Friday, February 18, 2011

ITD TALKS: Challenging Assumptions About Technology Professional Development





Sylvia Martinez, Generation YES
Challenging Assumptions About Technology Professional Development
March 17, 2011, 8:00 - 1:00
CNYRIC

Forty years after the invention of the personal computer, schools still find themselves begging teachers to introduce technology into classrooms. Conventional wisdom attributes the lack of effective technology use in classrooms to a shortage of, or poorly run professional development. At the same time, student-centered learning environments require teachers to develop more expertise not only in technology but also in pedagogy. Rather than continue to do more of the same, we should question assumptions and explore new models of teacher learning that address these issues.

GenYES and TechYES in Action
Teachers and students from Jamesville DeWitt High School and Baldwinsville’s Ray Middle School will be on-hand to discuss their experiences with the GenYES and TechYES programs in their respective schools. GenYES is the only student-centered research-based solution for school-wide technology integration. Students work with teachers to design technology-infused lessons and provide tech support. In TechYES, students show technology literacy by creating projects that meet state and local technology proficiency requirements. As part of TechYES, a structured peer-mentoring program assists the teacher or advisor, and provides student leadership opportunities that serve to further strengthen the program and enrich the learning community.

Please join us for a great opportunity to meet with our keynote speaker and network with other curriculum and technology leaders! Register here.

Sylvia Martinez is a veteran of interactive entertainment and educational software industries, with over a decade of design and publishing experience. Sylvia has been a featured speaker at national education technology conferences in areas ranging from the use of the Internet in schools, Web 2.0 technologies, student leadership, digital citizenship, project-based and inquiry-based learning with technology and gender issues in science, math, engineering and technology (STEM) education. She holds a Master's in Educational Technology from Pepperdine University, and a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles.