Lisa Grable

Constructivism and Technology Use: Findings from the Impacting Leadership Project

This study used two surveys, the Activities of Instruction 2.0 (AOI 2.0) and the School Technology Needs Assessment (STNA) to assess the relationship between teachers’ level of constructivism and their level of technology use. Results indicate that constructivist practices and beliefs were significant predictors of technology use, after accounting for the contribution of other individual level demographic variables, and school‐level environmental factors. Teachers with more constructivist instructional practices were more likely to report using technology; similarly, teachers who believed more strongly that IT was a useful tool for student‐centered/constructivist teaching were more likely to use technology. Konstruktivismus und Gebrauch von Technologie: ergebnisse des IMPACTing Leadership Projekts Dieser Beitrag verwendete zwei Studien: Activities of Instruction 2.0 (AOI 2.0) und das School Technology Needs Assessment (STNA), um das Verhältnis zwischen dem Kenntnisstand der Lehrer bzgl. Konstruktivismus und ihrem Stand im Technologiegebrauch abschätzen zu können. Die Ergebnisse belegen, dass die konstruktivistischen Praxen und Annahmen signifikante Vorhersagen über den Technologiegebrauch unter Berücksichtigung anderer individueller demographischer Werte und schulspezifischer Faktoren ermöglichen. Lehrer mit größerer konstruktivistischer Unterrichtspraxis haben eher die Nutzung von Technologie angegeben. Ähnlich haben Lehrer, die stärker davon überzeugt waren, dass IT ein nützliches Werkzeug für schülerzentrierten konstruktivistischen Unterricht sind, auch den Gebrauch von Technologie bevorzugt. Constructivisme et usage de la technologie: les résultats du projet IMPACT sur le Leadership Dans cette étude on a utilisé deux enquêtes, les Activités d’Enseignement 2.0 (AOI 2.0) et l’Evaluation des besoins en technologie (STNA) pour mesurer la relation entre le niveau de constructivisme des professeurs et leur niveau d’usage des technologies. Les résultats obtenus indiquent que les pratiques et les croyances constructivistes étaient des indicateurs significatifs de l’usage des technologies, une fois pris en compte l’impact d’autres variables démographiques au niveau individuel ainsi que les facteurs environnementaux au niveau des écoles. Il y avait plus de chances que les enseignants ayant des pratiques éducatives plus constructivistes signalent qu’ils utilisaient la technologie; de la même façon, les enseignants qui croyaient le plus fermement que les TICE représentaient un outil utile pour un enseignement constructiviste centré sur l’étudiant étaient le plus susceptibles d’utiliser la technologie. El constructivismo y el uso de la tecnología: el impacto del proyecto IMPACT sobre el liderazgo La presente investigación está basada en dos encuestas, una Las Actividades de Enseñanza 2.0 (AOI 2.0) y la otra La Evaluación de las Necesidades en tecnología (STNA) para evaluar la relación entre el nivel de de constructivismo de los profesores y su nivel de uso de la tecnología. Los resultados indican que las prácticas y creencias constructivistas eran indicadores significativos de predicción del uso de las tecnologías una vez tomada en cuenta la contribucción de otras variables demográficas a nível individual y de los factores ambientales al nivel de la escuela. La probabilidad es que los profesores con prácticas instructivas más constructivistas eran los que señalaban un uso más frecuente de la tecnología; de la misma manera la probabilidad es que los profesores que pensaban con más fuerza que las TICs eran herramientas útiles para la enseñanza constructivista centrada en el alumno serían los mayores usuarios de la tecnología.

FREEDM Precollege Programs: Inspiring Generation Y to Pursue Careers in the Electric Power Industry

An aging workforce and rapid growth in STEM-related occupations provide critical reasons to involve precollege students and teachers in science and engineering activities. Additionally, concerns about climate change and green energy sources provide motivation for students to pursue careers in the electric power industry. NSF-supported FREEDM ERC precollege programs address these issues through three components, which are described in this paper: 1) a Research Experience for Teachers; 2) a Young Scholars commuter program for high school students; and 3) week-long renewable energy camps for middle school students. Assessment results for the first four years of the effort at four university campuses are presented.

Measuring Teacher Attitudes Toward Instructional Technology: A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the TAC and TAT

In this article the authors present a confirmatory factor analysis of the Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Computers (TAC) and the Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Information Technology (TAT) scales by Christensen and Knezek (1996, 1998) using large samples from three states. The TAC was reduced from 98 items and nine factors to 35 items and eight factors, while maintaining superior psychometric properties. The TAT was reduced from 50 items and five factors to 20 items measuring five factors, similarly maintaining excellent psychometric properties. The authors also developed a combined short form of both instruments using 42 items to measure 11 factors for use in situations where parsimony is critical.

Multi-university precollege outreach from a renewable energy focused engineering research center

The precollege program in the NSF-supported Future Renewable Electric Energy Delivery and Management (FREEDM) Systems Center is in its third year with over 100 participants in the first two years at three university campuses. The precollege programs consist of (1) a Research Experience for Teachers, (2) a Young Scholars commuter program for high school students, and (3) summer science camps for middle school students. An Each One Mentor One approach is implemented which links mentorship between faculty, graduate and undergraduate students, teachers, and high school and middle school students. Program assessment results show that teachers now have an increased interest in research on how math and science can be applied, and the teachers feel more confident in talking to their students about future careers in the field of engineering. The precollege program has motivated both the high school and middle school students to study harder, and while high school students are more confident they will enroll in an engineering degree program, they are not as confident that they will complete an engineering degree.

Examining the Performance Standards for In-Service Teachers: A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the Assessment of Teachers' NETS-T Expertise

ABSTRACT The survey Performance Standards for In-service Teachers is widely used to help describe teacher skills relating to instructional technology for assessment or planning of professional development. It is based on the six constructs of the National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers, and though used broadly in a variety of contexts, it does not appear to have undergone significant independent evaluation of its psychometric properties. Our analysis found that all six subscales possessed strong internal consistency (all α > 0.93). A subsequent confirmatory factor analysis supported both its current six-factor structure as well as a more parsimonious one-factor model.

FREEDM ERC precollege programs: Motivating careers in the electric power industry

Declining interest and enrollments in STEM related fields are an impetus to engage precollege students and teachers in science and engineering activities. Concerns about climate change and green energy sources provide platforms to connect todays students to tomorrows careers in the electric power industry. Three facets of the NSF-supported FREEDM ERC precollege programs are described: (1) a Research Experience for Teachers, (2) a Young Scholars commuter program for high school students, and (3) summer science camps for middle school students. Assessment results for the fourth year of the effort at four different university campuses are presented.