Federal Grant: Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology (PT3)

Project Overview

Preparing Tomorrow's Teachers to Use Technology (PT3), a program of the U.S. Department of Education, responds to the urgent need to prepare pre-service teachers to be technology-proficient and able to bring the power of the new technologies to teaching and learning in effective and creative ways.  The PT3 program recognizes that future teachers must have the knowledge, skills, and ability to integrate the broad range of new technologies into the teaching environment. They must receive training in the most effective use of new technologies as an integral instructional tool. Therefore, the PT3 initiative goes beyond physical access to technology to support the transformation of teacher preparation programs into new learning environments.

Madalienne Peters-- Project Director

In 2001, Dominican University received a Preparing Tomorrow's Teacher's to Use Technology (PT3) grant from the U.S. Department of Education. These funds accelerated the infusion of technology into the University's teacher preparation programs, including the following programs: Master of Science in Education, Liberal Studies, and Multiple, Single and Special Education Credential Programs. This infusion was extended to the satellite campuses in Solano and Mendocino Counties. As a result of the PT3 Program, over 400 credential candidates received extensive training in technology in the past two years.

The Technology Integration in Education-Initiative (TIE-IN) builds technological proficiency among faculty working with credential students in the single and multiple subjects program at three sites: San Rafael, Fairfield, and Ukiah, California. TIE-IN also builds technology proficiency in preservice teachers with an emphasis on a project-based approach to teaching. The Division of Education partners with the Center for Collaboration, Learning, Innovative Education, and New Technologies (CLIENT), the School of Business, Education and Leadership and the Library and Information Services Department.  Local school districts are partners in teacher preparation.

The development of eCamp technology training sessions, now designated as "Using Technology in the Classroom," has been key to grant activities.  Other team goals include:

• Ongoing electronic communication
• Upgrading skill development
• Building user proficiency in electronic tools as part of teaching and learning.

The TIE-IN project addresses:

• Building technological proficiency in faculty, credential candidates, and cooperating classroom teachers.
• Expanding services to faculty throughout the university.
• Evaluating, revising, expanding, and disseminating effective practices.

These goals are being met by the the PT3 Program. Many are now institutionalized at Dominican University of California.

Project Status:  The TIE-IN project has continued into Year 2 with minimal modifications to the established timeline in the grant proposal.  Staffing of the project was completed by July 1, 2002. Resources identified in the proposal include software licenses for Microsoft Office, hardware purchases and upgrades to 2 state of the art on-campus labs each with 22 multimedia PC workstations, and access to the MAC lab with 18 computers.  Progress of the major project components include: one-to-one mentoring of faculty by the faculty-in-residence, planning and hiring instructors for Using Technology in the Classroom for August through October 2003, instructional overview of project to over 40 adjuncts who supervise student teachers, specific training sessions for Division of Education faculty and faculty from other programs on the use of Blackboard.com, and training of over 400 candidates on the use of web-based tools.

For over two years, the federally funded PT3 program at Dominican University of California has been providing services to the Division of Education.

These services, and the expertise brought to the campus through the faculty-in-residence program have made technology a key focus area for the Division of Education. The ideas and energy of the PT3 team has also had a broader impact, influencing a campus-wide interest in the use of advanced technologies to provide learning tools to students. Now in its third and final year, the PT3 team is working to institutionalize the model it has created, and to expand its work with its community partners.  The goal of the team is to complete the work of the PT3 grant, and to create new horizons for the University and the Division of the Education.

Working from the results of their successful first and second years, the PT3 team has insured the sustainability of the programs which it has created. These programs have included the creation of all-day eCamp lab sessions now titled "Using Technology in the Classroom," hands-on sessions in technology for teacher candidates, workshops and individualized instruction for faculty members, and the establishment of new distance learning extensions to the credential and master's degree programs.

Nancy Maher, candidate in the Master's hybrid program

As funding for the program is modified, the goal of the team is to leave the Division of Education with established programs which will be part of the University's educational systems for years to come. The team embarked on an ambitious program to achieve its goal during the second year, and created a plan for achieving this goal.  This plan is based upon three key elements:

• Collaboration
• Cooperation and
• Community

These three elements provide the ingredients for new approaches to curriculum being developed in the Division of Education. Adapted from PT3 Video New Horizons: The Legacy of PT3, 2003, Will Fowler.

History and Background:
The Division of Education was awarded two consecutive state grants to provide extensive technology preparation for local teachers actively working in public  school settings.  The opportunity to apply for a federal grant opened the door for implementing technology in education preparation to students embarking on the teaching profession.  The core idea for the Dominican University of California PT3 grant emerged in an effort to provide faculty and students in the Division of Education with technology instruction appropriate to a teacher preparation program.
The long term collaboration between local school districts and the credential programs helped foster the extension of technology training from professors to student teachers to practicing teachers and correspondingly, to students in the K-12 environment.

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