Online Professional Development: One State’s Algebra 1 Initiative Ernise S. Singleton, PhD Educational Technology Consultant

April 17, 2008http:// 2 Purpose of LA Online PD To support teachers and educational leaders statewide by providing content-rich professional development opportunities To provide said training via the web To explore the potential of online learning communities as they relate to professional development To promote student learning through collaborative learning experiences, adapt to individual differences, and provide flexible and convenient learning experiences

April 17, 2008http:// 3 Why Online PD? To reach a broader base of teachers To reach more teachers across the state To meet the needs of an ever-changing classroom

April 17, 2008http:// 4 Already in place Grade Level Expectations Model – GLEEM Effective Instructional Technology – EIT Effecting Technology Integration – EIT Universal Design for Learning – UDL Proficiency Express – ProEx Intel® Teach Program - LaTEL

April 17, 2008http:// 5 Why Algebra PD? To support teachers in their instruction of Algebra I To meet the needs of teachers in preparing for the mandated end-of-course exams

April 17, 2008http:// 6 What does it do? It is a vehicle for mathematics teachers to comprehensively evaluate and improve their mathematics content knowledge, skill’s sets, and instructional practices which can only positively impact student learning.

April 17, 2008http:// 7 Implementation timeline October 2007 – contract with EDC November 2007 – recruit facilitators January – February 2008 – train facilitators March 2008 – advertise modules April 2008 – implementation of 5 modules July 2008 – implement all 11 modules

April 17, 2008http:// 8 Algebra OPD Courses Concept of a Variable Rates of Change – Part 1 Discrete Multiple Representations (with input/output relationships) Role of Functions (with input/output relationships) Slope 1 – Slope as Steepness Rates of Change 2 – Continuous Slope 2 – Applications of Slope Solving Systems of Equations Measurement Permutations & Combinations Measures of Central Tendency

April 17, 2008http:// 9 Facilitator Training Each of the 11 modules will be facilitated by a teacher 43 teachers from around the sate applied to serve as facilitators After a review of the applications the number was narrowed down to 29

April 17, 2008http:// 10 The Facilitators Each facilitator went through a 6 week online facilitation course offered by EDC during January and February of this year Upon completion of online facilitator training, there were 22 facilitators

April 17, 2008http:// 11 Module implementation Announcements about the upcoming availability of the modules was undertaken in mid-March – – Letters – Listsevs – Word-of-mouth

April 17, 2008http:// 12 Pre-assessment & Registration Prior to enrolling in a module, teachers are encouraged to take a pre-assessment. The pre-assessment recommends certain modules to the teacher based on their answers to the questions.

April 17, 2008http:// 13 The numbers ~224 have taken the pre-assessment ~75 inquires about the modules* 61 are enrolled in the first 5 modules Participants range from elementary to high school teachers *Algebra I Add-on Endorsement

April 17, 2008http:// 14 Module Schedule Session 1: April 7 – May 5, 2008; 5 modules Session 2: May 12 – June 13, 2008; 5 modules Session 3: July 7 – August 8, 2008; 11 modules Session 4: August 11 – September 12, 2008; 11 modules

April 17, 2008http:// The modules will be offered on a rotating basis throughout the school year Well-received by participants

April 17, 2008http:// 16 Comments I am unsure about this course, but will look forward to learning in an online setting. I’m big on technology and love to incorporate it when I can. I love to integrate technology in my lessons and hope to learn more about relating math to real-life situations. I love online classes…I love the freedom of “attending” class when and where it’s convenient for you. I LOVE math and enjoy collaborating with others who are passionate about teaching, and more specifically teaching math.

April 17, 2008http:// 17 Future plans Full implementation in Researching and planning for a Numeracy OPD (grades 1 – 8) Initial research for English II OPD for

April 17, 2008http:// 18 Contact information Ernise S. Singleton Educational Technology Consultant Louisiana Department of Education 2758-D Brightside Dr. Baton Rouge, LA