I decided to begin a blog (finally, I know) with high hopes that I may actually find a tool that can help me centralize and share my ideas, thoughts, resources and artifacts. I’ve had a personal/professional web site for years which does a relatively good job of presenting my public face (http://edtech.boisestate.edu/krice), but websites are static by nature. I’m looking forward to a more dynamic contribution and distribution of knowledge and information about my two passions: educational technology and K-12 online learning. Posts might include personal accounts of my research activities, resources that I collect from various organizations, political or social commentary, and free form writing in order to play with ideas floating around in my head.
About Me
The potential of technology to change our lives has always been my passion. We began our relationship (technology and I) many years ago when I earned an Asociate degree in data processing. Programming was my life! But when I decided to become a teacher, that relationship evolved into a lasting love affair. In a perfect world, I would be exactly where I am right now, working in an innovative field with similarly minded faculty in the Department of Educational Technology at Boise State University where I get to combine my passion for technology with my love of teaching (and learning).
Find me…
TeacherStream: http://teacherstream.org
Twitter: kerryrice@twitter.com
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/kerryrice
Slideshare: http://www.slideshare.net/krice100
Diigo: http://www.diigo.com/user/krice100
EDTECH: http://edtech.boisestate.edu/web/faculty.htm
Website: http://edtech.boisestate.edu/krice
Bio
Official: Kerry Rice is an Associate Professor and Chair in the Department of Educational Technology at Boise State University. She has seven years experience teaching middle school math and science, and over 12 years experience teaching undergraduate and online graduate courses including: Integrating Technology in the Classroom Curriculum, Theoretical Foundations of Educational Technology, Introduction to K-12 Online Teaching, Advanced Online Teaching Methods, and Technology Supported Project Based Learning. Her research centers on professional development of K-12 online teachers and the development of an educational data mining model investigating the impact of online teacher PD, course design, and instructional strategies on student outcomes in online learning environments. She is the author of “Making the Move to K-12 Online Teaching: Research-Based Strategies and Practices” to be published in 2011 by Pearson Education.
Less Official: As an advocate for reform in public education, my passion and scholarship center on policy, practice and research in the field of K-12 online education. I believe that online instruction offers a unique perspective from which to view, assess and ultimately transform traditional educational systems. Online instruction is not only transformative, it is also an equalizer for students who lack access to quality educational experiences. My scholarship seeks to define and identify best practices in online education and ultimately those qualities that can transform educational experiences for all learners.
As a researcher I am interested in what constitutes best practice in K-12 online teaching and thus the development of effective methods for assessing the quality of online teaching. In this vein I have been involved in scholarly pursuits which involve the development of an evaluation instrument for assessing quality online teaching (ACOT) in which I co-authored a chapter in the The Handbook of Research on New Media Literacy at the K-12 Level: Issues and Challenges (2009), published by IGI Global and edited by Leo Tan Wee Hin and R. Subramaniam. As a teacher educator, I am inherently interested in the professional development of online teachers. I have been the lead author for Going Virtual! series of national research studies investigating professional development of K-12 online teachers. Educational policy and school reform efforts round out my repertoire and in this vein I have been a member of the Idaho Department of Education K-12 Online Endorsement Committee and chaired a task force to develop K-12 Online Teaching Standards.
Although my very early experiences with teaching in public schools and at the university involved face-to-face instruction, during my academic career at Boise State, I have moved completely to online instruction. This shift in interface, as well as my increased exploration of the pedagogical aspects of effective instruction, has resulted in a philosophical shift in my thoughts about education in general. My philosophy of teaching reflects the belief that learners should be actively engaged with the content, with the instructor, and with peers in collaborative knowledge construction and inquiry. Continued advancement in emerging technologies has allowed me take advantage of collaborative Web 2.0 tools in my teaching and to experiment with strategies which allow learners more freedom and flexibility to explore authentic and meaningful learning experiences.
