Instructional Technology Specialist Certification Programs in Pennsylvania: A Summary Report

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Instructional Technology Specialist Certification
Programs in Pennsylvania A Summary Report

• Susan Miller Ph.D.
• Glenn Snelbecker Ph.D.
• Ian Cohen Ed.M.
• Robert Zheng Ph.D.
• Claudia Smarkola Ph.D.

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Purpose

• 1. What are the nature and scope of
  instructional technology specialist certification
  programs?
• 2. To what extent do faculty members
• indicate that their programs address
• competencies and certification standards?
• 3. Are there alternative routes to certification
  that
• can be met through a students demonstration
  
• of professional competencies?

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Purpose

• 4. What delivery modes are available to
• students (e.g., online courses)?
• 5. What assessments are used to measure
• instructional technology specialist
  competencies?
• 6. What is the nature of the curriculum for
  instructional technology specialist certification
  programs?

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Method

• 22 programs identified from PDE
• website.
• -One program in hiatus.

• 13/21 programs participate in the study.
• 3. Mailed instrument to programs The Survey
  of Pennsylvania Graduate Instructional Technology
  Programs.

• Follow-up phone interview for data
• verification.

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Demographics

• Enrollment
• Five under 5,000
• Five 5,000-9,999
• One 10,000-14,999
• One over 30,000
• Location 4 urban, 5 suburban, 3 rural
• Number of faculty mean (range)
• Tenured 2.9 (1-7)
• Non-tenured .48 (0-2)
• Adjunct 2.7 (0.00-7)

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Before and After

• Students occupational background prior to
  instructional technology degree program
• 74.8 K-12
• 5.2 Higher education
• 9.5 Industry
• 10.5 Other

• Students occupation after degree completion
• 76.8 K-12
• 6.4 Higher education
• 8.5 Industry
• 8.3 Other

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Certification Only Programs

• Number of programs 9/13
• Credits
• Mean 23.25
• Maximum 30
• Minimum 15
• Number of students
• Mean 23.29
• Maximum 55
• Minimum 5

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Masters with Certification

• Number of programs 10/13
• Credits
• Mean 34.2
• Maximum 42
• Minimum 30
• Number of students
• Mean 41.25
• Maximum 140
• Minimum 8

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Standards That Facilitated the Design of the
Curriculum
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Online Availability

• Number of programs that offer some courses
  entirely online 8/13
• Number of programs that offer online supplements
  for some of their courses 10/13

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Life Experience Exemptions

• Number of programs that offer life experience
  exemptions 10/13
• Maximum number of courses for exemption
• 6 programs with a maximum of 2 courses
• 1 program with a maximum of 1 course
• The other 3 programs did not indicate the
  maximum.

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Assessment of Competencies

• Number of programs that use portfolios 11/12
• Number of programs that use comprehensive
  examinations 1/12
• Other 9/12
• (e.g., presentations, projects, exams,
  internship/practicum evaluation, tracking form,
  internship log, written evaluation by faculty)

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Curriculum Analysis

• Curriculum Hierarchy
• Level 1. Discipline Instructional Technology
• Level 2. Area Theory, Application, and Technical
• Level 3. Ten Categories
• Level 4. Forty Survey Topics

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Curriculum Analysis

• Forty topics were identified through reviews of
  the
• literature and courses offered in IT programs
  that
• provided the basis for Level 4.
• The next step was to organize the initial 40
  curricular
• topics (survey items) into 10 categories.
• Four independent raters then classified these 10
• categories into three general curriculum areas
  theory, application, and technical.

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Theory

• Research and Measurement
• Qualitative research
• Quantitative methods
• Program evaluation
• Tests and measurement
• Learning Theory
• Curriculum development issues
• Instructional theories and principles
• Learning theories
• Adult Learning
• Adult learning theories and principles
• Professional staff development
• IT Foundations
• Current IT practices
• IT definitions
• IT history
• Professional competencies

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Applications

• IT Design
• Instructional design models
• Instructional product development
• System evaluation procedures
• Technology Uses
• Assistive technology
• Educational and social policy
• Evaluation of educational materials
• Technology curriculum integration
• Distance Education
• Distance education
• Distributive learning
• IT Management
• Change theory and organizational development
• Ethics
• Managing (software, hardware, facilities)

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Technical

• Media
• Animation
• Audio production
• Authoring systems
• Desktop publishing
• Digital technologies
• Graphics
• Programming
• Video production
• Web/hypermedia authoring
• Networking
• Hardware concepts
• Operating systems
• Performance analysis
• Telecommunications concepts
• Troubleshooting

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Curriculum Comparison
Certification Only Masters plus
Certification
Applications
Applications
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Certification Only Programs (N8)
Masters with Certification Programs (N9)
Theory Mean (Std) 32 (10) Min 20 Max
50 Applications Mean (Std) 43 (15) Min
23 Max 75 Technical Mean (Std) 25
(19) Min 0 Max 51
Theory Mean (Std) 34 (9) Min 18 Max
50 Applications Mean (Std) 38 (6) Min
31 Max 46 Technical Mean (Std) 28
(11) Min 10 Max 51
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Certification Only Theory
Masters with Certification Theory

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Certification Only Applications
Masters with Certification Applications
22
Certification Only Technical
Masters with Certification Technical
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Comparison to the National Study
PA Certification Only
National Study 44 Masters Programs from
Extensive-Level Institutions
Technical
Theory
Technical
Theory
Applications
PA Masters with Certification
Technical
Theory
Applications
Applications
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Conclusions

• Nine programs offer a certification only option,
  nine programs offer a Masters with certification
  option, and five offer both options.
• The certification only option ranged from 15 to
  30 credits (average of 23 credits). The Masters
  with certification option ranged from 30 to 42
  credits (average of 43 credits).
• Eleven programs adhere to the International
  Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) (NCATE
  approved) standards in addition to the
  Pennsylvania Department of Education Guidelines.

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Conclusions 2

• There is a similar curriculum emphasis for
  certification only and Masters with
  certification programs with certification only
  programs having a slightly greater emphasis in
  applications.
• Both certification only and Masters with
  certification programs have the same pattern of
  curriculum emphasis applications gttheory gt
  technical.
• Pennsylvania certification programs have a
  greater emphasis in applications and a lesser
  emphasis in technical areas than national
  Masters programs from extensive-level
  institutions.