Web Design in the Classroom
Instructional System Design
Sarah Showalter
Date 12/11/07
Revised 2/27/08 with final results of trail run training

Table of Contents

Introduction ………………………………………………………………….. 2
Problem……………………………………………………………………….. 3
Learning Goals ………………………………………………………………. 2-3
Organizational Context ……………………………………………………... 3
Needs Assessment Procedure ……………………………………………….. 4-5
Assessment 1: Focus Group …………………………………………………. 5-7
Assessment 2: Face-to-Face Interviews …………………………………….. 7-9
Prioritization of Needs ………………………………………………………. 9-10
Learning Objectives …………………………………………………………. 10-13
Assessment Plan ……………………………………………………………… 14
Scenario to Situate Learning ………………………………………………… 14-16
Instructional Strategies ……………………………………………………… 15-26
Implementation Plan ………………………………………………………… 26-32
Formative Evaluation Results  Revised February 27, 2008…………………. 32-49
Revision Plan …………………………………………………………………. 49-52
References ……………………………………………………………………. 52
Appendix A …………………………………………………………………… 52-64
Appendix B …………………………………………………………………… 65-69
Appendix C …………………………………………………………………… 69-71

Web Design in the Classroom
Instructional System Design
Sarah Showalter
Date 12/11/07

Introduction

The focus of this training is to explore the use of Web Design in the classroom to help you achieve curriculum goals. The training will guide you through several planning stages with the end result being a complete backwards design unit plan with examples that is ready to be implemented in your classroom. Ideally, you will then implement this plan and share the results with your learning group. Finished projects will focus on one of three areas:

1) Web design as Portfolio and Critiquing Tool
2) Web design as Presentation Organization Software 
3) Web design as a means for Journaling and Reflection

Problem 

Too often technology staff development is bumped in favor of School Improvement Plan meetings and training. At the October school Technology Committee Meeting, the administration asked if we could work on developing a staff development plan for one of the spring in-service days. After some discussion it was determined by the members of the committee that the school has purchased many software programs that are never used because many teachers do not even know they exist. 

Knowing how to use the programs is not enough. Teachers need ideas for how to infuse technology into their classroom. There is no sense of community after training sessions have been completed. Training should also promote the building of learning support networks so that learners can reflect on successes, failures and problems that arise during and after the initial training. The problem that is being addressed in this staff development plan is, “How can a community of learners infuse technology into the curriculum rather than building up a collection of software skills and support one another in order to sustain those skills?”

Learning Goals 

The goal for this staff development plan is to train teachers in a program that they can easily apply to a unit in their 3rd -5th grade classrooms. This training will be centered on three learning/classroom applications:

1) Web design as Portfolio and Critiquing Tool
2) Web design as Presentation Organization Software 
3) Web design as a means for Journaling and Reflection

Teachers will be expected to develop a backwards design lesson/unit plan that they wish to implement in their classroom to support a curriculum goal. The training will focus on the program Web Blender, an easy to use WYSIWYG web design program that vaguely resembles Microsoft Power Point, as well as online tutorials and information databases that can be used to research quality information for the project. Classroom research projects as well as portfolio critiquing and reflection can be accomplished with this web design program and it allows students to present their finished projects in an online format. 

After this training teachers will be able to: 

•	Create backwards design lesson plans that infuse technology into curriculum.
•	Create a Webpage using Web Blender Software.
•	Create Graphic Organizers using Inspiration/Kidspiration to plan and organize their project.
•	Utilize online tutorials such as “Recipes 4 Success” http://www.myt4l.com/ and “Atomic Learning” to help them learn a new program.
•	Share their successes and failures with a community of fellow learners.
•	Demonstrate to their students how to use the Web Blender software in a future classroom project.
•	Practice good researching and works citing techniques to ensure integrity.
•	Conduct a reflection and critiquing session with their students.

Organizational Context 

The organization for which this training is being designed is Seoul American Elementary School. The school services children in grades K-5 with a population of about 1,100 students. The students are mainly children of US military families however many are ESL students and speak Korean as a first language. There are approximately 70 full time educators on staff. This includes classroom teachers, specialists, special education teachers, literacy facilitators and ESL teachers.

At the October school Technology Committee Meeting, there was a concern expressed by one of the computer teachers that too many classroom computers are not being used. She expressed an interest in getting teachers to use every computer in the school, rather than letting them “collect dust.”

Some of the problems discussed at that meeting were as follows: 

•	A survey could be developed to assess teacher needs. 
•	However, all surveys have to be approved by the administration and the union. 
•	Surveys almost never make it past the union.
•	Even if a survey listing all the software that the school owned was developed, many teachers have no idea what the software does
•	There is a list of all the approved DoDEA software programs that has descriptions for what each program does
•	However, the list is very long and would take far too long for the teachers to read in order to do the survey
•	The district has subscribed to a number of services that they would like to see used more often
•	One such service is the “Recipes 4 Success” website (http://www.myt4l.com/) that offers tutorials on popular programs another similar web site is “Atomic Learning”

One major problem with the computer and software situation is that teachers do not have time to explore all of the software possibilities on their own. Teachers also vary in their technological abilities. What may be easy for some would be much more difficult for others. Some teachers may need one-on-one instruction and help during the training and often these needs are ignored. Sometimes, after training, it is difficult for teachers to see how the technology can be applied to fit their curriculum needs.

This training should focus on not only showing teachers a practical way to infuse technology into their curriculum, but result in a project that they can take back and successfully apply right away in their classrooms. During the training, teachers will be asked to:

•	Develop a unit plan that they wish to infuse technology into
•	Explore programs and online resources that are available to them
•	Develop their own prototypical example for their unit that they can use to instruct their students
•	Share successes, failures, experiences and findings as they work through the training and begin to try the new ideas in their own classrooms

Needs Assessment Procedure

Because of the problems expressed with surveys at the Technology Committee Meeting, it seems that the best way to assess needs is to conduct a focus group and interview teachers one-on-one to help determine the needs of the staff. 

A Focus Group will allow for larger group dialogue and debate on topics related to the training. Interviews will help the interviewer obtain a more personal outlook on past and present training situations, and the level of comfort with technology.

Both the Focus Group and the Interviews were carried out and the results are included in Appendix A.

Assessment 1: Focus Group

Topic: What is the most effective way to present a training program that infuses technology into the curriculum?

Background and Objectives:

The purpose of this focus group is to gather information from various teachers about how to best present a training program to the faculty. The group will be introduced to the idea of using Web Blender to create a lesson plan that infuses technology. This lesson plan can be used to present a report, for reflective purposes or for portfolios. 

Rationale

A focus group would allow a group of teachers to sit down and voice their opinions in a group-forum setting about what they would do to improve training programs at the school. Since, surveys are so hard to gain approval for; this would be a good alterative that allows one to gather a larger sample of teacher opinions and thoughts at one time. The forum setting will allow them to debate and justify their ideas to other members of the focus group and will help create a better picture of what previous technology training sessions were lacking. The focus group setting will allow the facilitator to add extra questions to the discussion as the topic evolves so that new ideas, opinions and possibilities may be explored.

Sampling Strategy

For this focus group, it seemed to make sense to include some members of the school Technology Committee. Because it is a backwards design plan and involves curriculum standards it also made sense to include two Curriculum Implementation Facilitators (CIFs). The two ETs were also asked to join because the plan involves technology integration. Since the final project can also potentially involve research and school computer labs, the information specialists may also have a stake in this plan because they are the ones who will have to assist students and classroom teachers as they gather information for their topics once the training has been completed.

Therefore, the list of invited participants and their status are as follows:

Name	Position	Member of the Technology Committee?	
James	CIF/ESL Teacher	No	
Paula	CIF/Sure Start Teacher	No	
Diane	ET	No	
Maria	ET	Yes	
Amy	Information Specialist	Yes	
Kathy	Information Specialist	No	
Sandra	Computer Teacher	Yes	

Meetings: 

Meetings for this focus group were conducted immediately after school over a two day period. Each meeting was about 50-60 minutes long. This allowed the participants to reflect on what was discussed and bring back any new concerns or opinions they may have for the training project the following day.

Once the training has been implemented, it may be beneficial to gather these participants again to see if they feel that the needs of the staff members have been met and to see if they have any suggestions for revision.

Moderator:

For this particular focus group I selected Sandra as the moderator. Sandra was the one who expressed a concern for the lack of computer use in the classrooms and is very interested in seeing something done about it. Sandra has a personal interest in the topic and has good organizational and leadership skills. She is adept at keeping groups focused and on task and would ensure that everyone’s opinion is heard. 

Questions for Discussion: 

Overall Question: What is the most effective way to present a training program that infuses technology into the curriculum?

•	How many training sessions should be conducted? 
•	Should the information be presented all at once or broken up into several days?
•	Should this training be for the whole faculty or should it focus on one particular group? What grade level students are most successful with these programs?
•	What programs other than Web Blender may teachers need help with, in order to complete the task?
•	What materials will teachers need to bring? What are the expectations of those participants?
•	Would teachers be interested in learning about these programs?
•	How can information be presented?
•	What standards should they be aware of?

Two additional topics that came up as a result of the discussions were:
•	What kind of application process should be implemented (if any) for participants?
•	Will copyright infringement problems be addressed?

Assessment 2: Face-to-Face Interviews

After conducting the Focus Group, the purpose of the Face-to-face interview is to get an idea of: 1) the comfort level of teachers in the school with regard to technology and 2) whether or not teachers from different subject areas may be interested in the training. 

Although the Focus Group already gave a wide range of opinions concerning the needs of the faculty and how the training should be conducted, the face-to-face interview allows the teachers to elaborate on past experiences with in-services, express their level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction and express any concerns they may have about future trainings. Face-to-face interviews also give the teachers to opportunity to communicate about whether they would be interested in the training that is being proposed and if they feel that this training will meet some need. 

Before beginning the interview participants may be asked to fill out a short survey in the form of a checklist to help gather quick data on how they currently use computers and technology in their classrooms. 

The Korea 2007-2008 FETC Application (found in Appendix C) already provides an adequate checklist to obtain this data. The checklist elements that are relevant to the interviews are reproduced here:

Technology Checklist

Where and how do you use computers with your students?

 In the classroom (2-3 computers)			 In a lab setting (1 PC per student)             
 In collaborative groups				 Keyboarding
 Individually					 Writing process
 Assessment					 Research
 Science labs					 Projects

What technology are you comfortable using?

 Smartboard					 InFocus
 Elmo						 Video Cameras
 Digital Cameras					 Microscopes
 School Webpage					 Library World
 Email						 Electronic Gradebook
 Microsoft Office					 Curricular Software
 Video Editing Software				 Reading Counts/SRI/Read 180

After the participants fill out the checklist, the checklist may be used to help guide the following possible interview questions: 

Topic 1: Technology Level of Comfort

1. How often do you use your computer?

2. Are you comfortable using:

E-mail?

The Internet?

Microsoft Office Programs (Word, Excel, Power Point, etc.)?

3. How often do you use these programs?

4. Do you ever use computers to support instruction in your classroom?

5. Would you like to infuse more technology into your curriculum?

6. Would you be interested in training on how to use a simple web design program that can be used to support student projects, create portfolios or support class websites?

Topic 2 is based more on reflective questions than Topic 1. The participants are being asked about past experiences at in-service sessions and how they felt about the information that was presented and the method of presentation. 

Topic 2: In-Services and Training

1. When you attend training, how do you prefer to have information presented to you? (Ex. Visual, lecture, assigned readings, demonstrations, discussion, activities, examples, etc.)

2. Which would you prefer: a long training session on a topic, or shorter, more frequent training sessions?

3. In your experience have past staff development sessions at our school successfully met or addressed your needs as a teacher? 

3a. If so, what needs did they fulfill?

3b. If not, what was lacking?

4. During past training sessions have you felt as though you came away with something that you can immediately use in your classrooms? (I.e. something that addresses some curriculum or instructional need?)

5. Do you feel adequately supported before, during and after a training session?

6. Do you agree with this statement, “When at a training session I feel like I am part of a learning community?”

	6a. if so, explain why.

	6b. if not, explain why. 

7. If you could change something about the way that training sessions are conducted, what would it be and why?

These questions should be used as a guideline for the interview; as a checklist to make sure all points are covered. However, if a teacher feels like talking or expressing their own concerns, they should be free to talk about them as long as it is on topic. 

Prioritization of Needs

After conducting the interviews and revising the goals the needs were placed in this Prioritization Tool Grid from: http://www.brooklyn.liu.edu/fw/portfolio_resource_guide/g3.htm

The results are as follows:

1. Infuse Technology = 4
2. Learn Web Blender = 2
3. Use Online Tutorials = 1
4. Create Graphic Organizers = 0
5. Practical Application of Technology = 5
6. Build Community of Learners = 6
7. Training Follow Up and Reflection = 3

So, in terms of priorities, the ranks are as follows:

1.	Build Community of Learners
2.	Practical Application of Technology
3.	Infuse Technology
4.	Training Follow Up and Reflection
5.	Learn Web Blender
6.	Use Online Tutorials
7.	Create Graphic Organizers

In the end, it seems that a community of support is the biggest issue followed closely by practical applications of technology. Of course, some of these are interrelated, having training follow up and reflection can be considered part of a successful learning community, but it still shows the need for more support and personal attention in the school regarding technology use. 

Learning Objectives 

In the previous section the goals were stated as follows:

After this training teachers will be able to: 

•	Create backwards design lesson plans that infuse technology into curriculum.
•	Create a Webpage using Web Blender Software.
•	Create Graphic Organizers using Inspiration/Kidspiration to plan and organize their project.
•	Utilize online tutorials such as “Recipes 4 Success” http://www.myt4l.com/ and “Atomic Learning” to help them learn a new program.
•	Share their successes and failures with a community of fellow learners.
•	Demonstrate to their students how to use the Web Blender software in a future classroom project.
•	Practice good researching and works citing techniques to ensure integrity.
•	Conduct a reflection and critiquing session with their students.

The ultimate goal of the training is for teachers to take what they have learned back to their classrooms and integrate web design into a Backwards Design Unit Plan that addresses curriculum standards in their own classrooms. The teachers should allow the students to create their own web pages as a means for portfolios and critiques, presentation or information or for journaling and reflection. The specific applications of the training will differ for each teacher. However, the primary objectives will be the same.

Teacher Training Objectives:

Day 1

•	During the course of the training, teachers will create their own prototypical examples of a finished portfolio web site, information presentation web site (such as a biography or lab report) or a journaling and reflection website that they can use as an example in their classroom that follows the “Sample Project Rubric” of their choice and at least 80% of the guidelines for good web design as stated in the “Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist” and proper information citation.

•	After viewing a finished sample project of how web design can be used to support learning, teachers will identify and discuss at least three curriculum standards that they see being addressed in the project in a group discussion and summarized as discussion notes.

•	After reviewing how to login to databases, teachers will explore the information available to begin collecting data and pictures for use in their own prototypical examples following the “Sample Project Rubrics” and utilizing proper citation methods with no major errors.

Day 2-3

•	After researching information on their topic, teachers will use Inspiration/Kidspiration to plan and organize their website information into topics and arrange at least 5 possible web content pages with a graphic organizer made in Inspiration/Kidspiration, following the “Sample Project Rubric” as a guideline for page content that includes a content /index page and a Works Cited page as two of the possible pages.

•	While using the new programs, teachers will refer to online tutorials such as “Recipes for Success” http://www.myt4l.com/ and handouts in order to begin construction of their web pages using the program Web Blender and following at least 80% of the web page design guidelines as stated in the “Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist.”

•	After the presentation on classroom critiquing and setting critique guidelines, the teachers will engage in a practice critique session using their prototypical examples to gain insight and feedback from other teachers in a group discussion using the “Sample Project Rubric” that best meets their goals as well as the “Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist” to determine if each has met at least 80% of the requirements and determine what revisions should be made.

Throughout the Training

•	During the course of the training, teachers will bring ideas, questions, concerns, successes and failures with them for discussion in order to help facilitate learning and create a support community in which 100% of all chosen participants engage in group problem solving and reflection discussions and summarized as discussion notes.

After the Training

•	After the training the teachers will utilize the unit plans and examples they developed to complete a similar project with their students using the new tools and programs they learned and share examples of student projects that met at least 80% of the requirements they outlined in the rubrics that they developed for their class projects in the spring with their training learning community which will be summarized and shared with discussion notes.

The following table summarizes the goals and their assessments: 

Summary: Learning Objectives and Assessment Table

Objective	Assessment Method(s)	
1. During the course of the training, teachers will create their own prototypical examples of a finished portfolio web site, information presentation web site (such as a biography or lab report) or a journaling and reflection website that they can use as an example in their classroom that follows the “Sample Project Rubric” of their choice and at least 80% of the guidelines for good web design as stated in the “Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist” and proper information citation.	Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist, Sample Project Rubrics	
2. After viewing a finished sample project of how web design can be used to support learning, teachers will identify and discuss at least three curriculum standards that they see being addressed in the project in a group discussion and summarized as discussion notes.	Group Discussion Notes, Observations and Notes, Feedback from Post-Training Focus Group	
3. After reviewing how to login to databases, teachers will explore the information available to begin collecting data and pictures for use in their own prototypical examples following the “Sample Project Rubrics” and utilizing proper citation methods with no major errors.	Group Discussion Notes, Sample Project Rubrics, MLA Format Guidebook or Checklist	
4. After researching information on their topic, teachers will use Inspiration/Kidspiration to plan and organize their website information into topics and arrange at least 5 possible web content pages with a graphic organizer made in Inspiration/Kidspiration, following the “Sample Project Rubric” as a guideline for page content that includes a content /index page and a Works Cited page as two of the possible pages.	Group Discussion Notes, Sample Project Rubric (as a Guide for Page Content)	
5. While using the new programs, teachers will refer to online tutorials such as “Recipes for Success” http://www.myt4l.com/ and handouts in order to begin construction of their web pages using the program Web Blender and following at least 80% of the web page design guidelines as stated in the “Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist.”	Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist, Sample Project Rubric 	
6. After the presentation on classroom critiquing and setting critique guidelines, the teachers will engage in a practice critique session using their prototypical examples to gain insight and feedback from other teachers in a group discussion using the “Sample Project Rubric” that best meets their goals as well as the “Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist” to determine if each has met at least 80% of the requirements and determine what revisions should be made.	Group Critique Guidelines, Sample Project Rubrics (for Content Evaluation), Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist	
7. During the course of the training, teachers will bring ideas, questions, concerns, successes and failures with them for discussion in order to help facilitate learning and create a support community in which 100% of all chosen participants engage in group problem solving and reflection discussions and summarized as discussion notes.	Group Discussion and Reflection Notes, Observations and Notes, Feedback from Post-Training Focus Group	
8. After the training the teachers will utilize the unit plans and examples they developed to complete a similar project with their students using the new tools and programs they learned and share examples of student projects that met at least 80% of the requirements they outlined in the rubrics that they developed for their class projects in the spring with their training learning community which will be summarized and shared with discussion notes.	Group Discussion and Reflection Notes, Observations and Notes, Teacher Developed Rubrics for Students, Feedback from Post-Training Focus Group	

Assessment Plan

Assessment of the training program will be executed in a number of ways. Teachers will be expected to come prepared to sessions with certain tasks completed and issues, comments or concerns to share with the group. 

Discussions will be held before during and after training sessions. A follow up session will be conducted at a later date where teachers can share student work that was produced as a result of the training. 

In addition to these discussions, a focus group will be conducted at the conclusion of the training to reflect on how the training was presented, how the teachers reacted to the training and what changes should be made to the training to increase its effectiveness.

During training a number of rubrics and checklists may be employed to help guide teachers as they learn the new programs and begin working on the design of their examples. Two important assessment tools will be the Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist that will help guide the teachers in good web design habits and the Sample Project Rubrics that may be used by teachers to assess and guide the development of their examples as well as used or modified future student work. These checklists and rubrics can be used for evaluation and self-evaluation. The checklist and rubrics are included at the end of this document in Appendix B.

Scenario to Situate Learning

A scenario such as the one below could be used to introduce the topic as well as describe What’s In It For Me? (WIIFM?, Foshay 25) and You Can Do It (YCDI, Foshay 25) as well as the idea that we are here to coach you! (“scaffolding” and “cognitive coaching” 217, 218):

Let’s say you want to have your students conduct a research project. Many of you have your students complete this task all the time. Students go to the library, look up information, take notes, organize the notes and then present them. Many times the presented information takes the form of a paper or display board. The display board or the paper is put in the hallway so that other students and teachers as well as visitors can enjoy all the hard work that your students have put into the project. Now imagine if your students could share that knowledge with not only their fellow students and teachers, but the school community and even the rest of the world! 

One advantage to incorporating web design into your classrooms is it gives you and your students a chance to showcase their efforts for a much broader community. In order for someone to see their display board or hear a student oral presentation, they have to visit the school. If students design projects in an easily accessible online format it allows them to share their work with not only the community, but the world! They can send their results to other classrooms and connect with other children at different schools, or they can send it to their grandparents in another state. Putting their projects on the internet allows all stake holders to view your students’ hard work and see what’s going on in our classrooms and all can share in their successes and discoveries. 

Any project that can be completed on a display board could be easily transferred into a simple website. You already know how to help your students brainstorm and create outlines and headings for the project. Those same outlines and headings can be transformed into individual pages that are all interconnected in a student produced website.

Right now you’re probably thinking, “This sounds great but I don’t know anything about web design. Don’t you have to learn code or a special program for that? How could I teach my kids web design?” The district has purchased a program that untangles the web in web design! The program is called “Web Blender” and it was designed with students (and teachers) in mind! 

Your goal in this training is to learn how to infuse web design into your classroom curriculum and be able to teach your students how to use web design as a means for organizing and presenting information. 

During the training you will use a combination of one-on-one support, a variety of tutorials and handouts to learn the programs. The resources that you use in the training can also be modified for use with your students after the training. All files that are used during the training session will be stored in the common drive so that you can access them at any time. The ETs can also support you when you begin implementing these new ideas in your classroom.

The only thing that is asked of you is that you come prepared each time there is training with your ideas, concerns, questions, and comments so that everyone can learn together and support one another as web design in the classroom is explored.

Instructional Strategies

The following table lists all of the activities that will be conducted and materials that will be used throughout the training program for all four training days. Each day is color coded in the “Component” section so that divisions between days can be seen.

Component	Strategies	Rationale	Materials/Activities	
Day 1: Training 
Introduction	Attention	“…the first thing learners have to do is select the information to attend to.” (Foshay, Ch. 3, pg. 42)	•	Running Photo Slide Show on SMART Board of still screen shots of 3 different Web Blender web site prototypical examples: 1) Web design as Portfolio and Critiquing Tool, 2) Web design as Presentation Organization Software, 3) Web design as a means for Journaling and Reflection	
Situate	Attention and Scenario	A scenario provides a common learning context for group participation and anchors learning in an authentic context (Reisner, pg. 40)	•	Scenario presented by a colleague in the form of a story describing a familiar classroom project.
•	Introduces a potential “what if…” situation in which teachers could display student work to a wider audience.	
Present Learning System Purpose and Goals	WIIFM

YCDI	Learners need to recognize what they are learning is relevant and that they are capable of doing it. (Foshay, Ch. 3, pg. 44-45) 	•	Why are you here? (Goals for training introduced  via Power Point presentation)
•	Guiding Standards that will help us (Information Literacy Standards, NETS - Handout)
•	Second look at prototypical example, with group discussion about standards that are being addressed and comparisons to other strategies they may already use. 
•	Training Timeline- Handout	
Tools for Technology Infusion: Online Database Introduction	Recall and Relate	Learners need to link existing knowledge to new information.  This happens through “recalling” relevant existing knowledge and “relating” it to what is about to be learned. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.26)	•	Ask participants to recall the last time they had their students work on a research project.  
•	Discuss with the participants what kind of information the students found. Was it quality information, did they just use an internet search engine and print off the first thing they saw? Did they look at any books or encyclopedias?
•	Introduce the participants to three Online Databases as possible research options for students who need kid friendly (and safe) articles to assist them with projects.
	
Tools for Technology Infusion: Online Database Login	Present New Knowledge and 
Present Examples
 	Learners need to assimilate new knowledge into their existing store of knowledge integrating old and new content to produce a new expanded and reorganized piece of knowledge. New knowledge must be presented with different approaches depending on the type of knowledge. Once new knowledge is presented you must help learners assimilate the new knowledge into the existing knowledge by presenting examples. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.27)	•	Help participants login to one of the databases using the provided URLs and passwords. 
•	Begin giving them an overview of how the database works and what topics you may be able to look up in each database.	
Tools for Technology Infusion: Online Database Exploration	Practice with Cognitive Coaching
	During practice you involve learners by having them do something with the new knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.29)

Cognitive Coaching is an approach to teaching problem solving in which as part of the lesson a "coach" talks to the learner throughout the problem-solving process providing the learner with hints, suggestions, comments feedback, ideas, and reflection about strategy. (Foshay, Ch 14, pg. 218)	•	Begin guiding them through the features of the database while they follow along at their own computers.
•	Give them ideas for possible research topics to try in each database.
•	Allow the participants to browse and explore as they gather new ideas for their projects.
	
Tools for Technology Infusion: Online Database Exploration	Scaffolding and On the Job Application	Scaffolding is assistance given to learners in early stages of problem solving and can include: partially solved problems, hints on which heuristic to apply, analogous problems the learner has already solved, frequent feedback as each step is taken. (Foshay, Ch 14, pg. 217)

To help learners strengthen the new knowledge and to ensure they do not forget it, they should apply what they have learned on the job. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	Participants begin to discuss their ideas one-on-one with the instructors and discuss how they can be developed into a successful prototypical example.	
Day 1: Closure, Question and Reflection Time	Feedback 
and Summary	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)

During the summary you repeat the structure of content again including the entire structure of knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 29)	•	Participants share what went well with the training, what did not go well, what they learned, and what they would like to know more about.
•	Instructors share feed back and notes on the progress of the participants during the exploration time. 
•	Instructors wrap up with a summary of what was learned that day, the goals and objectives that were met, and the expectations for next time.	
Day 2: How did we create the unit for out prototypical example? 	Recall and Relate
	Learners need to link existing knowledge to new information.  This happens through “recalling” relevant existing knowledge and “relating” it to what is about to be learned. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.26)	•	Recall the Backwards Design Unit plan used for the Prototypical Example (displayed on the SMART Board). 
•	Backwards design can be used to help you design a unit plan that addresses standards in your content area.
	
How can you create a unit plan to fit your needs?: Finished Samples	Present New Knowledge and 
Present Examples

	Learners need to assimilate new knowledge into their existing store of knowledge integrating old and new content to produce a new expanded and reorganized piece of knowledge. New knowledge must be presented with different approaches depending on the type of knowledge. Once new knowledge is presented you must help learners assimilate the new knowledge into the existing knowledge by presenting examples. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.27)	•	Go through each step of the Backwards Design Unit Plan for the prototypical example with explanation.
•	Group Discussion Assessments for Learning vs. Assessment of Learning: ex. Rubrics can be used to guide learning as well as an evaluation tool.
•	Point learners to several different completed examples in different formats that they can use for planning the lesson in their content area.	
How can you create a unit plan to fit your needs?: Creating your Own Backwards Design Plan	On the Job Application and Practice with
Scaffolding
	To help learners strengthen the new knowledge and to ensure they do not forget it, they should apply what they have learned on the job. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)

During practice you involve learners by having them do something with the new knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.29)

Scaffolding is assistance given to learners in early stages of problem solving and can include: partially solved problems, hints on which heuristic to apply, analogous problems the learner has already solved, frequent feedback as each step is taken. (Foshay, Ch 14, pg. 217)
	•	Guided practice - create framework for your unit plan using one of the templates provided.
•	Look at finished examples to help guide you while you design your own lesson plan.
•	Instructors will give you one-on-one help, hints and tips for how to approach each lesson element. 	
Let’s share what you’ve got so far…	Feedback	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	How is the plan going so far? In what areas may you need additional help?
•	What we need to see completed in your plan by next week.	
File Management: How to Create Folders	Recall and Relate
	Learners need to link existing knowledge to new information.  This happens through “recalling” relevant existing knowledge and “relating” it to what is about to be learned. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.26)	•	Review how to create File Folders in Windows
•	Introduce managing the H and T drives by creating folders for students	
File Management: How to manage your H (faculty drive) and T drive (student drive)	Present New Knowledge and 
Present Examples 	Learners need to assimilate new knowledge into their existing store of knowledge integrating old and new content to produce a new expanded and reorganized piece of knowledge. New knowledge must be presented with different approaches depending on the type of knowledge. Once new knowledge is presented you must help learners assimilate the new knowledge into the existing knowledge by presenting examples. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.27)	•	Describe how to apply appropriate names to folders so that information is organized and easily retrieved (ex. Keeping document files and image files in separate folders when working on a project). 	
File Management: Creating Folders in your H Drive (faculty drive) and T drive (student drive)	Practice	During practice you involve learners by having them do something with the new knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.29)

Well-structured problem solving is a completely defined step-by-step procedure. (Foshay, Ch 8, pg. 116)	•	Practice making file folders in the H and T drives.	
Introduction to Online resources- Atomic Learning and Recipes 4 Success
	Recall and Relate
	Learners need to link existing knowledge to new information.  This happens through “recalling” relevant existing knowledge and “relating” it to what is about to be learned. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.26)	•	Recall how you logged into Online Data Bases last week as a new research tool to support learning.
•	Atomic Learning and Recipes 4 Success are two more online resources that the school has subscribed to help you learn software. 	
Logging into Online resources- Atomic Learning and Recipes 4 Success
	Present New Knowledge	Learners need to assimilate new knowledge into their existing store of knowledge integrating old and new content to produce a new expanded and reorganized piece of knowledge. New knowledge must be presented with different approaches depending on the type of knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.27)	•	Website URLs and demonstration of how to login
•	Recipes 4 Success are step by step tutorials
•	Atomic Learning is a tutorial site that offers video tutorials.	
Using Online resources- Atomic Learning and Recipes 4 Success
	Present Examples	Once new knowledge is presented you must help learners assimilate the new knowledge into the existing knowledge by presenting examples. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.27)	•	Browse database of online tutorials for various programs.
•	Example 1: Atomic Learning: Kidsiptation Project Launcher (4 Seasons) for teachers who teach grades 2nd -3rd
•	Example 2: Atomic Learning: Inspiration Project Launcher (Legislative Branch) for teachers who teach grades 4th- 5th	
What other software might be useful in my unit plan?: Using Kidspiration and Inspiration	Practice
with
Scaffolding	During practice you involve learners by having them do something with the new knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.29)

Scaffolding is assistance given to learners in early stages of problem solving and can include: partially solved problems, hints on which heuristic to apply, analogous problems the learner has already solved, frequent feedback as each step is taken. (Foshay, Ch 14, pg. 217)	•	Introduction to Inspiration and Kidspiration- with sample products to help generate ideas
•	Use Atomic Learning and Recipes 4 Success to get familiar with the program 	
Creating Sample Products to Show Your Students: Using Kidspiration and Inspiration	Practice and On the Job Application	During practice you involve learners by having them do something with the new knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.29)

To help learners strengthen the new knowledge and to ensure they do not forget it, they should apply what they have learned on the job. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	Hands on application of tools and resources with coaching
•	Prepared tutorial handout out provided to support information in online tutorials
•	You will organize data you collected from online databases into headings and topics that can be used in your unit plan example using either Inspiration or Kidsipration (i.e. Create an outline or “storyboard” that will be used for your unit plan prototypical website)	
Day 2: Closure, Question and Reflection Time	Feedback and Summary	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)

During the summary you repeat the structure of content again including the entire structure of knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 29)	•	Participants will walk around and view the outlines and ideas that their colleagues are working on.
•	Participants share what went well with the training, what did not go well, what they learned, and what they would like to know more about.
•	Instructors share feed back and notes on the progress of the participants during the exploration time.
•	Instructors wrap up with a summary of what was learned that day, the goals and objectives that were met, and the expectations for next time.	
Day 3: Report and Share: Where are you in your planning?	Recall and Relate
	Learners need to link existing knowledge to new information.  This happens through “recalling” relevant existing knowledge and “relating” it to what is about to be learned. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.26)	•	Recall that last time you designed a Unit Plan, and began organizing information that you researched on a topic.
•	Relate- the information you learn today will help you organize, present and complete the project that we have started.	
Report and Share: Where are you in your planning?- Peer Review Time	Feedback	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	Peer review of your Backward Design Unit Plan Utilizing a Rubric
•	Inspiration/Kidspiration Products:  Post and display the outline you developed	
Helpful Online Resources Recipes 4 Success/Atomic Learning:  Web Blender introduced
	Recall and Relate	Learners need to link existing knowledge to new information.  This happens through “recalling” relevant existing knowledge and “relating” it to what is about to be learned. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.26)	•	Recall how you used Atomic Learning and Recipes 4 Success to help prepare your Kidspiration/ Inspiration example.
•	Web Blender can be learned the same way using these online resources. 
•	If you have used Microsoft Power Point, you can easily learn Web Blender because creating a web page in this program is similar to creating a slide show.
•	Login to Recipes 4 Success and locate the Web Blender tutorial sections.	
Using Online Resources Recipes 4 Success/Atomic Learning:  Web Blender 
	Present New Knowledge and Present Examples	Learners need to assimilate new knowledge into their existing store of knowledge integrating old and new content to produce a new expanded and reorganized piece of knowledge. New knowledge must be presented with different approaches depending on the type of knowledge. Once new knowledge is presented you must help learners assimilate the new knowledge into the existing knowledge by presenting examples. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.27)	•	Handout provided to support information in online tutorials
•	Finished products are on the H drive for you to view while you are working to get ideas about page set up.
•	“Web Design Checklist” and “Sample Project Rubrics” are handed out to help guide them in the planning of their website. (Assessments for and of learning).	
Web Blender Program:  Time for you to conceptualize	Feedback	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	Refine and begin to implement the story board for your website 
•	Reminder to include a contents page and works cited page.	
Web Blender:  Time for you to Create!	Practice and On the Job Application	During practice you involve learners by having them do something with the new knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.29)

To help learners strengthen the new knowledge and to ensure they do not forget it, they should apply what they have learned on the job. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	Now it’s time for you to begin using Web Blender to set up your pages using the online tutorials and handout to help you explore the program.
•	Save time: If you typed your research information into the computer, you can copy/paste text into the program to fill in content.
•	Create a prototypical example of a finished project according to your backwards design unit plan that you can use in the classroom as an example for your students.	
Web Blender Website Progress: Time to Share!	Feedback	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	Introduce group critiquing strategies by “Setting Ground Rules”
•	We will now peer review someone’s in-progress website
•	Utilize the “Web Design Checklist” and “Sample Project Rubrics” to help guide comments while critiquing their progress so they can make changes (assessments for and of learning).	
Continue working on your Web Blender Examples after Receiving Feedback	Practice and On the Job Application
with
Scaffolding
	During practice you involve learners by having them do something with the new knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.29)

To help learners strengthen the new knowledge and to ensure they do not forget it, they should apply what they have learned on the job. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)

Scaffolding is assistance given to learners in early stages of problem solving and can include: partially solved problems, hints on which heuristic to apply, analogous problems the learner has already solved, frequent feedback as each step is taken. (Foshay, Ch 14, pg. 217)	•	More time for hands on application of tools, and resources, with one-on-one feedback and coaching to aid in revision.	
Day 3: Closure, Question and Reflection Time	Feedback, Summary and On the Job Application	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)

During the summary you repeat the structure of content again including the entire structure of knowledge. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 29)

To help learners strengthen the new knowledge and to ensure they do not forget it, they should apply what they have learned on the job. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)
	•	Participants will walk around and view the progress of the websites their colleagues are working on.
•	Participants share what went well with the training, what did not go well, what they learned, what they would like to know more about, and what help they may need in the classroom.
•	Instructors share feed back and notes on the progress of the participants during the exploration time.
•	Participants will be reminded that they are invited to ask for help from any of the instructors at any time while they are in the implementation stage in their own classrooms.
•	Instructors wrap up with a summary of what was learned that day, the goals and objectives that were met, and the expectations for the final meeting.	
Day 4: Come and share with us: Share Student Samples Created in your classroom as a result of the training! Revisiting Goals	Recall and Relate	Learners need to link existing knowledge to new information.  This happens through “recalling” relevant existing knowledge and “relating” it to what is about to be learned. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg.26)	•	Recall the training goals and objectives that you set out to accomplish (Power Point Presentation of Goals). 
•	Now it is time for us to see how we reached those goals in our classrooms.
	
Come and share with us: Share Student Samples Created in your classroom as a result of the training!	Feedback, and
On the Job Application	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)

To help learners strengthen the new knowledge and to ensure they do not forget it, they should apply what they have learned on the job. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	Invite your students to come present their finished projects to other members of our learning community as well as the administration!
•	Time for you to share successes, failures, problems and questions	
Day 4: Closure, Final Group Evaluation of the Training: Share with us...	Feedback	Feedback lets learners know how well they've done in applying the new knowledge, what problems they are having and why. (Foshay, Ch 2, pg. 28)	•	Participant and Instructor Focus Group: share with us the strengths of the training, the weaknesses, and what changes should be made in the future.
•	Final questions and comments	

Implementation Plan

Participants: 

One of the goals of this training is to help build a community of learners and provide adequate support for all involved. In order to do that a smaller group of participants may be in order. In addition to that, it may be advantageous to invite a number of people to instruct so that there can be more one-on-one attention. Some of those involved in the focus group back in Part II may be invited to help out (such as the Curriculum Implementation Facilitators, the Information Specialists, and the ETs) because they all have a stake in this. For any technology training session, the ETs are usually available to help out.

If a limited number of slots are going to be offered for participants, then an application form may be in order. In the past the Korea district has used a form to select participants for special technology training sessions. This form was included at the end of Part II in an appendix section, but is included again at the end of this document for easy access. Therefore interested participants may be selected from those who apply to attend.

The training is primarily geared toward classroom teachers who teach students in grades 3-5. However, any teacher interested in applying for the training should be encouraged to apply. Ideally the number of participants should be low in order to create a smaller group setting and facilitate discussion among the learning community members. Therefore, the number of participants should be about 12 or so to keep the ratio of participants and instructors at a level that allows for more personal attention.

Implementation Schedule:

In Part II a four session schedule was suggested by the focus group involving a half, full, full, half day set up where participants would be introduced to the training on the first half day, spend the first full day learning the programs and browsing the new materials, spend the second full day working on their prototypical example and finally meeting at a later date for a half day to share how they applied the training to their own classrooms.  

A sample schedule is listed as follows for the training days:

First Half Day Session

I. Attention
•	Running photo slide show of screen shots of 3 different web site prototypical examples: 1) Web design as Portfolio and Critiquing Tool, 2) Web design as Presentation Organization Software, 3) Web design as a means for Journaling and Reflection

II. Scenario: What might technology infusion look like in the classroom? 
•	Display one finished prototypical example and present “Scenario”

III. Learning System Purpose and Goals (WIIFM, YCDI)
•	Why are you here? (Goals for training introduced - Power Point)
•	Guiding Standards (Information Literacy Standards, NETS - Handout)
•	Second look at prototypical example, with discussion about standards
•	Training Timeline- Handout

III. Tools for Technology Infusion: Online Database Introduction
•	Thompson Gale’s Kids InfoBits (powered by InfoTrac)
•	Proquest’s CultureGrams
•	Proquest’s SIRS Discoverer

Break	 

IV. Tools for Technology Infusion: Online Database Exploration 
•	Online Database Browsing Time (to formulate ideas for their project) with “cognitive coaching” 

V. Closure, Question and Reflection Time
•	What went well, what did not go well, what did you learn, and what would you like to know more about?
•	Instructors share feed back and notes on the progress of the participants during the exploration time.
•	wrap up with a summary of what was learned, the goals and objectives that were met, and the expectations for next time

Expectations for next session:

HW:  The participants will come up with a big idea for unit design planning.  That is, they should have a topic that they would like to research before the next meeting. This way they will be ready to use the resources and tools introduced at the next session to create a unit plan.

First Full Day Session 
(About one week after first session)

Purpose:  To support you in writing a unit plan that infuses technology into your grade-level curriculum. Your outcome for our next full day meeting is to submit a complete unit plan utilizing backward design, curriculum standards, technology standards (NETS), and information literacy standards, and available software.

I. How did we create the unit for out prototypical example? (Backwards Design Models)
•	Go through the Backwards Design Unit Plan for the prototypical example with explanation
•	Group Discussion Assessments for Learning vs. Assessment of Learning
•	Point learners to several different completed examples in different formats that they can use for planning the lesson in their content area 

II. How can you create a unit plan to fit your needs?
•	Guided practice- create framework for your unit plan using one of the templates provided
-You will be coached through developing your own unit plan ideas
-Select a unit theme and write a big understanding question referring to standards
-Write essential questions utilizing learning targets, CSI (school improvement plan) interventions, resource databases and computer programs.
-Consider possible Assessments for Learning and Assessment of Learning
-List the activity plan reflecting interventions, technology and desired outcomes
-Assess throughout the lesson to direct and support learning and to assess knowledge of students

III. Let’s share what you’ve got so far
•	How is the plan going so far? In what areas may you need additional help? 
•	What needs to be completed in your plan by next week.

Break

IV. File Management
•	How to Create Folders
•	How to manage your H (faculty drive) and T drive (student drive)

Lunch

V. Introduction to some helpful online resources- Atomic Learning and Recipes 4 Success
•	Website URLs and demonstration of how to login
•	Browse database of online tutorials for various programs
•	Example 1: Atomic Learning: Kidsiptation Project Launcher (4 Seasons) for teachers who teach grades 2nd -3rd
•	Example 2: Atomic Learning: Inspiration Project Launcher (Legislative Branch) for teachers who teach grades 4th- 5th 

VI. What other software might be useful in my unit plan? Using Kidspiration and Inspiration
•	Introduction to Inspiration and Kidspiration- with sample products

Break

VII. Creating Sample Products to Show Your Students: Using Kidspiration and Inspiration		
•	Hands on application of tools and resources with coaching 
•	Prepared tutorial handout out provided to support information in online tutorials
•	organize data they collected from online databases into headings and topics that can be used for their own unit plan example using either Inspiration or Kidsipration (i.e. Create an outline or “storyboard” for their unit plan prototypical website)

VIII. Closure, Question and Reflection Time

Lesson Planning
1.	Share the unit plan that you have been working on and discuss how the unit can be extended into other curricular content areas.
2.	Provide participants with time to begin a unit plan.
3.	Software (Recipes4Success, Inspiration/Kispiration) and file management introduction and instruction--sample products modeled.

HW:  Finish developing a unit plan utilizing backward design, the new resources and software. Bring research typed up in Word and your completed graphic organizer for the sample project to the next meeting.

Second Full Day Session 
(About one week after first full day session)

Purpose:  To support you in creating prototypical website examples for use in the classroom. 

I. Report and Share: Where are you in your planning?
•	Peer review of your Backward Design Unit Plan Utilizing a Rubric 
•	Inspiration/Kidspiration Products:  Post and display the outline you developed

II. Helpful Online Resources Recipes 4 Success/Atomic Learning:  Web Blender introduced
•	Introduction to tutorials on Web Blender
•	Handout provided to support information in online tutorials

Break

III. Web Blender Program:  Time for you to conceptualize 
•	Refine and begin to implement the story board for your website 
•	Reminder to include a contents page and works cited page

Lunch

IV. Web Blender:  Time for you to create!
•	Now it’s time for you to begin using Web Blender to set up your pages.
•	Save time: If you typed your research information into the computer, you can copy/paste text into the program to fill in content.

V. Web Blender Website Progress: Time to Share!
•	Introduce group critiquing strategies: Setting Ground Rules 
•	We will now peer review someone’s in-progress website
•	Utilize the “Web Design Checklist” and “Sample Project Rubrics” to help guide comments while critiquing their progress so they can make changes (assessments for and of learning).

VI. Break

VII.	Continue working on your Web Blender Examples after Receiving Feedback	
•	More hands on application of tools and resources, coaching and revision

VIII. Closure, Question and Reflection Time
•	Reminder: You are invited to ask for help from the instructors at any time while you are in the implementation stage in your own classrooms.

Final Half Day – Reflection and Sharing Day 
(About 2 Months after Training)

I. Come and share with us: Share Student Samples Created in your classroom as a result of the training!
•	Brief review of training goals and objectives (Power Point Presentation of Goals)
•	Invite your students to come present their finished projects to other members of our learning community as well as the administration!
•	Time for you to share successes, failures, problems and questions

Break

II. Closure, Final Group Evaluation of the Training: Share with us...
•	Strengths
•	Weaknesses
•	Changes for the future

Location of Training:

There is an open lab available in the school. However, the lab is located in the media center and if the training is held during school hours, the students using the media center can be quite loud and disruptive. If the training is held after school hours or during an in-service day the open lab may be more practical. 

However, if special sub days are allotted for this training as was previously discussed, a better option may be to book the Korea District Office computer lab which comes equipped with an In-Focus, SMART Board and laptop computers for each participant on a wireless network. The atmosphere may be more relaxed and private so that participants can work and share without distractions. Booking the lab should be done well in advance to ensure that it is available. 

On the last day when everyone is sharing student projects, students may be asked to come and present their own work. If that is the case, it may be best to hold the last half-day session in the “Dolphin Theatre” so that students will not have to walk up the street to the District Office.

Minimum Materials Needed for Training: 

In Focus Projector with screen (SMART Board optional), Internet Connections for all computers, Web Blender 2 Program, Kidspiration/Inspiration, MS Office, one computer for each participant.

Formative Evaluation Results

Revisiting and Peer Review

During the needs assessment two teachers were interviewed about their past training experiences at the school. Because of their concerns about the lack of support and follow up, it seemed important to have them review the final plan to ensure their needs and concerns are addressed especially because it was their input that helped shape the learning goals for this plan. 

The two teachers were interviewed again. This time they were given a copy of the plan and the following guiding questions were used:

Interview Questions

Problem being addressed:
Do you feel that the problem being addressed is a real problem in the school?
Do you feel that the training document addresses the concerns and needs of the faculty?

Goals:
Do you feel the goals of the training will meet needs in the school?
Do the activities in the training seem to meet and support the proposed goals?

Plan for Needs Assessment:
Does the plan for needs assessment involve enough stake holders?
Do the guiding questions and topics in the plan for needs assessment investigate the needs and concerns of the faculty and help establish or determine a need for training?

Objectives and Assessment Plan:
Do the objectives support the training goals?
Are the objectives appropriately matched to assessment instruments?

Instructional Strategies:
Are the instructional strategies presented in a logical order building on previous learning and skills?
Do the activities seem to support the training goals and objectives?

Implementation Plan: 
Does the implementation plan include enough feedback, questions, sharing and peer review time?
Does the schedule appear to allow enough time for the participants to complete assignments and experiment with what they learned?

The following table shows their responses to each question:

Topic	Question	Art Teacher - Cybil	1st Grade Teacher - Alice	
Problem being addressed:
	Do you feel that the problem being addressed is a real problem in the school?
	When I have a question, sometimes it takes a while for the ETs to get back to me. It would be nice if there was more of a community. So, I would say that with a faculty as large as ours, this is a real problem in the school.   
	There has been considerable training on the backward design so creating this as a product should be easy for those trained. We have also had training on building a web page and the Inspiration/Kidsipration programs.	
	Do you feel that the training document addresses the concerns and needs of the faculty?
	I think that the training is something that everyone could find a use for in their classroom. I especially like the portfolio idea. Many of our training sessions do not give us adequate time to try what we learned. I like that you included time for us to prepare ideas and share at the end of the training.
	Some of the faculty will find the training helpful especially those that would like more information on web pages. Not all faculty members are interested or motivated to maintain a web page or have a need to use the mentioned unused software collection. 	
Goals:
	Do you feel the goals of the training will meet needs in the school?
	The training sounds as though it will help teachers try new ways of presenting information and doing research in the classroom. The addition of, “Share their successes and failures with a community of fellow learners,” may help us learn from each other.
	Training goals need to be paced so that they are manageable and teachers are not rushed through a quick meaningless training. 	
	Do the activities in the training seem to meet and support the proposed goals?
	I like that you included time to look at other people’s projects and share what you are working on during the project. I also like that the participants are going to get to speak with the instructors one-on-one. I also think that using a smaller group with an application was a good idea. That way, you can teach the lesson to those teachers and have them learn it well, and maybe later they can share what they learned with their own teams.
	How many credit hours are available for this course? The activities seem like there must be more than 3 credits.

Note: San Diego State University (SDSU) does most of our professional development credits. Speaking with the ET’s, they said they would make this a 2 credit course.	
Plan for Needs Assessment:
	Does the plan for needs assessment involve enough stake holders?
	It seems you picked a lot of good people to interview, especially for the focus group. That probably generated a lot of helpful information for you. It was wise to include the ETs since it is a technology project and they will probably have to help you. It was also smart to invite the information specialists because it involves online databases. The CIFs will make sue that some school improvement goals and interventions are covered too so that everyone has their bases covered.
	I don’t have the information necessary to answer this question. I think the focus is on 3-5 grade teachers.	
	Do the guiding questions and topics in the plan for needs assessment investigate the needs and concerns of the faculty and help establish or determine a need for training?
	I think the questions were appropriate. They addressed things such as time frames, expectations, standards, the comfort level of the teachers, the needs and technology goals of the teachers, all of these things would need to be known in order to design training that will be useful.
	Training should be geared to meet the needs of the technology levels of the staff. This plan meets the needs of the more tech savvy teachers and disregards the needs of those needing more basic training. 	
Objectives and Assessment Plan:
	Do the objectives support the training goals?
	The training objectives support the goals. I’m glad that you decided to have them discuss things throughout the training. I also like that there will be a follow up session where they will get to view student projects after they implement it in the classroom!  
	The objectives meet the training goals for the 3-5 grade tech savvy teachers.	
	Are the objectives appropriately matched to assessment instruments?
	You seem to use rubrics and checklists a lot for your assessments. This is a good way to help guide your learners to the right outcomes, just as long as you show them the rubric before they complete the task! Using the rubrics will help ensure that everyone can be successful.  I’m pitiful at using rubrics in my classes but, I can see how useful it would be for the student and yourself.  I also like that you are looking for feedback after the training.
	Yes.	
Instructional Strategies:
	Are the instructional strategies presented in a logical order building on previous learning and skills?
	Most of the instructional strategies seem to be presented in a logical order. I don’t know how early you want to do the file management training. You do it on the second day, and it does not look like they do much on the first day except browse the databases. They may not need it until the second day. But everything else seems to be in order.
	I am not sure.	
	Do the activities seem to support the training goals and objectives?
	Yes, the activities seem to support the training goals and objectives. I also like that there is some peer review time on the third training day. It’s also nice to see it culminating in a student work presentation where everyone gets to share in the successes of the training as a community. 
	Not Sure.	
Implementation Plan:
	Does the implementation plan include enough feedback, questions, sharing and peer review time?	This one is easy, you have feedback and sharing time at the end of every session and you have some sharing times scheduled in the middle of some sessions. It seems that there is plenty of time allotted for questions and sharing. You also offered to support them after the training that’s great.
	See Below.	
	Does the schedule appear to allow enough time for the participants to complete assignments and experiment with what they learned?
	The schedule is a bit long, but you broke it up into different weeks. Giving them a week between the sessions should give them time to complete assignments and try things out in their classrooms, especially since they get to start their examples during the training. It’s good that you gave the participants two months from the end of the training until the student work sharing day. Hopefully that is enough time for everyone to work this into their curriculum.	Most tech training has been rushed and attempts to impart more information than time available can comfortably accommodate. This plan seems very full but perhaps the tech savvy teachers can complete all the requirements in the allotted time.	

Sharing with Other Important Team Members

In addition to sharing the plan with the two teachers that were interviewed, it seemed logical to share the finished plan with those who would have to support the training. Therefore, the plan was also shared with one ET and one computer teacher. The ETs are integral to ensuring the success of the plan. They would have to be present during the training to offer support during activities as well as be available after the training to answer questions, support the participants and help implement plans. The computer teacher may have to offer support during their regular class sessions with the students and would like to know what sort of projects and training are going on in the school in order to plan lessons and activities that will help the students achieve their goals. Both the ET and the computer teacher shared their input previously as part of the focus group so they too were familiar with the plan.

The following table shows their responses to each question:

Topic	Question	ET- Maria	Computer Teacher - Sandra	
Problem being addressed:
	Do you feel that the problem being addressed is a real problem in the school?
	Most definitely; there is a wealth of technology resources available at the school that are being underutilized and if teachers were able to learn how to use the technology in small unthreatening groups that allow for peer review and support, I believe that more individuals would use what they have available.
	Yes.  The lack of use of technology really hinders the growth of many students.  
	
	Do you feel that the training document addresses the concerns and needs of the faculty?
	Yes, it is arranged in a way that all of the needs are addressed. It provides the participants an opportunity to explore new technology with a great deal of support.
	I’m not sure if it addresses the concerns of the faculty because many faculty members would be o.k. to just continue the use of paper and pen. However, I think this training will comfort the faculty and give them the knowledge that technology is possible even when you are not very tech savvy. That is probably the greatest need of the faculty…to not fear what we have.
	
Goals:
	Do you feel the goals of the training will meet needs in the school?
	Most definitely; all of the goals are obtainable. 
	The goals of the training will definitely meet the needs of the school.  Our CSI goals this year are to improve reading for information and information writing.  All the aspects of this program allow teachers to focus on those goals but also introduce technology to meet the goals.  The Kidspiration and Inspiration are perfect examples to help the students work on building writing skills. The databases in particular will help the students read for information in non-fiction texts.
	
	Do the activities in the training seem to meet and support the proposed goals?
	The activities are completely aligned with the proposed goals.
	The activities in the training seem to be directly aligned with the proposed goals.
	
Plan for Needs Assessment:
	Does the plan for needs assessment involve enough stake holders?
	With the staff being so large, conducting the needs assessment in a variety of ways as shown here is the most effective was to ensure that you do represent the majority of the stake holders.
	Somewhat. In a school this size (about 1100 students and 100 faculty/staff), until all staff is trained, the stake holders will not fully be involved.
	
	Do the guiding questions and topics in the plan for needs assessment investigate the needs and concerns of the faculty and help establish or determine a need for training?
	Yes this information along with the recommendation from the technology committee and administration completely support the need for this training.
	Yes.  
	
Objectives and Assessment Plan:
	Do the objectives support the training goals?
	The objectives are stated clearly and support the overall goals of the training providing a range of learning opportunities.
	The objective was to have students create a web blender project but the training focused more on learning other applications to incorporate in the web blender project.  Participants complete the backward design, learning Kidspiration/Inspiration, are introduced to online databases and tutorials and then in the final session are exposed to the web blender application.

	Are the objectives appropriately matched to assessment instruments?
	Yes, each will be apparent and measurable with the assessment instruments listed.

	Yes.
	
Instructional Strategies:
	Are the instructional strategies presented in a logical order building on previous learning and skills?
	Yes, each of the skills is dependent on the previous skills learned and builds upon each other. There is also opportunity for individuals to back track, discuss, review, and share with their peers all along the way.
	Yes. This part of the training plan is perfect.  Participants begin with the end in mind. They know where they are going and then are taught steps to get to the final project.  Participants are given weekly assignments and then bring them to the next training for discussion.  One component of technology was taught at each session.
	
	Do the activities seem to support the training goals and objectives?
	Yes, each goal and objective is addressed through the activities that were chosen.
	Yes.
	
Implementation Plan:
	Does the implementation plan include enough feedback, questions, sharing and peer review time?	Yes, there are opportunities for this in each step of the process.
	Yes.  Participants are continually sharing and discussing with other participants.  Participants are also given the opportunity to work with the trainers outside the training.  
	
	Does the schedule appear to allow enough time for the participants to complete assignments and experiment with what they learned?
	Yes, and it also allows time for practice and implementation with support provided along the way.
	Yes. The week between the full day trainings really allows participants to think about the plan and the project, but it isn’t too much time to allow them to put it aside and forget about it. I especially like the 2 months that participants are given in which to implement their plan. This allows each participant to plan out lesson plans and activities in more detail and to tailor them to individual students in the class.

Trial Run

A trial run of the first “3 days” of training activities was conducted over a two and a half week period (though in smaller pieces because of time constraints, the training was actually conducted after school hours as a voluntary class). The ETs volunteered to help teach a small group of teachers with me after school to try out the training before it was presented to a larger group in the longer “day-long format” that it was originally designed for. We had a group of eight volunteers who were available to attend the training. The group consisted of two first grade teachers, a second grade teacher, a third grade teacher, two fourth grade teachers and two fifth grade teachers.  Training was only held on Mondays-Thursdays and sessions were only about an hour and a half long (2:30-4:00) with some sessions being shorter depending on the activities. No training was done over Thanksgiving Break and Tuesday Dec. 4th had to be skipped for the monthly faculty meeting.

The comments during the trial run were mostly positive. Some of the notes from the activities are typed up below:

Day 1 Activities

Technology problems During Day 1 Activities: Apparently, one should never assume that the District Office actually updates their computer software to match the current versions they purchased for the schools. For some reason the District Office Computer Lab had all the old versions of the Web Blender Software which lacks many essential functions that the new software has. This made the introduction portion of the training very difficult. After many calls to the district ET, the problem was eventually corrected, however it took nearly a week and a half of nagging before it was done.

November 20, 2007

The introduction and scenario portion were a bit difficult because of the above mentioned problem with the software. Fortunately, we had an early, unfinished version of the prototypical example that we test published to the school website that we could share with the participants to give them some idea of what the outcomes were supposed to be. This of course was not ideal, but there was not much choice at the time.

The first major concern that came up is “How do I utilize four classroom computers with over 20 kids?” The best suggestion that was brought up was to make computer time in the classroom less “special” by incorporating it into the regular classroom routine by assigning each child a day that is “their day” on the computer. Our school runs a Day 1-5 schedule. So, Day 1 could be Tim, Joe, Bob and Sally’s day, Day 2 could be Ed, Kathy, Angie, and Luke’s day and so on.

There was a lot of reassurance and emphasis on the ease of use, application in the classroom and support. (This would be a topic that would come up during each session and each time the participants were reassured that they would be guided and supported every step of the way both during and after training).

The question of “how is this different from what I already use?” came up. The ETs explained that the new Blender Family Software (Web Blender, Pixie, Media Blender, and Image Blender) are all kid friendly and teacher friendly software. Microsoft Office was not designed with children or teachers in mind, this program package is.

November 21, 2007

Today participants were introduced to the database URLs and logins.

Comments during the database training were very positive. Some of the databases have reading level difficulties listed for the kids and have articles from kid friendly magazines, newspapers and encyclopedias. Some over heard comments were: “That’s nice,” and “That’s so easy,” in response to collecting information and pictures from the databases. During database exploration time some of the teacher’s computer sessions did time out and they had to be logged back into the database websites. Teachers were given time to explore the databases and they looked up different countries. One database even offers recipes from that country and one teacher said, “That life as a kid thing is pretty cool,” in reference to one of the Proquest Culture Gram features. 

In SIRS Discover (which is mainly for the older kids) the students can e-mail articles to themselves. One teacher said, “The thing I like best is they can e-mail it to themselves,” and another added, “I wish I had known about these for my Native American project.”

The participants had all of Thanksgiving to think about their unit plan ideas.

Day 2 Activities

November 26, 2007

After some review of the past sessions because of the break, we began with a great discussion about assessments for and of learning. 

Backwards design was reviewed and introduced during this session with several examples and a Power Point presentation we borrowed from our Curriculum Implementation Facilitators.

Note: There was some confusion about when file management should have been done. We introduced backwards design and began working on the backwards design plans during this session but had not gone over file management until the Nov. 28th session. Most teachers knew to save it to their H Drive, so it was not much of an issue. However just as Cybil’s comment indicated (which she probably based on some of my lunch time discussions with her about the progress of the pilot training), it may be wise to move file management to before we begin the backwards design unit plan development, instead of doing it between that activity  and Kidspiration/Inspiration.

November 27, 2007

Collaboration was encouraged and the two first grade teachers got together to design a lesson on life cycles. They consulted with the computer teacher and the ETs before they came to this session and decided that they would have their kids draw pictures of the life cycle of an animal they picked in Pixie or Kid Pix and those pictures would be made into the website. 

The second grade teacher planned to incorporate the new programs into a unit on measurement using standard and non-standard units of measurement. 

The third grade teacher needed the most help during the backwards design portion of the lesson. I was able to work with her one-on-one during this session to help her define her goals and needs assessments for the activities she was planning with her students. She was designing a lesson on life science and she wanted to have her students research an animal, classify it as a vertebrate or invertebrate and then compare the life and physical features of the animal to humans.

One fourth grade teacher was going to have his students’ research famous inventors. His example that he began developing had to do with the Wright Brothers. He was one of the most tech savvy people in the group and he worked ahead on his own while others were coached. The other fourth grade teacher decided to have her students research their families and make a website about their findings.

One fifth grade teacher decided to do a unit on force and motion. The other was doing a life science unit on the impact of humans on animals and the environment. 

November 28, 2007

At the beginning of this session most of the plans were developed enough for us to discuss some of the ideas people were thinking about. We spend some time sharing and comments were made before moving on to Inspiration and Kidspiration. Some of the comments during the sharing time included, “Backwards design helped me develop big questions across the curriculum,” and “I still teach each subject separately, no wonder I’m always out of time! I could have been combining them!” The ETs reminded them that “collaboration and sharing is the key” and that they should not forget to “utilize the knowledge in our faculty, there are many teachers doing great things in their classrooms and those people should be recognized for being willing to try new things.” 

After the sharing time, the file management portion went over how to make folders for students so that they have a place to store their work. The ETs offered to help them set up folders if they had any questions or problems. 

November 29, 2007

Atomic Learning and Tech4Learning logins were next on the agenda. The video tutorials in Atomic Learning were used to help them get started on using Inspiration/Kidsipration depending on their grade level. The tutorial videos went “ok” but were a little hard to follow for those who were using the programs for the first time. The participants who were using the programs for the first time seemed to benefit more from the coaching and one-on-one support that was given during this session.

By the end of the session, all participants had most of their sample Inspiration or Kidspiration piece done. They were asked if they 1) felt comfortable using the program 2) could open a template and 3) could show their students? Many of the participants shared that they felt that this activity was “purposeful” and that it was “at your own pace.”

Day 3 Activities

December 3, 2007

Participants peer reviewed their backwards design plans. This took a little longer than we wanted but seemed to be productive. Our school CIFs (who I spoke to during the focus group in the needs assessment) provided us with a rubric we could use to help guide the peer review session. Some participants made revisions to their plans after the peer review session.

December 5, 2007

This time teachers were introduced to Tech4Learning’s Recipes 4 Success as a tool for learning a program. Participants had time to browse through the tutorials, which we likened to the Office Assistant in Microsoft Office because it opens a small floating window with short, step by step directions that you can look at while you work on the program.

December 6, 2007

During this session we introduced the Web Blender program. We spent this session introducing the program and we began walking the participants through some of the functions. Some of the teachers began creating their websites during this session and some had already worked ahead while we were coaching to complete their prototypical examples after learning how to use the Tech4Learning website. So, by the end of this session some shared what they had been working on already and the third grade teacher (who is fortunate enough to be piloting a laptop program in her classroom, and has access to computer for each of her students) excitedly shared some of the student examples that she has already started with her students with the group. 

December 11, 2007

The Web Blender Program was introduced during the last session. Teachers were given the weekend and Monday to work on their sample websites. During this session we got together to peer review the progress of their websites. We began by talking a little about web design and we looked at the “Web Design Checklist” that they received during the previous session. A practice critique was conducted with each individual peer-reviewing one project. After the peer reviews the participants shared some of the feedback in a group critique. The rest of the session allowed them to continue working on their projects with more one-on-one coaching from the instructors and feedback about what changes needed to be made. Broken links seemed to be the biggest problem. As teachers were coping and pasting their pages they sometimes forgot to link all the pages (i.e. they would link the first one but forget to link the navigation on the following pages).  The next session will be in February when teachers come and share their student examples. However, support and guidance will continue to be offered to participants as they begin implementing their plans in the classrooms and begin using the open lab.

Day 4 Activities — Revised February 27, 2008

February 22, 2008

After 2 months we held a final reflection day to view some of the projects that our participants made with their students. Some teachers went above and beyond our expectations and even incorporated MS Photo Stories into their projects. Some Photo Stories were informative and some of them were reflective. We invited some of the students to come talk about their projects. Administrators were also invited to attend as well as the district ET (the superintendent was invited but he could not make it). We had three students from each class come to speak about the project they created. Each student was asked: What did you like about it? Was the software easy? Did you prefer doing it on the computer or would you rather have done it on paper? Programs utilized by the teachers included: Kidspiration, Inspiration, Pixie (an image program similar to Kid Pix which is part of the Web Blender software package), MS Word, Web Blender and Photo Story.

After the training a DVD will be made for all the participants so that they can share the lesson plans and student examples from the workshop. Samples can also be viewed in the common drive. Some of the highlights and reflections from the meeting are included below.

First grade worked on frog life cycles. Their projects were fairly simple, mostly using images they drew in Pixie to show the different stages in a frog’s life (i.e. egg, tadpole, and frog). The first graders all said that they had fun working on it. One said that she felt Pixie was just as fun as Kid Pix. One felt it was a little hard to use the computers, but all said they enjoyed using the computer over paper. 

Second grade worked on a unit on measurement. The teacher asked her students to do this project on paper and on the computer. The students used both standard (rulers) and non-standard units of measurement (such as paper clips). The students made graphs using tables and they filled the cells in with color. They also wrote a “math story,” made estimates and performed a few conversions.  During the project, their teacher took digital photos of their work and when the project was completed she allowed them to make a Photo Story reflecting on their experiences while working on the computer and measuring. All the students who were present said they felt they learned a lot and that they now understand how to measure. They also expressed an interest in doing more projects on the computer.

Third grade was working on a project about vertebrates and invertebrates. Each student selected an animal and they had to compare the life of the animal and its physical features to humans. They used graphic organizers to show the food chain for their animal, talked about their habitats, researched scientific names and talked about how the animal uses it’s offensive and defensive strategies for survival. At the end of the project each student included a works cited page and some students included narration in their projects. This class was special because they are one of the few classrooms in the school in which students have their own laptops to work on. Therefore, they had more time to work on their projects in class and were able to make more pages than the other groups. All the students said that they liked Web Blender. When asked if they preferred Web Blender or Power Point, they agreed that they would rather use Web Blender. The students also said they would prefer to use Inspiration than to do graphic organizers on paper.

In one fourth grade class the students worked on inventors and their inventions. The students made a website about their findings and used graphic organizers to help them sort their topics into pages. After researching their topic, the students were asked to write a script and make a Photo Story using historical photographs or technical drawings of the inventions as well as picture of the inventor. The students then added music and narrated over the pictures to create a short video about their inventor. At the end of the video they added a works cited section for their sources.

In the other fourth grade class, students researched their family trees and made a brief website introducing their parents. They researched where they were born, and what they were good at in school. The students used Inspiration to make a graphic organizer to sort their information and included it in the website.

One fifth grade researched endangered animals. The students were to introduce the animal, talk about its features and habitat. Then they explained why that animal is endangered, and what is being done to save it. At the end of the presentation they included a works cited page. When asked what they felt was the best part about doing this project one boy enthusiastically exclaimed, “Skipping language arts!”  Of course all the teachers laughed and his teacher gently reminded him that while they were in the computer lab they were doing language arts because they were writing about their animals! One ET explained that because they were not using paper and pencil, they did not see it as writing. The 5th graders agreed that using Web Blender was easy and that they would rather use Web Blender than Power Point because you can publish your project on the web. 

In the other 5th grade class the students were researching “Force and Motion.” The students used their text book and the online databases to research a topic that they found interesting. For example, one student researched roller coasters, another researched baseball. They explained how forces worked in pairs and wrote on topics including, gravity, friction, mass, inertia, and air resistance. The teacher explained that one student in particular was a very quick learner and he discovered many shortcuts in the program that he would then share with the rest of the class. The teacher also allowed finished students to go around the room and be a peer mentor to other students who were having difficulties. The 5th graders liked that this was not paper and pencil. They felt it was easier to type than to write. Some students felt the hardest part was finding the right picture for their topic. Other students felt that proofreading and checking their sources was the hardest part. Another said that she felt the hardest part was manipulating the text boxes. Overall, the students felt the program was easy to use.  

Trial Run Final Reflection Time – Revised February 27, 2008

After the students were finished presenting their projects the teachers had some time to reflect on what they accomplished and talk about what was difficult and what went well. We did both an oral sharing session and one ET offered to have the participants take a survey on the common drive so that she could collect additional feedback. She explained that the survey would be anonymous. The participants were reminded that if they did not feel like sharing they did not have to. 

First grade said that they enjoyed the collaboration aspect of the workshop and that they enjoyed making lessons together. However, they felt that scheduling lab time made the project more difficult because there is only one open lab. One teacher remarked jokingly, “Fifth grade hogged the lab!” 

A fourth grade teacher said that she felt that the support of the computer teachers was most important. The computer teacher introduced the children to the programs in their classes, so she felt that without the help of the computer teachers this would have been a much harder experience. 

One teacher remarked that, “the kids knew more than the teacher!”

One ET explained that the computer teachers are here to support your curriculum and collaboration is encouraged. She explained that if a teacher is planning something, they should let the computer teachers know in advance and try to get the computer teachers involved because it can make all the difference in the success of a lesson. The media specialists who were present also added that they are willing to help.

Third grade remarked how peer collaboration really works as well. She explained that the kids help each other succeed. Fifth grade concurred explaining that kids who are far ahead could be used to aid the teacher and help run the class. 

Fifth grade also added that, “kids who never work really took off on this project.” They also explained that as soon as the students were off the computer they went back to their normal behaviors!

Second grade felt that the first few trips to the lab were a challenge. But they added that the students caught on quick and the teacher explained that she, “…liked Web Blender a lot.” She also had a question about if the parents would be able to access the projects now that they were completed. The ETs explained that all the students’ projects will be uploaded to the school intranet so that the parents can view their hard work. 

One computer teacher who was present explained that he was disappointed that Web Blender does not recognize the Pixie format even though they are part of the same software package. He explained that when he was helping the first grade teachers, they figured out that you have to convert the picture in the Pixie program into a different image format before importing it into Web Blender. He explained that, “exporting a .jpg is a pain with kids.”  So because of this technical problem he added, “I’m not sure I’m real crazy about the software.” 

The ETs agreed that the software does have some shortcomings, one of them being that the built in publishing feature is not entirely compatible with everything. However, they did add that the software was chosen for the school because it is elementary friendly and age appropriate, but it is not a secondary school tool.

The computer teacher then added that he noticed that the software had a few glitches on computers with lower memory capacity. 

One teacher then inquired about whether or not the school owned any rotating COWs or laptop labs. The ETs explained that the laptops the school owned were split up into grade level laptops, assigning 2 laptops to each grade level. However, if the teachers felt a need to recreate a class set of laptops, that would be something that the Technology Committee could discuss. 

One ET also offered to share some resources on how to run a single computer classroom. She explained that it can be done, but it is often a lot of work. Sometimes groups of 3 or 4 kids can be centered about one computer. However, you often need to scatter the computers throughout the classroom or use long tables. She explained that some classrooms are just too small or are too crowded and that can complicate things. She also suggested that they can work in shifts or one child may be assigned to use the computer to perform online searches while another goes to the library to collect books.

Some negatives about the training included technical difficulties. 

Teachers explained that hyper linking was challenging for the students. They also had some difficulty linking to outside programs. Some students had difficulty understanding that they need to save to the T drive and not the H drive. Bringing their Inspiration file into Web Blender was also a challenge because the children had trouble saving the files as a .jpg. 

One fifth grade teacher said she tried to allow the students to make their own graphic organizers without a template and they went nuts with bubbles. 

The teachers asked if there was any way for the students to work on the projects at home. The ETs explained that because the students are not likely to have these software programs at home, they could do the written work in Word and then copy the text later. But setting up the web pages would have to be done at the school with the software. They said if the teachers were interested in having their students work on their projects at home, they could ask the students to save their work in their digital locker through Gaggle (http://www.gaggle.net/ the student e-mail service) and they could work on the files at home.  

The second grade teacher said she was not sure if she would use Web Blender again because she felt more comfortable with Power Point. She felt that she needed a lot of support and the project took a lot of planning. 

One first grade teacher said that because there was such a high level of support going into this training, that knowledge enabled her to join. The other first grade teacher remarked that, “It’s not that hard once you know how to do it, it’s the means and the time.”

Fifth said with the bigger kids, “I just let them do it.” The ET explained that you need to take into consideration the grade level and the older kids may be able to be largely self guided on these projects, while the younger ones will need more coaching. Our other ET added that “…with the computer they will find something they like to do and if you can link it to your teaching your students can do wonders.”

Many teachers felt that the backwards design portion of the training was the least helpful. They felt the time for planning a unit was useful, but they would not care to use that particular backwards design template again (the one used in DoDDS workshops). One teacher commented that it did help them think about how many more standards they can incorporate into a single unit. However, others felt that they over planned with the backwards design unit plan. One teacher commented, “We all use the thought process—we just don’t like the template! We don’t want to show the work! I have my own system and it works just fine.”

Finally, the group added that they felt that during in-service days there needs to be more technology training.

Revision Plan

Feedback Summary

Peer Reviews of the Learning Plan

Cybil’s comments were mostly positive. She liked the use of rubrics as an assessment for and of learning.  She felt that the participants get to work with the instructors one-on-one and that they will be working in smaller groups. She seemed satisfied with the schedule and seemed to feel that teacher would have enough time to go back to their classrooms and try what they learned. Based on our experience during the training and my discussions with her about it, file management might need to be moved to an earlier time in the training so that teachers are saving their files (during and after training) in a logical place from the very beginning.

The comments from Alice were fairly negative. However, Alice expressed her deep frustrations with training in the school very clearly during her interview sessions. Alice feels left behind and feels as though training in the school is not relevant for her lessons or her curriculum. She feels frustrated because of the lack of support in past training sessions and reading a training document like this probably does feel overwhelming, just as reading a syllabus at the beginning of a new class can seem overwhelming. I think that she would need to see the plan in action to understand that the pledge to support the participants is not just another empty promise. 

Alice is exactly the kind of person that should have attended this training. She wants to learn, she wants to be given something that she can use, but she does not want to do it alone and she does not want it to go over her head. This is perfectly understandable and her frustrations based on past training experiences are not unfounded. I believe that if Alice had been available to sit in on one of the trial training sessions, she would have seen that the instructors were going around, coaching everyone through the process and offering one-on-one help and that the training was geared toward achieving real curriculum goals. This may have helped her better understand the goals of the training and see that although it looks like a lot, all the activities are interconnected and support the final outcome. If after seeing the sessions she was still dissatisfied, then revisions may be in order.

The comments from Maria the ET were very positive and encouraging. Having the support and encouragement of the ET is essential because the ETs will be the most valuable partners during the course of the training. The ETs will have to meet with teachers outside of training sessions to offer assistance and they will have to help teachers when they bring their students to the open lab to work on projects. Maria seems to feel that the problems of the school were addressed, that the activities are appropriate and logical and that support and feedback were woven into the training from the beginning until the end. Because her comments were so supportive and she shared her enthusiasm about the results of the trail sessions, the training is probably heading in the right direction. Hopefully, the end results during the final sharing day will be just as encouraging.

I also spoke with Maria about Alice’s comments and criticisms on the training document and she said that she agrees that Alice would need to see the plan in action in order to see how the coaching worked. She felt that showing Alice the training document probably did leave her feeling overwhelmed because of all the technical aspects and unfamiliar programs. Maria felt that if Alice had been available to attend the trial run training she would have had a completely different view of what was going on and what we were trying to accomplish.

Sandra the computer teacher also offered encouraging comments and mostly positive feedback. However, she is right in saying that more technology staff development is needed to truly address the needs of the staff. This plan is a good start but in order to really involve more faculty members, more training sessions should continue to be developed. She is also right in her criticism that the teachers could essentially do this same activity with pencil and paper and minimal technology. However, presenting an application for technology that they are familiar with (such as a research project) may help them become comfortable with the technology so that they can continue to explore new applications. This way they are not completely inventing something new just yet, they are building on what they already know. More radical or innovative applications could be presented in the future once they master the basic skills.

Results of the Volunteer Trial Run Training

The feedback and enthusiasm of those who volunteered for the trail run was incredible. The third grade teacher had a bit of a rocky start with her backwards design plan, but she jumped right into applying what she learned in her classroom. She was sharing projects already in progress before the sessions were even over. She was very excited about the direction that the program was taking and she said her kids “absolutely loved it.” 

The first grade teachers seemed excited about having their kids do computer art work based on their understandings of life cycles. Their sample for the students was of a frog’s life cycle. During the last session they were working on drawing the eggs, the tad poles and they planned to use clip art in a drawn pond for the final frog. They said they were collaborating with the computer teacher to help their students achieve their goals. 

The fourth grade teacher worked ahead and finished his sample and shared it with the group during one of the last trial sessions. He seemed very confident in his abilities to complete the project with his students.

The two fifth grade teachers were also well on their way to completing their prototypical examples by the last trial session that we conducted and seemed satisfied with the help and support that was offered. We have already agreed to have the teachers meet up with us again in February to see the final student results. This will help us see the true outcomes of the training and will give us more information about what must be revised.

As mentioned in the notes on the training, the Atomic Learning videos were a little hard to follow for a first time user of the Inspiration and Kidspiration programs. Even though the video could be paused and rewound, it seemed as though they would have been better off following a handout on the material rather than just the videos alone. The subscriptions to these websites were something that the Technology Committee and the focus group wanted to see used, but it seems that it is not good enough by itself to help all teachers learn the programs.

Plan for Gathering Summative Evaluation Outcome Data

The final half day session for this training was designed to be a day of sharing, follow up and review of student work that was created as a result of the training. Evaluation data for this day can be gathered in the form of group discussions, instructor reflection notes, observations and a post-training focus group with participants and training instructors. 

Participants may also be surveyed with a combination of checklists and some open ended questions to help determine if the training activities were helpful. A sample survey that could be conducted individually or with a focus group is included in Appendix C.

References

Foshay, Wellesley R. et.al. (2003). Writing Training Materials That Work: How to Train  	Anyone to Do Anything. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.

Reiser, Robert A. and Dempsey, John V. (2007). Trends and Issues in Instructional 	Design and Technology. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson, Merrill 	Prentice Hall.

Prioritization Tool Website: http://www.brooklyn.liu.edu/fw/portfolio_resource_guide/g3.htm

Appendix A 

Results for Assessment 1: Focus Group

Summary:

The focus groups meetings were quite productive as all participants seemed interested in the topic and felt it was relevant to problems that they are seeing in some of the school’s development plans. 

There was a lengthy discussion about how the training should be presented. Although traditionally, the school conducts in-service days and tries to cram all the information into one or two days, it was agreed that a project like this may be best spread out over a few training sessions as long as those sessions could be held close enough together to be productive. The discussion about the audience brought up many different concerns including: who would most benefit from the training? Who would actually use the training? And how to appeal to those who are interested in technology but are afraid to use it? Sandra confirmed to the group that she has used Web Blender with students as young as 3rd grade and they can learn it in one class period. So she felt that the training would be best suited for teachers who teach 3rd- 5th grade. However, any teacher who is interested would be welcome to attend. The members of the group agreed that teachers would be interested in learning these programs.

There was some discussion with the CIFs about how to possibly integrate graphic organizers into the project as well. Graphic Organizers are one of the interventions for our school improvement plan. Sandra suggested that perhaps the teachers could have their students use Inspiration or Kidspiration to storyboard their website, deciding what order to make the pages and what would go on each page. These are programs that the teachers may need to use in addition to Web Blender. The Information Specialists suggested that perhaps we should include a brief lesson on how to use the online databases as well so that students are reading texts that have accurate information and not immediately resorting to “Wikipedia.”

The group discussed how information should be presented and all agreed that prototypical examples that display all of the desired results would be best so that teachers can model their own projects on the ones that are presented. Those teachers can then take the samples that they created during the training and teach what they learned to their students. 

The standards that the ETs thought most teachers were not aware of were the NETS standards. The CIFs said that teachers should be asked to look at their own standards for the subject that they are creating the unit in and use those to guide them in the unit they develop as a result of the training. The information specialists thought that Information Literacy Standards could also be included.

Two additional topics came up during the focus group: the possibility of an application process if the training were to be conducted with a smaller group and copyright infringement. 

The focus group agreed that if it were possible, it might be best to conduct this training with a smaller group of teachers. That way, the participants would get more one-on-one attention. The ETs mentioned that there is an application form that they use for special training sessions (included at the end of this document) that may be used for this training session for those who are interested in applying. 

The Information Specialists expressed a lot of concern about how students collect resources and pictures for their research projects. They felt that if the training was going to cover using technology to present lessons, a brief session should focus on citing your sources or using “clip art” instead of Google image search whenever possible.

Highlights of Findings:

How many training sessions should be conducted? Should the information be presented all at once or broken up into several days?

These two questions were dependent on each other and this topic was debated quite a bit. The current training day schedules are not conducive to the real needs of the teachers. Maria was especially adamant saying that, “Research shows that long training days are ineffective and a waste of time. Too much information is presented and the participants do not have the time to reflect or try what they have learned.” The group agreed that ideally, the training should be presented in shorter sessions that are close together. It was even suggested that teachers be given “homework” to work on during the week between sessions. (Such as preparing a backwards design unit plan to base their own prototypical example project on). Of course the challenge is organizing the training days, making sure the lab is available, and setting up times for the teachers to meet, such as after school, during a scheduled in-service or arranging for substitutes if the training is being given to a small group during school hours. Conducting the training during school hours with a substitute is feasible at this point because the ETs said that the District Office wants each school to have some kind of technology training session this school year.  

After a lot of discussion the group agreed that it is unlikely that the school would be able to schedule many short training days, but it may be able to split a couple of the days to break up the training. So, in other words, some training days during the workshop might be half days while others will most likely be full days. It was suggested that the schedule be: half, full, full, half. So, that teachers could first be introduced to the topic, have two full days to learn the program(s), and then have a half day of reflection and sharing of results. It was also suggested that the last half day be held well after the initial training, to give teachers a chance to try what they learned in the classroom and talk about their experiences, problems, or successes. 

Should this training be for the whole faculty or should it focus on one particular group? What grade level students are most successful with these programs?

The group agreed that the training would probably be most interesting to teachers in grades 3-5. However, the ETs did not want to discourage others from attending if they were interested in giving it a try. They even suggested that teachers could use the program to manage their classroom websites if they are not comfortable using Dreamweaver or Adobe Contribute. 

Sandra confirmed that 3rd grade can handle the Web Blender program with very little instruction.

However, Paula and James said that K-2 teachers could still use the program to present topics to their students or create additional class web pages on a topic for their students to explore. 

What programs other than Web Blender may teachers need help with, in order to complete the task?

The CIFs said they would like to see teachers using graphic organizer programs such as Inspiration and Kidspiration as part of this training. It was suggested by the CIFs that Inspiration be used by teachers (and later, students) to story board their website and use it as a planning tool. 

The Information Specialists also added that they thought teachers may need to be refreshed on how to log into and use the online databases that the school subscribes to. They added that students need, “quality non-fiction information,” rather than using whatever they find on the internet, which may or may not be accurate. The information specialists also explained that the library, “does not have books on everyone,” and that students often come looking for biographical information for projects and never think to turn to the online databases for sources. 

The ETs also expressed a desire to incorporate DoDEA’s subscription to “Recipes 4 Success” (http://www.myt4l.com/) into the training because the district would like to see the schools using the resources that it has already purchased. They explained that “Recipes 4 Success” is a tutorial website that has many easy to use tutorials for some of the programs the school owns, including Web Blender.  

What materials will teachers need to bring? What are the expectations of those participants?

The CIFs and ETs agreed that teachers should come prepared with a backwards design unit plan that they wish to infuse technology into. This unit plan should not be a short “one-shot lesson” plan, but a longer research topic or ongoing-project that students would work on over a period of time. 

So, if the teachers wanted to use the Web Blender program as a way to present findings on a topic, they should bring a research unit plan that ties into the content of their respective curriculum. If the teachers were interested in using the Web Blender for reflection or portfolio presentation, they should develop a unit plan that outlines the expectations for reflections and constructive criticisms of the students who will be uploading their work. 

As mentioned, teachers may be assigned homework, so teachers may be asked to do research or plan units or write down ideas between training sessions. 

Paula and James felt that at the beginning of each new session, teachers should be allowed to share what they have been working on and how it relates to the training. They should also share successes and failures and build a small community of learners among all the participants involved (feedback, Foshay 28).

At the end of the training, each teacher should walk away with a complete unit plan (practice, Foshay 27), which they can implement immediately, that infuses technology into the curriculum (on-the job application, Foshay 28). Once the initial training is over, teachers should be asked to come back for a short day of sharing and reflection to discuss how their plans went and what changes should be made to the training. 

Would teachers be interested in learning about these programs?

The group agreed that once the teachers could see what the program can do, they would be very interested in using it (attention, Foshay 25). Sandra added that in past training sessions for technology, she felt that she was not adequately trained to use the programs or peripherals that they demonstrated. 

As an example, she cited the time she went to a conference and was shown how to use a SMART Board. She said that after that short training session, little support was offered. Even now when she uses it, she said she has only, “just barely scratched the surface” of the potential that the board has. She especially felt that if a community of learners can be developed during the course of this training, then the teachers will be very interested in using these programs in their classrooms and interested in seeing the ideas that other teachers come up with for using the programs in their classrooms (WIIFM?, Foshay 25).

How can information be presented? What standards should they be aware of?

All agreed that the best way to begin the training would be with a finished example so that teachers can see the big picture before they begin (Prototypical example of a potential “solution,” i.e. a finished “student” website, Foshay 106). This example should generate interest in the use of the program and teachers should be assured that it is easy to use and something that they can all do (YCDI, Foshay 25). 

During the training, information can be presented with examples, demonstrations with an InFocus projector or SMART Board and participants can be asked to follow along and explore on their own computers in the lab. 

Not everyone in the focus group was familiar with the program Web Blender, but Sandra, Maria, and Diane assured them that if they can use Microsoft Power Point, then they should have no problems using Web Blender (YCDI, Foshay 25). 

Paula and James also suggested making up a folder for the training with some information inside for the participants. The ETs and Information Specialists felt that handouts on Information Literacy Standards and NETS should be included.  Paula also felt that a backwards design handout would also be a good idea. 

The information specialists reminded them that in addition to the handouts on standards, another handout on the online database logins should be included and that it might also be a good idea to include the school logins for “Recipes 4 Success.”

Paula and James also suggested that instead of telling teachers the standards that are being met, a discussion could be held about the sample website, asking the teachers to identify what standards they think the project addresses (relate or test, Foshay 26 or 28 respectively). 

Additional Questions That Came Up:

What kind of application process should be implemented (if any) for participants?

The focus group agreed conducting this training with a smaller group of teachers would allow for more one-on-one attention and help ensure that the teachers actually adopt the technology when the training has been completed.

During the meeting the ETs confirmed that the District Office wants each school to have a mini-technology conference sometime this school year. The district is willing to give some sub days for this training. However, the training would need to be for a smaller group. If this workshop were to be presented at that time, then an application process would need to be implemented.

Both ETs expressed that they do not just want technology savvy people at the training, but those who are interested and willing to learn should also apply. They felt that when the training is offered, we should all do our best to encourage teachers that we think might be interested in learning more about this software to apply for the training.

Will copyright infringement problems be addressed?

The information specialists expressed a lot of concern about the carelessness of some students when it comes to citing sources. They felt a mini-lesson or a small section of the training should be used to point out common misconceptions about internet use and copyright infringement. 

One example they gave was when students copy images from Google’s Image Search but do not cite the website they copied it from. They explained that most teachers, parents and students do not realize that this is a copyright violation. They suggested that students and teacher be reminded to either cite the source or use clip art instead to decorate their projects.

Results for Assessment 2: Face-to-Face Interviews

Summary:

The face-to-face interview and checklist were tried out on two teachers at the school, an art teacher and a 1st grade teacher. Both have expressed an interest in infusing more technology into their classrooms.

Interview 1: Cybil, an Art Teacher

Background:

Cybil is an art teacher at the elementary school. She sees about 50% of the student population (550 students) in grades K-5. For her Professional Grown Plan this year she has expressed an interest in infusing more technology into her curriculum. Before the interview, Cybil filled out the checklist the results are as follows:

Cybil’s Technology Checklist

Where and how do you use computers with your students?

 In the classroom (2-3 computers)			 In a lab setting (1 PC per student)
 In collaborative groups				 Keyboarding
 Individually					 Writing process
 Assessment					 Research
 Science labs					 Projects

What technology are you comfortable using?

 Smartboard					 InFocus
 Elmo						 Video Cameras
 Digital Cameras					 Microscopes
 School Webpage					 Library World
 Email						 Electronic Gradebook
 Microsoft Office					 Curricular Software
 Video Editing Software				 Reading Counts/SRI/Read 180

Cybil’s Interview Summary

Topic 1: Technology Level of Comfort

Cybil feels fairly comfortable with her technology use. She uses her computer daily to check e-mail and read the daily bulletin. She has recently begun filing her final grades electronically but does not yet use the grading program. Cybil said she is working on her proficiency in various computer programs. She said, “I used to need a lot more help when working with Microsoft Office. Now, I’ve learned how to use the programs. This is partially because I needed to learn how to make graphs for my master’s a couple years ago. Recently, I started using Microsoft Power Point to make slide shows of pictures for my art classes. I also started using the digital cameras to photograph student work, and I even figured out how to make a screen saver out of my pictures!”

Cybil’s Professional Growth Plan this year is to use more computer technology in the classroom. She said, “Normally, I let students who were finished with their artwork watch an art video. This allowed me to give a large group of finished students something to do. Recently, I started letting some of the kids go on Brain Pop* and look at art videos on the class computers. But that only keeps a couple of them busy, I only have two computers!”

*[Brain Pop is a website that the school subscribes to that has many Flash videos on a variety of topics www.brainpop.com]

Cybil said she is interested in infusing more technology into her curriculum. She mentioned that she was interested in utilizing more of the art programs that are on the computers such as Kid Pix.

When asked if she would be interested in learning an easy to use web design program, she said, “I’d definitely be interested in that! I’ve been thinking about starting a class website to showcase student work.”

Topic 2: In-Services and Training

When asked about in-service training, Cybil felt that many training sessions at the school are not relevant to her curriculum. She said, “We have these long meetings where they show us Power Point Presentations and lecture at us for… what just seems like hours on end! And it always seems to be the same thing. How many training sessions do we need on Graphic Organizers? Everyone is tired of hearing about Goal 1.”*

*[This is a reference to the school improvement plan which has to do with improving reading across the curriculum. One of the interventions is Graphic Organizers.]

Cybil feels strongly that we have too many meetings. She said, “All we have are committee meetings. We have almost one required meeting a week now. Every 1st Tuesday we have a faculty meeting, every 3rd Tuesday we have a CSI Meeting* and the last Thursday of the month we have a department meeting. All we do is go to meetings and talk about the same things. Somewhere along the way, they decided that more meetings make our school better. I think it has gone downhill.”

*[CSI is the new acronym for the school improvement plan “Continuous School Improvement.”]

Cybil continued saying, “Nothing we ever do seems relevant. And when we are expected to attend training on in-service days, it never relates to anything I teach. They never show me how this can be used in my classroom if at all. It’s like I don’t exist.” 

Cybil said that she does not feel adequately supported after training sessions. She explained, “Once the training is over there is no follow up. Everyone fills out the little evaluation form, if they even bother to do that, and I’m pretty sure no one ever reads them. All they want to know is if you were there, they don’t care if you learned anything. They pass out these little sign in sheets. I even had to do that with my committee meeting!* I apologized to them and told them that I was told I had to do it; otherwise I would not have asked them to sign in! I think it is demoralizing. And now we have people constantly checking up on us to see if we actually had the committee meeting. It’s like I’m babysitting.”

*[Cybil is a chairperson for one of the CSI committees.]

Cybil said she does not know people in the faculty very well:

“I collaborate with my partner [the other art teacher] and if a classroom teacher approaches me with a project idea, I’m always willing to do it with their kids. In fact, I always tell them that I’m welcome to new lesson ideas! But outside of that, I don’t see much of a community in the school. I hardly know anyone.”

When asked what she would change about training at the school she quickly said, “The amount of it! It is irrelevant and I never walk away with anything that applies to me. My time would be better spent planning and making samples in my classroom.

Conclusions

Cybil seems ready and willing to learn new things on the computer. However, she seems to feel that training sessions are unrelated to her subject. She feels as though her time would be better spent working in her own room on curriculum development and lesson planning. She seems to feel that in-service days are repetitive and never relate to her technology needs. Cybil would probably benefit from some training that shows her real examples of how technology can be applied to her classroom. 

Interview 2: Alice, a 1st Grade Teacher

Background:

Alice is a veteran teacher who is very knowledgeable and well respected in the school. She has a class of about 20 first graders and 6 computers in her classroom. She said she was given them because she piloted a technology program a number of years ago, but she feels she has “fallen behind” since the school switched from Macintosh to PCs several years ago. Before the interview, Alice filled out the checklist the results are as follows:

Alice’s Technology Checklist

Where and how do you use computers with your students?

 In the classroom (2-3 computers)			 In a lab setting (1 PC per student)
 In collaborative groups				 Keyboarding
 Individually					 Writing process
 Assessment					 Research
 Science labs					 Projects

What technology are you comfortable using?

 Smartboard					 InFocus
 Elmo						 Video Cameras
 Digital Cameras					 Microscopes
 School Webpage					 Library World
 Email						 Electronic Gradebook
 Microsoft Office					 Curricular Software
 Video Editing Software				 Reading Counts/SRI/Read 180

Alice’s Interview Summary

Topic 1: Technology Level of Comfort

Because most staff communication comes through e-mail, Alice is used to using her computer daily to keep in touch with faculty, administration and to read the daily bulletin. She also feels comfortable using some programs, such as Microsoft Word, though admits she is not very proficient in Excel or Power Point. 

Although Alice does not consider herself very technology savvy, she uses her computers very frequently in the classroom. She also lets her students use them for a variety of tasks. Some of the programs she talked about were: Kid Pix, Reading Counts, Wiggle Works, and other programs and educational games in the “Heartsoft” series: “Word Find,” “Bubble Gum,” “Coloring Book,” “Electric Math Chalkboard.” She also enjoys using a writing program that allows them to write stories. She said the kids are introduced to it in their computer classes, so they are familiar with the programs. 

When asked about whether she would be interested in infusing more technology into her curriculum, Alice was enthusiastic about the idea, but discouraged because of the training situation that has developed over a number of years at the school.

Alice shared this story:

“Just last year, I wanted to do a project with digital pictures. I wanted to take photos, and have the kids write a story about them. But it didn’t happen. I figured out how to use the camera but after that, I got no computer help when I wanted to get them off the camera. I asked 2 tech people, and got no help. I learned how to use the camera from a KATUSA*, he was taking a photography course. But he left and after that I could not get the pictures off the camera for use in class.”

*[A Korean soldier that works on the US military base where the school is located.]

When asked if she would be interested in training on a simple to use web design program, Alice was very interested saying, “Yes, as long as it doesn’t go over my head!”

Although Alice does not see herself as very technology savvy, she detailed how she maintains a class website on Scholastic.com ( http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/home.jsp). She said, “It took me 3 years to get it done! But it has all their homework and spelling words on it! I haven’t figured out how to import pictures yet, but they have some clip art you can use.” 

In the next section of the interview Alice discussed some of the reasons she feels her technology needs are not being met. 

Topic 2: In-Services and Training

The longest part of Alice’s interview was about the training situation at the school. Alice feels that the overall presentation of training is very poor. She explained: 

“I don’t need to hear how fabulous it is and how much DoDDS paid for it. I want to know ‘What is it doing for my classroom that we don’t already do?’ I don’t want a lot of busy work, or learning technology for technology’s sake. I shouldn’t be saying to my students, ‘OK, today we are going to have a technology day!’ It should be interrelated to the curriculum.”

One problem she discussed was the timing of the training. Alice explained that there should be “dedicated time” for training in technology. It should not take place during your prep period or after school or even on half-day in-services. Alice said, 

“Training should take place when you are refreshed, not when you are thinking about how many papers you have to grade. They hold these training sessions in the afternoon when you are tired because you worked half the day and all you want to do is have a cup of coffee and go home! I think training should take place before the school year starts, so that you have time to try it out! Learning should also take place in comfortable situations, not in the school cafeteria*!” 

*[This is a reference to where we now hold faculty meetings and many in-service days. The seats are very uncomfortable because they are intended for smaller, lighter children who are only sitting in them for 20-30 minutes at a time, not 1-4 hours. Training used to be held in the “Dolphin Theatre” in normal sized chairs.]

Alice feels the training that has been offered does not meet her needs. She feels that they try to train the teachers on too many things in one day. Often teachers are put through several short sessions on different topics. A teacher may be exposed to 3 training sessions in one day. Alice elaborated, “There are so many in one day. There is no substance. And they have people giving the training who are not qualified to teach about the subject.”

Alice also feels that the training sessions never suit any of her classroom needs. Alice shared her feelings on the topic:

“With computers I want to see a real world or real classroom application. I don’t want to just ‘sit and play’ with it. But so many of our computer training sessions are just that; ‘sit and play.’ You sit at some computer; they are standing up there talking to someone else, someone who maybe already knows what they are talking about. I don’t want to play I want to learn. Training sessions don’t apply to first grade. But there is nothing you can do, except pretend you are actively interested and learning. We’re just putting time in.”

Technology support was another area that Alice feels the school is lacking in. Despite the fact that there are two ETs on staff Alice said, “You have to have a ‘connection’ or something. However, Maria* is very good. Everything I’ve asked her to do has been done. Maybe things will be different now, I hope so.”

* [Maria is a new ET this year.]

Alice shared another scenario:

“When something is done on the computer, no one shows you how it was done. They just go ‘bang, bang, bang’ and it’s done! They don’t want to slow down you can write steps. [laughs] I’ll never be able to do that again!”

Alice also explained that there is no sense of community. She said the closest she ever had to a learning community is when she and Gerry (another 1st grade teacher) took “Scholastic Red” classes together. 

Finally Alice said that she feels training needs to be more “meaningful, it is too disjointed. Sessions are too short and they don’t cover anything.” 

Conclusions

Alice’s situation is unfortunate because she detailed many ways in which she uses the computer and has used to computer in the past. During the interview Alice described how she used to know how to use many different kinds of programs on the Macintoshes that they used to have. She said that they had more training on those and she used to do data bases with her 1st graders, as well as surveys and polls on topics such as, “favorite colors.” She said cheerfully, “We always had a graph going! It was part of their morning work. The kids made the graphs themselves.” Now she said, “I don’t know how to do it on the new computers. I guess you need to make a spread sheet. But I don’t know how. We’ve gone back to raising hands and making tallies on the board.”

Alice also talked about a certificate in technology that she received a number of years ago for taking 6-8 graduate classes when they used the Macintosh. 

Alice is obviously very interested in using technology in her classroom. However, she seems to feel that the current training in the school is grossly inadequate for her needs. Because there is no sense of community or support, she feels as though her technological abilities are very low when in fact she used to be very proficient! It probably would not take much time to help Alice become more comfortable with the new computers. The problem is no one is willing to sit down and help her with them or explain how they performed some function on the computer. Alice would probably benefit from a better support network and training that is meaningful and highlights on-the-job applications. 

Appendix B 
Web Page Design Guidelines Checklist:
What makes a successful webpage?
A web page must be easy to read, and navigate. Planning ahead and using strategies such as sketches or storyboarding can help you organize your pages and links but there are design concerns as well. Below is a checklist that will help ensure that you have a working, successful webpage.

Text and Background	Yes	No	N/A	
1. My text and my background color contrast so that they can easily be viewed on the monitor (i.e. I used dark text on a light background or light text on a dark background).				
2. I used the same color scheme throughout my web site so that all pages look as though they belong together.				
3. I formatted my text in a logical manner using different sized headings to show order of importance, appropriate font sizes and bold and italic faces to highlight important information.				
4. Each page has a banner or heading that describes its contents.				

Navigation	Yes	No	N/A	
1. My navigation bar is consistent throughout the website.				
2. My navigation bar is easy to use and locate.				
3. I have checked all my hyperlinks to make sure they work.				
4. I have checked all my buttons to make sure they are properly labeled and linked.				

Pictures and Graphics	Yes	No	N/A	
1. I inserted pictures and graphics into my website in appropriate places. 				
2. I made sure to cite where I found my pictures just like any other resource. 				
3. I clearly labeled any tables, graphs, or charts that are used to support my data.				

Other	Yes	No	N/A	
1. I gave each page a unique title.				
2. My website has a home page that acts like an “index” or “table of contents” to which all other pages are linked. 				
3. Each content page has a link back to the home page.				
4. I tested my webpage on different monitors and computers to see if the text color was legible and I tested my webpage in different web browsers.				

Sample Project Rubric: Online Portfolio

	Excellent
5-4	Almost
3	Not Yet
2	Your 
Score	
1. I created an online portfolio of my art work, writings, and/or sample projects. 					
2. I used a graphic organizer such as Inspiration or Kidspiration to plan out my web site pages and content.					
3. I titled each piece of work that I included in my portfolio and the banner or page title reflects the title of the work					
4. I added reflections and comments to each piece that give insight as to why I felt it belonged in my portfolio. 					
5. I created a homepage that acts as an index or table of contents to each of my content pages. 					
6. I made a navigation bar that allows me to navigate between each page and back to the homepage. 					
7. The navigation is consistent on every page and easy to follow. 					
8. My text and my background color contrast so that they can easily be viewed on the monitor (i.e. I used dark text on a light background or light text on a dark background). 					
9. I tested my web page to make sure that all links worked properly.					

Please answer the following questions in the space provided. 5 pts. each.

1.	What difficulties did you experience when making your portfolio?
										
______________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

2.	If you could change one thing about your portfolio, what would it be and why?

______________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

Sample Project Rubric: Research Project

Research Component

	Excellent
5-4	Almost
3	Not Yet
2	Your 
Score	
1. I created a web site about a historical topic. 					
2. I researched my topic using reliable resources such as encyclopedias, books, magazines, newspapers, journals and online databases.					
3. I arranged my data, ideas and topics using a graphic organizer such as Inspiration or Kidspiration.					
4. I inserted text and graphics into my web page that support or relate to my topic.					
5. I cited all of my resources including pictures on a “Works Cited” page at the end of my web site.					
6. I checked my web site for mistakes in grammar and punctuation.					

Web Design Component

	Excellent
5-4	Almost
3	Not Yet
2	Your 
Score	
7. I created a homepage that acts as an index or table of contents to each of my content pages.					
8. I made a navigation bar that allows me to navigate between each page and back to the homepage.					
9. The navigation is consistent on every page and easy to follow.					
10. My text and my background color contrast so that they can easily be viewed on the monitor (i.e. I used dark text on a light background or light text on a dark background).					
11. I tested my web page to make sure that all links worked properly.					
Sample Project Rubric: Online Journal

Journal Component

	Excellent
5-4	Almost
3	Not Yet
2	Your 
Score	
1. I created a web site to display my favorite journal entries. 					
2. I used a graphic organizer such as Inspiration or Kidspiration to plan out my web site pages and content.					
3. I included a title for each piece of writing or I included the writing prompt used as the topic for that entry.					
4. I formatted my text so that it was easy to read, picking an appropriate font size for the title and the body.					
5. I inserted graphics to decorate my online journal using clip art or pictures with source citations.					
6. I included a reflections section that explains why I chose each entry for my website.					
7. I checked my web site for mistakes in grammar and punctuation.					

Web Design Component

	Excellent
5-4	Almost
3	Not Yet
2	Your 
Score	
7. I created a homepage that acts as an index or table of contents to each of my content pages.					
8. I made a navigation bar that allows me to navigate between each page and back to the homepage.					
9. The navigation is consistent on every page and easy to follow.					
10. My text and my background color contrast so that they can easily be viewed on the monitor (i.e. I used dark text on a light background or light text on a dark background).					
11. I tested my web page to make sure that all links worked properly.					

Appendix C 
KOREA 2007-2008 FETC APPLICATION

Thank you for taking the time to complete this application. It is important that you understand if you are selected for this training, you will be expected to create a unit plan that infusing technology using backwards design and implement it into your classroom. 

Where and how do you use computers with your students?

 In the classroom (2-3 computers)			 In a lab setting (1 computer per student)
 In collaborative groups				 Keyboarding
 Individually					 Writing process
 Assessment					 Research
 Science labs					 Projects

What technology are you comfortable using?

 Smartboard					 InFocus
 Elmo						 Video Cameras
 Digital Cameras					 Microscopes
 School Webpage					 Library World
 Email						 Electronic Gradebook
 Microsoft Office					 Curricular Software
 Video Editing Software				 Reading Counts/SRI/Read 180

Check the venues where you would be willing to share your experiences.

 Educators' Day					 Staff/Grade Level/Department Meetings
 Inservice						 Future FETCs

If known, what type of technology would you like to infuse in the unit you would be bringing to this FETC?

     

Tell us why you should be selected.

     

End of Training Survey

Please use the following checklist to rate activities and instruction in this training program:

Criteria	Strongly
Agree	
Agree

	Neutral	Disagree	Strongly Disagree	
	5	4	3	2	1	
1. The instructor's appeared organized and prepared for each session.						
2. The concepts in this training were presented in a logical, sequential manner.						
3. Examples, illustrations, tutorials and handouts were relevant or helpful.						
4. Objectives and goals for the training were clear and obtainable.						
5. I felt supported throughout the training. 						
6. I felt supported in my classroom after the training.						
7. I felt that the activities and topics were relevant to my classroom and curriculum needs.						
8. I felt as though I was given enough time to voice my concerns during training sessions.						
9. I felt as though my concerns and opinions were viewed as important and the instructors tried to offer help and suggestions.						
10. I was given enough time between training sessions to develop ideas and implement activities in my classroom.						

Please answer the following questions:

1. Which topics, ideas or computer programs do you feel were most useful for your classroom and curriculum needs?

2. Have the activities or ideas in this training changed the way you design or will design future classroom activities? 

3. How have the activities and ideas in this training impacted student work or learning?

4. What did you like about this training course in classroom Web Design?

5. What did you not like about this training course?

6. If you could change one thing about this course what would it be and why?