New Online Course Innovating Instruction: Reimagining Teaching with Technology Set to Launch May 24

On May 24, 2017, Teachers College, Columbia University and the Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning will launch a new MOOC (massive open online course) Innovating Instruction: Reimagining Teaching with Technology on the edX platform. The course is free and open to all.

This interactive MOOC is designed to prepare K-12 educators to integrate technology through the use of a design-based process. Led by Professor Ellen Meier at Teachers College, the course explores different aspects of the changing landscape of education, including technology, design thinking and student assessment. “This MOOC will help you frame what you can do in your classroom to start integrating technology in ways that put students at the center of the learning process,” said Meier.

Meier is the Director and Co-Founder of the Center for Technology and School Change and a faculty member in the Department of Mathematics, Science, and Technology at Teachers College, Columbia University. She is also Co-Chair of the University of the State of New York Council on Technology Policy and Practice, a panel appointed by the Regents to examine technology use in public schools, libraries, museums and other similar state agencies.

She began her career as a teacher in a federal experimental school program in Minnesota with an interest in school reform and equity, and soon pursued school change issues more broadly in a succession of regional and national responsibilities. Her research is focused on the emerging role of technology in creating engaging learning environments, particularly for urban students. The Center has worked with scores of schools and hundreds of teachers to identify the factors that affect meaningful use of technology. The resulting Innovating Instruction model is currently funded by the National Science Foundation. Meier has also worked with educators in Ghana, Bulgaria, Mexico and Chile.

She holds an Ed.D. in Leadership and Organization from Teachers College, Columbia University, an M.A. in Educational Administration from the University of Minnesota, and a B.A. in English Education from the University of Iowa.

Meier’s course will consist of video lectures, expert interviews, online discussions, activities for exploration and application, supplemental resources for further exploration of the topics, and interactive assessments.

As a part of the White House ConnectED Initiative, U.S. teachers and students in high-need schools who participate in the Innovating Instruction: Reimagining Teaching with Technology course will be eligible for free Verified Certificates. This is one of many free professional development and Advanced Placement® level courses that edX and its partner institutions are providing for teachers and students in high-need schools.

U.S. teachers and students in high-need schools who are interested in receiving free Verified Certificates as part of the ConnectED Initiative, please email info@edx.org with the subject line “ConnectED.” Include your full name, city, state, zip code and the course name. You will be contacted by a member of the edX support team who will provide with code to pursue to a Verified Certificate free of charge, up until the Verified Upgrade deadline. Learn more about the White House ConnectED Initiative.

Visit TeachersCollegeX to register for Innovating Instruction: Reimagining Teaching with Technology and to keep informed about upcoming MOOC releases from Columbia. Register today!