Albion College Education Department
Digital Portfolio Project
The Chronicles of Technology Aided Teaching
What is COATT? How can I earn the M-COATT?
The M-COATT is a special technology certification which will be awarded for the first time ever to Michigan student teachers graduating this year. It is intended to allow you to demonstrate your technology-based skills to potential employers, especially those who value the use of technology in the classroom and wish to give you a chance to put your skills into practice. It is based upon the 7th Entry-Level Standard for Michigan Teachers, adopted by the State Board of Education in June, 1998. This state standard is meant to insure that all student teachers in Michigan meet a minimum standard in the use of technology. However, the M-COATT standard is a higher one than that of the state. You will need to show that superior achievement in three of the seven areas outlined, two of which should come from items a), c) or e). For some background information on the M-COATT, please see the press release from the office of Sen. Carl Levin, D-MI, announcing the formation of the consortium and the credential, and the nice writeup in The Battle Creek Enquirer (it's in Acrobat format) featuring quotes from Albion Public Schools' Superintendent Judy Dobbert and elementary education student ('00) Caroline Scott.
The M-COATT will be awarded for a web-accessible packet which you create that is specifically geared towards your experiences teaching in the classroom with academic technology. The emphasis should be on good teaching (rather than good technology), and on units or projects that span several days. You can think of this as a subsection of the portfolio that is described above; if you have organized it according to the format of "here is the standard, and this demonstrates how I met the standard" then you will greatly mitigate any redundant work. The reviewers will expect to take no more than twenty minutes or so to review what you have, so you are advised to be streamlined in your presentation and make generous use of links. Apart from any classroom work, it is our guess that you will have to spend about ten hours of work to complete your submission; however, your mileage may vary.
How will I know what to put on my portfolio? How would someone assess it?
As an Albion education student, what must I do to apply (application deadline is January 14, 2000)?
What web resources or books can I use or look at to help me get started?