Member Spotlight!
From ISTE's press release:
The ISTE Teacher Education Network is excited to announce that Dr. Stephanie Budhai has been selected as the winner of the 2017 Award for Excellence in Teacher Education.
Stephanie Budhai is an Associate Professor of Teacher Education at Neumann University and has over 200 advisees consisting of preservice and in-service teachers. Since arriving at Neumann, all of Stephanie’s work has been focused on providing students with technology-rich experiences with the aim of preparing them to leverage technology in the field of education to instruct, engage, and assess student learning. She created one of the first programs approved in the state of Pennsylvania to prepare K-12 teachers for teaching and learning in online and blended environments. She has advocated for the use of assistive technology, and received grants to provide pre-service teachers with hands-on training of different alternative augmentative communication devices that can support students with disabilities.
Stephanie has contributed to the field of educational technology and teacher education through scholarly activities including presenting at conferences and writing peer-reviewed articles and books surrounding topics related to technology integration in k-12 settings, online learning, and assistive technology. In the past year, she co-authored two books:Teaching the 4Cs with Technology and Best Practices in Engaging Online Learners through Active and Experiential Learning Activities.
Stephanie spends time in the field of teaching with technology by participating in a variety of community and service activities and serves as a mentor to new and current teachers who are getting started with technology integration. She is the treasurer of the southeast region of the Pennsylvania Association Education Communication Technology (PAECT) and participates in a professional learning community with over 400 technology integrators and teachers, to continuously improve her own pedagogical practice. Due to her desire to explore and stay abreast of the ever changing world of educational technology, within the last few years she completed the training to became a certified online course reviewer for Quality Matters, and more recently, a certified Voicethread Educator.
Congratulations Dr. Budhai!
PAECT's 2017 Leader of the Year, Rachelle Dene Poth, has been named on the 2017 NSBA “20 to Watch” Education Leaders list on April 3, during the CoSN conference.
From the press release: Rachelle Dene Poth, Foreign Language and STEAM Teacher, Riverview Junior Senior High School, Riverview School District, Oakmont: Rachelle Dene Poth, an attorney turned STEAM educator, personalizes learning for her students by utilizing some of the latest tech tools like Celly, Blendspace, and Nearpod. Last year, she taught Hummingbird Robots to students focused on Spanish and French culture and is currently teaching a STEAM: What's nExT? course that she designed to explore emerging technologies. - See more at: http://www.nsba.org/newsroom/press-releases/national-school-boards-association-names-%E2%80%9C20-watch%E2%80%9D-education-technology-0#sthash.mSlABktf.dpuf
Congratulations, Rachelle!
CoSN works with many companies and individuals in the private sector who are making important contributions to education technology. Each year they recognize one person who has had an outstanding impact on the ed tech community outside of the confines of his or her job. This year the recipient was Sean McDonough!
Sean has selflessly served PAECT in various capacities, including President, and remains an active participant through our Councils of Past Presidents.
We extend our congratulations to Sean!
Your $10 Amazon gift card will be emailed to you after you begin participating in the book study.
To join: http://tinyurl.com/PAECTLaunch
Last spring, dozens of PAECT members submitted grant applications with innovative ideas to use technology in instruction. A leadership team conducted a blind review of the applications and chose to fund the two projects below. One of these projects will be featured at PETE&C, and both of these projects will be featured in a live virtual presentation for PAECT members this spring. See below for the project descriptions and presentation details. This grant was made possible by the generosity of Corbett Inc. and KI Furniture. Company information can be found at the end of this article.
Dash and Dot Take 5 - Sara Heintzelman
Presentation: Tuesday 2/14, Empire B, 2:15-3:15
Project summary:
Students within special education require intensive social skills to help fill the gap in the social skills they lack. Unfortunately, as students grow older, they outgrow many of the social skills curriculums that provide engaging materials. In order to engage students in meaningful learning while simultaneously teaching social skills, teachers need to consider the interests of students and how they can match curriculum to these interests. The students in my classroom of students in grades three through five with severe emotional and behavioral disorders, speak constantly about video games and their desire to become future video game designers. Given the interest of my students and the lack of engaging social skills curriculum aligned to this interest, I would like to propose designing a social skills curriculum around Wonder Workshop’s Dash and Dot.
This project, “Dash and Dot Take 5”will teach students how to follow our school and class-wide expectations, Be There Be Ready (be prepared for class with the appropriate materials, stay in area), Be Responsible (complete work quietly), Be Respectful (be polite and raise hand to speak), Keep Hands and Feet Safe (remain safe and use materials appropriately), and Follow Directions (the first time) through learning how to code. This five week unit will walk students through each of the expectation areas, spending one week (three 40 minute periods) on each expectation area. As students explore each expectation area with Dash and Dot, they will document their work with iPad camera, video clips, and student video reflections.
We Can Do STEM - Carmela Curatola-Knowles
Project Summary:
Essential to providing a strong academic education for our students is a commitment to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math). STEM skills are critical for the students’ learning needs in the 21st Century. Development of these skills will ensure that they have the opportunity to be prepared for entry into the workforce with relevant, transferable skills for whatever tomorrow’s jobs will require.
An area of STEM being planned is for students to learn coding, robotics planning, building, programming/troubleshooting, and a hands-on approach to understanding simple & complex machines, renewable energy & pneumatics systems. Our plan is for first through eighth grades. We request $500 to purchase WeDo 2.0 Robotics Sets to form part of the basis of the elementary STEM program. These sets will accommodate 1st through 3rd grade students. It will establish a foundation for critical thinking skills. The kits will also provide a constructivist approach to building student knowledge about important concepts that are within a strong STEM understanding. This establishes the core for deeper thought projects with complex machines, renewable energy, and pneumatics systems, planned for 4th through 8th grades.
*KI Furniture creates high-performance education and learning environments for both K-12 and Higher Education spaces. Many of the products in our educational furniture portfolio offer options that support reconfiguration, engaged learning, and technology in the classroom. KI designs and manufactures educational furniture that is appealing, comfortable and supports each school in its mission to demand excellence. Voted #1 in educational solutions 12 years in a row, KI Furniture’s mission is to anticipate technological advances and incorporate them into the design of our educational furniture. KI understands that schools need to know the educational furniture they invest in today will support the technological advancements of tomorrow. Supporting PAECT’s mission to support and speak of educational technology in the classroom is a natural fit, and promotes what both groups are passionate about: student success. For more information, visit http://www.ki.com/ or call us at Corbett Inc. 610-277-7100.
PAECT 2017 Awards Submission
PAECT seeks to recognize and celebrate the talents and contributions of individuals who continually exceed expectations in their service. The Board of PAECT invites you to help us connect, develop, lead and advocate for educational technology in Pennsylvania by nominating these deserving individuals.
This is your opportunity to identify individuals who go above and beyond. Think about individuals who contribute more than expected. Identify those who serve as models of excellence and inspire us all.
Please look through the awards listed below (and in this linked file that contains more details). Please submit information about individuals you feel deserve to be honored via the linked Google Doc no later than January 15, 2017.
Feel free to contact me at pastpres@paect.org if you have questions about the awards or the process.
Thank you! Happy Holidays!
Sincerely,
Ann M. Noonen, Ph.D.
PAECT Past President
pastpres@paect.org
__________________________________________
PAECT Awards Information
Click the name of the award to be taken to the submission page.
Ero W. Davidson Award
An award presented for outstanding accomplishments by a member of the Association in the field of communications in Pennsylvania.
Mary C. Renner Achievement Award
Presented to honor an outstanding contribution by a member to the Association.
PAECT Special Award
An award presented to a present, past, or non-member who has made a recent particular contribution to the field of communications.
Friend of PAECT Award
An award presented to a non-member for distinctive service to the Association.
Pioneer Award
An award presented for long and successful service in the field of communications by a present or past member of PAECT or its parent organization.
Paul W. Welliver Outstanding Student Award
An award presented to honor an outstanding graduate student who is a member of the Association.
Outstanding Teacher of the Year
Outstanding Leader of the Year
Outstanding Technical Support Person Award
Each year PAECT wishes to honor the performance of exemplary support personnel who make significant contributions to the successful use of technology in a district or IU or on a campus by providing exceptional technical support.
PAECT Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Award/
PAECT seeks to present the PAECT Chief Technology Officer Award to an individual who is a pioneer and champion of the uses of technology in K12 education through Leadership, Community Building, Innovative Use of Technology, Creation of Partnerships and Impact on Learning.
If the awardee is also be a member of the PAECT CTL-SIG, which is the PA state chapter of CoSN, the awardee may also be submitted as the PAECT candidate for the CoSN Withrow Award. The CoSN Withrow Award goes to a deserving individual who has followed the model set forth by Frank Withrow. Frank has been a classroom teacher, early childhood educator, and Director of Research and Clinical Services for the Department of Children and Family Services for the state of Illinois. Frank was a long-standing member of the CoSN Board of Directors.
Making IT Happen
This award is offered according guidelines provided through ISTE. In addition, only nominees submitted by current or past PAECT Board members are considered.
PA Public Policy Advocate of the Year
Each year, PAECT attempts to identify a PAECT member who has provided leadership and mentored others in advocating for education technology policy at the local, state, regional, national and/or international level.
PAIMS and PAECT are offering a CoSN CETL Immersion course. We are excited to be able to provide this unique learning opportunity for practicing and aspiring technology leaders interested in earning the Certified Educational Technology Leader (CETL) credential. The CETL is a national certification provided by CoSN based on the Framework of Essential Skills of the K-12 CTO. This Immersion course is two days of extensive review of the Essential Skills Framework with access to a self-paced collaborative learning site. Breakfast and lunch are provided each day. A special room rate at the Days Inn in State College, PA has also been arranged for participants.
Please note, that the Immersion course and the associated costs do not include the cost of the CETL Exam. The exam is an additional cost. We are working to arrange a certification exam date in the near future.
You can find out more about the CETL and its requirements at http://www.cosn.org/certification and http://www.cosn.org/Framework.
Don't delay, register today.
Course dates are November 30, 2016 and January 25, 2017.
CoSN CETL Course announcement.pdf
At this time of year, our members often come across needy families. The digital divide is a serious matter, especially as schools integrate more technology each year.
EveryoneOn.org is a service that helps families in need find low-cost Internet solutions. From Comcast discounts (as low as $10/month) to 3G/4G Hotspots, EveryoneOn's website allows you to enter your zip code, whether you're eligible for free/reduced lunch, and more, and then find out (without committing first) what kind of discount you can get.
Please click on our affiliate link for more info: http://www.everyoneon.org/paect
We hope everyone is excited about ISTE, held June 25-29, 2016. We wanted to share a list of Pennsylvania educators that will be presenting at ISTE this year. There are 102 people - an amazing number considering that the conference is in Denver, Colorado.
Pennsylvania Educators Presenting at #ISTE2016:
We are embarking on a new adventure at the ISTE 2016 conference in Denver, Colorado: the ISTE Campfires. The ISTE Campfires are going to replace the Birds of a Feather sessions, connecting educators around their interests and passions at the conference. These sessions are built on the idea of educators wanting to connect and collaborate on current topics of interest in a dynamic environment. We will launch these sessions on Monday and Tuesday evening of the conference (5:30-7:30pm and 5:15-7:15pm, respectively) and are looking for volunteers to help us shape the Campfires and help us as facilitators for the learning in the Campfire rooms.
The task is to work with ISTE's Conference Program Chair Camilla Gagliolo, and PAECT's Chris Champion to create the environment for dialogue and idea sharing at the Campfire sessions. Facilitators will start the conversation in each of four strands:
Volunteers will be tasked with starting a Padlet, encouraging participants interested in leading sub-topic to put a "sticky" up on the Padlet. Then the facilitators will create about six sub-groups based on the topic. If there are too many disparate topics, they'll use PollEverywhere to get a popular vote.
We hope that you would be interested in working with us on this new initiative.
If you are interested, please sign up with this form:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1YCfzdrfD56CXeWlA6Pq1xRXTrCtVCOhfVdUGgMcB57U/viewform
A brief webinar will be held on Wednesday June 15 at 8:00 PM EDT to discuss this further, and to answer any questions. Registered volunteers (link above) will be sent a link.
P.S. Please pass this along if you think another educator would be interested.
PAECT is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
