I am Dr. Punya Mishra, Director of the MAET program at Michigan State University. As we all know, technology is changing at an amazing pace. These changes offer great possibilities but also challenges to us as educators.

Our MAET program, housed in one of the highest ranked colleges of Education, offers teachers a conceptually grounded, hands-on experience with teaching and learning with technology. The emphasis is not just on learning “cool tools” (though that does happen) but rather on developing transformational and creative approaches to teaching subject matter in real contexts. All this is done in an intense but engaging series of experiences led by a select team of instructors who seek to model and scaffold similar approaches in the summer cohort.

I am particularly proud of the East Lansing summer program where you will take classes that will apply towards your master’s degree in Educational Technology.  After completing the Educational Technology Certificate Program, students apply to the Master’s program to join the East Lansing summer cohort.

This hybrid version of the program combines the power of working together in a summer cohort with the flexibility of completing courses during the academic year. Participants come together for two weeks of face-to-face on-campus in East Lansing from June 17 – July 1, 2009 and then meet online from July 2 – July 29. On July 30, 2009 students will reconvene on campus. This makes for a unique and intense experience to work, learn and collaborate with each other and the instructors in a face-to-face setting that is hard to duplicate. Our graduates speak highly of this experience.

We know you have many choices available to you today. Our goal, here at the MAET program, is to offer you a master’s program that help develop ways of thinking and doing that will stand you in good stead as a professional in the years to come.

You can find application materials at

http://edutech.msu.edu/apply_masters.html.

For more information, feel free to contact me or Leigh Graves Wolf at gravesle@msu.edu and check out our social networks where you can interact with current students and alumni:

MACUL Space –
http://maculspace.ning.com/group/msuedutech

Facebook –
http://msu.facebook.com/group.php?gid=7822384107

Applications are due soon and we would be very honored to have you as a member of the 2009 summer cohort.

Do let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely

~ punya mishra

Our courses are taught by an outstanding team of MSU adjunct faculty, many of whom are:

• K-12 classroom teachers themselves who have experience using educational technology in the classroom
• Graduates from our certificate program
• Exceptionally skilled in educational technology
• Winners of awards such as technology Teacher of the Year from the Michigan Association of Computer-Related Technology Users in Learning (MACUL) and the national award of the International Society for Technology in Education

This quarter’s instructor spotlight is . . .

Michelle Hart, Instructor of MSU Educational Technology Certificate Program, Technical Specialist, Ann Arbor Public Schools.

Michelle Hart has worked as a technical specialist and technical assistant for Ann Arbor Public schools since 1996.  Although much of her job is working with wiring and hardware, her first love is working with teachers and students in the classroom. She models lessons for teachers who might not know how to present technology to students, offers teacher training and professional development, actively participates on technology committees in each of her buildings and has been involved in three major technology bond rollouts for the Ann Arbor Schools. She is enthusiastic and committed to using technology in the classroom.

Before moving to Ann Arbor, Michelle spent time as a middle and high school language arts teacher in Minnesota and Wisconsin. When she moved to Michigan she spent time as a long term sub and when the opportunity came up to work with teachers and technology she jumped at the chance.  She has been a member of MACUL and is currently a member of one of her school’s MI Champions Team, a state grant whose purpose is to design and deliver a statewide model for professional development that will create the skill set necessary for building based “Technology Integration Champions” at the local level.

Michelle received her bachelor’s degree from University of Minnesota in Secondary Education. She went on to pursue her education and received a Masters Degree in Educational Technology from Michigan State University in 2006.

In her free time, Michelle enjoys spending time outdoors, reading, working with her dogs and traveling.  She has two college age children, one of them is currently attending Michigan State.  Go Spartans!