OVERVIEW: PBS TEACHERLINE CAPSTONE II - EMPOWERING STUDENTS WITH TECHNOLOGY

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1 Introduction and Goals Welcome back to the PBS TeacherLine/ISTE Certificate of Proficiency Capstone Program. This year-long professional development program is designed for teachers who have experience integrating computer-based technologies into their K-12 classroom practice and want to earn certification in the ISTE NETS for Teachers while further developing their knowledge and skills. Before enrolling in this course, you should have successfully completed the Capstone Introduction and "Capstone I: Teaching with Technology." You may not enroll in Capstone II until you have passed Capstone I. Program Goals As you may remember, the program's goals are two-fold, aiming to provide professional development and recognition in the following ways: Professional development through communities of practice o Supported development of digital professional portfolios o National networking opportunities o National networking opportunities Professional recognition through certification o Fulfillment of state re-certification requirements o Credits toward salary advance o Enhanced job qualifications Program Structure As you know, the PBS TeacherLine/ISTE Certificate of Proficiency Capstone Program includes a self-paced Introduction and two 15-week Capstone courses, which are organized around the learner's creation of portfolio exhibits. A "capstone" represents a culminating achievement, and as such, the Capstone courses are intended to develop and demonstrate proficiency in the ISTE NETS T, culminating in two multimedia Capstone online portfolio exhibits. "Capstone I: Teaching with Technology" focuses on teacher use of technology, while "Capstone II: Empowering Students with Technology" concentrates on students as the primary users of technology. Each Capstone exhibit should contain digital artifacts of a learner's classroom practice, as well as reflections on how classroom projects demonstrate particular standards in action. We expect that learners will have implemented the lessons or projects featured in their exhibits before the exhibits are finalized. The Capstone courses are led by a "coach" an experienced educator trained in facilitating both face-to-face and online learning. This coach will guide cohorts of 8-12 participants through their Capstone learning and support them in the development of their portfolio exhibits throughout the courses. Course Goals

2 This course, "Capstone II: Empowering Students with Technology," focuses on active student use of technology to improve learning in K-12 classrooms. While exhibits may feature lessons or projects involving teacher use of technology, the primary emphasis in this course is on students as primary users of technology to promote learning. Projects that might lend themselves well to Capstone II exhibits could incorporate student-created publications, multimedia presentations, spreadsheets, Web pages, or other artifacts that demonstrate student skill with digital tools in the classroom. The primary goals of the course are: To deepen learners' thinking about empowering students with technology and challenge them to make ongoing improvements in their teaching practice. To support learners in creating online exhibits featuring lessons or projects that exemplify effective student use of technology for learning and demonstrate proficiency in the ISTE NETS T. Course Structure The course consists of seven 2-week sessions and one final 1-week session. In each session, learners are expected to engage in a variety of connected activities around particular themes or topics. Each session features several components: Readings have been selected to promote thoughtful reflection about ideas and practices related to effective teaching and learning with technology. Activities such as exploring multimedia materials and taking surveys are designed to engage learners further with core themes and ideas framing each session. Journal reflections invite learners to think deeply about important themes or ideas from readings and activities in light of their own professional practice. Discussions provide a venue for interaction among cohort members, and learners should contribute an initial posting to each online discussion in the first week so that everyone can spend the second week replying to those postings and moving the discussion forward. Exhibit work offers learners an opportunity to apply ideas from readings, discussions, and other activities directly to their own teaching practice. While each session's activities are sequenced, learners will need to organize their own work individually. The first thing to do in a given session is browse the contents of the session to get a sense of the scope of work expected for those two weeks. In general, the first week should involve background readings and activities as well as initial postings to each discussion. The second week should generally involve extending the online discussions and applying the session's core ideas to exhibit work.

3 VERVIEW: PBS TEACHERLINE CAPSTONE II - EMPOWERING STUDENTS WITH Course Outline The following section briefly describes each of the sessions in "Capstone II: Empowering Students with Technology" and explains the schedule and course requirements. Session Summaries The Capstone II course consists of eight sessions: Session 1: Developing Community In this session, learners will deepen their involvement in the Capstone community of practice, further cultivate connections with other members, and take the group's "joint enterprise" to the next level. Session 2: Shared Visions of Standards in Practice In this session, learners will work toward further developing a collective vision of what ISTE Standards look like in practice, particularly with regard to student use of technology. Session 3: Focusing on What Works In this session, learners will investigate research about how people learn and how technology can support teaching and learning in K-12 classrooms. Session 4: Teaching Tools and Strategies: Information Literacy In this session, learners will explore teaching resources and strategies for helping students use technology constructively to create original work products. Though a variety of topics are potentially relevant, this session will feature information literacy and classroom management because of their broad application across grade levels and subjects in teaching students to use technology independently. Session 5: Issues and Challenges: Digital Equity In this session, learners will contemplate practical issues and challenges related to ensuring equitable access to technology for all students to support learning. Session 6: Professional Collaboration In this session, learners will closely review the work of a cohort peer, offer constructive feedback on a draft exhibit, and lead online professional conversations among their Capstone colleagues. Session 7: Dissemination Plans In this session, learners will consider their local leadership roles and how they plan to help other educators build knowledge related to the NETS T. Session 8: Exhibition In this session, learners will celebrate the work produced by members of their cohort and reflect on what they have accomplished.

4 Schedule & Requirements To receive credit for this Capstone II course, you must complete all of the assignments on the Assignment Checklist. The final product of the course is a Capstone II exhibit based on the Capstone II Exhibit Plan you submitted in the Capstone Introduction. All assignments will be assessed using the criteria posted. Please refer to the guidelines and criteria provided for each of the assignments. This course is equivalent to a 45-hour (3 credit) graduate level course. Each session is scheduled for two weeks, and you are expected to complete all assignments during each session. Upon completing and passing the course, you will receive a Capstone Certificate of Proficiency in the ISTE NETS T. You will have access to this course for 60 days after the course end date. In order to receive a Capstone Certificate of Proficiency, learners must: Complete assigned readings and participate in instructional activities, including at least 80% of online discussions and journal reflections within each Capstone. Develop two multimedia portfolio exhibits of classroom projects that collectively demonstrate evidence of all 23 of the ISTE NETS T performance indicators in practice (one exhibit per Capstone course). Share exhibits within their cohort and provide feedback to peers on their exhibit work.

5 Policies & Procedures Following these policies and procedures will help you to maximize your online learning experience and support the development of your learning community: You should have already completed PBS TeacherLine's online learning orientation course, "Practice Learning Online with PBS TeacherLine," as well as the Capstone Introduction and "Capstone I: Teaching with Technology." If it has been a while since you did so, you may want to review the practice course to re-familiarize yourself with the PBS TeacherLine course environment. Once you have completed the course, you will still have access to your portfolio for one year after you finish the Capstone Program. Please be respectful of your coach and fellow learners and offer appropriate feedback and comments. Respond to the comments of others professionally and thoughtfully, keeping in mind that all communications are public. Participate in course discussions at least three times per discussion and complete all other assignments as they are given. Your participation in discussions is crucial to the success of this course. Be ready to contribute regularly. If you need support with technical issues, adjusting to online learning, understanding an assignment, or participating in the discussion forums, it is your responsibility to actively seek help until your needs are met. If you have any questions or concerns, please check the Capstone Q&A discussion forum for relevant information and post any unanswered questions there.

6 Roles & Responsibilities The following section describes the role of the online community, the role of the coach facilitating this course, and your role and responsibilities as a learner. Please read this information carefully. Role of the Online Learning Community An online learning community is one that is created around an electronic learning environment like the one for this course. Members of this special community are expected to explore and reflect on various topics, socially construct knowledge through collaboration, openly share ideas with others, and provide support to each other. Roles and Responsibilities of the Learner As a member of this learning community, you are expected to support the professional development of your fellow learners. In addition to helping your fellow learners, you must also take responsibility for your own professional development. Specifically, you are expected to do the following: Be self-directed, self-motivated, and responsible for your own learning. Participate and actively engage in discussions with your fellow learners-the sooner you post your ideas and questions, the more time others have to respond and deepen the discussion. Reflect on newly acquired knowledge and regularly assess your own progress. Create a time management structure that works for you and complete all assignments accordingly. Roles and Responsibilities of the Coach With the emergence of online learning communities, the roles of learners and instructors have changed from those found in traditional educational settings. Most significantly, in learning communities, facilitators help guide the group toward collaborative group learning, rather than providing traditional "teacher-led" instruction. Therefore, you can expect that your coach will do the following: Establish a comfortable learning environment and help you with any problems or questions. Provide additional resources when appropriate. Facilitate productive and collaborative discussions. Assess your Capstone exhibits and provide feedback on whether you have fulfilled the course requirements.

7 Discussion Participation Participation in the discussion forums is crucial to optimizing your learning experiences in all PBS TeacherLine courses. In each course, you are required to be a part of an online community of learners who collectively interact through discussion to enhance and support each other's professional performance. Therefore, part of the assessment criteria for the course involves assessing the quality and quantity of your participation in the discussion forums. Qualities of Successful Discussions Good discussion contributions demonstrate the following qualities: Initial postings should be submitted at the first opportunity. Subsequent responses to the postings of other learners should be submitted at timely intervals. Keep in mind the goal is to have a dynamic discussion around the major content of the session that continues over time. Your postings and responses should be thorough and thoughtful. Just posting "I agree" or "Good ideas" will not be considered adequate. Support your statement with examples, experiences, or references. However, you are encouraged to be brief - keep each posting and response to one or two short paragraphs. Keep in mind that your fellow learners will be reading and responding to you, too. Make certain that in all your postings and responses, you address the question, problem, or situation as presented for discussion, focusing on or extending the topic at hand. When relevant, add to the discussion by including prior knowledge, work experiences, references, Web sites, resources, etc. (giving credit when appropriate). Good discussions occur when there is dialogue. Thus, you should try to build upon the postings and responses of other learners to create continuous discussion threads. Make sure you revisit the discussion forum and respond (if indicated) to what other learners have posted to your initial responses. Your contributions to the discussions (postings and responses) should be complete and free of grammatical and structural errors. Discussion Participation Criteria Please use the criteria below to guide your participation in each discussion forum in the Capstone Program. These criteria will also be used to assess your discussion participation. Discussion participation is timely and thorough. At least one original, thoughtful posting is submitted to each discussion. At least two responses to other learners are submitted to each discussion. Discussion participation demonstrates understanding of content.

8 Postings and responses show evidence of understanding of course content and its applicability to professional practice. Postings and responses include ideas and resources that extend the learning of the community. Discussion participation generates constructive dialogue within the community. Postings invite responses and reflections from other learners. Responses build upon, integrate, or synthesize multiple views from other learners to take the discussion deeper.

9 Journal Reflections Each session, you will be expected to reflect in your online journal about topics related to that session. Journal Reflection Criteria Please use the criteria below to guide your journal reflections in the Capstone courses. These criteria will also be used to assess your journal reflections. Journal reflections are timely and thorough. At least one original, thoughtful paragraph is submitted for each assignment. Entries are made during sessions in which they are assigned. Journal reflections demonstrate understanding of central course ideas. Reflections respond to prompts and refer to relevant materials. Reflections show evidence of understanding of the main ideas addressed in the course content, and involve analysis, synthesis, and/or connections among ideas. Journal reflections demonstrate knowledge of professional practice. Reflections connect course content to learner's professional practice. Reflections refer to practices of other professionals (when relevant).

10 Exhibit Work Each session, you will be expected to complete a portion of your Capstone II exhibit. You will intermittently be asked to share your exhibit-in-progress with your coach and other members of your cohort. These opportunities for ongoing assessment are intended to support you in shaping a final product that represents your best work. Once you have shared your final exhibit at the end of the course, your coach will assess it using the Capstone II Exhibit Rubric and electronically share the assessment with you. Exhibit Work Criteria Please use the criteria below to guide your exhibit work in the Capstone courses. These criteria will also be used to assess your ongoing exhibit work. Exhibit assignments are completed according to schedule. Exhibit work is grounded in K-12 classroom experience. Exhibit work reflects understanding and applications of course content. Exhibit artifacts and reflections represent the original work of the author. Shared exhibit work is free of grammatical, mechanical, and spelling errors. Peer review feedback is thoughtful, constructive, thorough, and includes both identification of strengths in the work and suggestions for improvement. 2005, PBS. All Rights Reserved.