After a recent redesign of the pre-service curriculum at Arizona State University West, educational technology has emerged as a strong focus of the undergraduate program for preparing future teachers. Mia Kim Williams, an educational technology instructor in the College of Education, says ASUW is preparing tomorrow's teachers to succeed in "classrooms of the future, where technology will be a valuable tool for helping students command the content."

Starting with their first semester in the ASUW teacher preparation program, students begin using the Intel® Teach to the Future Pre-Service Program materials, including a book covering 10 modules and CD of related resources. The materials "are a really good asset," says Williams. Students continue using the materials as a resource throughout their sequence of undergraduate courses, as they continue to prepare for careers in the classroom.

ASUW students begin their pre-service sequence with a stand-alone technology class, along with co-requisites in lesson planning/management, and assessment. Williams teaches several sections of Technology Integration in the K-12 Classroom. "The course gives students a foundation of skills they can continue to use. Technology is not something they use for one class and then forget about," she says. Starting that first semester, they begin applying the concepts they learn in the technology class to assignments and projects for the other required courses on lesson planning and assessment.

First developed as an in-service program to promote effective use of technology in the classroom, Intel Teach to the Future was expanded to include a pre-service program in 2001. More than 300 U.S. universities now participate in the pre-service program, designed to help higher education faculty prepare new teachers to integrate technology into teaching.

ASUW faculty first got acquainted with the Intel Teach to the Future Pre-Service Program at a curriculum review session, where they had hands-on experiences using the materials and activities outlined in the series of 10 modules. Faculty members could immediately see how the modules would fit their students' learning needs, and also mesh with the redesigned curriculum, Williams says.

Adaptable Curriculum

Williams and other ASUW faculty adapt the curriculum to meet specific course needs. "We don't follow the book from page one to the end," explains Williams. "We might take one module and work it into a place in one course, and then use another somewhere else. The book is set up so wonderfully, we can easily adapt it to fit our program." For example, Williams weaves some of the Intel Teach to the Future modules into her technology integration course.

ASUW students take the educational technology class before they master the instructional skills of planning a lesson or longer unit. Intel Teach to the Future focuses on effective planning of project-based learning units that integrate technology. "We didn't want to present something to our students that was beyond what they were doing. We talk about the difference between a unit and a lesson plan-they don't have that knowledge yet. They keep the book as a resource and refer back later, when they get to unit planning," Williams explains.

Researchers have found that pre-service faculty across the country implement the curriculum in a variety of ways, including:

• Using a small number of curriculum modules to structure specific activities or class sessions
• Using all or almost all of the modules as the primary curriculum for an instructional technology course
• Offering freestanding workshops to pre-service students outside of regular class time to introduce them to specific applications or practices described in the curriculum

Modeling Student Work

One of the best aspects of the curriculum, Williams says, is that it encourages pre-service students to step into the learner's role and use technology to create work samples. "I really like that approach. I value having them think about what I call my teacher thought and my student thought," she adds. "First, they think about things from a teacher's perspective. Then, they act that out as if they were the student."

In one module, for example, pre-service students might be asked to produce a sample newsletter using publishing software. "They'll start with a teaching plan for how many class periods they expect this to take. Then they produce a newsletter themselves. In their reflection, they might report that it took them 16 hours to do something they thought would take two class periods. They get a real idea of how long the project they designed is going to take. They might adjust their plan, because they find out that what they had planned is very different from what happens once they start to do it."

Williams also appreciates that the curriculum models such practices as mapping a unit plan to standards and planning an assessment. "That idea of alignment is really valuable," she says.

The student samples, for example, also serve as an anchor in the assessment plan that is developed prior to planning daily lessons and activities. By creating a model student sample, the pre-service teacher answers the important question: "What will I accept as evidence that my students have met the standards and my objectives?"

ASUW students keep an electronic portfolio of their work as they progress through the teacher preparation program. The portfolio offers a place to store their work, make reflections, and also make modifications as they master new concepts and learn new skills. The projects that they develop using the Intel Teach to the Future curriculum become part of this portfolio.

Field experiences are a key part of the program at ASUW, as well. Pre-service students return to their portfolios for classroom ideas as they begin to teach mini-lessons and, eventually, embark on student teaching assignments. "It's great to see that they're continuing to find ways to utilize the technology," Williams says.

Classrooms of the Future

A former high school science teacher with a master's degree in educational technology, Williams is looking forward to the day when technology is readily available for teachers and students to use. "My vision for classrooms of the future would be where technology is there and available-a resource just like books on the shelves or a closet full of art supplies. It's not a big deal or hassle to bring it in. It's just another tool that students can use."

Preparing new teachers to thrive in that type of environment will take time, Williams adds. "They need to feel comfortable enough with the technology and have the decision-making ability to say, this tool is going to be right for this activity. That's a long process, to build the knowledge of how to use the tools and also an understanding of what's appropriate on the instructional side. It's a do-able vision, but it hinges on being able to see technology as a valuable tool for addressing content."

After five years of classroom teaching and four years in academics, Williams is already seeing a new generation of technology users entering the teaching profession. ASUW, serving more than 7,000 students on a fast-growing campus in the Phoenix metro area, is now enrolling pre-service students "who seem to have an overall easier comfort with technology," she observes. "It's more friendly for them. That's great, because we can be more elaborate in what we're doing in class. Our focus hasn't changed-it has always been on technology integration. Having them come in with stronger skills has allowed us to really expand the quality and depth of projects that they do."

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