BellSouth Foundation has chosen UF/COE/STL as a partner to evaluate state-led virtual high schools in the 9 state BellSouth region. Rick Ferdig is the PI on this 5-year project that will
bring $600,000 to UF.  Congrats to Rick and Grad Fellow Erik Black for outstanding work in convincing BellSouth to choose us as a partner.

Ugur Baslanti recently passed his qualifying exams and advanced to doctoral candidacy. He will present his dissertation proposal at the end of the semester. If you see Ugur, please congratulate him.

Madeline Ortiz-Rodriquez has been selected to participate in the Division K Graduate Seminar at AERA this April. Madeline will have an opportunity to further her scholarly pursuits in collaboration with faculty and fellow doctoral students. Congratulations, Madeline!!

Dawson, K. (2006). Teacher inquiry: A vehicle to merge prospective teachers' experience and reflection during curriculum-based, technology-enhanced field experiences. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 38(3), 265-292.

Abstract
This study describes and analyzes a four-year effort to provide curriculum-based, technologyenhanced field experiences for prospective teachers. These field experiences and this associated study espouse the notion that experiences and reflective activity must coalesce to yield professional growth for prospective teachers. The study suggests that teacher inquiry, a process that scaffolds prospective teachers to systematically and intentionally study their use of technology, may (1) counter many shortcomings associated with traditional strategies designed to promote reflective activity, (2) focus prospective teachers’ attention on student learning outcomes, and (3) facilitate more desirable integration strategies during curriculum-based, technology-enhanced field experiences. The study notes that teacher inquiry is widely recognized in the general teacher education literature, yet novel within the context of curriculum-based, technology-enhanced field experiences, and encourages educational technologists to further explore its possibilities as a tool for teacher preparation and educational research.

Dennis Beck has recently been selected to serve on the editorial review board for BJET – British Journal of Educational Technology. Congratulations, Dennis!

Many in our program participated in the 17th Annual Conference for the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education.

Dennis Beck -PDAs in the classroom A study of cognitive changes in elementary school children

Dennis Beck  - When lecture goes online: The changing role of the instructors in lecture/lab hybrid courses

Erik Black, Kara Dawson & Richard Ferdig - Predicting success and failure of online education students

Erik Black & Richard Ferdig - Technology outcomes in post-secondary online education classes

Kara Dawson – Teacher inquiry and technology-based field experiences: A amalgamation to promote prospective teachers’ professional growt

Ela Kaye Eley – Processes that influence negotiated roles of inservice-preservice teams integrating technology into the elementary curriculum within a K-12/university partnership

Debra Sprague, Peter Albion, Richard Ferdig & Cleborne Maddux, -Transitions to Academia: Publishing in the Journal of Technology and Teacher Education (JTATE)

Carl Fields – Digital narratives and staff development: Promoting technology integration

Susan Jinks – Preservice teachers engaged in digital video production

Colleen Swain – Issues of relative advantage: Examining teacher educators’ decisions to use technology in their courses

 

The New Media Consortium and the Monterey Institute for Technology and Education, supported by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, are soliciting abstracts for chapters to appear in a series of volumes entitled The MacArthur Foundation Series on Digital Media and Learning. The MacArthur Foundation Series will explore the intersection of digital media and learning from the perspectives of experts, visionaries, and thought leaders chosen from across the globe. Authors whose chapters are selected for inclusion in these volumes will receive an honorarium for their contribution. See more

Special thanks to Aisha Wood Jackson for sharing this information. 

Chris Sessums was recently hired as the Director of Distance Learning for the College of Education. When you see Chris please welcome this familiar face as an integral part of our program’s future!