Let It Go

This case study introduces a two-year process in which a fourth grade teacher working with a library media specialist experienced a successful integration of digital and media literacy practices. During that time the fourth grade teacher adopted a less protectionist approach by having her students explore different multimedia production projects to enhance their learning in social studies. This book chapter introduces the process of both the fourth grade teacher as she explored new instructional strategies to incorporate media production and the Common Core State Standards and the library media specialist as a support team member. The standards index and its media production application can help educators integrate media production into their classrooms. This case study can help promote media production activities as they foster 21st century skills in elementary students.

Technology Integration in Preservice Teacher Education Programs

The integration of technology in K-12 education is highlighted in the ISTE Standards, Common Core State Standards Initiative, and Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Preservice teacher education must reevaluate how technology integration is approached, examining preservice teacher attitudes and competencies toward instructional design and technology use. Recent studies indicate that, while preservice teachers demonstrate a high level of understanding of technology tools, they do not integrate those tools naturally into classroom settings for lesson delivery, assessment and classroom management. In a world of rapidly changing technology tools, preservice teacher education must develop an instructional and philosophical approach that identifies challenges and opportunities for technology integration in teaching and learning. This chapter provides an overview of research that explores the integration of educational technology in preservice teacher education. It provides emerging recommendations for design and redesign of those programs.

Universal Design for Learning

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework for curriculum and instructional planning through which educators can maximize accessibility and minimize barriers that are often experienced by learners. Teacher educators are in a unique position to introduce UDL to future elementary teachers and support them in developing inclusive pedagogical methods early on in their careers. While Common Core State Standards can guide educators in what to teach, UDL provides a framework for how to teach. Education technology tools are used extensively within UDL to make curriculum materials more accessible and engaging. In this chapter, the UDL framework will be described along with many specific applications within elementary teacher education.

Strategies to Increase Technology Acceptance

Despite efforts by school leaders, teachers, technologists, and researchers; much teaching is unchanged since the arrival of information and computer technology (ICT). The same devices that are deeply embedded in everyday life are still marginalized in many classrooms. Technology acceptance is a framework that has contributed to the development of ICT and ICT-based practices in many fields other than education. Three strategies for supporting ICT in schools that focus on increasing technology acceptance are described from the participants' perspective. The experiences are discussed from several perspectives to both understand technology acceptance as a framework for planning in education and to identify some unanswered questions about technology acceptance that are relevant to education populations.

Teacher, Students, and MOOCs

The main aim of this research is to understand future teachers' attitudes, knowledge and needs about Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). These courses are a supplementary resource in Higher Education that can fill fields of knowledge in which the curriculum could not encompass. In addition, these types of courses can contribute significantly to teachers, both in initial and in-service, training. For this reason, the students' perspectives towards MOOCs are essential in these terms. In this way, fundamentally a questionnaire was administered to the students in the Degree in Teaching of Childhood Education, Degree in Teaching of Primary Education, and Masters Degree in Teacher Training of Secondary Education (n=145). The results indicated that a large part of the sample confirmed that they did not know anything about MOOCs. Therefore, Universities need to train competent future teachers in MOOCs culture. This chapter provides insights into the topic of advancing next generation elementary teacher education through digital tools and applications.

Implementation of Online Education for K-12 School Children

This chapter contains information found in literature surrounding online education in K-12 settings. It offers a description of the terminology, a brief history and evolution of online education, issues with the use of online education, and influences supporting online tool usage. Despite support for online tools in K-12 settings, empirical research shows discouraging results related to such usage. Considering this discrepancy, this chapter suggests that implementation of online tools be executed by an informed user. Thus, it is necessary to acquire a clear understanding of the terminology and characteristics of online tool delivery before implementation. Also, educators are to be aware of student's and teacher's learning and teaching experiences online to be able to offer an optimum educational setting. Being cognizant of participant's exposure to online programs can provide helpful suggestions, like the importance of parental involvement, the relevance of socialization for learning, and the influence of literacy in promoting a stable foundation for successful implementation.

The Emergence of Student-Centered Teaching in Professional Learning Networks on Twitter

Too many U.S. high schools are ineffective institutions—nurturing neither the growth and enrichment of students nor that of teachers. To understand these failings, at least in part, one needs to realize that many schools are anonymous, demeaning institutions for students and teachers alike. While there is no simple panacea for the challenges facing secondary school teachers and students, student-centered teaching holds considerable promise, offering a means to enrich learning while empowering both students and teachers. Despite this promise, in the current context teachers face formidable constraints to enacting such practices. Nonetheless, some teachers balance mandated curricular goals with student interests, creating learning environments where student choice and student voice figure prominently. The case studies in this chapter offer a sense for how this can occur, to the betterment of both teachers and students. And in these instances, teachers' use of Twitter networks contributed notably to these outcomes.

Elementary Library Media Specialists' Roles in the Implementation of the Common Core State Standards

This chapter addresses the benefits and synergies that the elementary classroom teacher and the school library media specialist (LMS) experience when collaborating in the planning, differentiation, and assessment of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), with an emphasis on the role of technology and information literacy. General reasons for teacher/LMS collaboration; specific reasons for collaboration on the CCSS; technology integration; and physical space and instructional flexibility form the key concepts of discussion. Tables present specific CCSS that the LMS is uniquely qualified to teach to students. The chapter concludes with practical recommendations for district personnel, school-based administrators, LMSs, classroom teachers, and preservice teachers.

Preparing Next Generation Elementary Teachers for the Tools of Tomorrow

This chapter examines the results from ongoing research of an authentic, problem-based learning (PBL) project. Embedded in an instructional technology course, the project was designed to help preservice teachers develop technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) necessary to successfully incorporate digital tools and applications in elementary classrooms (Harris, Mishra, & Koelher, 2009). The project partnered the preservice teachers with local elementary school classrooms where they served as instructional designers to develop digital media in support of a flipped classroom initiative. Results indicate that the semester-long PBL-based assignment significantly impacted the preservice teachers' TPACK development in several critical areas and can serve as a model for advancing next generation teacher education. Overarching themes that emerged and recommendations for future research are offered as well.

Applying Learning Theories to Computer Technology Supported Instruction

The purpose of this paper is to share an approach articulating how learning theories can be used to inform computer technology in classroom instruction. This report is based on a course introducing student teachers to using cutting-edge computer technology in their future classrooms. An analysis of three exemplary responses to course assignments revealed that student teachers demonstrated a sophisticated understanding of how to apply the behaviorist, cognitivist, and constructivist theories of learning to computer technology for classroom instruction. This chapter also provides ideas about how students and educators can contribute to the development of educational apps that can support teaching and learning.