UA, ASU collaborate to help teachers learn new technology

June 14, 2010

By hammersmith

Through the generosity of the Helios Education Foundation, a group of Arizona seventh-, eighth- and ninth-grade teachers will learn innovative ways to use technology to better teach and inspire students.

 

Educators in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM teachers) are being invited to participate in “Teach-Tec,” a certificate program that will show how technologies such as flip video cameras, Poll Everywhere, SurveyMonkey, Wordle and YouTube, can serve as high-impact tools to enhance the learning experience.

 

“The Teach Tec program addresses the ‘T’ in STEM education professional development. This course will provide opportunities for teachers to learn how to integrate everyday technology tools into their classroom practice, which will enhance the teaching and learning of math and science,” says Jo Anne Vasquez, PhD, vice president and program director, Transition Years Teacher and Curriculum Initiatives, for Helios Education Foundation.  “Helios is excited to join this university effort, as it will not only reach teachers face-to-face in Tucson and Phoenix, but through the power of technology, teams of teachers from across Arizona will be able to have access to this high quality workshop.”

 

The free program will be held in July in Phoenix and Tucson through a unique partnership among the University of Arizona’s Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, the Arizona Telemedicine Program at the UA’s College of Medicine and Arizona State University’s Bob Ramsey Executive Education Program.

 

“This is a great opportunity for teachers to use technology as a high-impact educational tool,” says Gail Barker, PhD, special assistant to the dean at the UA College of Medicine – Phoenix and a faculty member of the UA Zuckerman College of Public Health. “This technology is quite prevalent and should be used for 21st-century teaching.”

 

Faculty from both universities will train as many as 60 teachers and potentially hundreds more through interactive video streaming.

 

“Through this outstanding partnership, science, technology, engineering and math teachers will better understand how to incorporate no-cost, cutting-edge technology into the classroom,” says Catherine Eden, PhD, director of the Executive Education Program, which is awarding the certificate. “The program is also designed to foster collaboration between peer schools.”

 

The program recently was awarded a bronze designation by the U.S. Distance Learning Association in the area of best practices for excellence in distance-learning teaching.

 

Teachers will take the 12-hour program on July 16 in Phoenix and on July 23 in Tucson.

 

For more information, please visit http://teachtec.arizona.edu, or call (602) 496-1305 or (602) 827-2116. 

 

The Arizona Telemedicine Program is a large, multidisciplinary, UA-based program that provides telemedicine services, distance learning, informatics training and telemedicine technology assessment capabilities to communities throughout Arizona.

 

The Arizona Telemedicine Program site in Phoenix, called the T-Health Institute, is housed in the historic Phoenix Union High School building on the campus of the College of Medicine – Phoenix. For more information, visit www.telemedicine.arizona.edu, or call (602) 827-2116.

 

The UA Zuckerman College of Public Health is the only nationally accredited college of public health in the 12-state Mountain/Pacific region and provides both undergraduate and graduate education in population-based health disciplines to prepare students for professional and academic public health careers. For more information, visit http://www.publichealth.arizona.edu.

 

ASU’s Ramsey program has produced nearly 12,000 graduates from its executive education courses since it began 30 years ago. The program, which provides innovative professional development programs that build the capacity of people and organizations that serve the public, is part of the School of Public Affairs within the ASU College of Public Programs at the Downtown Phoenix campus. For more information, visit http://ramseyexecutive.asu.edu, or call (602) 496-1305.

 

The Helios Education Foundation is dedicated to enriching the lives of individuals in Arizona and Florida by creating opportunities for success in postsecondary education. The foundation’s community investments are made across three impact areas: early childhood education, the transition years (grades 5-12) and postsecondary education. Since inception in 2004, Helios Education Foundation has invested more than $76 million into education-related programs and initiatives in both states. For more information, visit the foundation online at www.helios.org.

 

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Media contacts:

 

Al Bravo, Associate Director, Office of  Public Affairs, University of Arizona College of Medicine – Phoenix

(602) 827-2022

 

ASU College of Public Programs

(602) 496-0406