About the Goal / Strategy Investigator

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The AECT project is identifying the core technology knowledge and skills teachers should possess for 46 different teaching roles, and pre-service and in-service teachers will be recognized with technology certificates as they master technology skills identified for their roles. As we worked toward the development of this certification program, it became obvious to us that we were creating a knowledge base about the most important ways in which teachers use technologies, and that we could create two tools, the "Goal / Strategy Investigator" and the "Goal / Strategy Selection Guide" that will help teachers make good decisions about the use of technology. Our "Goal/Strategy Investigator (GSI) and Goal / Strategy Selection Guide (GSSG)" are still very much "works in progress," but we are sharing them with you at this stage because: Teachers find them very useful, even in their current prototype stage We find that the best way to communicate where we are headed to potential partners is to show them the prototypes, and We want feedback from you about how we might make them even more useful With that in mind, please read the explanation below, explore the GSI and the GSSG, and let us know what you think! The Purpose of These Tools The use of technologies in schools shouldn't be "about" the technologies -- it should be about improving student learning. For this reason, we are creating what instructional designers call an "electronic performance support system" designed to assist teachers during the decision making process. It will help teachers: Identify, prioritize, and select educational goals to work on, based on their own classroom contexts Identify, rank, and select technology-based strategies that can help them reach their selected goals Identify and acquire the prerequisite knowledge and skills they need to use technologies in the selected ways Implement the technology strategies effectively, and Assess the impact of using the technology strategy on the selected educational goals. About Our "Educational Goals" Our first step in developing these educational technology advising tools was the development of a set of "Educational Goals" that have been demonstrated to improve student progress, and that "fit" with teachers' experiences in the classroom. We began by asking educators what they thought were the most important things they could do to improve student learning and created a classification system for the suggestions. We then looked at several models published in educational journals and books. Based on these sources of input, we arrived at nine goals teachers might strive for, to increase student learning. Building strong personal relationships with students Increasing students personal motivation Increasing parent involvement Improving students' thinking and learning skills Using active, collaborative, and multidisciplinary learning experiences Improving instructional processes Having, communicating and assessing high standards and expectations Improving assessment and reporting Improving teaching skills and knowledge Of course, some of these goals will be more important than others to any individual teacher, depending on the teacher's experience, teaching assignment, philosophy of The teacher is in the best position to select the most important goals, and we will be developing tools to guide teachers through the goal selection process. About Our "Technology Strategies" Technologies are tools that can help us accomplish goals. In education, technologies can help us meet important educational goals, including those listed above! Through a series of brief retreats, we have identified a set of technology strategies teachers might use to accomplish each of the educational goals listed above, and at the bottom of the "Technology Strategies Column" in the GSI there is a link through which anyone can gain access to a web-based form through which they can propose a new strategy. All of the proposed technology strategies will be "rated" by the expert panels representing the 46 teaching roles, so that (in the near future) a user of the ETA will be able to select a teaching role and the strategies will be displayed in order, with the ones the expert panels felt held the most potential appearing at the top of the list. When a user clicks on a technology strategy, new information appears for the selected strategy, including: a description of the strategy a link to examples of how teachers are using that strategy effectively the prerequisite knowledge and skills that will be required to use that technology strategy, and a "performance standard" and rubric that explain how the strategy might be implemented and assessed. About Our "Examples" The examples we offer for each technology strategy are designed to help teachers not familiar with the strategy understand what the strategy is and how other teachers are using the strategy to accomplish their educational goals. These are not meant to be comprehensive "case studies," nor are they meant to encompass all of the possible variations... they are simply quick stories of teachers who are using the strategy well. We will be "harvesting" these examples from existing accounts and from teachers who use our tools to locate and implement technology strategies. As teachers complete a performance standard related to a strategy, they will be submitting documents, reactions, and other accounts that we will craft into these examples. A link inviting the submission of other examples will be available at the bottom of each example page. About Our "Prerequisites" As with any tool, knowledge and skills are needed before technology-based tools can be used effectively. Successful use of most computer-based strategies, for example, will require the knowledge and skill needed to turn a computer on and off, to open, move, and resize windows, and to save and retrieve files. Any Internet-based strategy will require the ability to "browse," which includes identifying links and clicking the mouse. We have identified a set of prerequisite skills for each of our technology strategies. In the not-too-distant future, this list of prerequisites will appear as a series of "checkboxes," with checked boxes indicating which skills a registered user has identified as mastered in self assessments, and "open" boxes indicating a prerequisite that should be mastered before using that technology strategy. And, as our project evolves, links will be provided through which users will be able to identify ways to learn the missing prerequisite. About Our "Suggested Implementation Plans" and "Rubrics" There are many "right ways" to use any technology strategy, and experienced teachers may not need guidance on how to implement a technology strategy. However, since even experienced teachers may be working with a technology strategy that is new to them, they seem to appreciate our "Suggested Implementation Plans," which serve the dual purposes of: 1) helping teachers see one set of steps they might follow to implement the strategy and assess its effectiveness; and 2) guiding assessment for the purpose of certification. (The AECT Project will issue "Effective Technology Application Certificates" to teachers who submit the products described in the performance standards to a certified assessor.) Our performance standards are one way that teachers might approach the implementation of a technology strategy, and the rubrics will let the teachers see how their implementation will be assessed, should they desire certification. How to Use the Goal / Strategy Investigator The Goal / Strategy Investigator consists of three frames, as shown in the diagram below: a "Goals" frame, a "Strategies" frame, and a "Strategies Detail" frame.   To use the GSI... 1) Click on an educational goal in the goals frame to review the list of technology strategies identified for that educational goal. 2) Click on a Technology Strategy in the strategies frame to reveal the examples, prerequisites, performance standard, and rubric provided for that strategy. 3) Review the information in the strategy detail frame. 4) Use the "Contact Us" Link on our home page to let us know what you think of our tools, and how we might make them better! Thanks! Click HERE to go to the Goal / Strategy Investigator (GSI)