Web Support for Educator
Staff Development
Dr. Catherine Cavanaugh
Florida Center for Instructional
Technology
University of South Florida, USA
Cavanaug@tempest.coedu.usf.edu
Dr. Terence Cavanaugh
Secondary Education
University of South Florida, USA
Cavanaugh@tempest.coedu.usf.edu
Presented at
WebNet99, Hawaii, USA Oct. 26, 1999
Download the PDF version
Teacher training enhanced with Web pages
can give teachers continual just-in-time support. While most
teachers are experienced Web consumers, some lack experience
using the Web. The opportunity to grow in Web experience adds
value to training workshops. Workshop Web pages fill a
continuum from full Web-based distance learning delivery to
companion materials for a traditional class. The Web pages
serve a multitude of purposes before, during and after the
workshop. Before the workshop group meets formally,
participants can read the Web page to become oriented to the
topic of the workshop. During the workshop, the Web pages
become a multimedia, interactive agenda where participants
can return after the workshop concludes. After the conclusion
of the workshop, participants have access to all materials
and their additions and updates. For added functionality, and
for teachers in schools still lacking Internet connectivity,
the contents of the Web pages can be distributed on CD-ROM.
THE NEED FOR
EDUCATOR STAFF DEVELOPMENT
United States Secretary of Education
Richard Riley said in his February 1999 State of American
Education address that teacher preparation and continued
development are critical to the success of America's schools.
Low-performing schools can be turned around in part by giving
teachers more time for collaboration and training. We are
about to experience a critical shortage of teachers.
Secretary Riley described new funds and initiatives created
for teacher training in the areas of content knowledge,
pedagogy, and technology. Schools, districts, states, and
colleges of education will be demanded to provide meaningful
training experiences to teachers in order to partake in the
funds and remain competitive.
Secretary Riley stressed that teacher
training needs more depth, more time, and greater
opportunities for collegial learning. Teacher training must
change from single workshops to more comprehensive support
that addresses the realities of what teachers face:
diversity, disability, technology, and new standards-based
instruction and accountability.
FORMAT OF EDUCATOR
STAFF DEVELOPMENT
Educator staff development can take many
forms from short workshops and courses to ongoing training at
both the school-site and training facilities. Some of the
most effective training happens with individual teachers or
small teams learning in their own classrooms. When schedules,
budgets and other resources prohibit such focused activities,
larger group workshops or classes are offered. In order to
extend the learning experience beyond the limited time frame
of the workshop, Web pages can be developed to give teachers
continual just-in-time support. The majority of teachers are
comfortable and experienced Web consumers. When teachers lack
experience using the Web, the opportunity to grow in Web
experience will add to the value of the workshop. The
workshop can become a model of effective teaching practice by
teaching technology skills within the context of the workshop
content. The goals of the training should be teacher
development in subject knowledge, skill application, and
technology integration. The United States Software and
Information Industry Association recently released its annual
report on Effectiveness of Technology in Schools, in
which it stated that teacher training plays an essential role
in the effectiveness of technology for student learning.
Educators with ten or more hours of technology training were
able to use technology in classrooms more effectively and for
higher level cognitive learning than those who had five or
fewer hours of training. Workshops enhanced with Web pages
combine teaching training with technology training.
THE ROLE OF THE WEB
IN STAFF DEVELOPMENT
Workshop Web pages fill a continuum from
full Web-based distance learning delivery to companion pieces
for a traditional class. This session focuses on
Web-supported training for which Web pages add a valuable
layer of richness. The Web pages serve a multitude of
purposes before, during and after the workshop.
Before the workshop group meets
formally, participants can read the Web page to become
oriented to the topic of the workshop. The Web pages may
prescribe activities to be accomplished prior to the first
group session, or list materials to prepare for the workshop.
Group members can begin their ice-breaker communication
online via a Web forum, and initiate dialog to build on at
the workshop. Such Web pages often contain links to relevant
resources elsewhere on the Web, or links for downloading
documents, software, and multimedia files.
During the workshop, the Web pages
act as a multimedia, interactive agenda where participants
know they can return after the workshop concludes. The
knowledge that the workshop materials are lasting and
accessible enables participants to focus on the purpose of
the workshop with less concern over copies of handouts,
notes, and materials. Web pages can be printed selectively as
needed, they can be updated at will, and they can be burned
on CD-ROM as an archive and a space-saving handout.
After the conclusion of the
workshop, participants have access to all materials and their
additions and updates. Participants are able to point others
to the Web pages rather than sharing their personal copies of
materials. Ongoing reflection on the workshop content is
facilitated by the lasting quality of the Web pages. Workshop
groups can continue their dialogs using the Web forum or
email. An effective workshop activity is for groups to create
Web pages to add to the existing workshop pages, or have
pride in their workshop products published in HTML. As a
member of the workshop group, participants can use a Web
directory of group members, trainers, and other support
people when they have questions or needs.
STRUCTURE OF WEB
MATERIALS
Workshop Web pages can be developed using
straight HTML, Web editing software, or applications enabled
with the save-as-HTML option. Many word processors,
publishers and presentation programs for both Mac and PC
allow conversion of files to HTML. Begin with the workshop
purpose, philosophy, sponsors, and agenda in HTML, then
consider linking to versions of the agenda in PDF and word
processed formats. If there is a prevailing platform among
the workshop participants, include files in that format. For
example, if the workshop serves teachers in a school or
district where Microsoft Office is the standard then include
Word, PowerPoint, and Excel alternatives as appropriate. If
the materials must remain platform-independent, stay with
HTML and PDF files or files for which viewers or plug-ins can
easily be downloaded.
A very useful workshop tool, especially for
illuminating complex or abstract topics, is a concept map
displaying the workshop content and organization. Depending
on the nature of the subject matter, the concept map may
emerge as a cycle, a timeline, a hierarchy, or a freeform
map. Such maps can be created using organization chart or
drawing software, or a concept-mapping package like
Inspiration, then saved as a Web graphic to accompany the
workshop agenda.
The main workshop Web page should include a
menu linked to pages for workshop subtopics or themes, and
links to areas including forums and shared workspaces. The
pages may include reference materials, instructional guides
and remedial information for use during the workshop as
needed. Links to pages elsewhere on the Web can lead
participants to reservoirs of useful information, at the same
time reducing the need for workshop planners to recreate and
duplicate exemplary materials that are readily available. In
addition to verbal content, workshop pages can easily include
speech and music samples, digitized video clips, and a
variety of graphics. Digital photographs as still images or
combined in panoramas, virtual reality segments, or
animations will add life and interactivity to the pages.
Panoramas and animations are simply produced using freeware
or Java, and most Java-enabled browsers display them.
Advanced Web authors can incorporate forms
and feedback on the pages, providing a mechanism for
participants to contribute experiences and findings. As
participants progress through their training, they will
become problem-solvers and creators of products. The Web
pages are an ideal forum for recognizing success and sharing
wisdom. An important and lasting result of the workshop can
be a database or collection of resources for others.
DELIVERY OF WEB
RESOURCES
For added functionality and convenience,
and for teachers in the minority of schools still lacking
Internet connectivity, the contents of the Web pages can be
distributed on CD-ROM. The CD is capable of containing large
amounts of material that would be prohibitively expensive to
produce on paper. Extra files such as plug-ins and viewers
can be included on the CD for the convenience of
participants. An added benefit is the searchability of
digital documents. CDs can be created that are
platform-specific or cross-platform. Use of the CD during the
workshop allows many participants to access files
simultaneously without strain on networks, while at the same
time familiarizing users with the resources available on the
server. Because of the volatile nature of the Web, a CD
serves as a durable archive.
WEB SUPPORT IN
ACTION
The Florida Center for Instructional
Technology (FCIT), in Tampa, Florida, provides technology
training to thousands of educators annually. Inservice
teachers and University of South Florida faculty participate
in 60 one-or-two-day workshops throughout the year.
Preservice teachers in the College of Education are trained
in technology as it integrates into undergraduate courses.
Graduate students take courses in instructional technology to
earn recertification credit, certificates, Master,
Specialist, or Doctorate degrees. Some of these staff
development experiences are face-to-face, and others are
provided through distance learning. Most workshops and
courses feature Web support.
| Web support for staff
development falls along a continuum from highly
structured to user-generated. A highly structured Web
environment is well suited to a group of users who
have similar abilities and needs, a group of new Web
users, or a situation with limited time for in-class
Web use. We refer to most structured end of the
continuum as fixed. A recent
workshop provided the faculty of an elementary school
with instruction on using the Web and integrating Web
use into content teaching. The Web page created for
this workshop led users through a small and specific
set of example Websites viewed by the group during
discussion of integration strategies. The Web page provided a common starting
point for the group, and a reference where individual
teachers could return with their classes. At the end
of the page was a link to further resources. |
Click
on image to enlarge
http://typhoon.coedu.usf.edu/~tcavanau/internet_ed/index.htm
|
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on images to enlarge
Http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/fcat
http://typhoon.coedu.usf.edu/~tcavanau/camera/index.htm
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Another type of fixed
Web page for staff development is the
tutorial. The tutorial Web page is effective for
groups who have experience with Web technology, and
need to learn the same skill or information that is
best presented in a sequential manner. FCIT's FCAT
Training Tool Web pages
provide step-by-step guidance to teachers preparing
for Florida's Comprehensive Assessment Tests.
Teachers used the Web page during the workshop, then
returned to the page at school to access teaching
resources. The Digital Cameras in Education is used as a presentation device during a
workshop, then as a reference by teachers later. |
| At a more independent level on the
continuum are Web pages that function mainly to
collect recommended links with instruction for
voluntary exploration. This central region of the
continuum is called directed.
Workshop Web pages of this nature are suitable for
groups with Web experience, and varying needs and
interests. More time is needed to facilitate
independent browsing than directed linking. FCIT's Internet
for Education and Assessment
with Technology workshops used directed
Web pages designed to teach while
providing browsing options. In both cases,
participants progressed through the Web pages
together during the formal instructional periods of
the workshop, then individual browsing time was
built-in periodically for further exploration. Web
pages continued to serve as a resource beyond the
workshop. |
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on images to enlarge
http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/workshops/internetcurr/index.htm
http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/workshops/assessment/intro.htm
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on image to enlarge
http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/holocaust/default.htm
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FCIT's Holocaust for the 21st Century
workshop provided instruction on teaching Holocaust
issues. Participants had access to the Teacher's
Guide to the Holocaust on the Web and CD-ROM.
Teachers used the Web and CD to locate facts,
stories, media, and other resources that they
integrated into their lesson during and after the
workshop. |
At the most
independent end of the continuum are training
opportunities that introduce participants to Web
resources and offer them complete freedom to learn
constructively from them, as well as to participate
in the structure and content of the pages. These
pages are generated. Web pages
created to foster searching are used for workshops
where individuals or small groups need to work on
projects using Web resources. The Web pages for such
workshops bookmark Websites where groups access
information and tools for their projects. These pages
serve as launching points from which users conduct
their own searches. The results of the searches are
shared with the larger group, often added to the
workshop Web pages. The Mini-Grants for Technology
workshop was attended by teachers who needed a brief
background in grant-writing, then set to work on
their grant proposal. The workshop Web pages
organized grant-writing tips, example projects, and
proposal forms in an online clearinghouse. The
directed workshop structure is appropriate for
experienced Web users, groups with varying needs, and
situations with ample time for group work. For many
of the graduate instructional technology courses at
the University of South Florida, students add much of
the content to the pages through participation in
Web-based forum discussions.
|
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on image to enlarge
http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/workshops/minigrant/Mini-Grants.htm
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REFERENCES
State of Education, Secretary Riley, US
Department of Education, Washington, DC. February, 1999.
Online at http://www.ed.gov/Speeches/990216.html
State of Education, Secretary Riley, US
Department of Education, Washington, DC. February, 1999.
Summarized online at http://www.tesol.edu/advocacy/fedup/fed9902.html
Effectiveness of Technology in Schools,
United States Software and Information Industry Association,
March, 1999. Online at http://www.siia.net/pubs/bookstore/items/ref99.htm
Florida Center for Instructional Technology, http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/
Web Support for Educator Staff Development
can be found online at http://typhoon.coedu.usf.edu/~tcavanau/present/webnet99/web_support.htm
Terence
W. Cavanaugh Ph. D. 
