December 8, 2015
Drs. Williams and King Give Virtual Presentations at iCERi 2015
Dr. Jennifer B. Williams (Associate Professor, Special Education) and Dr. Laura H. King (Associate Professor, Special Education) recently completed two virtual presentations at the International Conference of Education, Research, and Innovation (ICERI) held in Seville, Spain on November 16-18, 2015.
The first presentation, Using Multiple Means of Assessment on Pre-service Teacher Learning to Drive Data Based Curricular Change, highlighted the Special Education program area’s cyclical approach to program evaluation through data collected in each required course in the Special Education plan of study. Data is collected from multiple means of assessment through course assignments which are collected through Taskstream; program level discussions aligned with stated assessment outcomes via Tracdat then take place to allow for full faculty engagement in sharing data across the program. This cyclical approach to assessment based program evaluation allows for a strong foundation of data based decisions regarding pedagogy, content, and assessment (both formative and summative).
The second presentation, Cultivating Assistive Technology Expertise in Pre-Service Teachers through a Professional Development Model, highlighted the infusion of required professional development sessions on a variety of assistive technology topics and products into the Special Education course of study. Special education teacher candidates submit documentation of completion of all required sessions in their culminating special education technology course. They build and demonstrate leadership characteristics through the development of a capstone presentation on assistive technology. These presentations are offered to different audiences and allow candidates to build leadership capacity through experiences of a professional conference.