The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu (auadamu@yahoo.com)

Department of Education
Bayero University, Kano, NIGERIA
2005

Introduction
Teaching is becoming one of the most challenging professions in our society where
knowledge is expanding rapidly and much of it is available to students as well as teachers at
the same time (Perraton, Robinson, & Creed, 2001). As new concepts of learning have
evolved, teachers are expected to facilitate learning and make it meaningful to individual
learners rather than just to provide knowledge and skills. Modern developments of innovative
technologies have provided new possibilities to teaching professions, but at the same time
have placed more demands on teachers to learn how to use these new technologies in their
teaching (Robinson & Latchem, 2003). These challenges ask teachers to continuously retrain
themselves and acquire new knowledge and skills while maintaining their jobs (Carlson &
Gadio, 2002). Then what can be done to help teachers meet these challenges?

Today, a variety of ICT can facilitate not only delivery of instruction, but also learning
process itself. Moreover, ICT can promote international collaboration and networking in
education and professional development. There’s a range of ICT options – from
videoconferencing through multimedia delivery to web sites - which can be used to meet the
challenges teachers face today. In fact, there has been increasing evidence that ICT may be
able to provide more flexible and effective ways for lifelong professional development for
today’s teachers.

Because of rapid development in ICT, especially the Internet, traditional initial teacher
training as well as in-service continued training institutions worldwide are undergoing a rapid
change in the structure and content of their training and delivery methods of their courses.
However, combining new technologies with effective pedagogy has become a daunting task
for both initial teacher training and in-service training institutions.

What are ICTs?

Information and communications technologies (ICTs) is a term which is currently used to
denote a wide range of services, applications, and technologies, using various types of
equipment and software, often running over telecom networks.

ICTs include well known telecom services such as telephone, mobile telephone and fax.
Telecom services used together with computer hardware and software form the basis for a
range of other services, including email, the transfer of files from one computer to another,
and, in particular, the Internet, which potentially allows all computers to be connected,
thereby giving access to sources of knowledge and information stored on computers
worldwide.

Applications include videoconferencing, teleworking, distance learning, management

information systems, stock taking; technologies can be said to include a broad array ranging
from ‘old’ technologies such as radio and TV to ‘new’ ones such as cellular mobile
communications; while networks may be comprised of copper or fiber optic cable, wireless or

1
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

cellular mobile links, and satellite links. Equipment includes telephone handsets, computers,
and network elements such as base stations for wireless service; while software programmes
are the lifeblood of all these components, the sets of instructions behind everything from
operating systems to the Internet.

Thus services as basic as telephones are at issue, as well as applications as complex as

“telemetering”, for example, to remotely monitor water conditions as part of a flood
forecasting system. Indeed, many services and applications can be made available as soon
as telephone service is provided: the same type of technologies that are used to transmit
voice can also transmit fax, data, and digitally compressed video.

The importance of ICTs is not the technology as such, but its enabling function in access to
knowledge, information and communications: increasingly important elements in today’s
economic and social interaction (European Commission, 2001).

ICTs and Teacher Education

It has been argued that technology for teacher professional development is not a panacea – it
is only a tool (Haddad 2002). To use this tool effectively and efficiently, teachers need
visions of the technologies’ potential, opportunities to apply them, training and just-in-time
support, and time to experiment. Only then can teachers be informed and confident in their
use of new technologies (Bowes, 2003).

ICTs are a major factor in shaping the new global economy and producing rapid changes in
society. Within the past decade, the new ICT tools have fundamentally changed the way
people communicate and do business. They have produced significant transformations in
industry, agriculture, medicine, business, engineering and other fields. They also have the
potential to transform the nature of education-where and how learning takes place and the
roles of students and teachers in the learning process.

Teacher education institutions may either assume a leadership role in the transformation of
education or be left behind in the swirl of rapid technological change. For education to reap
the full benefits of ICTs in learning, it is essential that pre-service and in-service teachers
have basic ICT skills and competencies. Teacher education institutions and programs must
provide the leadership for pre-service and in-service teachers and model the new pedagogies
and tools for learning. They must also provide leadership in determining how the new
technologies can best be used in the context of the culture, needs, and economic conditions
within their country. To accomplish these goals, teacher education institutions must work
closely and effectively with primary and secondary school teachers and administrators,
national or state educational agencies, teacher unions, business and community organizations,
politicians and other important stakeholders in the educational system. Teacher education
institutions also need to develop strategies and plans to enhance the teaching-learning process
within teacher education programs and to assure that all future teachers are well prepared to
use the new tools for learning.

This is more crucial because the young generation is entering a world that is changing in all
spheres: scientific and technological, political, economic, social, and cultural. The emergence
of the ‘knowledge-based’ society is changing the global economy and the status of education.

These new possibilities exist largely as the result of two converging forces. First the quantity
of information available in the world-much of it relevant to survival and basic well-being-is

2
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

exponentially greater than that available only a few years ago, and the rate of its growth is
accelerating. A synergistic effect occurs when important information is coupled with a
second modern advance-the new capacity to communicate among people of the world. The
opportunity exists to harness this force and use it positively, consciously, and with design, in
order to contribute to meeting defined learning needs.

As is the case for other sectors of the wider economy and society, education will need to
come to terms with the new technologies. This could require substantial public and private
sector investments in software research and development, purchase of hardware, and
refurbishment of schools. It will be difficult for national policy-makers to resist finding the
necessary resources, whatever their sensibilities for expenditure on education, although
without international co-operation and assistance the poorest countries could fall still further
behind. Parents and the public at large, in the industrial countries at least, are unlikely to
accept for too long the notion that education should be less well equipped with the new
technologies than other areas of social and economic activity (UNESCO World Education
Report, 1998, pp. 19-20).

Thus education is at the confluence of powerful and rapidly shifting educational,

technological and political forces that will shape the structure of educational systems across
the globe. Many countries are engaged in a number of efforts to effect changes in the
teaching/learning process to prepare students for an information and technology-based
society. The UNESCO World Education Report (1998) notes that the new technologies
challenge traditional conceptions of both teaching and learning and, by reconfiguring how
teachers and learners gain access to knowledge, have the potential to transform teaching and
learning processes. ICTs provide an array of powerful tools that may help in transforming the
present isolated, teacher-centered and text-bound classrooms into rich, student-focused,
interactive knowledge environments. To meet these challenges, schools must embrace the
new technologies and appropriate the new ICT tools for learning. They must also move
toward the goal of transforming the traditional paradigm of learning.

To accomplish this goal requires both a change in the traditional view of the learning process
and an understanding of how the new digital technologies can create new learning
environments in which students are engaged learners, able to take greater responsibility for
their own learning and constructing their own knowledge. Thomas Kuhn suggests that
revolutions in science come about when the old theories and methods will not solve new
problems. He calls these changes in theory and methods a “paradigm shift.” There is
widespread concern that the educational experiences provided in many schools will not
prepare students well for the future. Many educators and business and government leaders
believe that creating a paradigm shift in views of the learning process, coupled with
applications of the new information technologies, may play an important role in bringing
educational systems into alignment with the knowledge-based, information-rich society.

Framework for ICTs in Teacher Education

In planning for the infusion of ICTs into teacher preparation programs, several factors
important to a program’s success must be considered. UNESCO provides a generic ICT in
teacher education curriculum framework, as shown in Figure 1.

3
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

Fig 1. A Framework for ICTs in Teacher Education

(After Unesco, 2002).

In the figure, Context and Culture identifies the culture and other contextual factors that must
be considered in infusing technology into teacher education curriculum. It includes the use of
technology in culturally appropriate ways and the development of respect for multiple
cultures and contexts, which need to be taught and modeled by teachers.

Leadership and Vision are essential for the successful planning and implementation of
technology into teacher education and require both leadership and support from the
administration of the teacher education institution.

Lifelong Learning acknowledges that learning does not stop after school. In common with the
other themes, it is important that teachers and teacher preparation faculty model lifelong
learning as a key part of implementation, and as an ongoing commitment to ICTs in teacher
education.

Planning and Management of Change is the final theme, born of today’s context and
accelerated by technology itself. It signifies the importance of careful planning and effective
management of the change process.

These themes may be understood as a strategic combination of approaches that help teacher
educators develop four core competencies necessary for effective use of ICTs in teacher
education programs. The core competencies may be seen as clusters of objectives that are
critical for successful use of ICTs as tools for learning.

Four Competencies for ICT in Teacher Education

Pedagogy
The most important aspect of infusing technology in the curriculum is pedagogy. When
implementing the pedagogical competencies for infusing technology, the local context and
the individual approach of the teacher linked with that of their subject discipline must be
paramount. As professional teachers educators continually develop their pedagogical use of
ICTs to support learning, teaching, and curriculum development, including assessment of
learners and the evaluation of teaching, they will:

4
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

o demonstrate understanding of the opportunities and implications of the uses of ICTs

for learning and teaching in the curriculum context;
o plan, implement, and manage learning and teaching in open and flexible learning
environments;
o assess and evaluate learning and teaching in open and flexible learning environments.

Collaboration and Networking

ICTs provide powerful new tools to support communication between learning groups and
beyond classrooms. The teacher’s role expands to that of a facilitator of collaboration and
networking with local and global communities. The expansion of the learning community
beyond the classroom also requires respect for diversity, including inter-cultural education,
and equitable access to electronic learning resources. Through collaboration and networking,
professional teachers promote democratic learning within the classroom and draw upon
expertise both locally and globally. In this process, they will:

o demonstrate a critical understanding of the added value of learning networks and

collaboration within and between communities and countries;
o participate effectively in open and flexible learning environments as a learner and as a
teacher;
o create or develop learning networks that bring added value to the education profession
and society (locally and globally); and
o widen access and provide learning opportunities to all diverse members of the
community, including those with special needs.

Social and Health Issues

The power to access information and communication technologies brings increased
responsibilities for everyone. Legal and moral codes need to be extended to respect the
intellectual property of freely accessible information. Copyright applies to web resources,
too, regardless of the ability of the user to purchase the rights. This respect can be modeled in
classroom practice with students from an early stage. The challenges faced by society, locally
and globally, by adoption of technology should become part of the curriculum in a way that
involves learners and helps them to develop an effective voice in the debates. Health issues of
ICTs also need to be addressed. For example, pro-longed engagement with ICTs (including
screens and keyboards) requires appropriate support for the body, especially the hands and
back. Professional teachers need to understand social and health issues surrounding ICTs and
apply that understanding in their practice. Specifically, they need to:

o understand and apply the legal and moral codes of practice, including copyright and
respect for intellectual property;
o reflect upon and lead discussion of the impact of new technology on society, locally
and globally; and
o plan and promote healthy use of ICTs, including seating, light, sound, and related
energy sources (including electricity and radio signals).

Technical Issues
Technical issues regarding integration of ICTs into the curriculum include the technical
competencies and provision of both technical infrastructure and technical support for
technology use throughout the curriculum. Technical competencies of the individual are
perhaps the most obvious but perhaps the least important in the long-term because use of
technology should ultimately become transparent. Simply providing the technology for

5
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

learners and teachers is not enough. The type and level of access is also important.
Professional teachers, provided with reliable technology infrastructure and technical
assistance, demonstrate continual growth in their skill with ICTs and knowledge of their
current and emerging applications within education and local and global society. Specifically
they are able to:

o use and select from a range of ICT resources to enhance personal and professional
effectiveness; and
o willingly update skills and knowledge in the light of new developments.

The Context For ICT and Multimedia Development

A decade and more ago, national efforts to introduce ICTs in education anticipated increases
in efficiency (Jalaluddin, 1996) without attending to the nature of learning and cognition, or
to the distinction between skills mastered in abstraction and knowledge built to be used,
expanded, and eventually transcended.

Thus as Gaible, Cesar and Nunes (2002) argued, to build resources that enable learners to
build knowledge, we must broaden our perspective beyond building skills and memorizing
facts in the abstract; if these are our educational goals, technology will prove neither cost-
effective nor effective in absolute terms. If our goals include enhancing analysis, synthesis,
communication, and the grasping of interrelationships in the ways in which we rep-resent our
world, we will find that technology supports and empowers all of our efforts along these
lines.

They further argued that the use of multimedia as engines of learning is conditioned by
several dynamic contexts, including our evolving understanding of cognitive factors with
direct bearing on learning and changes in school environment ranging from infrastructure to
resources to teacher development.

The Cognitive Context

Their review shows that the emergence of technology as a change factor in education
coincides with the sweeping influence of cognitive science and brain studies as a factor in the
transformation of teaching and learning (Bransford et al 2000). The influence of both of these
forces has increased with the recognition of globalization, the concomitant demonstrations of
the value of innovation (Atkinson and Court, 1998) and the prevalence of strong “knowledge-
work” sectors (Walcott, 2000).

The Committee on Developments in the Science of Learning of the National Research

Council (Bransford et al 2000) identified five themes that changed the conceptions of
learning: memory and structure of knowledge; analysis of problem solving and reasoning;
early foundations; meta-cognitive processes and self-regulatory capabilities; and cultural
experience and community participation.

Beyond thinking skills, thinking dispositions are important— students must have sensibility
to know when and how to apply their skills. Development of such competencies can be
fostered by the creation of a culture of thinking in the classroom (Tishman et al 1994). In this
way students are able to develop successful strategies to transfer their learning to other
situations (Perkins and Solomon, n.d.).

6
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

From these concepts about learning, and more recently from discussion of the skill sets
needed in the “global, knowledge economy,” (DeVol, 1998) new pedagogical rubrics have
emerged that include cooperative learning, collaborative learning, active learning, project-
based learning, problem-based learning, situated learning and, most recently, “learning by
doing” (Roschelle 1995). These approaches all aim at a transfer of emphasis away from rote-
based methods and assessment, and the teacher as the “producer” of knowledge. Instead, they
emphasize the roles that analysis, synthesis, and other higher-order cognitive skills play in
learning, with particular focus on learners building their own knowledge.

Expanding our view of multimedia must also take into account multimedia examination
formats. Students and faculty feel that incorporation of rich media in assessment can provide
additional support for learning and teaching (Liu 2001). Advances in technology, cognitive
science, and measurement also show the need to reinvent large-scale assessment (Bennet,
2001) and this process of reinvention may stand to benefit from incorporation of multimedia.

Dynamic stimuli, such as audio, video, and animation, may make performing such tasks as
problem solving more relevant to student experience (Bennet et al 1999). To accomplish this
objective, multimedia development must consider cognitive complexity, sensitivity to
instruction, meaningfulness, reliability, fairness, and linguistic appropriateness (Baker and
Mayer 1999). Multimedia material produced for teaching and learning must be produced for
assessment as well, with compatible goals, similar depth, and equal quality.

The Instructional Context

When developing educational multimedia resources, it is important to take into account
objectives at the level of the individual learner, the school, and the state. Each has different
characteristics, expectations, and needs, and the means to fulfill them are all interrelated. For
this reason, development of learning resources is linked, strategically, with processes of
educational reform and the transformation of teaching and learning. Consequently, four
points of focus are suggested for planning the development of multimedia educational
material (Bransford 2000).

Learner-Centered

o What kind of approaches and materials would be flexible enough to consider students’
previous knowledge, cultural practices, and beliefs while connecting them to
academic tasks?
o How can the processes of teaching and learning benefit from each student’s special
interests and strengths?

According to Wiske (1998), project-based learning activities are just one way to achieve
these goals. Technology also may enable us to support these goals through a combination of
pre-authoring (i.e., design) tools, classroom work, portfolio-organization systems, publication
systems, and collaboration tools. In such an environment, the most useful multimedia
material might be small bits and pieces of software that are plugable and insertable in
student’s pages and projects (applets18, Flash and Shockwave files, video clips), perhaps
allowing user customizations. Examples of this combination of a tool-based learning
environment and preexisting content can be found in “microworlds,” often written in Java,
such as Proyecto Descartes (http://www.descartes.es). In this environment, students are
motivated not only by the drive for visual quality in their work, but by the opportunity to use

7
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

and discuss material that they, working independently in the classroom-based learning
environment, would be unable to produce on their own.

Knowledge-Centered

o How can we design curricula to promote understanding instead of the acquisition of

disconnected sets of facts and skills?
o How can we develop in students the ability to think and solve problems by accessing
appropriate knowledge?

Multimedia may help in making accessible themes that would be very hard to understand or
to connect to reality— as demonstrated by the site, Physics 2000 (http://www.col-
orado.edu/physics/2000). It also can help in enabling learners to reframe knowledge. They
may use conceptual maps linked to Web pages that highlight different aspects of a content
domain: how knowledge is acquired by experts; how problems are solved; what language is
used in that domain; the current pathways of deepening knowledge; and the different
possibilities of presentation for different publics of different ages.

Multimedia also can broaden the scope of school learning environments by enabling
experiments that otherwise would be too dangerous, too expensive, or take too long. (There
are already some excellent CD-ROMs available in this niche.) And visualization and
modeling tools give students the opportunity to enter into much more complex knowledge-
contexts (so many of which are now necessary in our world than ever before), while
continuing to build their comprehension of the core knowledge of those domains.

Assessment-Centered

o How can we provide opportunities for students to revise and improve the quality of
their thinking and understanding?
o Technology can help facilitate self-assessment and other meta-cognitive activities in
students, in part by giving frequent feedback. Collaborative tools and communication
tools may promote reflection and learning as a social activity, enhancing the potential
for conceptual change.

Interactive multimedia can play a crucial role in helping students overcome misconceptions
in other ways as well. Students can be enabled to develop their hypotheses as far as possible,
aided by the capabilities of well-planned multimedia Nunes and Davis (2001).

At that extreme point of development, visual feedback can intervene, providing alternatives
or deconstructing their beliefs. It is possible to produce simulations and animations that
feature embedded “expert-systems examples,” demonstrating how experts have addressed the
same problems or arrived at true conclusions, only after students tried the simulations on their
own.

Community-Centered

o To what extent are students aware of the differences in learning in school and in their
social environment?
o Do they identify the building blocks of knowledge, and what knowledge they already
have is applicable to real-world problems?

8
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

o How can students become aware of their role in a globalizing world and understand
the importance of formal education in that world?

Technology can play a crucial role in connecting schools to professionals in their

communities and around the world, and by allowing the school to develop ideas and positions
and make them public. What types of multimedia material support more community-centered
environments? People need to see and reflect on real and very often dramatic situations.
Discussions can be sparked by showing videos. It may be useful to begin with small problem
sets, in which only the most relevant variables are shown; then other variables can be inserted
step by step. All of these features can be implemented in well-planned simulations.

Clearly, there are no boundaries among these four focal areas. When we construct an
assessment-centered learning environment, we create elements of a learner-centered
environment. When we build a community-centered environment, we satisfy our criteria for a
knowledge-centered environment. Well-designed systems combine characteristics of all four
(Riel 2000). One way to ensure the interweaving of characteristics of all such environments is
to ask what resources would be required for “hands-on, minds-on, and reality-on” learning
activities.

Constraints to ICT in Teacher Education

The importance of training of teachers for successful integration of ICTs into education is
finally recognized but not well financed and implemented. There are many prevailing issues
that constrain the effectiveness of such teacher training.

 Many programs are limited to computer literacy and do not train teachers in the
instructional use of technology.
 Most programs are supply driven – if we supply training we ensure classroom
success. The demand side is equally important. We have to consider the demands of
teachers, their needs, interests, attitudes, etc. Why don’t teachers make better use of
instructional ICTs? Do they see a practical use of ICTs in their classrooms, or do they
consider technology as a threat and a waste of time? Does the school environment
(nature of the curriculum, role of teacher and student, allowance for innovation)
demand or at least allow for the use ICTs to add value to the teaching/learning
process?
 Some training sounds like a selling pitch, amplifying the great benefits of ICTs for the
teacher, the students, the school and the world at large! This is a recipe for fanaticism
and frustration. Training should be grounded in realism and educational context:
ICTs’ potential, limitations, and conditions for success.
 No training, no matter how good, can be a one shot intervention. Training in the use
of ICTs for instructional and learning purposes takes time and individual handholding.
The reasons are many: even the most knowledgeable and enthusiastic energetic
teachers face time constraints and competing demands to learn new things;
technologies are unreliable – the more sophisticated and promising they are the more
they break down; both hardware, software and educational applications keep
changing; and, teachers need time to figure out a comfortable and beneficial zone of
use of ICTs in their classrooms. It is usually assumed that training for educational
technologies is an in-service or a specialized activity. What about integrating it into
pre-service or initial teacher education? Can new teachers be prepared to teach in a
digital age? A 1999 study – commissioned by the Milken Exchange and conducted by
the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) – “found that teacher

9
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

preparation programs, while well-intentioned, are not providing the kind of training
and exposure teachers need if they are to be proficient and comfortable integrating
technology with their teaching.”
 In the UK, ICT is now an integral part of the initial teacher training National
Curriculum. “The curriculum aims, in particular, to equip every newly qualified
teacher with the knowledge, skills and understanding to make sound decisions about
when, when not, and how to use ICT effectively in their subject teaching.” The
Teacher Training Agency, a governmental body whose purpose is to raise standards in
schools by attracting able and committed people to teaching and by improving the
quality of teacher training, has also produced exemplification materials on the use of
ICTs in subject teaching.

Thus, according to Carlson (2002), teacher professional development in the use of technology
should embody and model the forms of pedagogy that teachers can use themselves in their
classrooms. For example, these training programs should:

 Empower teachers to develop their knowledge and skills actively and experientially,
in a variety of learning environments, both individual and collaborative.
 Include a variety of learning strategies, including direct instruction, deduction,
discussion, drill and practice, induction and sharing.
 Aim at higher-order thinking skills.
 Provide an authentic learning environment so that teachers engage in concrete tasks
within realistic scenarios.
 Emphasize ways that technology can facilitate and enhance teachers’ professional
lives.
 Encourage teachers to be mentors, tutors and guides of the students’ learning process
(rather than simple presenters of knowledge and information).
 Develop teachers’ skills in learning how to learn (define learning objectives, plan and
evaluate learning strategies, monitor progress and adjust as needed).
 Promote cooperative and collaborative learning.
 Be sensitive to the culture and diversity of teachers as learners, using a multifaceted
approach so as to respond to different learning styles, opportunities, environments and
starting points.
 Enable learning independent of time and place (anytime, anywhere learning).

One of the most revealing studies of technology integration is a ten year study of Apple
Computer’s Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT). These are elementary, middle, and high
school classes in average or low income districts that have been infused with technology;
each student and teacher has a computer in school and another at home. Teachers receive
intensive support and training. Over the course of the project, researchers have been looking
at the changes in teachers’ beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors and have identified stages of
development that teachers go through on their way to fully integrating technology into their
instructional programs. These stages and concomitant characteristics are summarized in the
chart on the next page as adapted from Dwyer et al., (1991).

10
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

Stage Characteristics
Entry • As the classrooms begin to change, teachers have doubts about
technology integration.
Adoption • Teachers use technology to support traditional text-based drill
and practice.
• Student achievement showed no significant decline or
improvement.
• Self-esteem and motivation were strong.
• Student attendance was up and discipline problems were few.
Adaptation • Teachers thoroughly integrate technology into traditional
classroom practice.
• Student productivity is increased; students produce more,
faster.
• Students are more actively engaged in learning
Appropriation • Teachers and students personally appropriate technology.
Teachers gain a perspective on how profoundly they can alter
the learning experience.
• Students have highly evolved technology skills and can learn on
their own.
• Student work patterns and communication become collaborative
rather than competitive.
Invention • Teachers are prepared to develop entirely new learning
environments that utilize technology as a flexible tool.
• Teachers view learning as an active, creative, and socially
interactive process.
• Knowledge is something students construct rather than
something that can be transferred.

During the course of the practicum, we will go over these stages to adapt them to learning
circumstances in Nigeria. You will also be shown a video of these stages. An expanded
version of these key stages is given in Appendix 1.

Conclusion
Multimedia resources—considered in terms of both products and processes—have great
potential to enhance education. New modalities and instruments for development and
delivery have radically increased the support that these resources can give students across a
wide range of learning activities. Despite the glamour of technology-rich environments, focus
must remain on learners and their motivations and challenges, on the knowledge domains to
be explored, and on the communities in which learning will take place. We also must keep in
mind that developers, teachers, and students all have roles to play in the creation of
multimedia, and one of the chief goals of policy must be to support appropriate activities by
each of these groups.

Flexibility is a key property of multimedia contentware, and must be marshaled effectively in

our development efforts. Despite the complexity of their interaction, the contexts for
development and implementation—cognitive, instructional, and technological—can be
balanced so as to advance strategic goals and plans within our education systems. Cognitive
science, in particular, can guide and give shape to innovation in the development of learning
environments, multimedia resources, and teaching and learning practice.

As always, factors outside the development processes and even outside the educational
systems affect the creation of effective resources. It is vital for policy makers to influence
funding, licensing, and standards for the development of educational multimedia by the

11
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

private sector. Leading-edge technologies, including tools for adaptive and collaborative
learning, will be introduced only with appropriate guidance and effective incentives, yet such
tools are vital to realizing the promise that technology holds for personalized instruction and
for the integration of higher-order thinking into all aspects of education.

ICTs for teacher education and teacher education for ICTs are two complementary endeavors.
They hold significant potential. But like any innovation that involves individuals and
organizations, success does not happen through mere application. There are intricate, multi-
faceted and uncertain conditions that must be provided, continuously assessed, and modified
accordingly. As with any ICT application, the learner (in this case the teacher) should
continue to be the center of any strategy and the measure of any success.

12
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

References

Atkinson, R., & Court, R. (1998). The New Economy Index: Understanding America’s Economic
Transformation. Washington: Progressive Policy Institute.
Baker, E.L., & Mayer, R.E. (1999). Computer-Based Assessment of Problem Solving. Computers in Human
Behavior, 15: 269-282.
Bennett, R.E. (2001). How the Internet Will Help Large-Scale Assessment Reinvent Itself? Education Policy
Analysis Archives, 9 (5). Available at: http://epaa.asu.edu.
Bennett, R.E., Goodman, M., Hessinger, J., Kahn, H., Ligget, J.,Marhall, G., & Zack, J. (1999). Using
Multimedia in Large-Scale Computer-Based Testing Programs. Computers in Human Behavior, 15:
283-294.
Bowes, J. (2003). The emerging repertoire demanded of teachers of the future: Surviving the transition,
retrieved, September 1, 2004, from http://crpit.com/confpapers/CRPITV23Bowes.pdf.
Bransford, J.D., et al. (2000). How People Learn: Brain, Mind, Experience, and School (Expanded Edition),
National Academic Press.
Carlson, S., (2002), The Missing Link in Educational Technology: Trained Teachers. TechKnowLogia, October
- December 2002, pp 7-11.
Carlson, S., & Gadio, C. T. (2002). Teacher professional development in the use of technology. In W.D. Haddad
& A. Draxler (Eds.), Technologies for education: potential, parameters, and prospects, Paris and
Washington, D.C.: UNESCO and AED, retrieved April 25, 2005 from
http://www.schoolnetafrica.net/fileadmin/resources/Teacher_Professional_Development_In_the_use_o
f_Technology.pdf.
DeVol, R. (1998). America’s High-Tech Economy: Growth, Development and Risks for Metropolitan Areas.
Santa Monica, CA: The Milken Institute.
Dwyer, D.C., Ringstaff, C., & Sandholtz, J.H. (1991). Changes in teachers’ beliefs and practices in technology-
rich classrooms. Educational Leadership.
European Commission (2001), Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European
Parliament; Information and Communication Technologies in Development. The role of ICTs in EC
development policy; Brussels 14.12.2001; COM(2001)770 final; p.3).
Gaible, E., and Cesar A, and Nunes, A., (2002) Development of Multimedia Materials, in Haddad, Wadi D.
and Draxler, Alexandra (eds.)(2002)., Technologies for Education: Potentials, Parameters and
Prospects. Paris, Unesco.
Haddad, W (2002), Technology and Teacher Education: Making the Connection, Editorial, TechKnowLogia,
October - December 2002, pp 5-6.
Jalaluddin, A. (1996). Opportunities and Strategies for Change in Education. In Ahmet, M., & Gaible, E. (eds.).
Education for All Technology Roundtable. Berkeley: People’s Computer Company.
Lamke, C., and Coughlin, E., (1998), Technology in American Schools: 7 Dimensions for Gauging Success – a
Policymaker’s Guide. Milken Exchange on Educational Technology at
http://www.milkenexchange.org/
Liu, M., Papathanasiou, E., & Hao, Y-W. (2001). Exploring the Use of Multimedia Examination Formats in
Undergraduate Teaching: Results from the Field Testing. Computers in Human Behavior, 17: 224-248.
Nunes, M., & Davis, C. (2001). New Technologies, New Ways of Learning? Presented at The Future and
Challenges of Educational Assessment in the 21st Century, 27th Annual IEAE Conference. Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil.
Perkins, D.N., and Salomon, G. (n/d) The Science and Art of Transfer. Harvard Project Zero. Available at:
http://learnweb.harvard.edu/alps/thinking/docs/trancost.pdf.
Perraton, H., Robinson, B., & Creed, C. (2001). Teacher education through distance learning: technology,
curriculum, evaluation, cost, Paris: UNESCO.
Riel, M. (2000). Measuring the Impacts and Shaping the Future, White Paper, Secretary of Education,
Conference on Educational Technology, Washington, DC.
Robinson, B., & Latchem, C. (2003). Teacher education: challenges and change. In B. Robinson, & C. Latchem
(Eds.), Teacher education through open and distance learning, London: Routledge Falmer, 1-27.
Roschelle, J. (1995). What Should Collaborative Technology Be? A Perspective from Dewey and Situated
Learning. Proceedings of the Computer Science and Collaborative Learning Conference. Mahwah, NJ:
Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Tishman, S., Perkins, D.N., & Jay, E. (1994). The Thinking Classroom: Learning and Teaching in a Culture of
Thinking. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

UNESCO (1998), World Education Report, Paris, Unesco.

UNESCO (2002), Information and Communication Technologies in Teacher Education: A Planning Guide.
Paris, Unesco.
Wiske, M.S. (1998) What Is Teaching for Understanding? In Wiske, E. (ed.). Teaching for Understanding:
Linking Research to Practice. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.
Wolcott, P. (2000). The Diffusion of the Internet in the Republic of India. Omaha, NE: The Global Diffusion of the Internet
Project.

14
 Prof. Abdalla Uba Adamu (auadamu@yahoo.com)

Appendix 1

Examples of Best Practices that Work

Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT) (With accompanying video)

Promising Practices in Technology

Recognizing and Supporting Teaching with Technology

The Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT) research project was both exploratory and open-ended. The
project was initiated in 1985 by Apple Computer, Inc. in the United States to answer the question: What
happens to students and teachers when they have access to computers whenever they need it? Over the
following four years, sites were selected, computers were provided for ACOT classrooms, and training was
provided for teachers. In 1990, the first reports were published, and ACOT project staff began making
presentations at conferences and educational meetings. By 1995, the message was clear: the conversation
should be about learning, not computers. During the decade of study from 1985 to 1995, the ACOT teachers
used technology as a motivator for change. They enriched their lessons with technology and turned the
assignments into collaborative learning activities. The ACOT study determined that teachers progress through
certain stages as they incorporate technology into teaching and learning in their classrooms. These stages can be
described as shown in the chart below.

Stage Examples of What Teachers Do

Entry Learn the basics of using technology
Adoption Use new technology to support traditional instruction
Integrate new technology into traditional classroom practice (Here, they
Adaptation often focus on increased student productivity and engagement by using
word processors, spreadsheets, and graphic tools.)
Focus on cooperative, project-based, and interdisciplinary work-
Appropriation
incorporating the technology as needed and as one of many tools
Discover new uses for technology tools, for example, developing
Invention spreadsheets macros for teaching algebra or designing projects that
combine multiple technologies.
From Changing the Conversation About Teaching, Learning, & Technology: A Report 10
Years of ACOT Research. Apple Computer, Inc.

Teachers experienced varied stages with different types of technology and teaching strategies. As teachers
advanced through the stages, they became guides, while the students took more ownership of their own learning,
frequently doing so in cooperative groups. The chart below shows the shift that occurred in the classrooms,
from traditional instruction to extended knowledge construction.

Traditional Instruction
Activity Teacher-centered and didactic
Teacher role Fact teller and expert
Student role Listener and learner
Learning emphasis Facts and replication
Concept of knowledge Accumulation
Demonstration of success Quantity
Assessment Norm-referenced and multiple guess
Technology use Seat work
From Changing the Conversation About Teaching, Learning, & Technology: A Report 10 Years of ACOT
Research. Apple Computer, Inc
Extended Knowledge
Construction
Learner-centered and interactive
Collaborator/sometimes learner
Collaborator/sometimes expert
Relationships and inquiry
Transformation
Quality
Criterion-referenced and
performance portfolios
Communication, collaboration,
information access and expression

You will be shown the video during the practicum stage of the workshop. The video will be available to you as
RealPlayer (.rm) files which you can burn to a CD during the workshop.

15
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

Appendix 2

Gauging Success of ICTs and Multimedia Applications in Teacher Education

(Adapted from Lamke, C., and Coughlin, E., (1998), Technology in American Schools: 7 Dimensions for
Gauging Success – a Policymaker’s Guide. Milken Exchange on Educational Technology at
http://www.milkenexchange.org/).

o Fluency: Are learners proficient using technology and communication networks for whatever
endeavors they choose?
o Strengthening The Basics: Does this use of technology make it possible for the learner to acquire
the basic skills with more depth?
o Developing Higher Level Skills: Does this use of technology make it increasingly possible for the
learner to engage in learning practices that lead to new ways of thinking, understanding,
constructing knowledge and communicating results?
o Increasing Relevancy: Are learners using contemporary technology, communication networks and
associated learning contexts to engage in relevant, real-life applications of academic concepts?
Does his/her work parallel the way in which professionals in the workforce use technology?
o Motivation To Learn: Is quality access to technology and telecommunications increasing the
intrinsic motivation of learners to learn?
o Recognition of Tradeoffs: Are learners cognizant of the tradeoffs inherent in the application of
technology in society as they make life choices in a global, technological society?

o Learning Context: Are educators establishing a learning context that requires and enables
students/student teams use of contemporary tools to research issues, solve problems and
communicate results?

16
 Prof. Abdalla Uba Adamu (auadamu@yahoo.com)

o Learning Content: Do the standards, curriculum, instruction and assessment reflect the
knowledge-based, global society of today? Are educators reflecting societal changes in school
practice?
o School Culture: Is the school culture one that encourages, enables and rewards educators
individually and collectively to improve the learning and teaching processes through the effective
use of technology and communication networks?
o Technology Access: Do teachers and learners have sufficient access to productivity tools, online
services, media-based instructional materials, and primary sources of data in settings that enrich
and extend their learning goals?
o Information and Communication: Is the learning environment a place where the effective use of
information and communication technology is modeled for and by students?

o Core Technology Fluency: Are the faculty and staff proficient, knowledgeable and current with
con-temporary technology?
o Curriculum, Learning and Assessment: Has the teacher’s fluency with technology translated into
unique opportunities for students to learn more quickly, with more depth and understanding? Is the
teacher’s knowledge about technology’s impact in his/her field of study reflected in the context of
his/her students’ learning?
o Professional Practice and Collegiality: Are teachers using technology and communication
networks to advance their professional practice? Are teachers knowledgeable and current with the
technology and its impact in their field of study and the larger society?
o Classroom and Instructional Management: Through their use of technology and
telecommunications are teachers creating learning contexts that require students to take on more
independent roles in their own learning?

o Vision: Has the system engaged key stakeholders plus the broader community in defining and
clearly stating a compelling vision and expectations for technology in schools? Is that vision
embraced by the entire system?
o Leadership And Planning: Has the system developed a comprehensive, long-term plan? Is there
alignment between the plan for technology in schools and existent policies and practices (e.g.,
rules and regulations, fiscal priorities, operating practices, allocation of resources, investment in
human capital and accountability)?
o Ensuring Capacity: Is the system ensuring that educators, communities and components of the
system itself have the capacity to translate that vision into compelling, meaningful learning
activities for children, youth and adults?
o Systems Thinking: Is there a team of leaders that embraces the vision and is in a position to
facilitate the system changes that are necessary to reach that vision? Is the vision for improved
learning through technology a design factor across the entire education system?

17
The Training of Teacher Educators in Media Methods and Materials Production

o Commitment: Are key community stakeholders committed and involved in planning,

implementing and evaluating the system’s use of learning technology?
o Collaboration: Has the system identified the full range of mutually beneficial partner-ships,
exchanges and collaborations? Are any of these opportunities currently being developed?
o Clarity: Do all technology partnerships, ex-changes and collaborations include clear articulation of
expectations, implementation plans, time lines and accountability systems?
o Communication: Are there mechanisms for ongoing communication among partners and the
broader community for the purposes of celebrating successes, building awareness, monitoring
progress and encouraging wider participation?

o Installed Base: Do schools have an installed base of modern technology equipment (computers,
calculators, digital cameras, projection devices, scanners, printer, etc.) to support the learning,
communication, and administrative goals of the education system?
o Connectivity: Is the connectivity adequate to support current and rapidly growing demands created
by the learning, communication, and administrative requirements of the education system?
o Technical Support: Is there adequate technical support to provide timely, expert trouble-shooting,
technical assistance, ongoing maintenance, operation and upgrades?
o Client Orientation: Are client needs being met? Is there a high level of customer satisfaction?
o Facilities: Are the facilities within the system “technology-ready?” Do standards for facilities and
infrastructure include technology requirements?

o Deliverables and Benchmarks: Have clear goals been set, accompanied by logical implementation
and change strategies, measurable objectives and associated metrics?
o Data Collection/Interim Progress: Is there a well designed data collection and analysis process
that tracks progress, leads to data-driven decision making and provides evidence as to whether or
not the intervention is leading toward the goals?
o Data-Driven Decision Making: Is the data analysis appropriately informing decision making
related to technology?
o Communication: Is the communication plan keeping stakeholders informed and does it provide a
feedback mechanism for continuous improvement?

18