Addressing Student Needs with Technology

CLUSTER OPPORTUNITY (2%)

Teachers participating in the Addressing Student Needs with Technology cluster will receive the skills and knowledge necessary to find Web based resources and implement instructional strategies related to differentiated instruction and universal design.

Teachers will take three (3) online courses developed by EDC (Education Resource Center): (1) Differentiating Instruction to Accommodate Learning Styles, (2) Special Students in Regular Classrooms: Technology, Teaching and Universal Design, and (3) Finding the Best Educational Resources on the Web. Each course takes place entirely online over a six-week period with the student spending approximately five (5) hours per week completing assignments.

The culminating activity will be the piloting of a lesson developed throughout the three courses. The incremental development of the lesson (utilizing the Holistic Lesson Plan template) will include examining student needs, selecting and developing appropriate differentiated instructional strategies, completion of the UDL (Universal Design for Learning) Systemic Change Planner, and identifying Web resources to expand the student use of technology.

Syllabi of Online Courses

The Syllabi of Online Courses for the Addressing Student Needs with Technology cluster is a document that contains an overview of each of the three online courses in the cluster and a complete syllabus for each course.

Tangible Products / Evidence of Work

• The participant will successfully complete the EDC online course Differentiating Instruction to Accommodate Learning Styles
  • Final Project: Participants will complete and implement a lesson plan for use with their own students using the Differentiated Instruction Lesson Plan Template.
• The participant will successfully complete the EDC online course Special Students in Regular Classrooms: Technology, Teaching and Universal Design
  • Final Project: Participants will use the UDL Systemic Change Planner to explore steps they can take to create a positive learning environment for students in their classrooms and throughout their school districts.
• The participant will successfully complete the EDC online course Finding the Best Educational Resources on the Web
  • Final Project: Participants will develop a collection of Web-based resources to accompany the differentiated instruction lesson plan. These resources will be saved on the Internet in Trackstar, an online lesson-building tool.
• The participant will use differentiated instruction and universal design strategies and Web resources in the classroom (Holistic Lesson Plan) and collect student artifacts.
• Tangible Product: The Holistic Lesson Plan and student artifacts showing successful implementation of the lesson using differentiated instruction and universal design strategies and Web resources.
• The participant will write an evaluation and reflection of the cluster.
  • Tangible Product: Word processed evaluation / reflection.
• The participant will assemble a portfolio to submit for evaluation.
  • Tangible Product: A comprehensive portfolio (three-ring notebook) with tangible products and all supporting evidence of work.

Generic Schedule of Activities (Refer to Specific Cohort for Exact Dates)

Activity One *  (2 hours)
"Beginning of Cluster" Meeting - Setting the Stage for Online Courses

Activity Two **  (30 hours)
Participate in and Successfully Complete the EDC online course,
Differentiating Instruction to Accommodate Learning Styles

Activity Three ** (30 hours)
Participate in and Successfully Complete the EDC online course,
Special Students in Regular Classrooms: Technology, Teaching and Universal Design

Activity Four ** (30 hours)
Participate in and Successfully Complete the EDC online course,
Finding the Best Educational Resources on the Web

Activity Five (15 hours)
Implement, Reflect Upon, and Revise the Lesson Developed in the 3 Online Courses

Activity Six (2 hours)
Reflection of Cluster

Activity Seven * (2 hours)
"End of Cluster" Meeting - Share Your Success in your Professional Learning Community

* - Activity One and Activity Seven are face-to-face meetings from 5:00PM - 8:00PM at the Collette Education Resource Center in Dover.
** - The online courses have one week of orientation followed by six weeks of content.

Schedule of Activities per Cohort

• Cohort #1: June 2006 - March 2007
• Cohort #2: August 2006 - May 2007
• Cohort #3: January 2007 - November 2007
• Cohort #4: August 2007 - May 2008
• Cohort #5: January 2008 - November 2008

Portfolio Preparation

The portfolio is the way for you to show the eLearning Delaware Leadership Team that you have successfully completed, implemented and reflected upon your eLearning Delaware cluster experience. In other words, the portfolio is just our way of seeing your work throughout the entire cluster and a way for you to pull all of your work together for completeness of effort.

A three-ring notebook should be used to assemble the portfolio. Please put your name, school, and cluster title on the front cover of the three-ring notebook. The easiest way to do this is to use a notebook with a clear pocket on the front so you can slide a sheet of paper with the required info on it into the pocket. If you don't have a pocket, you can write on the notebook with a marker but please use a light colored notebook with a dark marker. (Black marker on black notebook is difficult to read!)

Organization of the Portfolio
Portfolio Cover Page followed by the following sections separated by tabs:
Tab 1 (Rubric Section 1): Course One Certificate and Final Project,
Tab 2 (Rubric Section 2): Course Two Certificate and Final Project,
Tab 3 (Rubric Section 3): Course Three Certificate and Final Project,
Tab 4 (Rubric Section 4/5/6): Holistic Lesson Plan,
Tab 5 (Rubric Section 7): Student Artifacts (with brief explanation of why the artifact was included and how it relates to the lesson) from Holistic Lesson Plan Implementation,
Tab 6 (Rubric Section 8): Reflection on Lesson Implementation,
Tab 7 (Rubric Section 9): Reflection for the Entire Cluster Experience, and
Tab 8 (Rubric Section 10): Certificates for Face-to-Face Meetings.

The order and numbering given above follows the order and numbering of the evaluation rubric. Note: there are minimum requirements for each section of the rubric.

Summary of Documents Needed for Inclusion in the Portfolio
Portfolio Cover Page
Holistic Lesson Plan

Support Document - For Reference Only
Portfolio Clarifying Document with Evaluation Rubric - Do NOT include in portfolio

For more information on the portfolio, read the narrative on the evaluation of the portfolio.

Additional Information

If you would like additional information on the Addressing Student Needs with Technology cluster offered through eLearning Delaware, please send an e-mail to elearning@dcet.k12.de.us