The first session I attended conference was about the Houston Community College system’s construction of a Teaching with Technology Certificate program (http://www.hccs.edu/system/InsDev/IT/ICRC/technology/certification.htm). Cool Stuff! They have a two tiered program (with a portfolio requirement in the second tier) that has faculty learning both technologies and pedagogy for teaching with technology. Now, I’ll admit, I think they had a little more “how does this technology work” classes instead of a more focus on pedagogy. However, I also know that many of my colleagues demand the “how do I do this?” element prior to the serious discussions of “how do I best incorporate this into my teaching to better facilitate learning?” (This is not to say that faculty do not critically think about the hows and whys of incorporating new technologies into their classes…they generally have ideas about how and why it will better facilitate learning).
I like that a lot of the courses (four hour workshops) in the program were taught by other faculty. I like that there was at least a requirement of a “pedagogy” course. I like that they offered it piece meal throughout the semester as well as had “boot camps” in January and May each year.
I would love to see something like this incorporated at Mesa, or in Maricopa. I especially think it could be powerful to have faculty start these ePortfolios for this program and then build some form of incentive to keep them developing their portfolio. And, I think it is the portfolio portion that could really help develop and support the continued need to theorize the use of the technology in terms of pedagogy and facilitating learning. The reflective requirements of the portfolio would help faculty move beyond just the “I did this and it did (not) work” reflection. Instead, some of the prompts could request more critical and theoretical thinking and application. And I firmly believe that practice makes perfect; like speaking a foreign language, if someone is speaking the language regularly, they keep in practice. Come on Maricopa folks…think of it as the easy way to have material for your FEP!
