The Learning to Teach with Technology Studio (LTTS) is an online professional development system to help teachers learn to integrate technology into their content-focused teaching.

Our Philosophy

We at LTTS believe that the key to promoting learning is to engage and support the student in inquiry – finding answers to interesting (and often complex) questions. It is important not just to give students a goal, state an objective, or ask questions. We need to engage them in the importance of the underlying question so that they are motivated to learn and are actively involved in constructing and testing their understanding. LTTS courses focus on helping teachers integrate technology into their standards-driven instruction across many content areas.

Why do we believe in inquiry-based instruction?

There is a wide range of research evidence and overwhelming practical experience (that we have all had) that suggests student goals in learning determine what is really learned. If a student is studying just to pass a test, then the learning and understanding will be geared to figuring out the best way to answer test questions. We need to move beyond preparing students to pass tests. Students should be able to use what they have learned in their everyday life, to stimulate their inquiry into the arts, the sciences, and all other aspects of life. So often, as teachers, we struggle with the fact that students don't see the relationship of what they are doing in school to what they are or will be doing out of school. As a consequence, there is little transfer from the classroom to the real world. But if we create learning environments where students are engaged in inquiry, where they are using new knowledge to answer questions they find interesting and important, they will have more opportunities to apply and consequently remember what they have learned.

We believe that the role of school is to help students develop an interest in learning and exploring in all kinds of areas, to be good citizens, and to be introduced to career opportunities and expectations. To do this, schools cannot just tell the students about these things, but schools must engage students in active exploration. As students learn, they need opportunities to participate in authentic activities related to various content domains, social issues, and careers. Schools should support them in being weathermen, historians, and biologists; engage them in the issues of the country, the community, the school, and the classroom; build their curiosity about issues in literature, art, the sciences, and everyday things. In all cases, schools should support students’ inquiry as they encounter new knowledge.

How can technology help?

Consistent with the centrality of student inquiry (and with the President's panel on Educational Technology (1997)), we see technology as a tool to support student inquiry. Clearly, technology is not an end in and of itself. While technology may aid teachers in presenting information to students, the true power of technology is released when the technology is in the students' hands. How does technology aid inquiry? There are many ways for the students to use emerging technology, but in general we see technology as supporting inquiry by:

• Providing greater access to information.
• Supporting a wide range of communication opportunities.
• Creating context for the student’s work, e.g., in simulations.
• Aiding the student to visualize abstract and complex concepts and relationships.
• Aiding student productivity in writing, calculating, and analyzing.

Our Strategy

The LTTS professional development environment was designed to aid teachers in designing teaching units or lesson plans in which technology is used to support student inquiry. LTTS is not a repository of lesson plans. Again, our focus is professional development. It is also not focused on the mechanics of using technology. We will not teach you how to use a particular Web browser, how to edit videos, or how to format a spreadsheet. Rather, our focus is on how teachers can use technology to support their students’ engagement in inquiry.

In addition to supporting teaching goals, LTTS courses are designed to meet the practical needs of teachers seeking professional development in the following ways:

Relevant to Classroom Needs. The courses we provide are relevant to the classroom needs of teachers. Rather than using artificial scenarios, LTTS provides authentic projects and strategies for addressing specific classroom issues and needs. As part of completing an LTTS course, teachers generate a real project fit for use in their own classrooms. LTTS courses are developed in collaboration with teachers who have distinguished themselves in technology integration. Taking a course allows a teacher to share this professional expertise.

Learner-Centered. We have designed the LTTS learning experience to be consistent with learner-centered teaching principles. We have developed a specialized online inquiry-based learning framework to help K-12 teachers address real classroom questions, problems, and issues related to technology integration.

Manageable Time Commitment. We recognize the workload demands on teachers and how difficult it is to commit large chunks of time to "additional" work – even valuable professional development. To accommodate the busy schedule of teachers, we have designed LTTS courses so they can be completed in 15 hours. We have also designed the courses so that teachers can log on anytime, from anywhere, and move through the courses at their own pace. In providing teachers with this flexibility, we have implemented innovative strategies to provide teachers with feedback on their work through one-to-one interaction with an experienced facilitator (or mentor).

Rich Resources. LTTS courses rely upon a rich set of resources, including images, audio files, Web sites, articles, and video vignettes of other teachers discussing and demonstrating particular methods of teaching.

Credit for Your Work. When taking a course, teachers may enroll for graduate credit at Indiana University (IU). Teachers may also enroll for certification renewal units (CRU's in Indiana) or other professional development credit, depending on their state requirements. LTTS courses are pre-approved for professional development in some states, and the high quality of these courses coupled with strong linkages to technology and content standards qualifies them for meeting the continuing education requirements in many other states as well.

Consistent with Standards. LTTS courses are developed based on the International Society for Technology in Education National Educational Technology Standards (NETS), which have been adopted as benchmarks by many states. All courses include activities which require teachers to tie their lesson planning directly into relevant content standards as well – national, state and local, as appropriate. Therefore, teachers can match their professional development needs with specific, standards-driven requirements.

Available for Individuals or Schools. Individuals may enroll in courses on a per-course basis. A school or district may also purchase course enrollments for their teachers. In a more extended professional development relationship, LTTS works with schools or districts by providing on-site workshops and extended guidance in using and developing LTTS courses. Larger organizations may choose to partner with LTTS as consortium members. Contact LTTS for more information about consortium opportunities.