A recent ISTE post in the Ed Tech Coaches Network asked the question:
"If you were given the chance to develop and Ed Tech coach certificate - what college courses would it need to have?"
My first thought was to avoid focusing on the tools. My Masters in Instructional Technology courses seemed to primarily focus on the tools and less on the pedagogy of good teaching. To add insult to injury, most of these tools no longer exist. (Hyperstacks anyone?) It was not all bad, I did think about instruction as I learned about the tools, but instruction was secondary to learning how to use the tools. Instruction should have been first in everything I was learning!
My next thoughts were about a few of the resources we've used to plan professional development. We always try to start with the idea that technology can serve to enhance a good lesson. We try to remember that technology alone does not have the power make a bad lesson great. Technology only enhances what is already there. Great teaching must come first or the power of instructional technology is most likely wasted.
All this being said, here are a few of the resources I shared in my response:
- The ISTE Standards for Teachers might be a great starting point for course objectives.
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teachers Who Use Technology could be another resource to organize course structure.
- If you are a GAFE district I would consider using the Google Training Courses as part of the course plan. These are well put together and focus on skills before the tools.
Specifically I would probably focus on these 5 big concepts:
- Skills Connected to the 4Cs
- Student-Centered Learning
- Formative Assessment
- Coaching Pedagogy
- Leadership
What courses do you think would be essential for an #EdTech Coach?
No comments:
Post a Comment