Enticing Teachers

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Enticing Teachers Faculty to Use Technology
What Really Works?
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By Dolores Brzycki

• Indiana University of Pennsylvania

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SSHE in Western Pennsylvania
CUP
Harrisburg
IUP
Harrisburg(SSHE)
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Goals of Examples

• PT3 infuse technology into specific programs and
  across teacher preparation curriculum
• ADEPTT promote effective uses of technology in
  teaching by university and K-12 faculty
• TLCF encourage technology in teaching,
  participation in Virtual Community, collegial
  interaction, addressing standards, at 3 districts
• Academic Alliance encourage K12-University
  interaction and use of technology in teaching

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PT3 Incentives

• 100 for series of short workshops
• 200 for revised syllabi
• 250 for 1-day to 2.5-day workshops
• 500 for minigrants
• To be used for technology purchases and
  professional development
• Refreshments or meals at activities
• Books and materials

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What worked best with PT3?

• Incentives tied to specific outcomes
• Revised syllabi
• Large incentive or accumulate small incentives
  for large purchase
• Flexible rules and strategies
• Offer to any early adopters
• Respond to new needs

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The Context of Incentives

• Incentives do not exist in a vacuum. Need to
  look at factors that interact with them.
• Perceived attractiveness/necessity of goals
• NCATE review
• Project based
• Clearly related to teaching or discipline
• Captivating descriptions and titles

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• Availability of intensive support for new
  initiatives
• Co-teach classes
• Portfolio assistance center
• Templates and materials
• Intro courses that prepare the way
• Publicity and proven track record
• Individual help

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• Flexible goals and strategies
• Support early adopters even if they are not in
  the targeted programs
• Time and turf
• Save faculty time, make life easier, or take
  limited amount of time
• Go where faculty are to the classroom!
• Scheduling
• The effectiveness of incentives changes
• Novelty wears off
• Needs, schedules, people, problems change

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ADEPTT Incentives

• Advancing the Development of Educators in PA
  through Technology Training
• K-12 teachers, university faculty, teams
• Workshops, minigrants, conferences
• 55 stipend or contribution toward sub
• 600 MS software
• Up to 5000 minigrants (for technology)
• Act 48 credit (after became law)
• Food!

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ADEPTT Results

• Minigrants
• Built K12-university partnerships
• More likely to reach classroom
• Workshops
• Regulars made progress
• School-day popular but subs scarce
• Moderate attendance
• Conferences
• High quality but hard to attract audience

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ADEPTT Context

• Context of support harder to establish
• Crossing institutional lines for K-12
• ADEPTT more effective at university if part of
  permanent technology center
• Good teachers responsive when support clear
• Turf most K12 activities at universities
• Time schedule differences, lack of subs, many
  workshops outside school day
• Big incentives effective with guidelines and
  obligation to produce outcome

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www.iup.edu/community/
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TLCF Incentives

• 2 free grad credits (fulfilling state
  requirement)
• 200 to take short course
• 200 to continue in the Virtual Community
• Food and fellowship
• Additional 500 to lead a neighborhood

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TLCF Results

• Some incentives did not motivate some teachers
• Preferred non-credit training
• Preferred training during workday
• Most responsive teachers tended to be early
  adopters, secondary and middle, math, science ed,
  special ed, young, or males

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TLCF Results

• Improved technology and web skills
• Greater interaction among course members
• Useful to communicate with teachers in own
  discipline, vent, solve problems, share proven
  resources
• Weak virtual community
• Time, motivation, professionalism

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TLCF Context

• Administrators required 1 teacher per district,
  grade level, and discipline too rigid
• Many not early adopters or not very interested
• Some saw attendance as a favor
• Time and turf
• - course at IUP
• coordinator and tech support visited schools
• - most sessions after school or on Saturday
• Late grant award necessitated redesign

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Academic Alliance Incentives

• Alliance for Teaching with Technology
• Dinner meeting program and networking
• Teachers funded by districts and receive Act 48
• Faculty and teacher prep students funded by grant

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Alliance Results and Context

• Enthusiastic participants
• Program specific to discipline
• Short and sweet
• Networking over dinner promotes community
• Good attendance
• Sustainable
• Classroom?
• No ongoing support

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Conclusions

• Large incentives best for large commitment
• Small incentives ok for small commitment,
  adopters
• Context of incentives equally important
• Time the technology or activity must save time,
  not require too much time, be convenient
• Turf give support both just-in-time and
  right-on-site
• Back up incentives with variety of support
• Perceived necessity or attractiveness of activity
• Food and fellowship
• Professional culture of organization/region
• Flexible targets of project
• Effectiveness of incentive changes over time

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PT3 Workshop Topics Year 1

• Computer carts
• Excel in Grade 5 Math
• Gradebooks in Excel
• Online Textbook Support
• Databases in Teaching
• Campus Network
• Videoconferencing

• Putting Technology in Your Syllabus
• Using Netscape Composer
• Building WebQuests
• Using MS Office in Classroom Teaching

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Later PT3 Workshops

• Electronic Portfolios
• Digital Cameras and Graphics
• MS Word Graphics and WordArt
• MS Word Desktop Publishing
• Inspiration
• Web Page Basics FrontPage

• Searching the Internet
• Netscape/ FrontPage for Portfolios
• Graphics in Portfolios
• Video for Portfolios
• Placing Artifacts in Portfolios
• Working with Portfolios on the Campus Network
• MS Publisher

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ADEPTT Workshop Samples

• MS Word 1 and 2
• MS Excel 1 and 2
• MS PowerPoint
• MS Access 1 and 2
• Windows 95/98
• Intro to FrontPage
• Campus Network

• Technology Sandbox
• Spreadsheet Magic for Teachers
• Desktop Publishing with MS Word
• Creating Class Web Pages
• Building WebQuests

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Academic Alliance Topics

• Putting Technology in Your Classroom
• Virtual Communities
• Using Technology in the Fine Arts
• Using Technology in Language Arts and Foreign
  Languages
• Technology in Early Childhood Education
• Opportunities for Technology Training