Date of Award

5-1-1997

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Teacher Education

First Advisor

Dr. Neal Grandgenett

Abstract

Teachers are trying to adapt to many changes in the classroom as they prepare students to become effective learners and contributors in our rapidly advancing technological society. They are also undergoing many learning experiences themselves, as they embrace their own professional development to help prepare them to lead students into the twenty-first century. This study examined some of the changes that teachers encountered while participating in an intensive art and technology integration project. This project, entitled The Community Discovered: The Search for Meaning Through the Integration of Art and Technology in K-12 Education, is a U. S. Department of Education Technology Innovation Challenge Grant. The general mission of this project, and the other Challenge Grants, is to provide a model of innovation in the use of educational technology in today's classroom. The Community Discovered Project seeks to accomplish this through the applied use of new technologies promoting constructivist curricula, interdisciplinary collaboration, and the integration of the arts and technology into core subject areas. This study examined the first year of the project, and sought to identify some of the changes that teachers experienced in their teaching strategies related to: (1) the facilitation of constructivist learning environments; (2) interdisciplinary collaboration for planning and teaching; (3) the incorporation of technology; and (4) the implementation of discipline-based art education. Teacher change is a complex, multifaceted, and ongoing process. Therefore, multiple instruments were used in the process of gathering data. These instruments included surveys, videotape analysis, and classroom based observations. Survey responses indicated that participating teachers had indeed grown in their knowledge and application of constructivist learning, technology, and discipline-based art instruction. Videotapes submitted by teacher participants were also analyzed and scored with a developed rubric. Although some general patterns were noted, specific teacher changes were more difficult to detect in the videotape analysis. Classroom and field observations were also completed and generally supported the survey results. The study results suggested that the professional development directed through The Community Discovered did indeed encourage teachers to initiate personal changes that facilitated constructivist learning, interdisciplinary collaboration, the incorporation of appropriate and effective technology, and the application of Discipline-Based Art Education.

Comments

A Thesis Presented to the Department of Teacher Education and the Faculty of the Graduate College University of Nebraska at Omaha In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in Secondary Education University of Nebraska at Omaha. Copyright 1997 Karli A. Haskew Schlenker.

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