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This study used the Technology Use and Perceptions Survey to explore whether there are differences reported by teachers (N = 1,287) from elementary, middle, and high schools from a single school district. A two-step data analysis process using multivariate analysis of variance and item-by-item analysis of variance was employed. We used our analyses to generate profiles for elementary, middle, and high school teachers and draw comparisons across these profiles in our discussion. In particular, high school teachers reported the lowest perception of technology's value and the most infrequent use of technology integration strategies even though they reported their students used technology more frequently. Elementary teachers reported the most frequent use of technology integration strategies and the lowest satisfaction with the access and support they receive. This study supports the need for more research to adequately explore the role of school levels as these differences could provide important insights.

P. K. Yonge Development Research School (PKY) is a single-school, K-12, public school district and "Virtually PKY" is the name of our efforts during emergency remote teaching necessitated by COVID-19. Our ability to plan and execute "Virtually PKY" was predicated on years of district-wide leadership and professional learning focused on blended learning and related concepts such as interactions and on efforts to transition to a 1:1 environment. This article shares how we transitioned to "Virtually PKY" and provides examples of how teachers are prioritizing connections and interactions during emergency remote teaching. In particular, we share examples of student-to-student, student-to-teacher, student-to-content and district-family interactions in elementary, middle and high school grades. We conclude with three implications of our work for inservice and preservice teacher educators working to improve virtual efforts now and in the future related to: (1) blended learning, (2) interactions, and (3) teacher inquiry.

This research examines student information and communication technology (ICT) literacy and its relationships to a student's socio-economic status (SES), gender, and ethnicity of middle school students. We recruited 5,990 students from 13 school districts across the state of Florida. Student participants completed the Student Tool for Technology Literacy (ST[superscript 2]L), a performance-based assessment of ICT literacy skills based on the 2008 National Educational Technology Standards for Students (NETS.S). Results show a digital divide between low and high SES, white and non-white, and female and male students on all measures of the ST[superscript 2]L. Specifically, high-SES, white, and female students outperformed their counterparts. The results provide compelling evidence of a digital divide within Florida schools. The article discusses the implications of the findings for practice and future research. (Contains 7 tables and 3 figures.)

This study measures changes in teaching practices that occurred during a school year that included laptop implementation and professional development. The changes were documented through direct observations of more than 400 classrooms in more than 50 K-12 schools in 11 Florida districts. Trained observers used two valid observation instruments to measure teaching practices and technology use. The Mantel-Haentzel procedure was used to infer statistical differences between fall and spring observations. Observed percentages, means, standard deviations and effect sizes are provided. Results suggest laptop implementation and professional development can lead to increased student-centered teaching, increased tool-based teaching, and increased meaningful use of technology. This research suggests that laptop implementation coupled with professional development may have an immediate impact on instructional practices. (Contains 4 tables.)

The objective of this research was to explore how authentic technology use and teacher inquiry may coalesce during curriculum-based, technology-enhanced field experiences for prospective teachers. Thirteen inquiries were analyzed using qualitative analytic procedures (Rossman, 1998). Results suggest that teacher inquiry may serve a variety of roles during curriculum-based, technology-enhanced field experiences including (1) as a lens through which to consider student learning, (2) as a bridge between content learned in university courses and authentic practices and (3) as a light bulb for conceptual change. This study suggests the positive outcomes of merging teacher inquiry and curriculum-based, technology-enhanced field experiences warrant further study. As such, the article proposes development of a codebook or heuristic designed to provide a coordinated analysis of multiple inquiry results. (Contains 5 tables and 2 figures.)

Recent research as well as local, state, and national mandates promote an increased role of technology in teaching and learning. In response to this call, K-12 institutions and colleges of education are faced with preparing current and future teachers to teach with technology. The current models of inservice and preservice teacher preparation with technology, although sometimes effective in developing technology skills, often fail to address numerous other issues related to integrating technology into the curriculum. One solution to these issues is for schools and universities to collaborate and improve teacher preparation simultaneously. This paper discusses issues with current technology and teacher preparation models, reasons for school-university collaborations, various models of school-university collaborations, and the positive results of these collaborations. This paper also provides a much needed categorization system that enables teacher educators to explore matters related to various types of school-university collaborations as well as acts as a catalyst for conversation and a tool for developing collaboration models that work in a local context. (Contains 1 table.)

The purpose of this research was to design and test a model of classroom technology integration in the context of K-12 schools. The proposed multilevel path analysis model includes teacher, contextual, and school related variables on a teacher's use of technology and confidence and comfort using technology as mediators of classroom technology integration. Data were collected from 1235 K-12 teachers, who were located in 336 schools in 41 districts across the state of Florida. The results suggest that a teacher's experience with technology significantly influenced his or her classroom technology integration. Access to technology in classrooms and the availability of quality technology support were related to classroom technology integration. In addition, how frequently a teacher uses technology and his or her confidence and comfort using technology were mediators for classroom technology integration. These results provide preliminary evidence that the proposed model is both useful and relevant in explaining classroom technology integration in K-12 schools.

The purpose of this article is to explore validity evidence and appropriate uses of the revised Technology Uses and Perceptions Survey (TUPS) designed to measure in-service teacher perspectives about technology integration in K-12 schools and classrooms. The revised TUPS measures 10 domains, including Access and Support; Preparation of Technology Use; Perceptions of Professional Development; Perceptions of Technology Use; Confidence and Comfort Using Technology; Technology Integration; Teacher Use of Technology; Student Use of Technology; Perceived Technology Skills; and Technology Usefulness. We first provide a review of the literature supporting the design of the revised TUPS. We collected data from N = 1,376 teachers from one medium-sized school district in the state of Florida and conducted a variety of psychometric analyses. We performed internal structure analysis, correlation analysis, and factor analysis with these data. The results demonstrate that data collected from the TUPS are best used as descriptive, granular information about reported behaviors and perceptions related to technology, rather than treated as a series of 10 scales. These findings have implications for the appropriate uses of the TUPS.

The University of Florida offers an online professional practice Ed.D. focused on Educational Technology. Twenty-three students have completed professional practice dissertations and graduated since the program's inception in 2008. The purpose of this article is to share what these dissertations have looked like and to begin a dialogue about professional practice dissertations completed in online educational technology programs. Specifically, we (1) provide an overview of different ways professional practice Ed.D. dissertations are structured, (2) share guiding principles for professional practice dissertations in our Ed.D. program, (3) analyze the ways in which these guiding principles played out in the dissertations and (4) discuss the implications of our analysis for our program and for other online professional practice programs in Educational Technology.

The purpose of this study was to examine the ways teachers enact technological, pedagogical and content practices in math and science lessons and to document the change with teachers involved in a year-long technology integration initiative. Six hundred seventy-two lessons were analyzed in this research using Technological, Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPCK) (Mirshra & Koehler, 2006) as a framework to explore the technology integration practices of math and science teachers as evidenced through lesson plans submitted at the beginning and end of a one-year technology integration effort. Results demonstrate math and science teachers use a wide array of technologies in their classroom practices, but mostly presentation software and Internet browsers. Most lesson plans could be characterized as low level cognitive demand, in which students had to recall or remember factual information. Though teachers demonstrated growth over the year, most lesson plans were at a lower level of classroom technology integration. These findings have several implications for both theory and practice. A complete discussion is provided.

The purpose of this research was to examine the effects of teachers' characteristics, school characteristics, and contextual characteristics on classroom technology integration and teacher use of technology as mediators of student use of technology. A research-based path model was designed and tested based on data gathered from 732 teachers from 17 school districts and 107 different schools in the state of Florida. Results show that a teacher's level of education and experience teaching with technology positively and significantly influence his/her use of technology. Teacher use of technology strongly and positively explains classroom technology integration and student use of technology. Further, how a teacher integrates technology into the classroom explains how frequently students use technology in a school setting. The findings provided significant evidence that the path model is useful in explaining factors affecting student use of technology and the relationships among the factors. (Contains 6 tables and 2 figures.)

This article examines how laptop computing technology, teacher professional development, and systematic support resulted in changed teaching practices and increased student achievement in 47 K-12 schools in 11 Florida school districts. The overview of a large-scale study documents the type and magnitude of change in student-centered teaching, technology tool-based teaching, and student learning that were observed in 440 classrooms over the course of a school year. By employing multiple observations in all schools, document analysis, interviews, and teacher inquiry, an account of the conditions, processes, and consequences (Hall, 1995) of laptop computing was generated. Based on the analysis of data, laptop computing had a positive impact across districts, particularly in regard to changes in teaching practices. Increases in student achievement were also demonstrated across districts. This study calls attention to systemic issues associated with successful laptop implementation and provides implications for statewide laptop programs. (Contains 4 figures and 2 tables.)

The Exploring Florida Science project goals were: (1) increasing content knowledge of secondary science teachers, specifically in topics that are important to the future of the state, and (2) providing secondary science students with digital media for use in project-based learning. A team of instructional designers, educators, scientists, web designers and teacher educators designed an online professional development environment. Needs analysis included identification of the high incidence topics on the state science achievement test and topics of socio-scientific importance in the state. Development followed tenets of design-based research, and was guided by E-Learning for Educators standards and evaluated for content, pedagogy and usability using rubrics based on established guidelines. This paper details design, development, and evaluation frameworks, and summarizes pilot testing outcomes.

This article focuses on an evaluation of the Microsoft Peer Coaching (MPC) program in Florida, USA. First, the design of the MPC materials was analyzed using characteristics of exemplary peer coaching and technology integration models. Second, facilitators (n = 14) and coaches (n = 46) who attended the MPC workshops in Florida were surveyed relative to their attitudes towards technology and perceptions of professional development. The coaches (peer mentors) and facilitators (district support personnel) consisted of teachers and district-level supervisors from several Florida school districts. Third, the facilitators and coaches were interviewed about perceived benefits and limitations of the MPC program. Analysis of the data suggests that the program design is in close alignment with the literature on exemplary peer coaching. However, the process of peer coaching frequently takes precedence over technology integration. Most of the coaches and facilitators who attended the workshops were enthusiastic about the peer coaching concept and had positive attitudes about the integration of technology. However, the perpetual issues of adequate time and resources for the implementation of peer coaching and the integration of technology in K-12 classrooms were recurring themes. (Contains 5 tables.)

Many faculty make the mistake of trying to start with an online degree. Administration, administrative policies and even other faculty are not necessarily ready for completely online programs. Large-scale programs are risky in the eyes of administration. Putting a program online will often involve decisions at multiple levels, months for business plan development and long-term marketing schemes to determine if there is an audience for such a program. By the time approval is given, the faculty members responsible for the initiative could be too worn out to follow through with the plan. Simply starting with a course or a certificate provides a less-risky approach for administration. It allows other faculty to teach a course or two to see the possibility and pedagogical opportunities with online learning and it gives time to work out the bugs associated with changing hundred-year-old institutional policies (e.g., differentiating between in-state and out-of-state students, something that is not necessarily applicable online). In this article, the authors provide suggestions for bottom-up design of online programs and discuss the technical, administrative, curricular and academic issues surrounding online education and online program development.

The Unified Elementary ProTeach (Professional Teacher; http://www.coe.ufl.edu/school/proteach/index.html) program at the University of Florida (UF) prepares teachers with a dual emphasis in elementary education and mild disabilities. All graduates are also prepared to work with students who are English speakers of other languages (ESOL). The program is designed to ensure that teacher education students accept responsibility for the learning of all children and requires that they develop appropriate inclusive pedagogy to facilitate student learning and master content knowledge needed for instruction. There are several advantages to intertwining technology-specific and general teacher education standards. First, content and methods faculty are enabled to see technology as an integral component of their courses rather than as an add-on to the benchmarks and standards to which they are already required to teach. Second, educational technology faculty members are required to intertwine technology-specific standards with more general teacher education standards to ensure that stand-alone technology courses do not favor technical skills at the expense of classroom applications. Finally, it portrays to students that technology is one of many tools and strategies with which they must become proficient in order to become successful educators.

This article describes successes and challenges of the first implementation of an online Ed.D. program that impacted students' professional growth and practice. Based on an analysis of student survey comments, student interviews, and faculty interviews at the end of the first year, program improvements were made for future cohorts. Lessons learned and best practices shared in this article will be useful to other institutions embarking on and engaged in online programs and professional practice degrees. (Contains 3 tables.)

The purpose of this longitudinal research is to document the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) integration patterns in the state of Florida in relation to the Socio-Economic Status (SES) and school type (Elementary, Middle, and High Schools). This research is characterized by the Levels of Digital Divide in Schools model presented by Hohlfeld, Ritzhaupt, Barron, and Kemker (2008). We use seven years of secondary data collected by the Florida Department of Education: Technology Resource Inventory (TRI), and the percentage of students on Free-and-Reduced Lunch as a proxy for SES. The current study uses descriptive statistics, internal consistency reliability, exploratory factor analysis, and longitudinal multi-level models to examine the trends in ICT integration in the state of Florida by SES (High and Low) in each school type (Elementary, Middle, and High) over the seven-year period. Our results suggest that Florida has improved on several indicators related to the digital divide; however, some important differences still exist. For instance, Low-SES students generally use software more for computer-directed activities such as drill and practice or remedial work, while their High-SES counterparts are using software more for student-controlled activities such as creating with or communicating through technology. We discuss our findings in relation to the three-level model presented by Hohlfeld et al. (2008) and make recommendations to relevant stakeholders within the community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]