SITE 2010 - San Diego, CA

The Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education (SITE) is an international association of individual teacher educators, and affiliated organizations of teacher educators in all disciplines, who are interested in the creation and dissemination of knowledge about the use of information technology in teacher education and faculty/staff development. SITE members learn about, and contribute to, the latest developments, techniques, and concepts in teacher education and instructional technology.
In SITE 2010 it was great to be part of a symposium: “Strategies for teacher professional development of TPACK” organized by Joke Voogt of Twente University. The symposium consisted of 4 different presentations by faculty and graduate students from different universities (Twente University, Michigan State University, Iowa State University and University of Cape Coast) demonstrating how TPACK has been used in different context to assess teachers’ integration of technology. Though it was my first time at SITE, it was a wonderful conference and the various presentations at this symposium gave me a deeper insight on the usefulness and applications of TPACK.

You can access the proposal for the symposium. In this page also I post the various abstracts of the presentations.

Developing TPACK through teacher design teams: The case of pre-service mathematics teachers in Ghana - Douglas Agyei.

Abstract: Although many studies have shown the need to better align teachers’ preparation in the integration of technology in classroom practice, most teachers in Ghana have not had any preparation that develops their Technology Pedagogical and Content Knowledg (TPACK).This paper presents a case study of four mathematics teachers at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. The teachers worked in two design teams to develop lessons and subsequently taught in a technology-based environment for the first time. To make them familiar with technology use in mathematics teaching the teachers first discussed and used exemplary lesson materials, which were prepared by the researcher. Based on this experience the teachers designed their own technology-based lessons, which they taught to a group of teachers. Interview, observation, and survey data were collected throughout the study. The study revealed key attributes of a professional development scenario to foster growth of teachers in TPACK.

You can access the slides for the presentation below and the full text here.

Slide for Presentation

View more presentations from ddagyei.

Technology Integration in the Science Teachers Preparation Program in Kuwait: Becoming TPACK competent through Design Teams-Ghaida M Alayyar.

Abstract : The research studies the integration of technology in the science teacher preparation program in Kuwait at the Public Authority of Applied Education and Training (PAAET) aiming at preparing prospective teachers to work in the school of the 21st century. The TPACK framework is used as a starting point for designing a course where prospective student-teachers are prepared to integrate technology in elementary science education. In the course a group of 50 science students had to design and implement a technology application in small groups (3-4 persons) for elementary science education. During the design the small groups were coached by subject matter, pedagogical and
technology experts. Data were collected on students’ TPACK competencies (Schmidt et al. 2009), their attitudes towards technology, their perception on collaborative group work, their appreciation of the new course and the quality of their products.

The Development of an Instrument to Assess Teacher Development of TPACK Denise Schmidt, Evrim Baran,& Ann Thompson, Iowa State University.

Abstract: A research group including faculty and students from both Michigan State University and Iowa State University have been working on the creation and validation of an instrument designed to assess the development of TPACK in pre-service teachers (Schmidt et al., 2009). Current work on the instrument will be shared. The instrument is used at the beginning and end of an introductory pre-service teacher technology course. Results suggest that with a minor modification of the survey items, the survey is a reliable and valid instrument that will help educators design longitudinal studies to assess pre-service teachers’ development of TPACK. Results also indicated statistically significant gains in all seven TPACK components.

Developing TPACK by design in a Master’s Program-Punya Mishra, Matthew J. Koehler, Tae Seob Shin, Leigh Graves Wolf, & Mike DeSchryver, Michigan State University.

Abstract: As evidenced by Koehler and Mishra’s (2005) study, the “learning technology by design”is an effective instructional technique to develop deeper understanding of TPACK. In this study, we introduce an intense educational technology course sequence designed to create an experience that would expose in-teachers to ideas and skills from educational technology that can be incorporated into their own teaching. These experiences happen in cohort based summer study programs with students who are experienced educators. These programs include a unique face to face context in Europe in and a hybrid format for in-state educators. During the course, participants worked on a range of assignments that required them to learn and use technology in multiple pedagogical contexts including developing digital video, writing a technology based grant proposal, exploring web 2.0 technologies, and designing a personal web portfolio. The analysis of pre and post-test data showed that in-service teachers’ understanding of TK, TCK, TPK, and TPACK improved as a result of their course experience.

The entire slides for the symposium can be found on Punya Mishra's blog. More details of SITE 2010 can be found on Petra Fisser's blog.