Prospective teachers in this interdisciplinary, practice-based methods course have previously been introduced to a variety of technology-based tools that may be used to engage K-5 students in learning and problem solving and/or to develop curriculum or teaching materials. These tools include generic software tools such as concept mappers, word processors, databases, spreadsheets, multimedia authoring systems, web-based authoring tools, Smart Boards, adaptive technologies such as Intelli Keyboards, digital video tools, digital imaging tools and web-based communication tools.

In addition, prospective teachers have already been exposed to a variety of content-specific tools that may be used to engage K-5 students in learning and problem solving or to develop curriculum or teaching materials. These include content-specific software applications from major companies such as Tom Snyder and Sunburst, as well as content-specific applications developed in institutes of higher education such the Curry Center for Technology and Teacher Education. Other content-specific tools with which prospective teachers have previously worked, include Alpha Smarts (Language Arts), probes and sensors (Science), digital microscopes (Science), and graphing calculators (Mathematics).

The course submitted for this award builds on these previous experiences to support prospective teachers as they have an opportunity to practice interdisciplinary integration of technology in a K-5 classroom in collaboration with a practicing teacher. All technology use must directly relate to the curriculum, meet statewide grade level standards, and include relevant assessments. Focusing on a single technology when prospective teachers are working in a variety of contexts is not as valuable as working with them to operate within their individual contexts and sharing contexts among participants.

All assignments in this course are built around the prospective teachers" previous experiences with technology integration and foundational issues associated with it. Issues considered foundational in this course include, but are not limited to, simultaneously meeting content-specific and technology standards in an interdisciplinary fashion, addressing a variety of learning styles and intelligences, facilitating cognitive processing at higher levels of Bloom"s taxonomy and addressing the "Is it worth it" (Harris, 1998). A graphic organizer for the course is available at http://www.coe.ufl.edu/faculty/dawson/AwardSupport/ graphic_organizer.html

In this course, technology integration is not necessarily modeled but actually practiced. The instructor often works in the classroom alongside prospective teachers and provides both technical and curricular support as needed. Likewise, a school-based representative provides support to prospective teachers and their inservice partners. Most instruction involves discussion around how the theories and skills learned in previous courses play out in practice and strategies for more effectively integrating technology within the varying contexts.

Technology use in this course is innovative for several reasons:

1. The course requires prospective teachers not only use technology in the classroom but to determine whether the technology integration strategies they implement influence student learning through a process known as teacher inquiry. The need to focus on student learning via technology integration echoes throughout conversations about a research agenda for Educational Technology ( Schrum et al., 2006, Dawson & Ferdig, 2006; Bull et al, 2005; Schrum, 2005; Thompson, 2005). These calls are broad-based and as Darling-Hammond (1987) reminds us

   Relying solely on standardized practice is malpractice... effective teaching is not routine, students are not passive and problems of practice are not simple, predictable or standardized. (p.2)

Following are examples of inquiries conducted by prospective teachers during this course that explore the relationship between technology integration and student learning:

1. Technology and autism: How can technology support the communication skills of a first-grade student with autism?
2. How can cooperative groups with individuals of varying academic skill be supported by technology integration?
3. Can the implementation of basic technology improve reading comprehension?
4. What happens when 3rd graders become teachers utilizing Power Point to instruct classmates about the solar system?
5. What is the relationship between students creating their own web-based activities and their learning of content?
6. Project-based learning: What do they really learn?

2. Despite the fact that teacher inquiry has been widely recognized in the general teacher education literature for over a decade (Carr & Kemis, 1986; Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 1999) use of this strategy by prospective teachers to ascertain student learning from technology integration strategies is novel.
3. The course is grounded in the concept of simultaneous renewal (Goodlad, 1994). That is, both prospective and practicing teachers have an opportunity to consider how technology may be used to support student learning and both improve their knowledge and skills.
4. The course espouses the concept of situated learning (Lave et. al., 1991) and its defining characteristic, legitimate peripheral participation. That is, prospective teachers are enculturated into a community of practice (i.e., the teacher profession) through immersion in an authentic environment with support from university and school-based mentors.
5. The course has become a catalyst for a "Professional Development Community" focusing on how technology may be used to support student learning and school improvement goals.
6. The course was also the catalyst behind a recent private donation to support these efforts and compile a monograph reporting the results of teacher inquiries related to technology integration and student learning.

http://www.coe.ufl.edu/faculty/dawson/AwardSupport/examples.html

In an attempt to satisfy the Florida Accomplished Practices (teacher education standards developed by the Florida Department of Education) technology integration is a required component of the student teaching experience at University of Florida. Actual implementation varies based on the school context, mentor teacher, and university supervisor.

http://www.coe.ufl.edu/faculty/dawson/AwardSupport/syllabus.htm

Bull, G., Knezek, G., Roblyer, M. D., Schrum, L., & Thompson, A. (2005). A proactive approach to a research agenda for educational technology. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 37(3).

Carr, W., & Kemmis, S. (1986). Becoming critical: Knowing through action research. Geelong, Victoria: Deakin University Press.

Cochran-Smith, M., & Lytle, S. L. (1999). The teacher research movement: A decade later. Educational Researcher, 28(7), 15-25.

Dawson, K., & Ferdig, R. E. (2006). Commentary: Expanding notions of acceptable research evidence in educational technology: A Response to Schrum et al. Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education [Online serial], 6(1). Retrieved March 21, 2007, from http://www.citejournal.org/vol6/iss1/general/article2.cfm