In this professional development course for teachers, you'll learn the secrets of technology integration in the classroom, gaining the skills educators need to use tools such as wikis, podcasts, and blogs effectively. You'll discover simple ways to integrate technology to enhance your subject material and meet your course goals. We'll explore quick-and-easy, standards-based solutions for more interactive lesson plans, exciting WebQuests, and challenging assignments. We'll also unleash the power of Web resources, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

You'll learn how to design your presentation station, identify kid-friendly Internet search tools, teach keyboarding and word processing, and develop standards-based, integrated lesson plans in reading, writing, science, math, social studies, music, and art. We'll delve into ways to reach special needs, GATE, and English language learners. Finally, we'll look at computer ethics and the future of technology in the classroom.

Whether you're new to the integration process or already use emerging technologies in your classroom, this course is a must for all of today's teachers who often have to produce more and more in less and less time. By the end of our time together, you'll have a treasure of ideas for integrating all types of technology into your lesson plans across the curriculum!

A new section of each course starts monthly. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.

All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when lessons are released. You will have access to all lessons until the course ends. However, the interactive discussion area that accompanies each lesson will automatically close two weeks after the lesson is released. As such, we strongly recommend that you complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.

The final exam will be released on the same day as the last lesson. Once the final exam has been released, you will have two weeks to complete all of your course work, including the final exam.

Internet access, e-mail, and the Netscape or Firefox or Internet Explorer Web browser.

This course includes a knowledgeable and caring instructor who will guide you through your lessons, facilitate discussions, and answer your questions. The instructor for this course will be Robin Sellers.

Robin Sellers is a certified teacher with a Master of Arts degree with a concentration in Technical and Professional Communication. She has over 11 years of experience in the traditional classroom and has been an online instructor since 2000, training thousands of students. She has the ability to take difficult or technical concepts and make them easy for her students to understand. Her students claim that she has a gift for communicating online in a clear, concise, and personal way and that she is a "born" teacher who makes her courses interesting and enjoyable.

“ Great class!! Lots of useful information that will translate to real world class activities and instruction. Clear, concise and thorough instruction. I'm very pleased. ”

“ Great Class! Thanks for sharing so much useful information. I now feel more capable of addressing the needs of my school. Thank you! ”

“ I cannot believe how much I have gained confidence in using a variety of technology in the classroom (some I'd never even heard of before!). I am amazed by the wealth of ideas and Internet resources that I now have. Plus, I have access to websites that will keep me informed about developments in the future. I am inspired to do more creative activities and find it easier to brainstorm new ideas. I have already eagerly shared this new information with my colleagues. ”

“ I feel like I have come out of the dark ages since starting your class. I have brought technology into my home and personal life. I went wireless, bought a laptop, and I'm teaching my better half how to surf the net. I'm still trying to figure out some of the basic things out, but I know I can do it. I want to thank you for making me feel more confident in using the computer in the classroom and in my daily life. You presented the parts of the machine to me and then gave me ways to incorporate this tool and what it has to offer into my classroom. I have a wonderful list of favorites my students or I can go to. It has been fun and lets me know I can still do this. ”

“ I had a great time taking this course. It started out mostly as a way to keep my certification up to date and secondly as a means of keeping my teaching fresh. As I progressed through the course, it became mostly a way to freshen my teaching and secondly a way to keep certification up to date. This class offered some very valuable and helpful information and resources for encouraging me to make my classroom even more tech friendly than it already is. Thanks for the inspiration! ”

“ I hope that more students choose to take this course. It has much valuable information and many suggestions. Thank you. ”

“ Robin was an excellent instructor! I really felt like she was right there in front of me just having a conversation. I learned a lot and will definitely go the online route more often! ”

“ Thank you for all the wonderful information you shared with us. This was my first online class and I was nervous to get started. But, you made things clear and easy to follow. I will use many of the ideas in my classroom! Thanks again! ”

“ This class was fantastic!! I especially liked all the links to websites that will help me implement using technology in the classroom. ”

“ WOW!! I have learned so much from this course! I never knew integrating technology into the classroom could be so much fun! I look forward to having my own classroom next year and using as many of these great sites as possible. My 3 kids have enjoyed this as well because they have been my guinea pigs. My son has found fun sites where he can get extra practice on math facts and my daughters have visited wonderful sites to help improve their reading! I was feeling intimidated in the beginning because of my lack of computer knowledge. I now feel excited and ready to get started! I really enjoyed this course. Thank you! ”

“ This course was fun as well as informative and educational. I learned a lot about different aspects of using technology in the classroom. The instructor did a great job putting together the lessons and providing information and examples of how to use technology in the classroom. I would recommend this class to others. ”

“ This is a great course and a well-informed teacher. I would recommend this course to anyone who has frequent need of a computer either at work or home. The writing was both informative and easy to read and the instructions were clear. I will enjoy using this information in a number of areas. Thank you. ”

“ The class was great. It was easy to tell that the instructor knew a lot about the material she was teaching. She also had great technology resources to look at. ”

“ Would highly recommend this class. Great resources and ideas to make technology improve the learning curve for students. ”