ECMP 490-040
General Course Description
Computers in Education--Advanced Level

Time: 4:00-8:00 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays
Lab Time (with expert technical assistance): 4:00-5:00 each class day
Class Time: 5:00-6:00 and 6:30-7:30 (possibly longer)
Further Lab Time: 7:30 -8:00 (and beyond, if necessary)
Class Meets on: May 5, 10, 12, 17, 19, 26, 31; June 2, 9, 14, 16
No Class on: May 24 (Victoria Day), June 7 (Vi at CMESG)
Place: Education Computer Lab (Room ED 223) and Room ED 215
Instructor: Dr. Mhairi (Vi) Maeers
Office: ED 340
Telephone: 585-4601
E-Mail: maeers@uregina.ca

Web Addresses:
http://education.uregina.ca/mathed
http://www.uregina.ca
http://rbe.sk.ca/
http://www.schoolnet.ca/
http://www.sasked.gov.sk.ca

1.0 Course Description and Objectives:

1.1 Course Description

This course is designed for senior undergraduate students who are familiar with the basics of computer-related technology skills and its pedagogical importance in education. Most students taking this course would have already taken ECMP 355, or would be able to demonstrate their knowledge of the content of ECMP 355. Students who wish to register for this class and who have NOT satisfactorily completed ECMP 355 need to meet with the course instructor prior to registering for ECMP 490.

ECMP 490 will offer will offer undergraduate students who are specializing in teaching at the K-8 levels a more in-depth exploration of the use of and integration of computer-related multi-media technologies in the classroom. The course examines trends, issues, and futurist scenarios on instructional uses of computers and is designed to facilitate the use of computers in a school-based learning/instruction perspective rather than on a hardware/programming perspective.

This course will be posted in WEB CT format, accessed through the University of Regina home page. Students taking ECMP 490 will be expected to participate in the chat room feature of WEB CT and to check the web for course updates, news, assignments, etc. All students in ECMP 490 will be on an e-mail distribution list and will receive personal/class messages through this medium. Each student will have access to this distribution list and also to each student's personal e-mail address. Most "message-type" information will be given either through personal and/or class e-mail messages and/or through WEB CT. Students, therefore, must already be comfortable working in these electronic mediums or very quickly be able to become comfortable using them.

All students would be expected to know how to create a webpage and be able to demonstrate some of what they know about the use of computer-related technology through the design and content of their webpage. Students who have already created a webpage would extend and refine this webpage in this class--or make a new one. Students would also be expected to incorporate advanced multi-media techniques into their already existing webpages and multi-media creations, to 'publish' these creations on the web, and to integrate computer-related technologies into the classroom environment. Emphasis in this class will be on individualized learning in each of the topic areas covered.

1.2 Course Objectives:

As a result of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Extend knowledge, skills, and confidence in using technology appropriate to K-12 classrooms.
  2. Extend awareness of computer-based learning resources and strategies for their effectiveness.
  3. Extend understanding of basic terms and concepts relating to technology in the classroom.
  4. Extend understanding of e-mail, the Internet, multimedia resources and ways of using these resources in the classroom.
  5. Explore, in depth, computer applications in areas of specific relevance to individual teaching area and level.
  6. Integrate technology effectively into teaching/learning situations (i.e., be able to select appropriate content and appropriate technology).
  7. Compile lesson/unit plans involving technology components--appropriately related to content, and/or create an entire unit using the computer and combining word processing tools, graphics, web page design tools, and so on.
  8. Have fun and feel comfortable using technology in teaching/learning situations.
  9. Explore and critique issues such as: the adaptive dimension, diversity, remediation, enrichment, gender equity, and other equity issues as they relate to (a) computer access, (b) budget, (c) curriculum demands, (d) stakeholder groups.

2.0 Resource Materials:

Students who have taken ECMP 355 will find the text used for that class useful in this one (see text listed below). Students who do not have the ECMP 355 text are encouraged to purchase it. Some copies will be available for purchase in the bookstore. Two copies will be placed on reserve in the Education/Fine Arts Library. A CD-ROM entitled "Integrating Technology Across the Curriculum" has been developed to accompany the following text. It is a very useful bank of technology-related activities for classroom use. It costs $21.95 and can be ordered through Prentice Hall. We will discuss in class the possibility of ordering this CD-ROM.

Roblyer, M. D., Edwards, J., and Havriluk, M. A. (1997). Integrating Educational Technology into Teaching. Toronto, ON: Prentice-Hall of Canada, Inc.

Other readings will be addressed. Mandatory (text-based) ones will be distributed in class. Electronic journals and full text ERIC journals can be read on-line. References to all required reading material will be posted on the web. On occasion students will be asked to locate their own special reading material, a summary of which will be brought to class. It would be advisable to have a binder divided into the different course modules -- that way you can insert readings, notes etc. as you receive them.

Students will also be expected to subscribe to a 'virtual community' of their choice and actively participate in this 'community.' This discussion will act as the foundation for an assignment.

3.0 Proposed Assignments and Assessment

3.1 Completion of (mostly) in-class assignments (e.g., group reports on readings, journal summaries, 'virtual community' report, class quizzes, etc.) 20%

3.2 Class participation, evidence of having studied readings, service component, attendance 20%

3.3 Individualized multi-media curriculum-based project 40%

3.4 Electronic portfolio of all work completed this semester 20%