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Best Practices in Technology for Teacher Education

Best Practices in Technology for Teacher Education was a task force created by former Senior Vice President David J. Ward, UW System Administration. The charge of the task force included:

  • Review technology standards for teachers from national accrediting bodies and professional organizations
  • Review Wisconsin's technology standards for PK-12 students
  • Examine current technology standards in UW teacher preparation and professional development programs
  • Recommend best practices or models for technology integration into teacher preparation and professional development programs
  • Work in cooperation with the Department of Public Instruction to assure that the recommended best practices are in the spirit of reforms to PI 34
  • Develop a document that can be disseminated throughout the UW System and the state to promote these best practices

The task force was composed of representatives from UW teacher education programs (faculty and deans), and representatives from the Department of Public Instruction, CESA, the TEACH Board, and Milwaukee Public Schools. It is co-chaired by Nancy Kaufman, then Dean of Professional Studies at UW-Green Bay now Assistant Vice Chancellor at UW-Oshkosh, and Dana Nelson, former Director of PK-16 Initiatives at UW System Administration.

The task force has developed the following mission statement:

The University of Wisconsin System Task Force on Best Practices in Technology for Teachers promotes teacher education programs which infuse technology appropriately throughout the curriculum. These programs promote engaged learning by educating teachers to use a continually evolving variety of technologies that extend and enhance learning to a diversity of student learning styles and within a diversity of learning environments.

 The task force was engaged in a broad-based effort with teams from each of the University of Wisconsin System institutions with teacher education programs. Those teams were composed of teacher education and liberal studies faculty, as well as PK-12 teachers and administrators. The teams conducted their work through three compressed video workshops. During those workshops, the institutions addressed the following issues:
  1. What are the technology proficiencies teachers need to achieve to be successful teachers at: a) the beginning educator level, b) the professional educator level, c) the master educator level? Now? Five years out?
  2. What are the hardware and software needs at each institution of higher education to enable students to be proficient teachers? Minimum module? Five years out?
  3. What steps would need to be taken at institutions of higher education to ensure that faculty who teach prospective teachers could model the integration of technology in content delivery?

The institutional discussions concerning these three issues resulted in each institution developing a plan for the integration of technology into their teacher education program. The work of the Best Practices in Technology for Teacher Education initiative concluded with a face-to-face conference for all team members. That conference was held in April 2000.

The conference time was divided into discussions for functional groups and institutional teams. Individuals from across the system were placed into functional groups (deans, higher education faculty, technical support, etc.) and were asked questions designed to stimulate discussion and planning across institutions. The institutional team meetings were structured to enable the teams to initiate specific goals and action steps to develop their institutional plans.

Finally, each campus submitted a report to System Administration that outlined the campus plan to integrate technology into teacher education. A presentation of the preliminary findings of this task force was presented to the Board of Regents in November 2000. Those plans became the basis for a White Paper that was submitted to the Board of Regents in February 2001. Besides reporting on the status of technology integration into teacher education, the White Paper highlights institutional best practices. It will also contains specific system-wide policy and program recommendations. It is anticipated that the Board of Regents will incorporate these recommendations into a larger UW System PK-16 initiative and an action agenda.

Check this web site periodically for more updates about this initiative or contact Hal Schlais at hschlais@uwsa.edu or 608-265-5362.

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The VIT 2 AL web site was last updated in December 2005