Integrating Technologies in the Foreign Language Classroom
August 8-16, 2001

On Wednesday, August 8, 2001, Fourteen K-12 foreign language teachers and methods professors from across the U.S. arrived on the Iowa State University campus for the 2001 New Technologies Institute. The institute was sponsored by the National K-12 Foreign Language Resource Center and was held in a technology laboratory of the Center for Teaching and Learning in Technology (CTLT) in the College of Education.

Thursday, August 9, 2001
Friday, August 10, 2001
Saturday, August 11, 2001
Sunday, August 12, 2001
Monday, August 13, 2001
Tuesday, August 14, 2001
Wednesday, August 15, 2001

K-8 Foreign Language: Leading the Way with Teacher Preparation

This institute included two interacting strands for K-12 foreign language teachers and teacher educators that are designed to enhance effective technology-based instructional practices in K-12 foreign language classrooms. Institute leaders encouraged partnerships between the participating K-12 teachers and teacher educators and did follow-up via e-mail to assist participants in implementing and refining technology-enhanced lessons and courses developed in the institute

July 16-26, 2001

The 2001 Summer Institute "K-8 Foreign Language: Leading the Way with Teacher Preparation" took place, July 16-26.

Tuesday, July 17, 2001
Wednesday, July 18, 2001
Thursday, July 19, 2001
Friday, July 20, 2001
Saturday, July 21, 2001
Monday, July 23, 2001
Tueday, July 24, 2001
Wednesday, July 25, 2001
Thursday, July 26, 2001

K-12 Foreign Language Teachers
K-12 foreign language teachers who were technology users and who wanted to participate in intensive development experiences and reflection on the role of technology in the classroom were encouraged to attend this institute. In this institute participants:

• enhanced their skills with hardware applications such as color-scanners, digital cameras, CD-ROM drives, multimedia stations, storage solutions, and presentation tools;
• explored new uses of authoring programs to design and develop multimedia lessons that incorporate innovative, student-centered activities;
• examined new uses of telecommunications to improve student language skills and cultural understanding using such tools as electronic mail, Internet, listservs, and video conferencing;
• learned to design effective Web pages;
• examined and evaluated the newest equipment and recent developments in educational technologies; and
• reflected on instructional trends in a high-tech distance learning classroom.
  

Participants had the opportunity to share technology-integrated classroom teaching successes and challenges with teacher educators and explore with them the collaborative design of technology-based experiences for K-12 students and pre-service teachers that would lead to more effective uses of technology in the K-12 foreign language classroom. Together with teacher educators participants considered electronic portfolio development for the methods professor, the pre-service teacher, and the K-12 student. Participants also worked work closely with the teacher educators to view and evaluate technology-based K-12 lessons on the NFLRC Web site and others.

Teacher Educators
Teacher educators at colleges and universities who worked with pre-service foreign language teachers and who wanted to effectively integrate technology into their teacher preparation program were encouraged to attend this institute. In this institute participants:

• built skills in the use of hardware, software, technology-based tools, telecommunications, the Internet, and distance education;
• learned to integrate technology into their current methods course through teaching strategies and content; and
• learned to integrate technology into the strategies and content pre-service teachers would use with K-12 foreign language students.
  

Working with K-12 teachers, participants experienced lessons from the viewpoint of the student (pre-service teacher and K-12 student), reflected on and discussed strategies for maximizing the development of students’ technology skills (pre-service teacher and K-12 student), and discussed strategies for the implementation of a technology-enhanced methods course at their own institution. They examined, evaluated, and discussed sample syllabi that integrated technology in light of national student standards for foreign languages, NBPTS, and the ISTE NETS standards. Participants explored in depth strategies for integrating technology into their methods course and created sample lessons to share and discuss in small and/or large groups.

Attendance was limited to K-12 foreign language teachers and teacher educators at institutions of higher education who prepare pre-service and in-service foreign language teachers.