Tom Keller

7-4-03

SLM 521

“Internet Course Module”

OBJECTIVE –

Students will become aware of various professional development opportunities.

Students will sign up for a professional development online organization as a foundation for becoming an active and continually developing member of their profession.

INTRODUCTION –

Professional development is an important component of continuing to be a successful educator. There are frequently changes in information in your content area due to current research and new findings. There is also much research being done on education, and new, effective methods of teaching are continually being developed and modified.

Being a member of a professional development organization is a great way to stay on top of new information in your field. Such organizations that are online provide a great way for teachers to communicate with other teachers and share ideas. Also, teachers can easily gain access to many resources, such as online seminars and courses, by being a member of an online professional development organization.

As you read through the following website (as well as the other professional development websites that you find), you will learn much more about the benefits to being actively involved in an online professional development organization.

ACTIVITY –

Students will visit the following teacher professional development website:

HYPERLINK "http://www.tappedin.org"

Tapped In -

http://www.tappedin.org

This website offers various professional development resources. Navigate through the site and learn about opportunities available to teachers who become members of online professional development organizations.

Membership for this particular organization is free, if you wish, you may sign up to become a member of this organization. If not, you may choose to sign up for a different online professional development organization you find, as described below.

ASSIGNMENT –

Students will visit the above site and learn about the professional development opportunities available through Tapped In.

Visit several other online professional development websites (7-10 websites) to get a comprehensive idea of the benefits and opportunities available to educators who become members of these online professional development organizations.

Cite all the websites that you visit, but chose the three organizations you liked the best and include an annotation briefly describing the website and explain why you chose these sites as your favorites. (You only need to annotate your three favorite, but you need to cite all 7-10 websites.)

For at least one of your favorite sites, sign up to become a member (chose one that has free membership, as many of them do). Include a few sentences on how you plan to use the free membership to develop as a professional in the near future.

Use this as a starting point to continue to develop as a teacher and to become an active member in your profession.

RUBRIC –

Citations

Did not visit at least 7 professional development organizations. Incorrect citation format.

Visited 7-9 professional development websites. Minor format problem with citations.

Visited 10 or more quality professional development websites. Included proper citations.

Annotations

Very brief, unthoughtful statements about the website.

Only thoroughly covered description of website or reason why this website was chosen as favorite.

Thoroughly described website and thoroughly explained reason why this website was chosen as a favorite.

Membership

Did not sign up for free membership.

Signed up for free membership.

Signed up for free membership and indicated a couple ways that he/she plans to use membership in the near future.

OTHER RESOURCES –

HYPERLINK "http://www.marcopolo-education.org/index.aspx"

MarcoPolo

This website provides professional development for K-12 teachers throughout the United States. On this site, there are teacher resources that include lesson plans, student activities, and reviewed websites. The professional development section of this website offers training and exploration of valuable online resources. This site can be used to educate instructors with current research, suggested teaching methods, and technological assistance. This appears to be a good resource that teachers can access to gain knowledge about professional development.

http://www.marcopolo-education.org/index.aspx

HYPERLINK "http://www.teachervision.com/"

Teacher Vision

This is a rather comprehensive site that offers a variety of resources for instructors. Such resources include worksheets, quizzes, lesson plans, and classroom management advice and information. The site also offers links to educational games, online activities, and films, in addition to an extensive professional development domain. The professional development section offers workshops and courses to keep teachers certified, as well as other professional resources to help keep instructors engaged in the latest ideas on teaching. Included are legal information, newsletters, statistics, and research, all to help keep teachers informed and interested in current topics in the teaching profession.

http://www.teachervision.com/

HYPERLINK "http://nfie.org/publications/takecharge.htm"

NFIE - Teachers Take Charge of Their Learning

This website offers reports and findings regarding teacher professional development. In addition to offering this information, the site has links for teachers to learn about how to most effectively professionally develop. This site can be utilized by teachers who want to help promote continued teacher education. In an easy to navigate layout, the site's links can be used by educators to research key issues regarding professional development.

http://nfie.org/publications/takecharge.htm

HYPERLINK "http://www.portercenter.org/services.htm"

Porter Center -

This is a new website that offers integrated research-based, hands-on professional development services. These services feature data retreats, leadership institutes, coaching, flexible online resources, and content-based services. This site can be used by teachers in a four year process. Each program is customized to best suit the needs of each educator. There is a great amount of resources available from this site that allow teachers to interact and gain and share knowledge and ideas.

http://www.portercenter.org/services.htm

http://www.tappedin.org/

http://www.marcopolo-education.org/index.aspx

http://www.teachervision.com/

http://nfie.org/publications/takecharge.htm

http://www.portercenter.org/services.htm

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Tom Keller

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http://nfie.org/publications/takecharge.htm

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