STATE UNIVERSITY of NEW YORK (SUNY) Potsdam
Department of Computer Science, Organizational Leadership, and Technology (CSOLT)
Educational Technology Specialist Program
IT 657 - Practicum in Technology
- Course Syllabus -
Dr. Anthony Betrus:
Instructor
Spring 2015
Credit: Three semester hours
Time/Dates: 100 hours of total contact time, individually arranged
Location: On Site in a K-12 school setting
Course Description: This course provides students in the Educational Technology Specialist program an opportunity to synthesize technology knowledge and skills. Each student works in a selected field setting to improve the use of technology. Working from an approved plan of action, the student works with field staff, maintains a log of activities and accomplishments, and submits a final report.
Learning Objectives:
- To provide the students with an opportunity to work with a technology specialist
in the field of education (CF
1.8)
- To provide the student with experience in providing instructional support
to teachers (CF 1.1)
- To provide the student with experience in providing technical support for
a school (CF 1.6)
- To provide the student with experience in supporting a school network (CF
2.9)
- To provide the student with experience developing, delivering, and evaluating
an instructional training workshop for school staff. (CF
3.7)
Requirements:
Daily Journals - Each student will keep a daily journal. In this journal they will record their daily activities and reflections of them. Students should include images from their internship, including both still pictures taken on site, as well as appropriate screen captures. At the end of each daily entry the time allotted to [Instructional Support], [Technical Support], and [Network Support] will be noted. At the end of the week, each student will compile their daily journals and submit them via e-mail attachment to their campus supervisor (the site supervisor may opt to receive a copy of the journal as well). Total hours spent in each area (Instructional, Technical, and Network) should be noted at the end of each weekly reflection.
Mid-Internship Site Supervisor Evaluation (50 hour) - At the mid-point of the internship the site supervisor will fill out an evaluation. The evaluation will be e-mailed directly from the campus supervisor to the site supervisor.
Teacher Training - The intern will develop training for a group of teachers
(from 3 to 20) that will be delivered as part of the internship. Specific deliverables
include:
- A demonstration/statement of need (think rationale) for the instructional
workshop
- Any materials developed for the workshop
- Evaluations filled out by participants from the workshop, scanned in if hand
written.
- Your supervisor's evaluation of the workshop if he/she attended or observed
.- A self-reflection by the intern of the workshop
Final Site Supervisor Evaluation (100 hour) - At the end of the internship the site supervisor will complete the final evaluation. The evaluation will be e-mailed directly from the campus supervisor to the site supervisor.
Final Internship Reflection - Upon completion of the internship the student intern will compile his/her journal entries into one document. A final reflection of the internship as a whole will also be added to the document. This is an opportunity for the student intern to look back and reflect on what he/she has learned and experienced.
Final Submission Requirements: Upon completion of the internship and all requirements, materials should be submitted as follows:
PDF #1:
- Daily journals, compiled weekly, with images included in the journals, and
network support, technical support, and instructional support delineated.
- The 50 and 100 hour evaluations from your supervisors. Scan them if filled
out by hand.
- Your overall reflections of the internship.
PDF #2:
- Your demonstration/statement of need (think rationale) for the instructional
workshop you conducted
- Any materials you developed for the workshop
- Any images you took while conducting the workshop (screen grabs or live photos)
- Evaluations filled out by participants from the workshop, scanned in if hand
written.
- Your own self-reflection of the workshop
- Your supervisor's evaluation of the workshop if he/she attended or observed.
Plagiarism: This course adheres to the College's policy on academic honesty as stated in the Undergraduate Catalog. Plagiarism may lead to grade reduction, course failure, or expulsion from school.
Students with disabilities: Any student with a disability needing academic adjustments or accommodations should speak with the professor as early as possible. Students with disabilities should also contact: Sharon House, Coordinator of Accommodative Services at 267-3267, Sisson 112, or e-mail her at housese@potsdam.edu for further assistance. All disclosures will remain confidential.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Q: I have not taken the Networking course yet. Should I still complete an internship?
A: No. You should complete the Networking course prior to signing up for the
internship (or at least concurrently).
Q: What should I do if I can't make it in one day?
A: The important thing to remember is that you should treat this like a job.
If you can't make it in, you need to notify your supervisor as soon as possible.
Q: What should I do if the school district that I'm interning in is closed
(i.e. snow, ice, etc.).
A: Every district is different. When some districts close there will be no access
to the building. In other districts, the administrative and office staff may
have to come in (this may include your supervisor). Discuss this with your supervisor
before it happens at the initial meeting - that way everyone will know what
to expect.
Q: The district that I have been assigned only has Windows machines and I'm
a Macintosh person and have not used Windows a great deal. What should I do?
A: This will be a great learning experience for you. Many districts now consist
of multiple platforms, and you need to be able to adapt to different environments
(including Linux, which is often used as a 3rd platform, especially for servers).
Q: I have four classes other than the internship. How am I going to fit the
required number of hours in?
A: IT 657 requires you to accumulate 100 hours for your internship. The length
of the internship is relatively short when the hours are spread out over the
full semester. Remember that you should treat this like a job. If you are scheduled
to be at a district at a given time, make sure that you fulfill that agreement.
Q: About this teacher training, do I really have to do this?
A: Emphatically YES. You absolutely must complete this, or you will not be given
credit for the course. Keep in mind that you can do this with a group as small
as 3, or as large as 20 (or more), so there is some flexibility with this. It
does require forethought and planning to accomplish, both of which are good
qualities for a technology coordinator to have.
IT657: Practicum Reflective Journal Scoring Rubric |
Criteria |
Unsatisfactory |
Developing Skills |
Proficient |
Exemplary |
Completeness of Journal Entries (CF 1.2, 3.1) |
Daily descriptions are often missing. |
Journal Entries were written for all but 1-2 days. |
A journal entry has been made for each day. |
Weekly submissions include additional reflections about the week as a whole. |
Timeliness of Journal Submissions (CF 1.2, 3.1) |
Journals often not submitted weekly. |
Compilations are submitted for most weeks. |
Journal compilations are submitted each week. |
Journal compilations are submitted each Sunday before 8:00 p.m. |
Accurate descriptions of daily activities. (ISTE 1.d, 2.a, 2.d, 3.b, 3.e, 3.f, 5.b) (CF 1.2, 1.5, 1.6, 3.1, 3.2, 3.7) (Disp: 2.5, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3) |
Journal does not detail all for the days activities, many activities/events are missing. |
Most days are described. Adequate detail for some days are missing |
Descriptions are detailed, and fully describe the day's activities. |
Descriptions are detailed, and fully describe the day's activities. Activities are logged in terms of technical and instructional support activities and time. |
Criteria |
Unsatisfactory |
Developing Skills |
Proficient |
Exemplary |
What did the student learn/how can they improve based on the experience. (ISTE 1.d, 2.a, 2.d, 3.b, 3.e, 3.f, 5.b) (CF 2.1, 2.9) (Disp:1.5, 5.3) |
Candidate largely omits descriptions of lessons learned and ways to improve themselves. |
Candidates’ reflections of what they learned are included, but ways to improve themselves based on what they learned is inadequate or omitted -or- no overall reflections are included in the final report. |
Candidate fully describes both what was learned each day and how changes will be made to improve based on the experience. |
Candidate fully describes both what was learned each day and how changes will be made to improve based on the experience. |
Shared Vision of Technology Use |
Candidate fails to provide evidence of discussions of shared vision with faculty. |
Candidate provides limited evidence of discussions with teachers about their vision for technology use. |
Candidate provides documentation of ongoing and regular conversations with teachers about their vision for technology use in their classroom. |
Candidate works with teachers to either produce or revise an existing classroom technology integration plan that includes a vision for technology use. |
Funding Strategies |
Candidate fails to provide evidence of discussions with technology coaches or teachers about funding strategies. |
Candidate provides evidence of discussions with technology coach mentors about funding strategies |
In addition to discussion with technology coaches, candidate provides evidence of discussions with teachers about funding strategies. |
Evidence is provided that includes an action plan where funding is formally requested (eg. a grant application was submitted) |
Transcribing the journals (CF 1.2) (Disp: 1.2) |
Unorganized, no headers, descriptions not grammar/spellchecked. |
No separation of days/weeks. |
Daily journals are hand-written or electronically added to a word document. Weekly submissions are submitted via Word Attachment. Individual days are separated by bold headers. |
Graphic/images of experience are included. |
Workshop Scoring Assessment
Criteria |
Unsatisfactory |
Developing Skills |
Proficient |
Exemplary |
Analysis of Training Needs and Shared Vision for Technology Use Documented (ISTE 1.a, 4.a) |
Training was done with no documentation of the needs of the teachers. |
Evidence of discussions with the mentor technology coaches about the shared vision for technology use by teachers in the district is provided. |
In addition to discussions with technology coaches about shared vision, evidence of discussions directly with teachers is provided. |
In addition to discussions with coaches and teachers about shared vision, an informal or formal survey also informs the topics taught. |
Quality of Instructional Materials (ISTE 3.c, 5.b, 6.a) |
Limited/no inclusion of training materials. |
Adequate materials were prepared, but not professionally prepared. |
Materials were adequate and professionally prepared. |
Materials were outstanding and professional. |
Diversity and Cultural Understanding |
Candidate fails to provide evidence in workshop materials that alternative instructional strategies for different types of learners were considered. |
Alternative instructional strategies for different learner types are provided in the workshop materials. |
Candidate provides evidence of advanced discussions with teachers attending the workshop about the type and range of learners in their classes. Alternative strategies for different learner types are provided in the workshop materials. |
In addition to advanced discussion with teachers, the instructional materials produced reflect alternative approaches appropriate to the ability level and cultural background of the teachers’ students. |
Classroom Management and Collaborative Learning Strategies. |
No evidence of classroom management or collaborative learning strategies. |
Minimal recommendations for managing teaching environments with the digital tools being taught. |
Detailed recommendations are given to teachers at the workshop for classroom management and collaborative learning strategies to use with their students. |
In addition to detailed recommendations given to teachers, recommendations are modeled by the technology coach. |
Digital communication and collaboration tools (ISTE 3.g) |
Workshop materials are produced without collaboration with teachers and distributed in person at the workshop. |
Workshop materials are produced after collaboration teachers and distributed to workshop attendees. |
Workshop materials are produced collaboratively with teachers and made accessible online for those not in attendance at the live workshop. |
Workshop materials are produced collaboratively with teachers and evidence that materials were developed with considerations for a global audience is provided. Materials are made available online for those not in attendance at the live workshop. |
Evaluation by Teachers (ISTE 4.c) |
No evaluation by participating teachers |
Informal feedback by teachers considered |
Formal feedback received, revision of materials called for but not completed. |
Formal feedback from teachers received, revision of prepared materials completed. |
Self Reflection of Workshop (ISTE 6.c) (CF 2.8) |
No self-reflection included. |
Reflection is shallow and/or does not make recommendations for change. |
Reflection is complete with changes based on reflection are recommended but not completed. |
Reflection is complete and changes based on reflection are completed. |
Course Grading:
4.0 - Exemplary in at leats 6 areas on scoring rubrics, developing or proficient
in remainder.
3.7 - Exemplary in at leats 5 areas on scoring rubrics, developing or proficient
in remainder.
3.3 - Exemplary in at leats 4 areas on scoring rubrics, developing or proficient
in remainder.
3.0 - Exemplary in 3 areas on scoring rubrics, developing or providient in remainder.
2.7 - Exemplary in 2 areas on scoring rubrics, developing or proficient in remainder.
2.3 - Exemplary in 1 area on scoring rubrics, developing or proficient in remainder.
2.0 - Developing or proficient in all areas.
0.0 - Unsatisfactory in any area.
Office Information:
E-mail: betrusak@potsdam.edu
Office: Dunn Hall 393
Phone: (315) 267-2670
This page created August 7, 2015. Last updated August 7, 2015.