Submission type: Paper
Title: Faculty Technology Mentoring Programs: Major Trends in the Literature
Primary contact: Hsueh-Hua Chuang
W081 Lagomarcino Hall
Iowa State University
Ames, IA 50011 USA
515-2941694
To adequately prepare teachers for the 21st century, teacher preparation
institutions need to equip their faculty so they can effectively model technology
integration and strategies in their courses. (Munday, Windham, & Stamper, 1991;
Moursand, 1999) Literature indicates while many colleges of educational require one
stand alone technology course on computer literacy for preservice teachers, few
teacher education programs have faculty who are modeling instructional methods that
integrate computer technology in classrooms. (Handler & Marshall, 1992; OTA 1995)
For many teacher education programs, finding effective ways to help faculty become
role models is a challenge. Although prior research has shown that one-shot only
workshops fail to meet the individual needs of most educators (Thomson, Hanson,
Reinhart 1996), recent research suggests that one- on- one technology mentoring
models are effective and influential on the faculty professional development in terms
of developing technology integrated curriculum. This paper will provide an extensive
review of the literature that documents mentoring models used in higher education
and k-12 schools. In addition, the paper will summarize similarities found among the
models and will identify the subtle themes that are emerging from research on these
models. It will provide opportunities to learn form the others the key elements in
successful mentoring programs, which were not as widely shared or cited.
Based on the fact that one-shot workshops with limited follow-up support often
fail to meet the specific needs of individual faculty members, several higher education
institutions have developed mentoring models that pair faculty members or teachers
with someone who has technology expertise. The proposed literature review will
describe the different models emerging in the literature. Various mentoring models
have been adopted based on institutions’ emphases on how to enhance technology
integration throughout a teacher education program or k-12 curriculum. Some models
offer multiple sessions of guided lessons followed by one-on-one support. Others
include one technology course where students are paired with faculty members
interested in using technology in their courses. The mentoring model has also been
extended to the K-12 environment. There are mentoring programs embedded in
large-scale projects like PT3 aimed to help change teacher practice towards more
student-centered constructivist approaches. All these models will be described in the
proposed review.
After summarizing the mentoring models, a description of commonalties found
among these mentoring programs will be shared. Despite the variety of technology
mentoring models, effective programs include common elements. These similarities
include providing positive reinforcement, setting personal and professional
technology goals, individualizing technology support (personal fit), establishing open
dialogue and collaborative relationships, and providing mutual benefits for mentors
and mentees.
In addition, more subtle themes from these successful mentoring programs will
be described. One such theme is the recruiting of technologically skilled education
students as mentors in higher education and the ensuing benefits to these students.
The benefits for education students as mentors include the opportunity to make
connections with faculty members, to learn about the pedagogy expertise from them
and to better understand how faculty members achieve successful
technology–integrated curriculum. A second theme emerging is the need for a
learning community behind the mentoring program that played the key role in making
the mentoring program successful. These learning communities encourage
collaboration, communication, and team work and provides on-going support in both
technology and pedagogy for both mentors and mentees.
This review paper will be useful for educators who are or will be implementing
mentoring programs. It will also provide a framework that offers key elements in
designing and implementing successful mentoring programs.
References
Handler, M. & Marshall, D. (1992). Preparing new teachers to use technology:
One set of perceptions. Technology and Teacher Education Annual-1992.
Charlottesville, VA: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education.
Moursund, D. (1999). Will new teachers be prepared to teach in a digital age?: A
national survey on information technology in teacher education. Santa Monica, CA:
Milken Exchange on Educational Technology.
Munday, R., Windham, R., & Stamper, J. (1991, March). Technology for
learning: Are teachers being prepared? Educational Technology, 31(3), 29-32.
Office of Technology Assessment. (1995). Teachers and technology: Making the
connection. ( Report no. OTA-HER-616). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing
Office.
Thompson, A., Hansen D., & Reinhart, P. (1996) One-on-one technology
mentoring for teacher education faculty: Case study reports. Technology and Teacher
Education Annual,1996. Charlottesville, VA: Association for the Advancement of
Computing in Education.
1st Author: Hsueh-Hua Chuang , Iowa State University, USA
2nd Author: Ann Thompson, Iowa State University, USA
3rd Author: Denise Schmidt, Iowa State University, USA