Using Web Resources in the Classroom

Hours: 24 / Access Length: 180 Days / Delivery: Online, Self-Paced

Course Overview:

In this course you'll explore the essential aspects of incorporating technology into educational settings. From understanding its impact on classroom dynamics and exploring collaborative strategies for effective use to delving into digital-age teaching guided by ISTE Standards, each lesson will give you practical insights and strategies. You'll navigate through the complexities of digital responsibility, including COPPA compliance, internet safety, information literacy, and copyright understanding, fostering responsible digital citizenship. You will critically evaluate technology's role in education, explore diverse learning preferences, and discover how to leverage technology to support multilingual learners and students with adaptive needs. Finally, you'll learn to maximize efficiency and effectiveness in teaching through technology, integrating digital tools and professional development resources to create engaging and streamlined learning environments.

Students will:

• Understand the pedagogical impact of technology integration in diverse educational settings.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of collaborative approaches in implementing technology across educational levels.
• Demonstrate proficiency in applying ISTE Standards to design technology-enhanced learning experiences.
• Assess the ethical implications of technology use and model responsible digital citizenship.
• Design differentiated learning experiences leveraging technology to meet individual student needs.
• Critically evaluate the alignment of technology integration with curriculum standards and objectives.
• Employ data-driven decision-making to optimize technology use for instructional improvement.
• Synthesize best practices for ensuring accessibility and inclusivity in technology-mediated learning environments.
• Implement innovative instructional strategies that leverage emerging technologies to foster creativity and critical thinking.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to develop comprehensive technology integration plans that address diverse learner needs and preferences.

Course Outline:

Lesson 1: Paths to Technology Integration

This lesson introduces the journey of integrating technology into education, from recognizing its impact on classroom dynamics to exploring collaborative strategies for effective use. This lesson will provide you a roadmap for harnessing digital tools, enhancing learning, and fostering student engagement.

Lesson 2: Digital-Age Teaching and the ISTE Standards for Students

This lesson guides you through the essentials of digital-age teaching, guided by the ISTE Standards. It offers insights on leveraging technology to enrich learning experiences, with an emphasis on responsible digital citizenship and innovative problem-solving. Through practical examples, you will learn to apply technology creatively and ethically in educational contexts.

Lesson 3: COPPA, Internet Safety, Information Literacy, and Copyright

This lesson takes you through the components of digital responsibility, including COPPA compliance, internet safety practices, information literacy strategies, and copyright understanding. This lesson equips you with the knowledge to navigate the digital world safely, ethically, and effectively, fostering responsible digital citizenship.

Lesson 4: Realities of Technology in Schools and Districts

This lesson unpacks the complexities surrounding technology integration in education, focusing on the variable technology cultures within schools and the specific affordances of different digital devices. This lesson will help you to critically evaluate technology's role in the classroom and develop strategies for effective integration.

Lesson 5: Leveraging Technology for Visual Learning

In this lesson you explore how visual learning preferences shape educational experiences, focusing on the integration of technology to create, interpret, and use visual data effectively. You'll learn how to leverage charts, graphs, drawings, and digital tools to enrich learning and teaching processes.

Lesson 6: Leveraging Technology for Auditory Learning

This lesson unpacks the benefits and methods of incorporating auditory learning into the classroom through technology. You will explore a variety of digital tools and resources designed to enhance listening skills, understanding, and engagement for auditory learners. By examining podcasts, audio stories, and other auditory-focused activities, you will gain skills for integrating sound-based learning into diverse educational environments.

Lesson 7: Leveraging Technology for Kinesthetic/Tactile Learning

In this lesson you discover how technology enriches learning for kinesthetic/tactile learners through hands-on activities, virtual simulations, and interactive digital tools. This lesson highlights the importance of active engagement, offering insights into creating dynamic, technology-based learning experiences that cater to students' need for movement and touch.

Lesson 8: Leveraging across Learning Preferences

Here you explore the intersection of visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning preferences with digital tools. This lesson guides you through selecting and using interactive websites and multimedia projects that enhance learning across subjects, offering strategies to apply these tools effectively in diverse educational settings.

Lesson 9: Leveraging Technology for Multilingual Learners

Discover how to integrate technology to support multilingual learners, using visuals, digital dictionaries, and bilingual resources to bridge language barriers. This lesson gives you strategies to make content accessible and engaging for students developing English proficiency, fostering both language growth and content mastery.

Lesson 10: Leveraging Technology to Meet Adaptive Needs

This lesson teaches you how to incorporate technology to support students with special education needs, from organizing aids and speech recognition tools to reading supports and assistive apps. This lesson will give you tools to make classroom content accessible, engaging, and supportive for all learners.

Lesson 11: Leveraging Technology for Teacher Efficiency and Effectiveness

This lesson teaches you how to utilize technology to streamline classroom management and enhance instructional effectiveness. Through integrating digital tools, social platforms, and learning management systems, alongside leveraging professional development resources to refine teaching strategies and foster a more efficient, engaging learning environment.

All necessary course materials are included.

System Requirements:

Internet Connectivity Requirements:

• Cable, Fiber, DSL, or LEO Satellite (i.e. Starlink) internet with speeds of at least 10mb/sec download and 5mb/sec upload are recommended for the best experience.

NOTE: While cellular hotspots may allow access to our courses, users may experience connectivity issues by trying to access our learning management system.  This is due to the potential high download and upload latency of cellular connections.   Therefore, it is not recommended that students use a cellular hotspot as their primary way of accessing their courses.

Hardware Requirements:

• CPU: 1 GHz or higher
• RAM: 4 GB or higher
• Resolution: 1280 x 720 or higher.  1920x1080 resolution is recommended for the best experience.
• Speakers / Headphones
• Microphone for Webinar or Live Online sessions.

Operating System Requirements:

• Windows 7 or higher.
• Mac OSX 10 or higher.
• Latest Chrome OS
• Latest Linux Distributions
  

NOTE: While we understand that our courses can be viewed on Android and iPhone devices, we do not recommend the use of these devices for our courses. The size of these devices do not provide a good learning environment for students taking online or live online based courses.

Web Browser Requirements:

• Latest Google Chrome is recommended for the best experience.
• Latest Mozilla FireFox
• Latest Microsoft Edge
• Latest Apple Safari

Basic Software Requirements (These are recommendations of software to use):

• Office suite software (Microsoft Office, OpenOffice, or LibreOffice)
• PDF reader program (Adobe Reader, FoxIt)
• Courses may require other software that is described in the above course outline.