Archives: November, 2008

LEARN NC, in collaboration with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, and with funding from the North Carolina General Assembly, is proud to offer an online instructor preparation program designed for world language teachers. This program provides free professional development for licensed North Carolina world language teachers to either become or improve their understanding and skills for teaching a world language online.

The program consists of free registration for three online courses that must be taken in the following sequence:

1. Teaching Online Courses — A six-week, online professional development course to introduce the educator to online pedagogy
2. Facilitating Online Collaboration — A three week, online professional development course focused on facilitating student discussion and engagement
3. Teaching World Languages Online — A six-week, online professional development course focused on cultivating a student-centered language learning environment online

Interested applicants should apply as soon as possible to in order to complete the first two courses in the sequence prior to the final course that begins on April 29, 2009. Potential applicants should carefully read the following details of the program prior to submission of the program application. Please submit your completed application before December 31, 2008 January 31, 2009 to Dr. Bobby Hobgood.

Program Goal

Increase student options for studying a world language by preparing world language teachers to teach online.

Program Benefits

• Free registration for all three courses
• Develop an understanding of online pedagogy
• Learn techniques for effective online teaching
• Develop teaching techniques that transfer to the face-to-face classroom
• Introduction to community of online language teachers
• Program stipend upon successful completion of all three courses

Program Requirements

• North Carolina residency status
• Certification in foreign language
• Statement of intent to teach a world language online (see application)
• Completed application

Expectations

Participants are expected to complete all courses in preparation for teaching a world language online through the North Carolina Virtual Public Schools. Failure to complete the program requires participant to pay for all completed prerequisite courses up to the point of withdrawal.

How to apply

Applicants must complete and submit the application prior to admission into the program. Upon acceptance, registration for all three courses will be waived. Participants cannot be reimbursed for any coursework complete prior to acceptance into the program.

Check out the powerful new professional materials posted by the Center for Social Media at American University. The Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Media Literacy Education is available for download in .pdf format, and there is a six minute video introduction to understanding fair use in today’s media-rich environment that may clarify misconceptions and reassure teachers about their rights (and their students’ rights) to employ all sorts of media in classroom teaching and learning.

http://www.centerforsocialmedia.org/resources/publications/code_for_media_literacy_education/

Thanks to Gerry Solomon, Media Specialist to North Carolina, for bringing this to our attention via the North Carolina School Library Media Association listserv.