


Students Compete in Tech Triathlon via EdTech Collaborative

Thu Nov 6 2008

Students in the Wheeling Jesuit University teacher preparation program recently used the NASA-funded EdTech Collaborative website as a starting point for a technology triathlon assignment.

The 35 students, under the direction of Jane Neuenschwander and Dr. Laurie Ruberg of the Center for Educational Technologies, were asked to explore, test, analyze, and evaluate three popular educational technology tools and reflect on how each tool could improve their teaching and learning strategies. The students registered on the EdTech Collaborative site, did their research there, and posted comments to peer contributions thanks to the site's wiki-like approach, which allows user comments and postings.

The students were assessed based on their completing the following tasks in these three tech trials:

1) Investigate the controls and capabilities of SmartBoard® technology in class and later by researching its classroom use online. In the Ed Tech Collaborative students were required to answer these questions and comment on at least two peer postings: How would you use SmartBoard to enhance the lesson you submitted for Assignment 6? How would use of this technology change your teaching strategies?

2) Use Google Earth to find a famous American site that you have or want to visit. Post an image captured from that Google Earth location to the EdTech Collaborative discussion. In the Google discussion describe why you picked this image and location and why it is significant to you.

3) Rate three free electronic portfolio websites and compare and contrast these online educator portfolios using the rubric provided. Explain which of these sites would be the best of the three to construct your professional e-portfolio:

  1. Website 1:
  2. Website 2:
  3. Website 3:
The EdTech Collaborative website was an outgrowth of the biennial benchmarking on educational technology report completed for NASA by the NASA-sponsored Classroom of the Future housed at the center.