is a definitive work on the difficulties taking place in our schools today and how technology can be used to positively impact learning and management.
There is a lot of thinking required of each participant, the intent of which is to change people’s way of thinking and as a result, their behavior. We talk about data-driven decision-making but this requires skill and knowledge on the part of the decision maker, whether it be a teacher or administrator. You cannot talk about school reform, data, student centered learning, mastery learning, or any other current or reform movement, without the involvement of technology. It is the foundation upon which all school reform will rest and we need leaders that are ready to build this new school system.
Participants will:
The Syllabus
is available in PDF format.
Course Manual
Manual
The following files are PDF versions of the course manual. You can download any chapter, save it on your hard drive, view it on your screen, and/or print it. The following files require Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Assignment Booklet: This booklet contains all the assignments that must be completed for this course.
The following file is a Zip compressed folder which contains all the files necessary for you to complete the course. Make sure to place this FPUExcel folder on your computer's Desktop.
Support Website
Copyright © 1998 - 2006 by Dennis L. Funk. All rights reserved. No part of this website, including downloads, may be transmitted, stored, or recorded in any form without permission from the author. If you are officially enrolled in any of the classes listed above, you are permitted to download, use and print any portion of the course materials.