CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – More than 300 Illinois teachers and 50 administrators are going to school this summer, the first of them next week, to upgrade their technology and teaching skills at 11 sites throughout the state.
The educators are taking advantage of a training program called “A Moveable Feast,” now in its seventh year. Organized by the College of Education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the program has trained more than 2,000 Illinois educators.
Two-day training institutes for school administrators will be held June 7-8 at Mount Vernon Primary Center, June 10-11 at Bloomington High School, and June 28-29 at Roselle Middle School. The institutes will include sessions on spreadsheet, presentation and publishing software, as well as optional sessions on the use of handheld computers.
A weeklong institute for teachers will run the week of June 14-18 at Bloomington, Danville High School, Quincy High School, Roselle, St. Joseph-Ogden High School, Urbana High School, Woodlawn High School (near Mount Vernon), and the College of Education in Champaign.
The institute also will be offered the week of June 28-July 2 at Bloomington and the College of Education, and the week of July 5-9 at Belvidere High School, Danville, Mount Vernon, Pekin High School, Roselle and Urbana.
Teachers participating in the “Moveable Feast” will spend the week improving their skills with productivity, Web and multimedia resources and tools, said Evangeline Pianfetti, director of the college’s Office of Educational Technology, which runs the program. In particular, they will focus on learning how to integrate technology into classes, and doing so in alignment with Illinois state learning standards, national technology standards and Engaged Learning standards.
Institutional sponsors for the “Moveable Feast” are the university, school districts and the Illinois Principals Association. The major corporate sponsor is Microsoft Corp., which last year named the “Moveable Feast” a Model Professional Development Program. Additional sponsorships are provided by Apple Computer Inc., FTC Publishing, Movieworks, Inspiration Software Inc. and United Streaming. The companies donate software for the trainings and for participants to take with them after the sessions. For more information call (217) 244-7005.
